Upholding the Clean Water Rule Through Stories from our Supporters

Upholding the Clean Water Rule

Through Stories from our Supporters

DAY OF ACTION TOOLKIT

For Thursday, October 25, 2018

If your organization cannot participate that day, then we still encourage you to find a different date to participate in October in the lead-up to federal action around the Clean Water Rule.

Purpose of this toolkit

Our communities benefit in so many ways from clean water – from clean drinking water to healthy salmon populations. But, we can’t take it for granted. The purpose of the October Day of Action is to participate in a national effort to solicit stories from our members and supporters that collectively sends a clear message to the federal administration that we value clean water and need them to back off from their efforts to dismantle the Clean Water Rule.

As background, in 2015, the Clean Water Rule restored protections for more than half of our nation’s streams and millions of acres of wetlands. More than one million Americans – including hundreds of businesses – have supported this vital protection. But now the Clean Water Rule is under attack – at the EPA, in Congress, and in the courts. As each of these decision makers consider upholding the rule, we want them to understand what you already know: clean water is vital for all Americans.

Please join us in using social media and sending an email alert to your members and supporters to ask them to add their voice to the millions of Americans who want to protect clean water. The national Clean Water campaign will share back with us all of the personal stories from Washington about the importance of clean water to respondents, so that you can then work with these supporters to share their stories locally about how they want to put public health first by keeping safeguards in place for our streams, wetlands, and drinking water.

By having multiple organizations participate, we can amplify the grassroots call for upholding the Clean Water Rule.

How your organization can participate

1. Share social media posts on your organizational Facebook, Twitter and other social channels. Simply copy and paste the suggested social media posts and visuals below, or develop your own customized posts to share out the content, using the #ProtectCleanWater hashtag.
2. Send an action alert email to your members/supporters and/or email lists to solicit their personal clean water stories. A template is included below.

Social media

That phone in your hand is a mighty advocacy tool that can activate friends and supporters, and alert policymakers that people care about this issue.

What you can do:

Copy and paste this text for social media posts on Facebook and Twitter and upload the visuals provided in the links below to boost visibility online. Use the #ProtectCleanWater hashtag.

• Got a good story? We want to hear your story about why Puget Sound is important to you and why we need to #ProtectCleanWater. Share your story: http://bit.ly/2Qx2lB9
• Why is clean water important to you? We want to share your story with elected officials to help protect rivers, wetlands and drinking water in Washington! Share your story here: http://bit.ly/2Qx2lB9
• Let’s make our voices heard! Join millions of Americans calling for federal protection of our waters. Upload a photo, use the #ProtectCleanWater hashtag, and share your stories about orcas, salmon and clean water in a new story portal. Share your story now: http://bit.ly/2Qx2lB9
• From protecting orcas and salmon to making sure we have clean drinking water, we all have reasons to care about the water around us. Share your story in a new story portal that highlights the need to safeguard water in the Puget Sound region: http://bit.ly/2Qx2lB9

Photos for posting (right click on the image to save it to your phone or desktop, otherwise click here.)

Email action alert

An email alert can provide your members and other supporters with tangible actions to help uphold the Clean Water Rule. You can adapt this email template to fit your audience.

Dear [member/audience name],

From our drinking water to healthy salmon and orca populations, clean water is something we value here in Washington state. Our organization is working with other groups across the country to uphold the 2015 Clean Water Rule which restored protections for more than half of our nation’s streams and millions of acres of wetlands. Now the Clean Water Rule is under attack – at the EPA, in Congress, and in the courts.

As each of these decision makers consider upholding the Clean Water Rule, we want them to understand what you already know: clean water is vital for all Americans. We are asking you as a supporter of [insert organization name] to add your voice to the millions of Americans who want to protect clean water. Please add your brief personal story about the importance of clean water to you here and together we will let the world know we want to put our public health first by safeguarding streams, wetlands, and drinking water!

We need your help to succeed. Here’s how you can take action:

• Share why clean water is important to you, and why you love your local waters, from the Washington coast to your local river to Puget Sound. Please take a few minutes to use your voice to protect clean water here.
• Ask your friends on social media to also share their stories on why clean water matters to them. Upload a photo, draft a short message and use the #ProtectCleanWater hashtag, and share the link to our storytelling portal.

Together we can use the power of our voices and our stories to protect clean water.

Sincerely,

[Your organization]

Want to return to the Clean Water Hub main page? Go here.