Invest in the EPA to Protect Our Waters

Water is essential for our existence because we use water to drink, cook, and clean, but it is also sacred within our religious spaces. Many faith communities baptize and bless people with water.

One of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) duties is to protect drinking water and prevent contamination. In 1972 the Clean Water Act gave the EPA the power to enforce pollution control programs. This is one of the ways our communities empower government to protect our health and God’s creation from industries that may be polluting our waters.

The EPA has a duty to use its resources to assess and monitor waters, and respond to dangerous contamination. The EPA monitors all public U.S. waters, from streams and lakes to our household taps. Given its vast and important responsibility, the EPA is already under-resourced. Currently, the EPA budget is at risk of being dramatically cut. The Trump Administration has proposed a whopping 30% reduction in EPA funding. With less funding, will the EPA be able to maintain the same services? From Flint to Navajoland, there are still many people across the United States without access to clean water. We need to continue to progress, not regress, especially with something as essential as water.
   
As our faith calls us to act in support of those whose cause is just, yet do not always have political power We need to pray for our communities, and also take action to ensure that we continue to watch over our water. Additionally, we ask that you act by calling your congressional representatives and urge them to protect funding for the EPA.

​Because the Creation Justice community is aware that clean, safe water cannot be taken for granted, we are making an effort to pray about water. 

Here are some examples of water prayers:

Read water prayers from Emmanuel UCC in York, PA.

Find a fact sheet about water from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.