From before we are born until the time we die, we are repeatedly and regularly exposed to toxic chemicals with the potential to seriously harm our health. Toxic chemicals can be found in our homes, schools and workplaces – in products we use on a daily basis.
When legislators and government agencies make decisions, we request they consider my generation’s future and the potential of our lives, and those that will come after. A life riddled and intertwined with the threats of this heavy metal was not what our parents had in mind, yet it is what we face. We urge state and federal governments to protect us from these dangers and allow us to live our lives free of the effects of mercury and we call upon them to make decisions to ensure that our children are the first generation that is truly protected from mercury exposure.
Last year, we worked with the Keep Antibiotics Working Coalition to mobilize to phase out the practice of feeding healthy animals antibiotics. In the United States, approximately 70% of antibiotics human use are sold for use on animals. These drugs are often fed to animals that aren't sick in order to prevent disease. This routine use of antibiotics contributes to the breeding and spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. These bacteria can then travel off the farm and into our communities.
Great news from Annapolis!
Maryland is poised to become the second state in the country to ban the routine use of antibiotics in farm animals. The Keep Antibiotics Effective Act has passed through both the House of Delegates and the Senate; now one of those chambers has to fully pass its counterpart’s bill by Monday.