Organizations United for the Environment (OUE) is a grassroots organization now in its fourth decade of activity. It is made up of many people from the Central Susquehanna Valley in Pennsylvania, an area in the middle of the state between Williamsport to the north and Harrisburg, the state capitol, to the south. This Valley has since the 1940s been a favorite site for various federal institutions because it is rural, centrally located, and because it lies at the juncture of two major highways.
During the past few decades, like most Americans, Central Pennsylvanians have faced growing environmental threats to their communities. Events at Love Canal and Three Mile Island are only the most prominent environmental disasters in a nation seemingly hell-bent to foul its own nest permanently. When people in the Valley have fought back against the spreading tide of poisons in the air and water, OUE has been central to their efforts. The pages on this site briefly review OUE’s history, share current and previous issues of our bi-annual newsletter, OUE Update, and contain related kinds of material. In the history recounted herein, we have paid particular attention to the years 1990-94, during which OUE fought a protracted battle with a subsidiary of Union Pacific Corporation, and its allies in the State government, to site a mammoth hazardous waste facility in the Valley. OUE members learned many things from that experience which we believe might helpfully be shared with others trying to keep their own communities healthy for living.
We invite all responses to our pages, and we especially encourage responses from those seeking to forge alliances in the struggle against environmental degradation and the attending loss of democratic rights in our society.