Stop Interstate 3 Talking Points
(These are suggestions only; please use your own words)

--"Interstate 3" is a bad idea in every way: It would destroy forests and
crucial watersheds, cut off wildlife habitat, and displace existing roads,
farms, homes, and businesses.

--This project would be extremely expensive. The current administration and
Congress have spent us into astronomical deficits and raised our national
debt over 7 trillion dollars. The 286 billion in the highway bill and the
billions in pork in the energy bill should all be reexamined in light of the
massive federal expenditures coming in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and
Rita.

--FHWA Guidelines specify that feasibility studies include public
participation. A proposed highway project of this magnitude should be
discussed in broad daylight and people who live here and who have an
interest in protecting the mountains should be given the opportunity to
comment and protest. The contractor who conducts the study should be
required to keep officials of all levels of government as well as citizens'
groups informed of opportunities to be involved. We feel that the Stop I-3
Coalition, which represents a broad consortium of individuals and groups,
should be given a seat on the Study Advisory Committee.

--Any of the conceivable routes for this road would have devastating impacts
on protected areas, including national forests, wilderness areas, sensitive
mountain lakes and streams, the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area and the
nationally treasured Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Huge road cuts
through mountain passes, air and water pollution from construction and
ongoing environmental impacts make "Interstate 3" completely unacceptable.

--The vaguely promised economic benefits to this area would not materialize
(See the Economic Effects of I-3  white paper under Research posted on the
website www.stopi-3.org ). The often mentioned traffic between the Port of
Savannah and the Midwest carries primarily imports. The main beneficiaries
would be the big retailers bringing in cheap imported goods from China,
India, and Latin America. If anything, the road would further undermine the
development of manufacturing jobs in the mountains and in the US, which have
already been devastated by trade agreements like NAFTA and GATT. It is
disingenuous for politicians to promise that this road would bring jobs to
the region when so many jobs have gone to places with poor roads.

--Our existing roads and infrastructure need attention; we do not need new
interstates. New roads make big money for big contractors and are status
symbols for politicians, but are incredibly destructive and do not meet our
needs in an era of rising fuel prices and changing transportation needs.
Existing roads, bridges, pipelines, railroads, etc should be made safer and
more durable and we should be looking at more energy efficient public
transportation.

--This interstate is not going to solve Atlanta's traffic problems. Higher
gas prices will be curtailing driving over the next decade or two. Atlanta
needs expanded mass transit and other creative solutions, like organized
carpooling, to its traffic problems. Putting the city's water supply at risk
by building a highway through the mountains is way too high a price to pay
for a reroute of some of Georgia's traffic.

--The cloud of nuclear traffic hangs over the proposed interstate. Tritium
for nuclear weapons is already being shipped from the Watts Bar plant in
Tennessee to the Savannah River Site and proposals for new nuclear plants
are being considered all over the Southeast. If built, Interstate 3 would
carry large amounts of dangerous nuclear materials and threaten the health
and safety of all of us.

--This interstate is unneeded and unwanted. This summers' public
informational meetings on I-3 brought out hundreds of concerned citizens
from all over the mountain region to object to the proposed interstate. In
North Carolina, Representative Taylor and Senators Dole and Burr, along with
State Senator Snow and Representative West, have expressed their
reservations. The NC DOT apparently wants no part of this road. In
Tennessee, serious air quality concerns make the idea of bringing another
interstate into the Knoxville area very problematic. In Georgia, many
individuals along with County Commissions in Habersham, Rabun and White
Counties have expressed their opposition as well as State Representative
Charles Jenkins making a speech in the Georgia Legislature opposing I-3.

--"Interstate 3" should not be built. And we as citizens should demand the
right to be part of the decision making process.