Diane Wilson, Fourth-Generation Shrimper, Protests Plastic Pollution – Goldman Environmental Prize Winner from Texas Speaks in Maine
November 13, 2023 |
Diane Wilson, an acclaimed author, fisherwoman and activist arrives in Maine today to speak out against petrochemical plastic pollution at two Maine events, just as the next round of negotiations on a Global Plastics Treaty to end plastic pollution in Nairobi, Kenya.
Wilson is the director and founder of Calhoun County Resource Watch and the executive director of San Antonio Bay Estuarine Waterkeeper. As a lifelong shrimper and fourth generation fisherwoman, after watching the local fisheries collapse, she became determined to protect the region from plastic pollution and restore the devastated marine ecosystem.
Wilson won the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize for North America in 2023 for securing a $50 million fine against Formosa Plastics for its discharge of plastic pellets into Lavaca Bay on the Texas Gulf Coast, the largest Clean Water Act penalty ever awarded.
Diane Wilson is currently on the 14th-day of a hunger strike calling on Formosa Plastics to compensate Vietnamese fishermen who have been harmed by the company’s toxic pollution.
“We join Diane Wilson, a true environmental health hero, in calling for a global treaty that slashes production of petrochemical plastics to protect human health, social justice, and climate progress,” said Mike Belliveau, founder and executive director of Defend Our Health.
MEDIA AVAILABILITY: Diane Wilson is available for media interviews between 3 pm and 5 pm on Monday, November 13.
Diane will speak Monday evening at an event hosted by Defend Our Health at Maine Beer Company in Freeport from 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm. RSVP to Abby Lockler at 757-619-7443 or alockler@defendourhealth.org.
On Tuesday, Diane Wilson will speak at Colby College at a public event from 7:00 to 9:00 pm.