WEEKLY ACTIONS
for the Week of
April 19-24
Take 5 Minutes to use your power and your voice.
Together, we are making a
Difference.
We are asking all VCK members and friends to check the website weekly for calls to action.
In addition to the actions listed here, we encourage you to visit these sites for accurate information and further actions:
https://chopwoodcarrywaterdailyactions.substack.com
https://campaigns.moveon.org/petitions/
Week of April 19:
The Forest Service is proposing to permit QUARTS MINING within the Ouachita Forest by September, totaling approximately 337 acres of public lands!
Multiple DATA CENTERS are being proposed, 17 acres near the Port in Little Rock, Pulaski county and another in Arkadelphia, Clark County
May 1 is the deadline to comment on the data center proposals.
May 3 is the deadline to comment on the Quartz mining permit.
We are asking you to contact several different officials below with your concerns...
Script for the Data Centers-
Refer to permit SWL 2026-00038 in all comments about Little Rock.
Refer to the Conditional Use Permit (CUP) in all comments about Arkadelphia.
Say:
I write with deep concern over proposed data centers being built and run in the state of Arkansas.
I believe this would be environmentally disastrous for the state and its residents. I find it impossible to believe that wasteful data centers would provide jobs in our state, as they can be run by two people. I also find it difficult to trust that our state would ever see a penny of the revenue generated. All we would gain is irrevocable harm to our stunning landscape and our plentiful water sources, let alone our household energy costs.
I strongly oppose any data center being built in the state of Arkansas. If at some future time a facility designed to be far less harmful to the environment and far less demanding upon the water supply could be built, I might reconsider. However, that time has not yet come
For both the data centers and quarts mining, contact-
District Ranger Mike Welker
P.O. Box 189, Jessieville, AR 71949
By phone 501-984-5313
By email at SM.FS.r8oujwfrdcom@usda.gov
Script for Quarts Mining
Say:
I'd like to leave a public comment on the recent proposal to open up 337 acres of the Ouachita National Forest for quartz mining. I reject the justification of the proposal, cited below:
"This action is needed, because market conditions suggest that a demand for quartz exists, and preliminary reconnaissance determined that a viable quartz deposit may be present sufficient to warrant additional investigation."
I reject whole-cloth the notion that actions become necessary when a market demand exists. If we accept that market demands create necessity, we should deem it necessary to sell suicide pills to the depressed, rocket propelled grenades to disgruntled teenagers, and sex slaves to the depraved. Yet we do not sell these things because we choose to prioritize life over profit.
We can choose what our priorities are, and our priorities need to lie with the ecosystems and waterways that give us life, not extraction of resources at any cost. What is actually necessary is the protection of ecosystems and the preservation of clean drinking water. I needn't remind you of the affects this plan will have on both.
I hope the Forest Service will acknowledge that Quartz is not necessary to life, that ecosystems and clean water are, and will prioritize accordingly.
You can also contact these people, who should also be concerned about this-
Change.org has a petition to sign, Save the Ouachitas, Save Arkansas
FOR THE DATA CENTERS -
Refer to permit SWL 2026-00038 in all comments about Little Rock.
Refer to the Conditional Use Permit (CUP) in all comments about Arkadelphia.
Arkansas Public Service Commission For energy/ratepayer concerns.
Michael Gala
-
Written Comments: Little Rock District Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Division, PO Box 867, Little Rock, Arkansas 72203-0867
Arkadelphia Regional Economic Development Alliance & Chamber of Commerce For Clark County
call (870) 246-1460
email info@arkadelphian.com
SENATORS:
Tom Cotton
202-224-2353
501-223-9081
https://www.cotton.senate.gov/contact/contact-tom
John Boozman
202-224-4843
501-372-7153
https://www.boozman.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/e-mail-me
CONGRESSMEN:
Bruce Westerman
202- 225-3772
501-609-9796
https://westerman.house.gov/contact
Steve Womack
202-225-7000
479-464-0446
479-424-1146
https://womack.house.gov/contact/
Boycott Thursdays-
Please continue to refrain from shopping, getting gas, banking, or going out to restaurants owned by corporations every Thursday till Palestine is free. Though a ceasefire has been negotiated, there has been no attempt to implement it. We must continue to show our solidarity with Palestine. Shop local, eat at a taco stand, and pay cash, my friend.