One Letter Can Make a Difference. A Flood of Them Cannot Be Ignored.
- ProtectMcCrackenCounty
- May 27
- 3 min read
County officials make decisions based on what they hear — or don't hear — from the people they represent. Right now, the loudest voices in the room are the ones representing Global Laser Enrichment, General Matter, and the nuclear energy industry. It is time to change that.
We are asking every McCracken County resident who has signed our petition, attended a meeting, shared a post, or simply read this website and felt that something is wrong here — to write a letter.
Not a form letter. Your letter. In your words. About what this community means to you and what you need your elected officials to do before this process goes any further.
Who to write:
Judge Executive Craig Clymer cclymer@mccrackencountyky.gov (270) 444-4707
McCracken County Planning Commission Alberta Davis, Diane Shrewsberry, Carol Young, Brent Houseman, Clay Robinson
Contact the Planning and Community Development Manager to reach commissioners directly: Gregory Cannon — gcannon@mccrackencountyky.gov (270) 448-0125
What to ask for:
You don't need to be an expert. You don't need to use technical language. But if you are looking for a starting point, here are the three things we are asking every letter to include:
An independent, cumulative environmental impact study. No agency — not the NRC, EPA, DOE, or Commonwealth of Kentucky — is currently required to assess the combined impact of all proposed industrial activity at and adjacent to the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant Superfund site. That gap needs to be closed before any permits are issued. Ask Judge Executive Clymer and the Planning Commission to require it, funded by the developers, not McCracken County taxpayers.
A hydrogeological assessment of the contamination plumes. The Paducah Superfund site has active groundwater contamination plumes — Technetium-99, PFAS, and trichloroethylene — that are still migrating and not under control, according to the EPA's own performance measures. Construction on the adjacent GLE parcel could accelerate plume migration, disturb contaminated soil, and interfere with the active cleanup systems currently operating on the site. An independent hydrogeologist with no financial interest in the outcome needs to assess this risk before a shovel goes in the ground. Ask your officials to require it.
Full public disclosure of the NDA. Judge Executive Clymer has confirmed publicly that the local incentive package with GLE is protected by a nondisclosure agreement. McCracken County taxpayers are funding a deal they are not allowed to read. Ask that the terms be made public before any further approvals move forward.
Tips for writing your letter:
Lead with who you are. Are you a lifelong McCracken County resident? A parent? A farmer? A business owner? Say so. It matters.
Be specific about what you are asking for. The three points above are a strong foundation.
Be respectful and direct. You are not asking for a favor. You are asking your elected officials to do their jobs.
Keep it to one page if possible. Shorter letters get read.
Send it by email and follow up with a printed copy by mail. Two touchpoints are better than one.
CC the Planning Commission when writing to Judge Executive Clymer. Every commissioner should be on record as having received your concerns.
Why this matters right now.
The community education meetings on June 11 and 12 are part of a formal process to designate McCracken County as a Nuclear-Ready Community. That designation moves this project forward. The Planning Commission has land use authority. Judge Executive Clymer's office has been central to the agreements already made. These are the people with the power to slow this down and demand answers.
But only if they hear from you.
A flood of individual letters from residents — in your own words, from your own addresses, signed with your own names — carries real weight that no petition alone can match. It tells officials that this is not a small group of organized activists. It is their community. And their community is paying attention.
Write your letter today.
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