HOW Coalition Praises Administration Water Framework

Apr 27: The Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition (HOW) issued a release commenting on the Obama Administration release of its National Clean Water Framework which included what the Administration called "unprecedented attention to restoring iconic places like the Chesapeake Bay, California Bay-Delta, Great Lakes, Gulf of Mexico and Everglades, investing in action and helping states, local governments and stakeholders find pollution control solutions that are tailored to their specific needs." [See WIMS 4/27/11].

 

    In their release, HOW indicated that the Framework was ". . .a strong affirmation of the Clean Water Act [that] proposed new instructions to federal agencies on how to interpret parts of the law in light of two Supreme Court decisions that essentially had stripped away protections from many U.S. water bodies, including those that play an integral role in the health of the Great Lakes. The actions by the Obama Administration represent a big step forward in the effort to restore the Great Lakes and protect water quality, public health, and recreational opportunities for millions of people in the region and across the country.

    Jeff Skelding, campaign manager for HOW said, "President Obama's investment to restore the Great Lakes is already producing results, and we expect that today's action will only bolster efforts to protect one of this country's most iconic waters—one that supplies drinking water to more than 30 million people. We encourage the Obama Administration to urgently move to implement a final rule that restores Clean Water Act protections to waters that millions of people in the Great Lakes region and across the country depend on for their drinking water, public health and recreational opportunities."

    Access the release from HOW (click here). Access a release from the White House Council on Environmental Quality (click here). Access the Obama Administration's Clean Water Framework (click here). Access the draft Clean Water Act guidance from U.S. EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers with supporting documents and commenting instructions (click here).

Great Lakes Interbasin Study Newsletter & Updates

Apr 27: The Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS) issued its first newsletter on the GLMRIS activities. Among other items, the newsletter reports on the recently completed Study National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) public scoping period ran from November 16, 2010 through March 31, 2011. The newsletter also reports on Interim Products and Other Recent Milestones. GLMRIS also announced recently that additional transcripts from scoping meetings are available for Cleveland (Jan. 13, 2011), Minneapolis (Jan. 20, 2011) and Green Bay (Jan. 25, 2011).

 

    The GLMRIS is being conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), in consultation with other federal agencies, Native American tribes, state agencies, local governments and other to explore options and technologies, collectively known as aquatic nuisance species (ANS), including Asian Carp, controls that could be applied to prevent ANS transfer between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins through aquatic pathways.

 

    Access the GLMRIS newsletter (click here). Access the available transcript (click here). Access the GLMRIS website for complete background and the latest information (click here).

Cities Initiative Gets Responses To Great Lakes Questionnaire

Apr 27: The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative (GLSLC) released the results of a questionnaire on the Future of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence which it sent to Canadian political parties before the May 2nd elections. According to a release, four of five of Canada's political leaders pledged to take concrete action to protect the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence, the largest source of fresh water in the world. Denis Lapointe, GLSLC chairman and mayor of Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Québec said, "We are very pleased with the results of our Election 2011 questionnaire. The political commitments made towards the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence show true leadership in protecting this priceless environmental and economic resource".

 

    The Liberal Party of Canada, the New Democratic Party of Canada, the Green Party of Canada and the Bloc Quebecois responded to a questionnaire prepared by GLSLC, a bi-national coalition of mayors representing over thirteen million people, concerned with the protection, restoration and promotion of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Basin. No response was received from the Conservative Party of Canada.

 

    Access links to the release, the questionnaire, the responses and a summary of responses (click here).

Army Corps Activates New Electric Fish Barrier

Apr 7: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers activated electric fish Barrier IIB on the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (CSSC) near Romeoville, Ill. Barrier IIA has been placed in warm stand-by mode and will undergo scheduled maintenance within the next two months. The new barrier is set at parameters previously applied at Barrier IIA (a maximum field strength at the water surface of 2 Volts/inch, with 15 pulses per second and each pulse 6.5 milliseconds in duration). The demonstration barrier (Barrier I) remains in operation.

   Construction of Barrier IIB was largely funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA, Stimulus Funding), enabling the Corps to complete it a year ahead of schedule. Col. Vincent Quarles, Commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Chicago District said, "Successfully completing a complex construction project like this electric barrier takes teamwork. Certainly, the cooperative efforts of the U.S. Coast Guard and our other partners in the Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (ACRCC) have been a great help in getting Barrier IIB constructed and operational." 

   The CSSC electric barriers project was designed to reduce the risk of inter-basin transfer of fish from the Mississippi River and Great Lakes drainage basins via the CSSC. The area surrounding the electric barriers remains a regulated navigation area as established by the U.S. Coast Guard. Boaters are reminded to use extreme caution while traveling in the CSSC between River Miles 296.1 to 296.7. This area is bounded approximately by the power plant near the Romeo Road Bridge and an aerial pipeline arch. While traveling through the area, boaters are advised to take the following precautions: Do not enter the water or place hands or feet in the water for any reason; Be sure to closely supervise children and pets or send them below deck if possible; and
Do not linger or attempt to moor in the area.

 

    Access a release from the Corps (click here). Access the Corps Chicago District Aquatic Nuisance Species Portal for more information (click here). Access the ACRCC website for more information (click here).

Chicago & Buffalo GLMRIS Scoping Meeting Transcripts Available

Apr 6: The Army Corps of Engineers (COE) announced that the transcripts for the public scoping meetings for the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS) for Chicago (December 15, 2010) and Buffalo (January 11, 2011) are now available on the GLMRIS website on the Completed NEPA Public Scoping Meetings and Transcripts page. Scoping transcripts from the other 10 public meeting sites will be posted as they become available [See WIMS 3/1/11]. The public scoping period is now closed. Public scoping comments were accepted from November 16, 2010 through March 31, 2011. 

    The purpose of GLMRIS is to evaluate a range of options and technologies to prevent the transfer of aquatic nuisance species, such as Asian carp, between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins through aquatic pathways. Opportunities for public involvement, new documents and other important news and events are posted on the GLMRIS website on the new Stay Involved page and are also sent to the GLMRIS e-mail subscription list. GLMRIS also maintains a Facebook page and Twitter account.

 

    Access a COE posted announcement (click here). Access the Meetings and Transcripts page (click here). Access the Stay Involved page (click here). Access complete information regarding GLMRIS, the meeting agenda and scoping requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (click here).

 

 

Sens. Levin & Kirk To Co-Chair Senate Great Lakes Task Force

Apr 5: Senator Carl Levin (D-MI) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) announced that they will serve as the co-chairs of the Senate Great Lakes Task Force for the 112th Congress. Levin has served as the Democratic co-chair of the task force since 1999. Kirk will take over the Republican co-chair spot, which was held by Sen. George Voinovich (R-OH), until his retirement in January. The Task Force is a bipartisan, bicameral group that works to enhance the economic and environmental health of the Great Lakes. Members of the task force have worked to pass many key programs supporting the lakes, including the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact, invasive species prevention and control, contaminated sediment cleanup, authorizing and funding the Great Lakes Basin Program for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control, and creating a Great Lakes restoration initiative. 

    Sen. Levin said, "I am pleased that Senator Kirk will serve as co-chair of the task force, and I'm excited about our prospects to protect and enhance our Great Lakes. The task force has led the way to passage for legislation to clean up contaminated sediments, fight invasive species and prevent the diversion of precious fresh water from the Great Lakes basin. I look forward to working with Senator Kirk and I am confident that he will help add to that important legacy." Sen. Kirk said, "It is my honor to serve as co-chair of the Great Lakes Task Force with Senator Levin. This bipartisan, bicameral Task Force will work to protect our Great Lakes -- the crown jewel of the Midwest's ecosystem. Recently, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and I have worked to crack down on raw sewage dumping into the lakes and my hope is to continue this momentum in the Great Lakes Task Force to develop bipartisan solutions and protect drinking water for 30 million Americans and for generations to come."

    The Northeast-Midwest Institute (NEMW), in its mission to aid the states of the northeast and midwest, supports several Senate and Congressional Member Organizations including the House and Senate Great Lakes Task Forces which are bipartisan working groups within the Northeast-Midwest Congressional and Senate Coalitions that cooperate to enhance the economic and environmental health of the Great Lakes. Founded in the mid-1980s, the Great Lakes Task Forces work together to advocate for policies and programs that enhance our unique natural resource -- the Great Lakes. Members of the Great Lakes Task Forces work together to build support for key regional programs to enhance environmental quality and economic development throughout the Great Lakes basin. The Task Forces convene member-level and staff-level events, including meetings, hearings, and briefings. They also collaborate to exercise agency oversight, and advance legislative and appropriation initiatives.

    Access a release (click here). Access further information on the Senate Great Lakes Task Force (click here). Access the NEMW Great Lakes Task Forces website for more information and background (click here).