Jeff Skelding, director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition said, "We look forward to meeting with Obama Administration officials to discuss how we can work together to support Great Lakes restoration projects that benefit the environment and economy. Restoration efforts are producing results, but there is more to do. Continued leadership by President Obama and the U.S. Congress will be essential to restore our lakes, protect our drinking water, create jobs and uphold our way of life." The gathering, sponsored by the White House Council on Environmental Quality's Office of Public Engagement, comes as coalition members from Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin conclude two days of meetings with U.S. congressional offices as part of Great Lakes Days.
The HOW Coalition views 2012 as a pivotal year in the effort to restore the Great Lakes, as the fate of key water issues hinge on actions by the Obama Administration and U.S. Congress. Among them: Funding the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and other clean water programs; Reauthorizing the Farm Bill, the largest funding source for federal conservation programs; Finalizing EPA guidelines dealing with clean water protections and Coast Guard and EPA rules addressing polluted ballast water discharges; and, Acting to prevent the advance of Asian carp, which are on the doorstep to the Lakes.
Access a release from HOW with more details (click here). Access the HOW website for more information (click here).
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Having watched the history of some environmentalist groups supporting a states rights approach to ballast water, I believe the reality about ballast water now shows that the environmental groups that opposed strong legislation passed 395-7 in 2008 in favor of a states rights approach now have achieved nothing equal, especially as NY backs down under pressure. This president knows without national news coverage and the public not aware of the political history or dangers of ballast water, any action he now takes will cause these same environmental groups to heap praise on him in order to save face, even if he acts with a weak EPA and Coast Guard plan that will effectively crush the further strengthening of protections long into the future. This scenario will play out as the political will shown in 2008 has been killed. Sadly these environmental groups that pursued this policy of states rights will want to spot-lite themselves as having helped influence this administration to take a step forward when the reality is they will have helped create a weak EPA and military policy to protect our waters. Possibly even being subject to the next commander direction of our Coast Guard priorities while trying to eliminate the EPA.
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