Groups Concerned About New Berlin Diversion Compliance

Apr 13: A joint release from a number of Great Lakes environmental organizations indicates that the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) gave notice to the City of New Berlin that the city had failed to meet its commitments under the terms of the Lake Michigan Diversion Approval it was granted last year, on May 21, 2009. They raised the question of whether the "New Berlin Compliance [is] A Foreshadowing of Worse to Come?" The City of New Berlin was the first community within any of the eight Great Lakes states to receive approval for a diversion under the historic Great Lakes Water Resources Compact enacted December 8, 2008.  The groups issuing the release included: Alliance for the Great Lakes; Clean Wisconsin; Milwaukee Riverkeeper; Midwest Environmental Advocates; New Berlin Land Conservancy; Sixteenth Street Community Health Center; Wisconsin Wildlife Federation.

 

    The groups reported that WDNR had given the City 30 days from March 30, 2010, to provide the required information called for under the terms of the Diversion Approval, and to include reporting on: Water quantities sold within the city limits and within the approved diversion area; Water amount diverted to the diversion area on a monthly basis; Water quantity pumped from municipal wells; and Estimates of sewerage return flow by category.

　Attorney Jodi Habush Sinykin, Of Counsel to Midwest Environmental Advocates, Wisconsin's only non-profit environmental law center said, "The City of New Berlin's failure to meet the terms of its Diversion Approval is actually not a first for the city, as New Berlin was five months late on an earlier required dead-line to provide details on its Water Conservation Program." New Berlin was required to submit additional water conservation information by August 21, 2009, but the City did not, in fact, comply until January 12, 2010.

    Other groups around the Great Lakes region also find New Berlin's failure troubling. Ed Glatfelter, Director of Water Conservation Programs for the Alliance for the Great Lakes said, "Communities, like the City of New Berlin, seeking diversions under the Great Lakes Compact should know that they have a duty to comply with the law in its entirety and honor their long-term commitments under any diversion approval granted."

    Access a joint release from organizations (click here).

HOW Coalition Launches GLRI Funding Assistance Program

Apr 6: The Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition (HOW) launched a new program to help local conservation partners participate in the federal $475 million Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. HOW will be providing $200,000 to help groups jump-start restoration projects in five priority areas -- one on each of the Great Lakes. Jeff Skelding, HOW campaign director said, "Our top priority is to ensure that Great Lakes restoration succeeds. After decades of abuse, there is an enormous backlog of work that needs to be done. We're focusing our work on five priority areas where we believe we can make a difference for the Lakes and the
economy."

    Coalition grants to local conservation groups will help provide the tools, capacity and expertise to apply for Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) funds. The Federal initiative funds projects to clean up toxic pollution that threatens the health of people and wildlife; prevent and control invasive species that cost the region $200 million per year in damages and control costs; and restore wetlands that help improve water quality and provide the foundation for the region's outdoor recreation industry. The coalition will focus its efforts on 5 priority areas including: --Lake Superior: St Louis Bay and St. Louis River; --Lake Michigan: Chicagoland; --Lake Huron: Saginaw Bay; --Lake Erie: Western Lake Erie; and --Lake Ontario: Eastern Lake Ontario.

 

    Access a release and links to complete information (click here).

Resolution Calls For Basins' Separation To Control Asian Carp

Apr 8: The bi‐national committee of advisors of the Great Lakes Fishery Commission (GLFC) called upon the U.S. government to seek immediately ecological separation of the Great Lakes and Mississippi basins, acknowledging the imminent threat of the "voracious Asian carp." The action -- which came in the form of a rare binational resolution, approved during the advisors meetings in Windsor, Ontario -- calls on Congress, the administration, and the states to act immediately to achieve ecological separation of the two basins to prevent further aquatic species invasions.

 

    According to a release, "While efforts are being undertaken to stop the Asian carp, such as the operation of electric barriers, rotenone treatments, eDNA and traditional sampling, there is a growing support for the ecological separation of the Mississippi and Great Lakes waters. Ecological separation would ensure that no live organisms could move between the two basins, a protection that the natural watershed divide provided.

 

    U.S. committee chair Denny Grinold from the Michigan Charter Boat Association said, "We simply cannot tolerate even one more invasion. An Asian carp invasion is preventable, but the federal government must commit to the solution of separating Mississippi waters from the Great Lakes. Otherwise, it is stakeholders like us, and the next generation, that will bear the steep economic and ecological costs."

 

    The Committee of Advisors consists of both U.S. and Canadian members representing recreational and commercial fishing, Aboriginal communities, public‐at-large, academia, and state agencies -- also expressed deep concern about the continued influx of aquatic invasive species into the Great Lakes and disappointment over the Canadian and U.S. Governments' inaction to remedy this serious problem. The U.S. Committee of Advisors was created under the Great Lakes Fisheries Act of 1956 and is constituted to provide citizens with the opportunity to be heard on issues of importance to the health and sustainability of the Great Lakes fishery and to make recommendations pertinent to the commission's duties.

 

    Access a release from the GLFC (click here). Access the resolution (click here).

IL Chamber Study Says Lock Closure Would Cost $4.7 Billion

Apr 7: The Illinois Chamber of Commerce released an economic impact analysis reporting that the economic value lost from permanent closure of the Chicago and O'Brien locks would be $582 million the first year, $531 million annually over the subsequent 7 years and would result in a net loss of $4.7 billion over a 20-year planning horizon. The report, conducted by DePaul University economist Dr. Joseph Schwieterman, stands in stark contrast to Michigan's "Taylor and Roach" report [See WIMS 2/4/10], which the Chamber said "attempted to trivialize the impact of lock closure on the Chicago economy, purporting that losses would fall within the range of $64 million to $69 million annually." The Chamber said that where the '"Taylor and Roach" report focused on a very narrow scope of impact, the Schwieterman report accounts for the impact lock closure would have across multiple industries locally and regionally, thereby providing a more well-rounded and accurate assessment of the total effect on the region's economic well-being.

    Jim Farrell, executive director of the Illinois Chamber of Commerce's Infrastructure Council said, "It is the Chamber's hope that this study will bring some well-reasoned perspective to a debate that has been fueled by rhetoric from the state of Michigan. The Schwieterman study shows, through well-reasoned economics, that closing these locks will have a devastating affect on our local economy, resulting in the loss of potentially hundreds of area jobs and hurting a range of industries and services."

    The economic debate on closing of the Chicago and O'Brien locks has recently been reliant on Michigan's 'Taylor and Roach' study, which has since been peer reviewed and proven unscientific and inaccurate.  The Illinois Chamber of Commerce released three independent critiques of the "Taylor and Roach" report last week. Farrell said, "Beyond the economics, we question the science as well. The eDNA test cited in claims that Asian Carp are above the electric barrier was only recently developed within the past year, and has not had the benefit of peer review to determine its reliability or accuracy. Essentially, the Asian Carp debate has been fueled by an unscientific economic analysis and an experimental, eDNA test. This hardly seems like sufficient evidence to bring the most environmentally friendly mode of transportation and a billion-dollar industry to a halt."

    The Chamber indicated that two weeks of recent targeted fishing in areas above the electronic barrier yielded zero Asian Carp, calling into question the original eDNA testing mechanism used to detect the Carp's existence. According to Farrell, "The Illinois Department of Natural Resources used a very sound scientific approach which yielded Asian Carp some 50 miles from Lake Michigan, but none where eDNA had indicated in the Chicago Area Waterways." The Schwieterman report concludes that the closure of the locks would result in "enormous financial losses" resulting from added transportation costs and losses to commercial shipping, recreational boating, commercial cruises and tours, and public protection.

    Access a release from the IL Chamber of Commerce with further details (click here). Access the complete Schwieterman report (click here). Access a release from Michigan Attorney General on the Michigan study (click here). Access the Michigan study submitted as part of the Attorney Generals filings (click here, see appendix).

Teleconferences On Great Lakes & St. Clair River Water Levels Report

Mar 29: The International Joint Commission (IJC) is hosting two teleconferences this week to receive public comment on the report of its International Upper Great Lakes Study Board entitled Impacts on Upper Great Lakes Water Levels: St. Clair River [See WIMS 2/24/10]. The report describes physical changes in the St. Clair River since 1962 and other factors affecting the water levels of lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron and Erie. On of the teleconferences was scheduled for March 30 at 1:00 PM EDT and the other will be Wednesday, March 31 at 7:00 PM EDT.  A presentation on the Study Board report is available for viewing. The public comment is open until April 9, 2010.

 

    Access information on the teleconferences and access numbers & codes (click here). Access complete information on the report and commenting opportunities (click here). Access the report (click here). Access the presentation (click here).

Great Lakes United Launches Find My Cleanup Website

Mar 26: Great Lakes United (GLU) has launched a new website -- Find My Cleanup -- as a resource and service to all community members. GLU says, "Our intent is to make readily available information about clean up projects in the Great Lakes basin and beyond. We strive to keep the information up-to-date and we invite community members to contact us if the information they find here is incomplete. We encourage all groups and organizations to use this tool to publicize their clean up projects and thank them for their dedication to protecting our watersheds. Great Lakes United recognizes that keeping our water sources clean and healthy must be a community priority, and we hope that this resource helps those seeking to achieve this admirable goal." The site includes an interactive Google map with locations of posted cleanup sites. Clicking the site provides details on the location, scheduled meetings, links to additional cleanup information, contacts and more detailed maps. GLU welcomes comments and suggestions on the site.

 

    Access the Find My Cleanup website (click here). Access the GLU website for more information (click here).

MI Officials React To Supreme Court Carp Decision

Mar 22: Michigan's Governor Granholm and Lieutenant Governor John Cherry issued a statement on the U.S. Supreme Court's rejection of the State's emergency request to close shipping locks in Chicago to protect the Great Lakes from Asian carp [See WIMS 3/22/10]. According to the statement, "While we continue the legal battle and await the Court's ruling on our remaining motions, we must increase our efforts with other branches of the federal government to physically separate the Mississippi River watershed from the Great Lakes basin to prevent Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes. The Asian carp poses a significant threat to the Great Lakes, and it is imperative that the federal government prioritize and advance a solution that separates these two watersheds. The current plan to continuously poison and electro-shock the canal to remove carp is not sustainable, and a permanent physical barrier must be considered to protect the $16 billion recreational boating and fishing industry in the Great Lakes region. Without an ecological separation of the Mississippi River watershed and the Great Lakes, we increase the risk of Asian carp entering our waters, causing great harm to businesses large and small that rely on the tourism that recreational boating and fishing bring to our region."

 

    U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) also issued a statement on the Supreme Court decision. Senator Stabenow introduced the Carp Act along with Representative Dave Camp (R-MI) in January, which calls for the immediate closure of the locks. Senator Stabenow said, "I am deeply concerned that for a second time the Supreme Court has refused to order a temporary closure of two Chicago-area locks. It's clear that Asian carp pose an immediate threat to the Great Lakes and our fishing and boating industry, putting thousands of Michigan jobs at risk. That's why we must use every possible tool to prevent the spread of Asian carp into Lake Michigan, including the closure of the Chicago-area locks. I will continue working with the Administration, federal agencies, and members of the Michigan delegation on decisive short- and long-term solutions to keep the invasive species out of our waterways." Representative Dave Camp issued a statement saying, "This decision threatens the Great Lakes and the $7.5 billion fishing industry and the 800,000 jobs they support. We must act now, and immediately close the Chicago-area Locks to stop Asian Carp from reaching the Great Lakes."

 

    In a brief statement from Michigan Attorney General Michael Cox he said, "We will continue to focus on the reopening of the diversion case in April, with the goal of developing an effective plan to protect the entire Great Lakes region from the devastating threat of Asian carp." He said the Supreme Court has scheduled an April 16th review of Michigan's request for hearings to develop a long-term solution to the crisis that will protect the ecology and economy of the Great Lakes." 

 

    While the High Court denied the Michigan request for a Motion for Preliminary Injunction the Attorney General also filed a petition requesting the Court to reopen the ongoing legal case with the State and Illinois and issue a Supplemental Decree. Michigan has asked the Court to declare that to the extent the facilities created, operated, and maintained by Illinois et al, in connection with the diversion now allow the introduction of harmful aquatic invasive species into Lake Michigan and other connected waters and they constitute a public nuisance. Michigan asserts that, "Those facilities create a threat of irreparable injury to natural resources held in trust by the State of Michigan, as well as riparian and other rights of Michigan and its citizens."

    Michigan indicates that the State of Illinois "was and remains an indispensable party in any proceeding to resolve the present dispute between Michigan and the other parties concerning the existence of a continuing public nuisance and the equitable relief sought by Michigan to prevent and abate it. Accordingly, since by law, this Court has 'original and exclusive jurisdiction of all controversies between two or more states,'  there is no other forum in which Michigan may obtain the equitable relief it seeks."

    Access Granholm-Cherry statement (click here). Access the Stabenow statement (click here). Access the Camp statement (click here). Access a release from AG Cox (click here). Access links to Michigan's filings in the case (click here). Access all of the filings in the case (click here).