Staffer Briefing

New Analysis: Restoring Great Lakes Will Bring Major Lakeside Cities Each $200 Million to $13.3 Billion in Economic Gains

Passage of federal, state, and local legislation to fund restoration needed to realize potential gains

Ann Arbor, MI (April 16, 2008)—A new analysis finds that major Great Lakes cities will see economic gains between $200 million to $13.3 billion if the Great Lakes are restored. This report is a supplement to The Brookings Institution’s “Healthy Waters, Strong Economy” report released in November 2007 that found that Great Lakes restoration would bring the region approximately $80 to $100 billion in both short-term and long-term economic gains. This analysis shows that a significant portion of those gains would go directly to major population Read More » »

Sign a Petition to Congress on the Great Lakes

Freshwater Future (formerly Great Lakes Aquatic Habitat Network and Fund) has initiated an online petition urging Members of Congress to act this year to pass and fully fund legislation to protect and restore the Great Lakes. Healing Our Waters Coalition staff worked closely with Freshwater Future on the development of this petition, and we encourage one and all to sign it and forward to colleagues, friends, and family. Freshwater Future and the HOW Coalition will work to tally signatures from constituents of particular members of Congress in the Great Lakes and deliver the petitions at in-district events during the Read More » »

Coalition Applauds Congress for Improving Great Lakes Funding

Coalition Applauds Congress for Improving Great Lakes Funding

WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 14) – The Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition today praised the U.S. Senate for passing a budget that increases funding to essential Great Lakes programs to stop invasive species and restore fish and wildlife habitat.

“The U.S. Senate’s budget is a win for the Great Lakes and a win for the millions of people who depend on them for their jobs, health and way of life,” said Jeff Skelding, national campaign director for the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition. “We urge Congress to appropriate the money, because the longer we wait, Read More » »

Local Party Officials Urge Candidates on Great Lakes

ANN ARBOR, MICH. (November 16)—Republican and Democratic Party officials in key counties in Michigan are calling on the 2008 presidential candidates to support Great Lakes restoration funding.

Their call comes on the same day that State Sen. Patty Birkholz (R-Saugatuck Township), chair of the Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs Committee, and State Rep. Rebekah Warren (D-Ann Arbor), chair of the Great Lakes and Environment Committee, are sending a bi-partisan letter to presidential candidates urging them to embrace Great Lakes restoration.

“The time to act for the protection and restoration of the Great Lakes is now, as we face an ever-increasing pressure from Read More » »

Great Lakes Lawmakers Vote to Override Bush Veto

Last night Great Lakes members of Congress from both parties rebuffed the Bush administration by voting to override his veto of a bill that authorizes funding for many Great Lakes restoration projects - the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA).

A recent AP Article includes quotes from several Michigan Representatives including Candice Miller (R), Bart Stupak (D), Tim Wallberg (R), and Vern Ehlers (R).

Despite reservations about environmentally suspect projects in other parts of the country, WRDA authorizes funding for completing the Asian carp barrier in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. This is one of Read More » »

Kalamazoo Gazette: Speak Up For Your Great Lakes

From the editorial page of today’s Kalamazoo Gazette:

“The widespread outcry over BP’s ammonia discharge is encouraging. It tells us that the health of the Great Lakes, where 20 percent of the world’s fresh water is contained, is becoming a higher priority for more people.

And if more people begin speaking up on behalf of the Great Lakes, the greater the chance that this spectacular natural resource will be protected for generations to come.”

Learn more about how you can speak up for your Great Lakes
 

Great Lakes Restoration and the You Tube/CNN Republican Debate

Grand Rapids Mayor George Heartwell has submitted a question about restoring the Great Lakes to be considered for the November You Tube/CNN debate with Republican Presidential candidates. Perched in a canoe with a Great Lakes tributary flowing behind him, Mayor Heartwell correctly points out that investing in Great Lakes restoration will create jobs, bolster the economy, and help the region transition from the “rust belt” to the blue belt.

Checkout the video and help create a buzz about the Great Lakes by forwarding the link to your friends and family.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9tn7-hqjkg Read More » »

Granholm, Doyle Push EPA Administrator Johnson on Great Lakes

Great column from George Weeks about the recent National Governors Association meeting in Traverse City, MI where EPA Administrator Johnson and Michigan’s Governor Granholm had differing perspectives about how much progress was being made to restore the Great Lakes through the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration (GLRC):

I then asked Gov. Jennifer Granholm if she was satisfied with the progress. She snapped: “No. What progress?” Noting that she raised the issue with Johnson in a private weekend meeting that included Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle, she said: “We had a whole flags and bagpipes meeting in Chicago a couple of years ago where Read More » »

Ohio Legislators Stepping Up to Confront Invasive Species

Strong words from Senator Voinovich (R-OH), Ohio DNR Director Sean Logan, and others earlier this week about passing ballast water legislation. We look forward to working with these folks to ensure that what gets passed in Congress will truly protect the Great Lakes from new introductions of invasive species.

From the Akron Beacon Journal:

Invasive fish like zebra mussels and round goby are “terrorists from abroad” and at the center of “the second battle of Lake Erie” Voinovich said at the news conference, which was hosted by the Ohio Environmental Council at Cleveland Lakefront State Park overlooking Lake Erie.

Full Akron Beacon Read More » »

House Invasive Species Legislation a Step in the Right Direction, But Could Do More

H.R. 2830 – a bill to reauthorize the Coast Guard – takes important steps in protecting the Great Lakes and all U.S. waters from aquatic invasive species by creating a Coast Guard program to effectively regulate the primary source of invasive species in the Great Lakes – ballast water discharges. However, there is more work to be done. As Clean Water Action’s Rosie Loeffler-Kemp said to the Duluth News Tribune, “We want to thank Rep. Oberstar for taking the initiative and getting serious about ballast water regulation. But we also want to make sure that what passes Read More » »