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Another Great Lakes Legacy Act Success Story!

For a quarter of a century, no one in and around Ashtabula, Ohio have been able to eat local fish because of more than forty years of industrial waste that was dumped into this tributary of Lake Erie. But that is all about to change because the Environmental Protection Agency just announced that the river is officially clean! Working alongside the Ashtabula River Partnership, they dredged 630,000 cubic yards of sediment – one of the largest River clean ups in history – at a cost of $75 million. And every dollar was well spent because now this tributary no longer threatens Lake Erie’s ecosystem and it will soon serve the local population again as a place for recreation and fine dining on local fish. This is another example that the Great Lakes Legacy Act is much needed and can prove to be very successful. If Congress decides to approve the new improved reauthorization this month and the appropriations committee fully funds it, then the states will be able to make double time cleaning up all the AOC’s once and for all and restoring the Great Lakes rich ecosystem and our regional economies in one fell swoop. Congratulations Ashtabula!

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