Senate Dedicates Hearing to Great Lakes Restoration
Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition
Contact: Lindsey Bacigal, BacigalL@nwf.org, 734-887-7113
Senate Dedicates Hearing to Great Lakes Restoration
ANN ARBOR, MICH. (April 15, 2026)—The Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition applauds the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee for convening today's hearing on restoration efforts in the Great Lakes region. We thank Chairman Capito for dedicating this hearing solely to the Great Lakes—a testament to the national significance of this irreplaceable resource that provides drinking water for more than 30 million people and supports a regional economy of extraordinary scale.
“This hearing reflects the strong, bipartisan tradition of protecting the Great Lakes and reminds us how much is still at stake,” said Laura Rubin, director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition. “Since 2010, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has enabled states, Tribes, nonprofits, and local communities to complete more than 8,100 restoration projects, delivering a return of more than three dollars for every dollar invested. The program has been a massive success, but threats to the waters of the region remain and we must continue to make progress.”
The current Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) authorization is set to expire at the end of Fiscal Year 2026. The GLRI Act of 2025 (H.R. 284/S. 528) would reauthorize this critical program for five more years, through Fiscal Year 2031, providing up to $500 million annually to continue tackling toxic algal blooms, invasive species, shoreline wetland protection, and the growing pressures of climate change.
The Coalition urges Congress to act without delay to pass this bipartisan legislation.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Since 2004, the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition has been harnessing the collective power of more than 200 groups representing millions of people, whose common goal is to restore and protect the Great Lakes. Learn more at HealthyLakes.org or follow us on social media @HealthyLakes
