Great Lakes News for Legislators

 

An Online Newsletter of the Great Lakes Legislative Caucus – March 2007

GLLC Chair:  Michigan Senator Patricia Birkholz                                       Secretariat:  The Council of State Governments

 

On tap this issue

 

Statehouses filled with legislative proposals to protect Great Lakes

 

Water-management compact on the move

 

New Great Lakes-related bills introduced in nation's capital

 

Measure seeks to better regulate ballast water

 

Barrier proposed to stop Asian carp

 

U.S. House OKs measures to help clean up Great Lakes

 

$20 billion plan unveiled again to clean up lakes

 

Ballast permitting begins in Michigan

 

Constitutional amendment floated over water regulations

 

 

Links for Legislators

 

Alliance for the Great Lakes
www.greatlakes.org

Council of Great Lakes Governors
www.cglg.org

Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative
www.glslcities.org

Great Lakes Commission
www.glc.org

Great Lakes Regional Collaboration
www.epa.gov/greatlakes

Great Lakes United
www.glu.org

Great Lakes WATER Institute
www.glwi.uwm.edu

International Joint Commission

www.ijc.org

Northeast Midwest Institute
www.nemw.org/

greatlakes.htm

The Joyce Foundation
www.joycefdn.org

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem
www.fws.gov/

midwest/greatlakes

 

 

            

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

            

 

 

Watershed Year in State Capitols? —  Numerous bills have been introduced in statehouses this year to protect the Great Lakes ecosystem. Legislative ideas include: 1) a Great Lakes compact to manage water diversions and withdrawals, 2) a basin-wide plan to regulate ballast water, and 3) stronger efforts by individual states to stop the spread of invasive species. 

The text and status of pending state legislation can be viewed here.

Compact ratified in Minnesota, introduced in other states — Minnesota has become the first state to sign into law a compact designed to better protect and manage Great Lakes water. All eight Great Lakes states and the U.S. Congress must approve the compact, which was developed by The Council of Great Lakes Governors. The agreement calls for cross-border cooperation and water management with the provinces of Quebec and Ontario as well.  It would ban most new diversions of water outside the basin, with limited exceptions, and  set in place stronger water conservation policies.

So far this year, compact legislation has been introduced in Illinois, Indiana and Michigan. A proposal in Ohio calls for the establishment of a legislative task force to study whether the state should enter into the agreement.  (Lansing State Journal and Toledo Blade). 

Wisconsin already has had special legislative committee looking into various issues related to the compact. 

Great Lakes get attention of federal lawmakers — Several key Great Lakes-related bills have been introduced this year in the U.S. Congress. Mirroring legislative priorities in the Great Lakes region’s statehouses, many of the federal measures seek to control invasive species, better regulate the ballast water of ocean-going vessels, and clean up Great Lakes water. 

The text and status of pending federal legislation can be viewed here. 

Below are details on some of the proposals.
  • Stricter regulations on ballast water introduced — Michigan U.S. Rep. Candice Miller and U.S. Sen. Carl Levin are sponsoring separate measures (H.R. 889 and S. 725) that would create new national standards for ballast water. They say the proposals will help  prevent the introduction of invasive species into the Great Lakes. According to Miller, her legislation would require vessels' discharged water to meet a standard 10 times more stringent than the one currently set by the International Maritime Organization. The regulations would take effect in 2010. Under the  measure, all ships entering the United States would have to complete their ballast water exchanges before entering the country.
  • Legislation seeks funding to stop aquatic invader — Seeking to prevent introduction of the non-native Asian carp into the Great Lakes, federal lawmakers from the Great Lakes states want Congress to pay for a $9 million electric barrier on the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal.  The requests for federal funding are being made through S. 336 and H.R. 553. Considered a serious threat to the Great lakes ecosystem, the carp grow to an average of 4 feet and 60 pounds and can consume up to 40 percent of their body weight in plankton per day. The carp escaped fish farms in the southern part of the United States. Without a barrier on the canal, the carp could move from the Mississippi River system into the Great Lakes. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). Along with the proposed barrier, separate legislation has been introduced by Great Lakes legislators to prohibit the interstate transportation or importation of live Asian carp without a permit.
  • House approves bills to keep waste out of Great lakes — The U.S. House has approved legislation that would study discharges from wastewater treatment plants in Canada and the United States into the Great Lakes. The environmental impact of those discharges, as well as potential cross-border solutions to address this environmental problem, would be examined in the study. The Water Quality Financing Act (H.R. 720) also would fund local water and sewer systems by funding the federal government's State Revolving Loan Fund. (Cleveland Plain Dealer) The House also has passed the Water Quality Investment Act, which would provide $1.8 billion for federal grants to states and municipalities to replace or repair sewer systems.

Michigan’s permitting of oceangoing vessels begins — The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality issued its first permit in February under a new law that regulates the ballast water of oceangoing ships. The goal of the law is to prevent the introduction of invasive species into the Great Lakes. Permits are issued only if the applicant demonstrates that they will either not discharge ballast water or will use one of four approved environmentally sound technologies and methods to prevent the discharge of aquatic invasive species. The permits are needed to use Michigan ports.

This year, new ballast-water proposals have been introduced in at least two Great Lakes states: Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Voters may be asked to decide on water regulations — If some environmental groups and state lawmakers have their way, voters in Michigan will be deciding in November whether the state needs tighter regulations on water withdrawals and the water-bottling industry. The proposed constitutional amendment also would require the Legislature to vote on all water-bottling projects. Supporters of the ballot initiative say existing state law has too many loopholes. In 2006, the Legislature passed a measure designed to protect the state’s surface waters from excessive use, but some say tighter rules are needed. (M.Live.com)

Photo: GLERL  

 

Great Lakes News for Legislators is an online publication of the Great Lakes Legislative Caucus (GLLC). the GLLC is a nonpartisan group of state and provincial lawmakers from eight U.S. states (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Wisconsin) and two Canadian provinces (Ontario and Québec).  The goal of the caucus is to facilitate the regional exchange of ideas and information on key Great Lakes issues, strengthen the role of state and provincial legislators in the policymaking process, and promote the restoration and protection of the Great Lakes. All legislators are welcome to participate in the GLLC.  Funding for the caucus is provided by the Joyce Foundation. The Council of State Governments provides staffing services for the GLLC.  For more information, please contact Tim Anderson or Mike McCabe by phone (630/925-1922) or e-mail (tanderson@csg.org or  mmccabe@csg.org ).