Pausing to Praise Those Who Prioritize Our Water

Shining a beacon of light on those navigating stormy waters

Through the seeming chaos and dysfunction swirling about our nation’s capitol, the wheels of democracy are rolling slowly, almost silently, forward.

Last week, under the bipartisan leadership of Bill Huizenga (R-MI), Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), Sean Duffy (R-WI), and Louise Slaughter (D-NY), twenty members of the Congressional Great Lakes Task Force sent a letter to President Trump asking him to help create opportunities to “grow the Great Lakes economy while also restoring and preserving its delicate ecosystem.” Another twenty-seven members of Congress joined task force members in signing a supplemental letter to the president, urging him to include $300 million in Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) funding in his fiscal year 2018 budget. ​

If your representative signed one of the letters, please take a moment and say thank you. If you live in one of the eight Great Lakes states and your representative is not listed, or if you have visited the region and understand the importance of these bodies of fresh water, please send an email asking “why not?” 

It is no accident representatives from both parties are willing to petition the new president to help restore one of the country's natural treasures. Much of the credit goes to the leaders of local, state, and federal agencies, private organizations, tribes, mayors, and business leaders who have been involved in the 2,900 GLRI projects funded by Congress since 2010. They have insisted every project have a clear, measurable goal tracked over time. As a result, members of Congress go to President Trump with a detailed return on the $2.2 billion invested over the last seven years. 

Part of the credit goes to the Healing Our Waters Coalition, a group of over 145 organizations who not only educate federal officials on the importance of restoring and protecting the Great Lakes, but exchange information across the region so that lessons learned by those involved in one project can be passed along to others. 

But part of the credit also goes to those of us who insist fresh water be made a priority. People like you and me. Our elected officials work for us. Their priorities should be ours. 

This year’s request for $300 million supplements local, state, and private funding to implement strategic plans created by the region. The plans include: 

• Continued efforts to address the influx of nonnative invasive species—particularly the dreaded Asian carp—that threatens the $7 billion annual fishing industry.
• Upgrading and improving outdated sewage treatment facilities that dump over forty-one billion gallons of sewage into the lakes every year, closing beaches and threatening public health.
• Restoring a portion of the 66 percent of wetlands destroyed over time—an initiative that will  improve water quality, provide habitat for wildlife, and support outdoor recreational activities like fishing, hunting, birding, and hiking. 
• Removing the toxic sludge from rivers and harbors and redefine our waterfronts so we can attract talent, inspire new business development, and improve the value of our property. 
• Addressing polluted runoff—called non-point pollution—that impacts water quality, poses risks to people, fish and wildlife, and contributes to the excessive growth of algae in our lakes and harbors. 
• Researching the effect rising temperatures will have on the Great Lakes ecosystem and develop and implement plans to minimize those threats. 

​I had planned on publishing a different blog this month. It can wait. Pausing to praise those who prioritize our water is too important. Please join me in shining a beacon of light on those navigating the stormy seas of today’s politics to protect the waters so integral to our lives, so easy to take for granted.

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Sending an email to your Representative

To send an email to your Congressional Representative visit: http://www.house.gov. In the top right corner under “Find Your Representative,” enter your zip code. You’ll be directed to the appropriate site.

Please thank the following Great Lakes Task Force Members(*) and others signing the supplemental letter: 
​Minnesota:  Betty McCollum (D), Rick Nolan (D), Tim Walz (D), Keith Ellison (D)
Wisconsin: *Gwen Moore (D), Mark Pocan (D), *Ron Kind (D), *Sean Duffy (R), Mike Gallagher (R), Glenn Grothman (R), Jim Sensenbrenner (R)
Illinois: *Bobby Rush (D), Jan Schakowsky (D), *Mike Quigley (D), Brad Schneider (D), Luis Gutierrez (D)
Indiana: *Jackie Walorski (R), *Pete Visclosky (D)
Michigan: Brenda Lawrence (D), *Dan Kildee (D), *Debbie Dingell (D), *Bill Huizenga (R), John Conyers (D), John Moolenaar (R), Mike Bishop (R), *Fred Upton (R), Dave Trott (R), Paul Mitchell (R), Jack Bergman (R), *Sander Levin (D)
Ohio: *David Joyce (R), Bob Gibbs (R), *Marcy Kaptur (D), *Jim Renacci (R), *Tim Ryan (D), *Marcia Fudge (D), Bill Johnson (R)
Pennsylvania: *Mike Kelly (R), Glenn Thompson (R)
New York: *Louise Slaughter (D), *Brian Higgins (D), Grace Meng (D), John Katko (R), Elise Stefanik (R), Nydia Velazquez (D)
Washington, D.C.: Eleanor Holmes Norton (D)
Florida:  Darren Soto (D)

If your Representative is not listed and you consider the Great Lakes a priority, please ask your Representative "why not?"

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Resources: 

• The Healing Our Waters Coalition website 
• An email from my Congressman, Fred Upton, a member of the Congressional Great Lakes Task Force. A copy of the letter to President Trump may be found at http://upton.house.gov.