In the Obama Administration’s proposed 2010 budget, it’s $475 million in new money in the first year for Great Lakes restoration. The five lakes hold about 6 quadrillion gallons of water and provide drinking water for 40 million North Americans but are afflicted with aquatic invasive species, habitat destruction, lingering and new chemicals, and animal and human waste.
Long sought by the region’s advocates, the money would be divided up in more than 100 separate initiatives among federal agencies. The U.S. EPA is on the road with public meetings taking comments on the plan. A meeting in Milwaukee Tuesday night was the first; the final meeting takes place August 4 in Duluth. Citizens can also comment on line.
The Great Lakes restoration campaign was born after Congress approved billions in 2000 to restore the Florida Everglades. The feds have also directed considerable funding at Chesapeake Bay cleanup, with at best mixed results after a quarter century.
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Dave Dempsey
Dave Dempsey is a writer active in conservation for more than 25 years. A frequent freelance contributor and newsweekly columnist, Dave is the author of four award-winning books on the environment and a biography of Michigan’s longest-serving Governor, William Milliken. A native of Michigan who now lives in the Twin Cities metro in Minnesota, Dave served as environmental advisor to Michigan Governor James J. Blanchard from 1983-89. President Clinton appointed him to the Great Lakes Fishery Commission in 1994. Dave has also held numerous administrative, policy and consulting positions for nonprofit conservation and environmental organizations in Michigan and Minnesota. He was both policy director and executive director at the Michigan Environmental Council and Great Lakes policy consultant for Clean Water Action. Dave has a bachelor of arts degree from Western Michigan University and a master’s degree in natural resource development from Michigan State University, and has served as an adjunct university instructor at MSU in environmental policy.
One Response to What is 18% of the globe’s freshwater worth?
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$475 million is a good start, but we need a lot more than that to do all the work that needs to be done!