"Voinovich's View" - Preserving a Centerpiece of the American Landscape

Statement

Having lived on the "North Coast" of America my whole life, I share Ohioans' deep appreciation for Lake Erie and the Great Lakes. Great Lakes Day in Washington, D.C. was this past week -- a time to recognize the unique and important natural resource the Lakes are to Ohio and the entire region. The Great Lakes are a centerpiece of the American landscape and they must be protected not just for this generation, but also for generations to come.

When I was first elected to the state legislature in 1966, I saw firsthand the effects of pollution in Lake Erie and the surrounding region. I was truly startled by the dramatic toll that human carelessness was taking on such a magnificent natural resource -- Lake Erie was the international poster child for a dying lake.
Then and there I committed myself to stopping the deterioration of the Lake and waged what I call the "Second Battle of Lake Erie" -- the battle to reclaim and restore Ohio's Great Lake. I truly consider my 44-year effort to preserve and protect Lake Erie, and all of the Great Lakes, to be among the most significant of my career.

In fact, I was recently honored a reception at the Canadian Embassy for my service and commitment to the health of the Great Lakes. Kristy Meyer with the Ohio Environmental Council and Sean Logan with the Ohio Department of National Resources presented me with the honor and I am very grateful.

The Great Lakes are of obvious importance to Ohio and the other seven Great Lakes states. They contain approximately 20 percent of the world's surface freshwater, provide drinking water for 25 million people, and support a $7 billion fishery.

I was pleased that, at my urging, President Bush declared the Great Lakes a "national treasure." I have similarly urged President Obama to make the Great Lakes a high priority and was pleased to see large funding increases for the preservation and protection of the lakes in his Fiscal Year 2010 and 2011 budget proposals.

In Washington, I am co-chair of the Senate Great Lakes Task Force and serve on the Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure. One of the first things I did when I came to the U.S. Senate, as a former chairman of the Council of Great Lakes Governors, was work on legislation that would direct states to reach an agreement on how to manage Great Lakes water. I worked to design and enact the 1999, 2000 and 2007 Water Resources Development Acts, which included the Asian carp dispersal barrier, Great Lakes Fishery and Ecosystem Restoration program and the John Glenn Great Lakes Basin program. Each year, the Great Lakes congressional delegation works together to secure funding for these and a variety of other activities vital to the health and future of the Lakes.

In 2002, with the help of my colleagues on the EPW Committee, we passed the bipartisan Great Lakes Legacy Act to clean up contaminated sediments, and I am pleased to say it is one of the best things we have done to protect the Great Lakes. So far, nearly 500,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment has been eliminated in the Ashtabula River and similar processes have begun for Ottawa and Maumee Rivers. I am committed to getting this program reauthorized at a higher funding level in 2010 because it is showing such great results.

In my final year in the U.S. Senate, my co-chair on the Senate Great Lakes Task Force Senator Carl Levin (D-MI) and I will soon introduce the Great Lakes Ecosystem Protection Act. This legislation will authorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, reauthorize the Great Lakes Legacy Act, create a new Great Lakes Advisory Group, reauthorize the Great Lakes National Program Office, and authorize the Great Lakes Federal Interagency Task Force. We will need to work together to get this done because we're dealing with two countries, eight states, and multiple federal agencies coming together to ensure the healthy future of the Lakes.

It is also urgent that Congress address invasive species by enacting ballast water legislation and taking additional steps to prevent Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes. We need to do a better job dealing with what I call the "terrorists on the Great Lakes." Asian carp are just the latest of a series of species that have invaded the Great Lakes and are outcompeting the native ecosystem.

I am pleased that the Great Lakes Congressional delegation recently met with the administration to discuss a comprehensive plan for preventing Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes. I will support additional authority and funding to address the Asian carp threat to the Lakes and in the remaining months of my term, I want to work with my colleagues to finally pass invasive species legislation.

Restoring the Great Lakes requires that we come together -- across party lines, across state lines and across national borders. Neglect of our national resources is not an option, and I can assure you that I will spend much of my last year in office continuing to fight to restore, preserve and protect our Great Lakes. I hope you will take some time this week to reflect on ways you too can do your part to preserve the Great Lakes, which hold such tremendous benefits for Ohio and its citizens.

To receive Sen. Voinovich's e-newsletter, sign up at http://voinovich.senate.gov

Source