Granholm Signs Directive to Prohibit Toxic Material Disposal in Michigan’s Waters
LANSING – Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today announced that she has issued an executive directive prohibiting the dumping of dredge material contaminated with toxic substances such as dioxin or PCBs into the waters of the Great Lakes.
Executive Directive 2004-1 prohibits
state agencies from issuing permits for the open water disposal of contaminated
dredge material. The material is accumulated when bodies of water are
dredged to improve navigability and when contaminated areas within the Great
Lakes Basin are being restored. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has
formally proposed dumping contaminated dredge materials into the open waters of
Lake Michigan, a practice that is already happening in the Ohio waters of Lake
Erie.
“We cannot allow our Great Lakes to be
the dumping ground for toxic materials,” said Granholm. “The toxins
contained in the dredge sediment could pose significant dangers to fish, other
indigenous aquatic life, wildlife, and human health. When I look out over
Lake Michigan or any of the Great Lakes, I want to see people hauling steelhead
and walleye into their boats, not barges dumping contaminated sediment into the
water.”
The executive directive is part of
Granholm’s plan for managing, preserving, and protecting Michigan’s
waters. The prohibition against open water disposal is one of six
initiatives presented by Granholm on Tuesday in a special message to the
Michigan Legislature. The Governor’s plan includes a water withdrawal
statute, regulation of ballast water discharge, funding for the National
Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), revision of the state sanitary
code, protection of isolated wetlands, and federal funding for Great Lakes
restoration projects.
“The Great Lakes fuel our economy,” said
Granholm. “They are our tourist attractions, our economic development
tools and critical cogs in our manufacturing machine. It is our
responsibility as environmental and economic stewards to take action now to
protect our water. If we don’t act now, we leave the door open for some
other state or some other country to take action for us and determine the future
of our Great Lakes. I’m not willing to let that
happen.”