GLIN==> New York to chair Great Lakes Commission; carp, GLRI highlight discussions

For immediate release: October 8, 2010

 

New York to chair Great Lakes Commission; carp, GLRI highlight discussions

http://www.glc.org/announce/10/10toronto.html 

 

 

Toronto, Ont. – Canada was challenged to provide a similar level of
financial commitment to restoration of the Great Lakes at the Great Lakes
Commission’s Annual Meeting, which concluded today in Toronto. 

 

In discussions about renegotiation of the Great Lakes Water Quality
Agreement, Cam Davis, senior advisor to U.S. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson,
stressed that the Great Lakes region needs a proportionate investment from
Canada and suggested one-third to one-half of the Great Lakes Restoration
Initiative (GLRI) investment that has been made by the U.S. federal
government, based on Canada’s population of the Great Lakes basin. 

 

James Tierney of New York was elected new chairman of the Commission.
Tierney, assistant commissioner of the Division of Water Resources for the
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, assumes the
chairmanship from Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn. Kari Evans Bennett, general
counsel to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, was elected vice
chair.

 

“As the federal governments explore enhancements to the Great Lakes Water
Quality Agreement, I request that they continue or substantially increase
the long-term funding that is critical to the implementation of the joint
national objective to restore the Great Lakes,” Tierney said. “I hope that
the Canadian federal government will consider providing funds on par with
the U.S. Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.”

 

In other business, the Commission voted to re-establish an Emergency
Preparedness Task Force to review the status of response programs for oil
and hazardous material spills in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River basin.
The action comes on the heels of the Enbridge oil spill from a ruptured
pipeline near Marshall, Mich., which spilled over 800,000 gallons of oil
into Talmadge Creek, a tributary to Lake Michigan.

 

John Goss, recently appointed as Carp Director for the Council on
Environmental Quality, highlighted the three prongs of the carp strategy: 1)
remove carp; 2) strengthen the barrier system; and 3) make progress on a
long-term solution through collaborative research. 

 

Ontario Minister of Natural Resources Linda Jeffrey provided opening remarks
to the more than 80 Great Lakes policymakers in attendance. On the issue of
the carp, Jeffrey said: "This government supports the efforts of our
Canadian and U.S. colleagues to stop the migration of Asian carp into the
Great Lakes system. We're committed to working as a team to monitor this
serious situation and seek effective solutions."

 

Dave Ullrich, executive director of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities
Initiative, spoke about a new joint project between the Great Lakes
Commission and the Cities Initiative: Envisioning a Chicago Area Waterway
System for the 21st Century. The project, funded to date by the Joyce
Foundation, the Great Lakes Protection Fund and the Mott and Frey
foundations, is focused on preventing carp and other aquatic invasive
species movement through separation of the Great Lakes and Mississippi
watersheds, while improving transportation, water quality, and stormwater
and flood management in the Chicago waterways system.

 

The Commission passed three resolutions: promoting mercury monitoring,
research and reduction; advocating for reauthorization of the Federal Food
Conservation and Energy Act (Farm Bill) of 2008 to secure strong water
quality protections for the Great Lakes; and encouraging Congress to
continue and sustain funding for the GLRI, the landmark program established
by President Obama in 2009. 

 

Davis encouraged the states to take ownership of the GLRI Action Plan and be
mindful of its benchmarks. “We need to build the bridge while we’re driving
over it,” Davis said. “It’s important to highlight project starts and end
results, and how the GLRI is producing jobs on the state level.”

 

The Commission will continue its leadership role in working with regional
partners, on behalf of the states, to encourage Congress to provide
statutory authorization and full funding for the GLRI and other critical
programs. The FY2010 appropriation for GLRI was $475 million. The FY2011
appropriation markup in the House is $300 million. The five-year pricetag
for the program is estimated at $2.2 billion.

                                                            

 “Through the GLRI, we at last have seen a significant down payment on the
resources that we need to protect and restore this special part of the
world,” concluded Commission Vice Chair Todd Ambs of Wisconsin, president of
River Network. “Let us make sure that we make the most of this moment.”

 

The Great Lakes Commission will next convene for its annual Great Lakes Days
in Washington events on Capitol Hill, March 1-2, 2011.

 

Contact: Tim Eder

Email: teder at glc.org 

Office: 734-971-9135

Cell: 734-604-7281

 

 

 

### 

 

The Great Lakes Commission, chaired by James Tierney (NY), is an interstate
compact agency established under state and U.S. federal law and dedicated to
promoting a strong economy, healthy environment and high quality of life for
the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence region and its residents. The Commission
consists of governors' appointees, state legislators, and agency officials
from its eight member states. Associate membership for Ontario and Québec
was established through the signing of a "Declaration of Partnership." The
Commission maintains a formal Observer program involving U.S. and Canadian
federal agencies, tribal authorities, binational agencies and other regional

interests. The Commission offices are located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Learn
more at www.glc.org.

 

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