Great Lakes programs take hit in Trump budget
By For The Columbus Dispatch
Budget proposals unveiled Thursday by the Trump administration drew flak from stakeholders advocating safe drinking water, a viable fishery and continued recreational opportunities on the Great Lakes.
Among the critics was Todd Ambs, campaign director for the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition, which purports to support a healthier Great Lakes, among them algae-troubled Lake Erie.
“For the 30 million people who depend on the Great Lakes for their drinking water, health, jobs and way of life, the Trump administration budget is a total non-starter,” Ambs said, echoing similar responses from conservation advocates across the environmental spectrum. “The Trump budget makes it abundantly clear that real leadership to benefit the people of Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, New York, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Illinois will have to come from Republicans and Democrats in the U.S. Congress, who have worked together over the last seven years to invest in Great Lakes restoration projects that are producing results for the environment and economy in local communities across the region.”
A number of Republican lawmakers on Thursday declared dead portions of the president’s budget proposals, though to what extent they can find common ground with Democrats on a spending bill for the coming year remains an open question.
The value of Great Lakes fishing, including recreational and commercial, has been estimated at $7 billion annually to the region. Lake Erie is a focal point for both.
While it’s been widely reported Trump’s proposals eliminate $300 million in funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, less widely reported is Trump’s cuts appear to seek an end to meaningful federal efforts to stop Asian carp from invading the Great Lakes.
A $1 billion funding reduction to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would inhibit if not end federal initiatives involving new barriers to Asian carp at Chicago, which is considered to be the most vulnerable carp entry point into the Great Lakes.
A scheduled release early this month of a federal assessment considered critical to taking additional steps toward keeping two invasive species of Asian carp out of the Great Lakes was scuttled, drawing sharp criticism from those who view the carps as threats to the current fishery.
Public voice
The International Joint Commission, a U.S.-Canadian government overseer of projects and policy issues affecting the Great Lakes, will offer on Thursday the chance for citizens to give their take on how the lakes are faring and what actions the United States and Canada ought to take to restore and protect them.
Brief presentations about various aspects of lake stewardship are scheduled by Chris Winslow, Ohio Sea Grant director; by Karl Gebhardt, Ohio EPA deputy director for water resources; and by Gail Hesse, National Wildlife Federation director for the Great Lakes Water Program.
Jeff Reutter, former Ohio Sea Grant director and current special adviser to Sea Grant, will moderate the public comment program.
The meeting, scheduled from 6-9 p.m., will be held at the University of Toledo Lake Erie Centre, 6200 Bay Shore Road, in Oregon. For details, visit participateijc.org/public-meetings.
Portman on board
Ohio Sen. Rob Portman, a Republican, has teamed with two Democratic colleagues representing Michigan, Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow, to introduce legislation that would fund a science center for Great Lakes fish research similar to those that exist on the U.S. coasts for ocean fisheries.
Portman, co-chair of the Senate Great Lakes Task Force, explained his support in a statement released last week:
“The Great Lakes are an invaluable resource to Ohio, critically important to both our environment and our economy,” he said. “By authorizing the Great Lakes Science Center for the first time, we are prioritizing the research on fish populations and invasive species used by the Great Lakes states as well as Canada to support the health and growth of our $7 billion fishing industry. This bill will ensure we have the resources to help protect the Great Lakes for generations to
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