Article published September 24, 2008
House OKs Great Lakes water deal
Kaptur, others vote no
By TOM HENRY
BLADE STAFF WRITER
Congress has spoken: The Great Lakes are off-limits to outsiders.
The most ambitious plan ever sent to Washington in hopes of establishing the eight Great Lakes states as guardians of water they share with Ontario and Quebec was ratified yesterday, 390-25, in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Those in dissent included U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D., Toledo), whose district encompasses the most Lake Erie shoreline; U.S. Rep. Bart Stupak (D., Mich), whose district in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula has the most Great Lakes shoreline, and U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D., Cleveland), who represents one of the region’s largest cities.
The Senate ratified the measure unanimously on Aug. 1.
Called the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact, the proposal calls for the states to abide by a common set of principles for keeping water within the basin while establishing bans on bulk exports or diversions to other parts of the world.
If Mr. Bush signs the bill into law, as he has pledged to do, the states will form a regional water body recognized by Congress as the decision-maker for rules affecting lake usage from the U.S. side.
The plan also calls upon the states to pass stronger measures for conserving water. The earliest effective date is Dec. 8.
Legislative bodies in the eight Great Lakes states ratified the plan individually in 2007 and 2008.
Pushed for years by some of the region’s largest environmental groups, yesterday’s final vote drew surprise opposition from a few Great Lakes lawmakers known as hardline advocates of the lakes.
Miss Kaptur, Mr. Stupak, and Mr. Kucinich agree with the general principle, but question if a controversial exemption for containers of less than 5.7 gallons will undermine it.
Miss Kaptur said she believes the strength of such a regional water compact is unclear, given that water is viewed as a tradeable commodity under the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA.
She said a section in the compact that defines products could have been improved. “We had hoped our votes would slow down the process to have committee hearings,” Miss Kaptur said, referring to herself and Mr. Stupak. “For those of us who come from a part of the country that does not have a lot of experience with water laws, how well does this stand up?”
In a letter to his House colleagues Monday, Mr. Stupak urged congressmen to reject the compact because he feared it “is not strong enough to protect the Great Lakes against diversions of Great Lakes water through privatization, commercialization, and exportation.”
A bipartisan letter urging support was sent that same day to all House members by U.S. Reps. John Conyers (D., Mich.), Steven LaTourette (R., Ohio), Vern Ehlers (R., Mich.), and James Oberstar (D., Minn.). It claimed such concerns had been addressed.
But Mr. Kucinich, who has made a couple of unsuccessful bids for the presidency, yesterday claimed that bottled water companies “managed to leave themselves a loophole that could pave the way for a massive privatization and export of Great Lakes water.”
Another area lawmaker, retiring U.S. Rep. Deborah Pryce (R., Columbus), did not vote.
Andy Buchsbaum, director of the National Wildlife Federation’s Great Lakes office in Ann Arbor, one of the plan’s most outspoken supporters, said the 5.7 gallon exemption was included to be consistent with the size of shipments currently banned under Canadian law.
He said the compact’s language closes loopholes and gives the region historic protection. “Nobody can transfer water out of the basin and claim it’s a product. That protects us from international trade challenges,” he said.
Mr. Buchsbaum said he wholeheartedly endorsed the compact because it “puts environmental protection and water conservation first and not last.”
“This is an historic thing,” he said. “Eight states now have a common standard to protect Great Lakes water.”
Cameron Davis, president of the Alliance for the Great Lakes, agreed.
“Today will go down in history as the time we spared the Great Lakes from death by a thousand straws,” he said. “It shows that our nation’s leaders understand that conserving water is vital for the economy. And it signals to the rest of the world that the stewardship of water — the oil of this century — is a global imperative.”
James Clift, Michigan Environmental Council policy director, said it shows Congress believes the lakes are “a national gem — like the Grand Canyon or the Florida Everglades — worthy of our defense and stewardship.”
The lakes hold 20 percent of the world’s fresh surface water. By volume, they are second only to Russia’s Lake Baikal.
“Lake Erie and the other Great Lakes are national jewels, and this [interstate compact] will help ensure they will be valued and protected for generations to come,” Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland said.
Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm said Congress has “acted in an historic manner,” while Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle, chairman of the Council of Great Lakes Governors, said there could be “even bolder steps” in line for the lakes.
The proposal was assembled under the direction of former Ohio Gov. Bob Taft.
The region’s other governors put him in charge of the project when they installed him as the gubernatorial council’s chairman in June, 2001. That was at a summit in Niagara Falls, N.Y. that governors called in response to the growing demand for water in other parts of the world.
Contact Tom Henry at:thenry@theblade.com or 419-724-6079.
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