The Great Lakes Commission is calling upon Congress to remember this region “in any economic stimulus response to the devastating coronavirus pandemic.”
“The eight-state, binational Great Lakes Basin is an economic engine for North America, contains more than 90 percent of our nation’s fresh [surface] water, and supports vital industries such as automotive production, power production, agriculture, maritime transportation, tourism and recreation,” according to a letter sent Thursday to U.S. Reps. Nita Lowey (D., N.Y.), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, and Kay Granger of Texas, the committee’s ranking Republican.
Toledo is mentioned under the first of seven subheads at the end of the letter, one devoted to the need for safe drinking water and modernization of the region’s clean water infrastructure.
“Great Lakes states face a $10 billion annual need to maintain and upgrade drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure — nearly 30 percent of the national need,” the letter states. “While the basin provides drinking water for 48 million people, drinking water crises in Flint, MI, and Toledo, OH show that Great Lakes water supplies remain vulnerable.”
Toledo’s reference was in regard to its 2014 water crisis, when nearly 500,000 metro Toledo residents were told for nearly three days to stay away from their tap water because it had been infiltrated by an algal poison during the annual algae boom in western Lake Erie.
“With nearly one-third of U.S. and Canadian economies centered around the Great Lakes Basin, revitalizing the Great Lakes economy will accelerate and stabilize our national economy,” the letter states.
Among other things, the Great Lakes Commission is asking for Congress to fund the federal government’s Great Lakes Restoration Initiative at $475 million for the next fiscal year. GLRI money is used for cleanups and improvement projects, such as those aimed at mitigating algal growth and preventing intrusion by Asian carp.
It also seeks millions of dollars for better navigation, more invasive species control, better agricultural conservation, more resiliency, and stronger data.
“These investments will swiftly generate new jobs and economic activity in multiple sectors and respond to existing needs across the Great Lakes Basin,” the letter states.
First Published May 1, 2020, 8:10 p.m.
