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AIS Coastal Communities Federal Legislation Information Issues News Release Nutrient Pollution Toxic Substances Water Consumption

GLLC Joins Statement on U.S. Federal Great Lakes Priorities

On March 9, Great Lakes organizations across the region gathered in Washington D.C. to highlight U.S. federal priorities for the basin on Great Lakes Day. The Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Legislative Caucus (GLLC) signed onto the joint statement addressing Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) funding, water infrastructure investment, climate resiliency, harmful algal blooms, emerging contaminants, and aquatic invasive species.

“The Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Legislative Caucus is glad to once again stand beside the Great Lakes Commission and coalition of esteemed Great Lakes organizations in communicating a shared vision for Great Lakes U.S. federal policy, ” said Wisconsin Senator André Jacque, GLLC Chair. The GLLC is committed to working with partners at all levels of government and across non-profit and academic sectors to make progress on safe water consumption, nutrient management, cleaning up toxic substances, preventing the spread of aquatic invasive species, and protecting coastal communities.

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AIS Events Issues Lead Nutrient Pollution Toxic Substances Water Consumption Web Meeting

ICYMI: Tracking the Great Lakes Region’s Progress Through Blue Accounting

On February 10, the GLLC hosted speakers from the Great Lakes Commission (GLC) to talk about their Blue Accounting program. Program manager Nicole Zacharda and project manager Ceci Weibert presented on Blue Accounting’s drinking water, aquatic invasive species, and nutrient management data sets and visualizations.

Zacharda outlined the areas of focus for the newly launched drinking water portal, including drinking water protection, treatment requirements, and safe water distribution. Using safe water distribution as an example, Zacharda modeled how Blue Accounting tracks lead service line replacement in each state/province. The portal also contains a policy comparison table between states/provinces using the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Legislative Caucus model policy on drinking water.

Weibert discussed the aquatic invasive species (AIS) section of Blue Accounting. She showed the group the metrics on recreational boating prevention programs by state/province, including a comparison of enacted regulations and programs. She shared that the province of Ontario used these tools to outline its recreational boating regulations in 2022 to align with regional partners. Weibert also presented data on harmonization of AIS prevention programs by species.

To close, Zacharda gave an update on the Blue Accounting ErieStat. ErieStat contains data on harmful algal blooms (HABs), phosphorus levels, and strategies to reduce phosphorus across the Lake Erie basin. Despite efforts to reduce phosphorus, the region has not yet achieved a decrease in HABs. ErieStat allows policymakers to review phosphorus levels by watershed across the region to track and assess which areas require the most attention.

The Great Lakes Commission is seeking feedback from and collaboration with Great Lakes legislators on how to update, expand, and improve Blue Accounting. If you have any thoughts to share, please contact Nicole Zacharda.

The recording of the webinar can be seen here.

The GLLC will be holding a webinar on “Climate Trends and Impacts in the Great Lakes Region” on Friday, March 31, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. CT/11:00 a.m. ET in partnership with Great Lakes Integrated Sciences and Assessments (GLISA). Register today!

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AIS Coastal Communities Information Issues News Release Nutrient Pollution Policy S/P Legislation Toxic Substances Water Consumption

A Look Back at Great Lakes Legislation: The 2021-2022 Session

During the 2021-2022 legislative session, the GLLC tracked more than three hundred pieces of legislation in the Great Lakes states and provinces related to our five issues areas: aquatic invasive species, coastal communities, nutrient management, toxic substances, and water consumption. one-third of the 2021-2022 bills and resolutions were introduced or co-sponsored by GLLC members.

Of the introduced bills, 61 were signed into law. Water consumption was the most active issue area. Legislators required water utilities to replace lead service lines (Illinois); allocated additional funds to water infrastructure (Michigan); banned new water-use permits for bulk transport sale of water (Minnesota); and bolstered lead testing programs for vulnerable populations (New York and Pennsylvania).

The second most active area for successful legislation was nutrient pollution. Legislators increased regulations on pesticides (Illinois); created and/or reauthorized programs to help landowners employ best practices on farmland (Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota); and increased funding for water quality and nutrient runoff work (Michigan, Ohio).

When it comes to toxic substances, GLLC jurisdictions banned incineration of PFAS (Illinois); banned use of PFAS compounds in dry cleaning and food packaging (Minnesota); listed emerging contaminants as hazardous (Minnesota, New York); and expanded funding for disposal and clean-up of PFAS (Wisconsin).

For coastal communities, legislation strengthened rescue equipment on the lakes (Michigan); removed requirements for municipal lakefront developments to include an oil refinery (Indiana); established funds for climate resiliency (New York); changed development regimes for floodzones (Québec); required permits for wetland, stream, or floodplain restoration (Wisconsin; and allowed removed sediment to be reused as beach nourishment (Wisconsin).

In the area of aquatic invasive species, Minnesota’s environmental and natural resources bill included funding for the University of Minnesota Aquatic Invasive Species Research Center.

All of the tracked legislation can be reviewed in the archived 2021-2022 tracker.

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Information Members News Release Uncategorized

Executive Committee Welcomes New Representation from Michigan and Pennsylvania

At the January Executive Committee meeting of the 2023-2024 biennium, Representative Rachel Hood from Michigan and Senator Daniel Laughlin from Pennsylvania were confirmed as the new Executive Committee members for their respective states. Grand Rapids-based Representative Hood was a 2019 Birkholz Institute Fellow, served on the GLLC Task Force on Nutrient Management, and is the chair of the Michigan House Appropriations Subcommittee for Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy. Senator Laughlin is a lifelong champion for Erie County, Penn. and is the vice chair of the Pennsylvania Senate Game & Fisheries Committee.

In addition, the following Executive Committee members have been selected to serve their second term: Illinois Representative Sonya Harper, Indiana Representative David Abbott, New York Senator Mark Walczyk, and Ontario MPP Jennifer French. In addition to our officers and state/provincial members, the Executive Committee also includes ex officio members, Illinois Representative Robyn Gabel, Indiana Senator Ed Charbonneau, and Minnesota Senator Ann Rest.

In February, the Executive Committee approved the nominations of Minnesota Senator Mary Kunesh, Ohio Senator Theresa Gavarone, Québec MNA Joëlle Boutin, and Wisconsin Representative Lisa Subeck.

The Executive Committee listing can be found here.

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Uncategorized

Now Accepting Applications for the Birkholz Institute Fellowship

2023 Birkholz Institute: Climate Resiliency in Great Lakes Communities

The GLLC is now accepting applications for the 2023 Birkholz Institute Fellowship, with a deadline of February 24, 2023.

The Institute will be held in Detroit on April 21-22, 2023 and will be an in-depth workshop on Climate Resiliency in Great Lakes Communities. After attending the two-day workshop, Fellows will form a task force to refine their policy recommendations over the next two years.

The Birkholz Institute Fellowship is open to all GLLC members and travel scholarships are available for the selected Fellows. If you have any questions, contact Jess Lienhardt at jlienhardt@csg.org.

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Information News Release

New Great Lakes Program Director

CSG Midwest is pleased to welcome Jessica Lienhardt as the new director of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Legislative Caucus. In this role, Jessica will guide the many activities and services provided to state and provincial legislators through the nonpartisan, binational GLLC.

A native and resident of Michigan, Jessica most recently worked for five years as public affairs officer for the Consulate General of Canada in Detroit. Jessica will lead CSG Midwest’s support of the GLLC and its work: in-person and virtual events, advocacy on federal policy, a legislative tracker, in-depth training for legislators on select Great Lakes issues, and more.

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Information Toxic Substances Water Consumption

For states, the work on ‘forever chemicals’ has just begun, and potential economic effects on agriculture loom large

Over the past two years, policy “firsts” have cropped up in state legislatures across the country to deal with the problem of PFAS, a class of widely used chemicals linked to harmful health effects in humans and animals. In the Midwest, Illinois became the first U.S. state to ban the incineration of PFAS (HB 4818), and Minnesota is the first in the region to outlaw these chemicals in food packaging (SF 20).

Wisconsin, for the first time, now has enforceable limits on levels of certain PFAS chemicals in community drinking water systems, joining Michigan in the Midwest.

Outside the region, some of the recent actions have been even further-reaching. Maine, for instance, is prohibiting all non-essential uses of PFAS in products, and after sewage sludge was discovered to be a source of widespread PFAS contamination on farmland, the state banned the use of sludge as fertilizer. Also this year, Maine legislators established a $60 million trust fund for farmers whose land and products have been contaminated by PFAS. Through the fund, the state will purchase contaminated property, replace the lost income of farmers and monitor the health of affected families. In Vermont, residents exposed to PFAS contamination now have a right to medical monitoring (paid for by PFAS polluters).

“It’s everywhere, and the cleanup is very difficult to do and very expensive,” Minnesota Rep. Ami Wazlawik says about the challenges posed by PFAS contamination. “So you have the prevalence of the chemicals in the environment, the fact that they are ‘forever chemicals’ that stick around, and then the negative health impacts.”

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Annual Meeting Information News Release

Caucus meets in Chicago, selects two legislators to lead bipartisan, binational group starting in 2023

Joined by leading policy experts and scientists on the Great Lakes, state and provincial legislators came to Chicago in September for a weekend devoted to learning about how and why to protect the largest freshwater system in the world. 

The binational, bipartisan Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Legislative Caucus is unique in its composition and focus. 

Counting legislators from all 10 jurisdictions of the Great Lakes basin (eight U.S. states, two Canadian provinces) as members, the GLLC’s mission is to strengthen the role of state and provincial lawmakers in policies that impact the Great Lakes and the region’s other water resources.

The group’s Annual Meeting is central to this mission, providing a forum for legislators to exchange ideas and innovations with one another and leading experts. Topics for the 2022 meeting included controlling the spread of invasive species, reducing nutrient pollution, cleaning up Areas of Concern, and addressing the problem of PFAS contamination. The meeting also featured a session on the impact of climate change in the Great Lakes region (see pages 4 and 5 for more information).

Read overview of topics and sessions from the 2022 meeting »

New leadership team on board

For the past several years, Illinois Rep. Robyn Gabel and Minnesota Rep. Jennifer Schultz have led the caucus as its chair and vice chair, respectively. Gabel led this year’s meeting in Chicago. However, the caucus regularly rotates its two-officer team, and at the September meeting, members elected Wisconsin Sen. André Jacque as incoming chair and Illinois Sen. Laura Fine as incoming vice chair. Their terms begin in 2023.

Additionally, the caucus has an Executive Committee made up of legislators from all 10 jurisdictions. If you are interested in serving on this committee, please contact CSG Midwest director Mike McCabe at mmccabe@csg.org or 630.925.1922.

CSG Midwest provides staff support to the caucus, which also receives financial support from the Joyce Foundation, the Erb Family Foundation and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. Next year’s GLLC Annual Meeting will be held Sept. 8-9 in Québec City. 

Caucus membership is free and open to all legislators from the Great Lakes states and provinces. Visit greatlakeslegislators.org to become a member.

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Information Uncategorized

EPA Continues Funding for Great Lakes Wetlands Monitoring with New Grant

Ten organizations recently received grant to continue their research in monitoring the Great Lakes coastal wetlands.

The teams monitor all wetland wildlife including birds, fish, bugs, plants, and amphibians around the Great Lakes. The data they collect is evaluated to determine if environmental changes are natural or the result of human activity.  It is then used for protection and restoration efforts.

“But up here where we can make sure that we’re not slipping, we’re not letting things accidentally get degraded just cause we’re not watching.  This makes sure that we’re watching and making sure that we keep Lake Superior as healthy as it can be,” said Valerie Brady, an aquatic ecologist for University of Minnesota.

The grant money will allow Great Lakes researchers to monitor 1,000 wetlands through 2025.

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Issues Nutrient Pollution Web Meeting

April 23 Web Meeting: How States and Provinces are Currently Managing Nutrient Inflow into the Great Lakes

This web meeting, hosted by the Caucus’s Task Force on Nutrient Management focused on the different approaches state’s in the region are doing to reduce nutrient inflow into the Great Lakes.

Senator Dan Lauwers told us about Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MAEAP). A voluntary program initiated in 1998, MEAP recognizes farmers stewardship of their land and helps them adopt cost-effective practices that reduce erosion and runoff into ponds, streams, and rivers. This, in turn, helps farmers comply with state and federal laws. The program begins with the farmers attending an education workshop, then inviting a local MAEAP technician to tour your farm. This is followed by the famer implementing changes or practices recommended by the technician. Then the land is verified as MEAP certified.  Farmers are provided with technical assistance and educational programs to achieve verification. Reverification occurs every 5 years.

The state of Michigan contracts with local conservation districts so that the farmer works with local experts to achieve verification. To date there are 5910 farms verified, covering more than a million acres. The program is self-funded through a fertilizer and pesticide fees.  While this is totally voluntary, it provides land owners with legislated certainty in case of accidental discharges or if a watershed is declared impaired.

Wisconsin provides $750,000 a year to producer-led groups that focus on nonpoint source pollution abatement activities through the Producer-Led Watershed Protection Grant Program.  A minimum of 5 farmers in the same watershed have to collaborate to receive up to $40,000 to advance conservation solutions.  Thirty-one projects have been funded since 2016.  Dr.  Don Niles a veterinarian and dairy producer in one of the densest dairy counties in the nation discussed the producer-led group called Peninsula Pride farms.  This group of 46 farmers in Kewaunee and southern Door counties organized as a non-profit organization to improve surface and ground water quality. The group includes 50 percent of the cows and 50 percent of the acreage in the region.

Peninsula Pride provides its members grants to complete additional water quality efforts with funding coming from the state funds as well as donations from agricultural businesses that support the efforts. Members focus on improving soil health, reducing phosphorus loss and minimize surface effluent. In the last two years, this producer-led organization has over 80,000 acres covered by Nutrient Management Plans as well as installed more than 18,000 acres of cover crops. 

Angie Becker Kudelka, Assistant Director of Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources provided us information on Minnesota’s mandatory riparian protection law.  An initiative of Governor Mark Dayton in 2015, it mandates 50 ft of vegetative buffer along public waters and 16.5 ft on waters of public drainage systems. Local technical assistance and funding was provided to land owners to install the perennial vegetation that protects Minnesota’s waters from surface nutrient pollution. In 75 counties, local officials oversee implementation and the state enforces the law in the remaining counties that decided not to be the enforcing body.

Minnesota also has a voluntary Agriculture Water Quality Certification Program that is similar to Michigan’s, providing financial and technical assistance as well as regulatory certainty to participants. It has over 750,000 acres enrolled by 1049 land owners.

The next webinar, on May 7 will cover programs in Ohio, New York and Ontario. 

The web meeting was the second of six planned for 2021; the next meeting will be May 7, again hosted by the Caucus’s Task Force on Nutrient Management, which developed from the inaugural Patricia Birkholz Institute’s focus on that subject.