Water Watch: December 20, 2016
- The Advocates for a Clean Lake Erie (ACLE) have found error with Mayor Hicks-Hudson’s letter to Donald Trump, asking for an executive order to determine Ohio’s portion of Lake Erie impaired. In the letter, Hicks-Hudson wrote, “Unfortunately, the Clean Water Act does not directly regulate non-point sources of pollution, which is the root problem with Lake Erie water quality.”
- According to the ACLE, “1) The CWA does indeed authorize the EPA to regulate non-point sources of pollution. 2) Implying that subject is unsettled is completely unwarranted and will only lead to additional delay in getting Lake Erie back to health. It is, in fact, the very argument the American Farm Bureau and its allies used in an unsuccessful, five-year federal lawsuit filed to stop the Chesapeake Bay cleanup.”
- “Without implementing a plan that adequately addresses (the algal blooms) issue, we are putting Ohio’s families at risk,” said State Senator Edna Brown (D-Toledo), putting in her two cents on the water discussion. “By investing in practices that improve the state of our Great Lakes, we invest in the health and well-being of Ohioans.” Hear, hear!
- According to a project by the University of Michigan, most of the 40 percent reduction goal for runoff that winds up in Lake Erie can be achieved by farmers injecting fertilizer into the ground rather than applying it to the surface of their fields. Additionally, cereal rye (winter rye), cover crops and buffer strips are among the most effective tools in circumventing run-off.
- According to Margaret Kalcic, assistant professor in OSU’s food, agricultural and biological engineering department (formerly with the U-M team), fertilizer injecting would need to be embraced by half of the Maumee River watershed farmers in order to make an impact.
- The newly formed Lake Erie Foundation is a collaboration between two advocacy groups, the Lake Erie Improvement Association and the Lake Erie Watchkeeper. The focus of the group is to engineer more long-term business interests in the health of the lake. Approximately 100 people showed up to the initial forum at the Catawba Island Club recently. You can get more info on the group at lakeeriefoundation.org
- Results from the Lake Erie International Coastal Cleanup (LEICC) were recently published, declaring 61,000 unnatural substances were pulled from the Lake, resulting in 5,257 pounds of garbage. According to the LEICC, the top 10 items recovered from Lake Erie during the cleanup were: cigarette butts, food wrappers, small plastic pieces, plastic beverage bottles, plastic bottle caps, small foam pieces, small glass pieces, straw stirrers, cigar tips and other plastic/foam packaging.
- The Advocates for a Clean Lake Erie (ACLE) have found error with Mayor Hicks-Hudson’s letter to Donald Trump, asking for an executive order to determine Ohio’s portion of Lake Erie impaired. In the letter, Hicks-Hudson wrote, “Unfortunately, the Clean Water Act does not directly regulate non-point sources of pollution, which is the root problem with Lake Erie water quality.”
- According to the ACLE, “1) The CWA does indeed authorize the EPA to regulate non-point sources of pollution. 2) Implying that subject is unsettled is completely unwarranted and will only lead to additional delay in getting Lake Erie back to health. It is, in fact, the very argument the American Farm Bureau and its allies used in an unsuccessful, five-year federal lawsuit filed to stop the Chesapeake Bay cleanup.”
- “Without implementing a plan that adequately addresses (the algal blooms) issue, we are putting Ohio’s families at risk,” said State Senator Edna Brown (D-Toledo), putting in her two cents on the water discussion. “By investing in practices that improve the state of our Great Lakes, we invest in the health and well-being of Ohioans.” Hear, hear!
- According to a project by the University of Michigan, most of the 40 percent reduction goal for runoff that winds up in Lake Erie can be achieved by farmers injecting fertilizer into the ground rather than applying it to the surface of their fields. Additionally, cereal rye (winter rye), cover crops and buffer strips are among the most effective tools in circumventing run-off.
- According to Margaret Kalcic, assistant professor in OSU’s food, agricultural and biological engineering department (formerly with the U-M team), fertilizer injecting would need to be embraced by half of the Maumee River watershed farmers in order to make an impact.
- The newly formed Lake Erie Foundation is a collaboration between two advocacy groups, the Lake Erie Improvement Association and the Lake Erie Watchkeeper. The focus of the group is to engineer more long-term business interests in the health of the lake. Approximately 100 people showed up to the initial forum at the Catawba Island Club recently. You can get more info on the group at lakeeriefoundation.org
- Results from the Lake Erie International Coastal Cleanup (LEICC) were recently published, declaring 61,000 unnatural substances were pulled from the Lake, resulting in 5,257 pounds of garbage. According to the LEICC, the top 10 items recovered from Lake Erie during the cleanup were: cigarette butts, food wrappers, small plastic pieces, plastic beverage bottles, plastic bottle caps, small foam pieces, small glass pieces, straw stirrers, cigar tips and other plastic/foam packaging.
