Ferry allowed to pollute Lake Michigan for 2 more years

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Friday that the coal-fired Lake Michigan ferry SS Badger will be allowed to operate — and continue dumping coal ash into Lake Michigan — for two more years.

The ferry SS Badger has dumped its coal ash into Lake Michigan for decades.

The Badger, which sails between Ludington, Mich., and Manitowoc, Wis., has dumped about 500 tons of coal ash into Lake Michigan each shipping season. This has been going on for decades, even though it’s a clear violation of water pollution regulations.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has a good summary of the issue, which you can read here. 

The ferry’s owners now have two years to solve this problem or mothball the polluting ferry for good. Personally, I hope they find a cleaner fuel to power the historic ship. But this has to be their last chance to solve this problem — the company has been allowed to use Lake Michigan as a trash can for far too long. 

 

 

 

 

Some moments of nature from the Great Lakes

Lately I’ve been writing about a lot of the problems facing the Great Lakes. So I’m taking a brief respite to point out  a few of my favorites photos from the Great Lakes region.

Lake Superior in warmer times.

It’s important that we fight to protect these magnificent lakes. But sometimes it’s refreshing to sit back and enjoy the splendor of the Great Lakes. I hope you enjoy my attempt at photography. See the gallery here. Enjoy!

Lake Erie’s toxic algae nightmare is national news … again

Poor Lake Erie: The Rodney Dangerfield of the Great Lakes just can’t get a break.

Time magazine declared Lake Erie declared dead in the 1960s, when the lake was actually too alive with algae. Sadly, the algae blooms that made Lake Erie look like pea soup and tarnished this wonderful’s lake’s reputation in the 1960s have returned and recaptured the national media’s attention. (I wrote an article about this problem last year, which you can read here.)

Now comes the New York Times with a lengthy article on Lake Erie’s toxic algae problem.  It’s a very informative article, albeit depressing. Because Lake Erie is a bellwether for the other Great Lakes, all of us who live in the region and work to protect these majestic lakes should pay close attention to what happens to Erie.

Report examines climate change effects on Great Lakes

Climate change has given Lake Superior a fever and the region’s fish and wildlife could be hit hard by rising air and water temperatures. That’s one of the conclusions of a sobering new report by the National Wildlife Federation called “Wildlife in a Warming World.”

The report examines how climate change is affecting wildlife in several regions across the U.S. The Great Lakes section of the report discusses how climate change is affecting the world’s largest source of surface freshwater. Read the report here. 

Water temperatures are rising faster in Lake Superior than in any other lake in the world, according to the NWF report. That’s good for invasive species, like the sea lamprey, but bad for native species.

CBC News has a good summary of the report. Read it here.

 

 

Is your representative in Congress a friend of the environment?

The League of Conservation voters recently released its National Environmental Scorecard, which rates members of Congress based on how often their votes supported environmental protection measures. Personally, I’m a sucker for credible reports that hold members of Congress accountable for their actions.

Five representatives in Congress from Michigan and both U.S. Senators earned a score of 85 percent or greater on the 2012 Scorecard (meaning they voted in favor of environmental protection measures 85 percent of the time).  Seven other House  members earned a score of 10 percent or less.

The ferry SS Badger has dumped its coal ash into Lake Michigan for decades.

One of the lowest scoring members of Congress happened to be the politician who represents my community and much of West Michigan: U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga. He received a score of 11 percent. I’m guessing that Huizenga’s brazen attempt to manipulate the federal bureaucracy so that the SS Badger ferry could continue to dump filthy coal ash into Lake Michigan had something to do with his poor showing.  (Go here to read more about that issue.)

Go here to see how your representatives in Congress voted on environmental issues, which are hugely important issue for Michigan’s economy and quality of life.

GOP wants to raid the Michigan’s Natural Resources Trust Fund

Here we go again.

Republicans in the Michigan Legislature are talking about using money from the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund to build roads and dredge harbors. Such action is currently prohibited because a voter approved amendment to the Michigan Constitution requires that the Trust Fund be used exclusively to acquire public land and develop recreational resources — such as parks, trails and fishing piers.

The Republicans made a run at the Natural Resources Trust Fund in the last legislative session, and their attempt to raid the fund went nowhere. This time, the GOP may have more resolve. Republican leaders are talking about asking voters to approve a constitutional amendment that would allow Trust Fund monies to be used for things other than buying land and developing recreational resources.

I find this so odd.

Michigan’s Natural Resources Trust Fund, which is funded by royalties from oil and natural gas wells, is the envy of most other states. The fund has been an unqualified success. I know this because I’ve written about the fund in the past. Read my article here.

The Trust Fund has awarded 1,957 grants totaling $959 million during its 36-year history: $757 million went to buying land; the remaining $202 million was used to develop outdoor recreation facilities. The program is wildly popular.

So why do Michigan Republicans want to fix something that isn’t broken. For that, you’ll have to read this article in the Detroit News.

 

Michigan Legislature gets failing grade on environmental issues

Michigan calls itself “The Great Lakes State,” but the Sierra Club recently gave the Legislature a failing grade on environmental issues. The Sierra Club said the 2011-2012 class of state lawmakers was “by far the most anti-environmental Legislature we’ve had in Michigan for decades.”

I’m not going to cast judgment on the Legislature. Decide for yourself after reading the Sierra Club’s legislative scorecard, which you can find here. 

I do think it’s interesting that one of the Sierra Club members attacking the Legislature’s handling of environmental issues — especially the GOP, which currently controls every branch of state government — is a former Republican.

“Why does our Legislature have the wrong priorities when it comes to protecting Michigan’s environment?” said James D’Amour, the Michigan Sierra Club’s Vice Political Chair, who was once an active member of the Republican Party. “We (Michigan) used to be leaders in making conservation a top priority, but not anymore. The new direction of the GOP is disappointing and disheartening for Republicans like me who care about the environment.”

What say ye, Michigan Republicans?