Help the Great Lakes
President's boost in budget proposal should be backed fully by Congress
Having a Chicago politician as president of the United States — and another as his chief of staff — has some scary implications that should never be completely ignored.
But one good thing about a White House with connections on The Loop is that there is likely to be a healthy amount of concern for the Great Lakes.
That concern was reflected in President Obama's budget proposal, which included a helpful $475 million for projects to clean up the five lakes that provide drinking water, transportation routes, recreational opportunities and so much other support for the economic and environmental spheres that include Buffalo.
The lakes and their tributaries are so large, and so seldom catch fire any more, that the problems can be hard for non-experts to see. But problems there are — as well as opportunities.
The lakes are polluted, and becoming more so every day. Invasive species, brought in by ocean-going vessels that are key to the regional economy, are becoming an ever-greater problem. Bordering wetlands are also polluted and gummed up in many ways. That's no way to treat the source of one-fifth of the planet's surface fresh water supply, water source for 35 million people, and the reason why cities from Rochester to Toronto to Detroit to Chicago to Milwaukee were founded in the first place.
The president's budget proposals will go a long way to address all those problems. They will help municipal sewage treatment facilities and other sources of pollution clean up their acts, restore damaged wildlife habitats and restore more of the lakes' bays, coves and shores to the kind of ecosystem that can sustain wildlife and human habitation.
And, in the bargain, the money will provide productive employment for many people at a time when such opportunities are in short supply.
In the long process of reviewing the budget, the Senate went along with Obama's full $475 million request. The House cut it to $400 million. The difference will be resolved on conference committee and then voted on again by both bodies.
The lesser amount would be an improvement over past years' funding. But the whole request would do a lot more, for projects that have been too long delayed already, employing people who will have something very great indeed to show for their work. Congressional delegations from the Great Lakes state should take note — and get to work.
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