Great Lakes Echo (https://greatlakesecho.org/author/garywilson/page/8/)
Because Milwaukee mayor Tom Barrett studies environmental issues and focuses on results over marketing and press releases, he would be an exceptional candidate to lead the vast Great Lakes bureaucracy.
Great Lakes restoration has to be about more than the money. Relying on Washington is a risky game, and not every program to protect the Great Lakes needs to involve lining up for federal funds.
The city of Waukesha, Wisc. is seeking approval to divert Lake Michigan water. The Wisconsin DNR will have to consider public opinion and the Canadian perspective before making a recommendation.
Echo commentator Gary Wilson points out that Michigan’s water assessment tool is no substitute for people measuring and monitoring water flows.
How come Chicago’s Northerly Island is getting $2.8 million in Great Lakes Restoration Initiative money for projects with questionable environmental restorative value just as concert revenue is set to expand?
What can be said about what should be a linchpin Great Lakes group that hasn’t met for eight years?
They better get their act together fast as their leadership is required on looming hot regional environmental issues.
One of the strongest arguments for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is that everyone knew what needed be done, we just needed the money to do it.
My advice? Keep it simple, take on the big projects and prioritize values over metrics.
While playing small ball is necessary, we should reach higher. If the Great Lakes region was a country, it would have the fourth largest economy in the world.
It deserves world-class solutions to its problems.
Why does every gain in Great Lakes protection seem to be offset by a loss?
This zero-sum game is a losing proposition.
We’ve got a GLEC and now a GLAB.
What’s the next regional group to emerge?
How about a commission charged with whittling the list of Great Lakes agencies, boards, committees, initiatives, councils and collaboratives?