CHICAGO — Regional government agencies around the Great Lakes spend some $15 billion a year to protect the lakes from invasive species, contaminated sediment and sewage overflows, a new study shows. But local officials say that still more protection is needed and that the United States and Canadian governments should pay for it.
“They’re saying it’s not a federal problem, but it is,” Mayor Richard M. Daley of Chicago said of the five lakes, which hold 20 percent of the world’s fresh water. Mr. Daley and other regional leaders say they intend to press for more federal money in light of the study, to be released Wednesday, which for the first time estimates what local governments are devoting to the lakes.
Several mayors said the lakes should not be deemed merely local concerns, but seen as a broader issue, akin to assisting the New Orleans region after Hurricane Katrina or restoring the Everglades in Florida. The study, arranged by the Great Lakes Commission and the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, both advocacy groups, concluded that the 688 local governments in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River region spend much of the money on aging wastewater systems, which can release sewage when overwhelmed with rain. The $15 billion estimate was based on responses by 143 of the local governments to a survey on their spending in 2006...(Continue Reading Here)
So here again we have an example of U.S. failure to make regular investments in infrastructure, which increasingly should include needed spending to protect against and repair of environmental damage.
