West Side faith leaders push for investigation and compensation for flooding victims.

/in , , /by

West Side faith leaders push for investigation and compensation for flooding victims.

Source: Austin Talks, 7/11/23

Metropolitan Water Reclamation President Kari Steele has been summoned to the West Side Tuesday morning to address the historic flooding that occurred after the massive rainfall on Sunday, July 2.

At the same time NASCAR vehicles were speeding through downtown streets, West Side residents found themselves fighting for their lives as they swam for safety from cars stuck on flooded streets, and they continue to suffer with the damages of flooded basements, living rooms, kitchens and bathrooms, prompting the Leaders Network to push for more help from officials.

Insurance companies have been telling some West Siders their home insurance policies won’t cover the devastating damages to their furnaces, appliances and furniture. Nine days after the flooding, too many people still have flooded homes in what has become a catastrophe.

Rev. Ira Acree lamented that once again, the West Side has been shockingly and shamefully abandoned during this crisis of epic proportions. It is appalling the city, county and state has displayed a disturbing lack of urgency to help this proud community, said Acree, senior pastor of Greater St. John Bible Church.

“The great Chicago  flood last Sunday brought widespread devastation to West Side families,” said Rev. Marshall Hatch of New Mount Pilgrim Church. “People in my neighborhood are still assessing painful loses, raising questions, and seeking redress and relief.”

The Leaders Network is demanding:

  • An investigation into how the flooding occurred
  • Compensation for West Side residents
  • Solutions to prevent flooding

“All of us share the outrage of our neighbors,” said David Cherry, president of the Leaders Network. “They have seen years of hard work destroyed in a single day with few or no options for help.”

Cherry said affected residents are expected to shared their stories Tuesday morning at the Leaders Network’s monthly meeting at Columbus Park Refectory.

In addition to President Steele, Illinois Senate President Don Harmon, 37th Ward Ald. Emma Mitts and Rev. Janette Wilson of Rainbow PUSH Coalition are expected to be at Tuesday’s meeting.

“West Side residents endured the storm but got swamped with sewer water in their basements,” Pastor Cy Fields of New Landmark Church said. “Where’s the relief, where is the help? It is shameful we’re left stranded on a raft with no help in sight from our elected officials.”

| Metropolitan Water Reclamation District did all it could to deal with record-breaking rains.

/in , /by

Metropolitan Water Reclamation District did all it could to deal with record-breaking rains.

Source: Chicago Sun-Times, 7/6/23

The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago monitors the weather daily. We prepare for extreme rain events by capturing as much water as possible to reduce stormwater damage. This involves making sure our tunnel system and reservoirs are empty and our treatment plants are fully operational.

We were well-prepared for the record-breaking storm on July 2. The unpredicted storm became more extreme and hovered over certain areas. The rainfall for some Cook County areas was four inches, and others over eight inches in a few hours. There was simply too much stormwater in a short amount of time, and to convey that amount of water to the MWRD reservoir was like trying to drain a swimming pool with a straw.

Our treatment plants were operating at maximum capacity, pumping in as much water as fast as possible. Our McCook reservoir filled up to capacity in a few hours (4.8 billion gallons of water). The MWRD collected over 6 billion gallons of water across Cook County, which could have ended up in unwanted places.

The decision to open the locks is based on water levels and never based on choosing one community over the other. The locks can only be opened when the river level is higher than the lake.

This is a decision that we do not take lightly because when we open the locks, we are redirecting stormwater into Lake Michigan — our drinking water source. We have seven treatment plants across Cook County to service all of Cook County, and they all were operating at their maximum capacity.

Throughout the year, MWRD educates the public about water conservation and overflow action days. We lobby for improving local infrastructure and stress the importance of green and gray infrastructure. We have 85 active stormwater projects across Cook County and constantly request federal funds to do more.

Climate change is real, and the effects are unpredictable. Without the essential work of the MWRD, rainstorm outcomes could be catastrophic.

I support a state of emergency for the communities that were hit the hardest and are experiencing the devastation of water invading their homes. The MWRD will continue to advocate on behalf of Cook County communities to help reduce and eliminate stormwater damage. For additional information, please contact my office at 312-751-5694.

Kari K. Steele, president, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago

Inside the decision to reverse the Chicago River as storm system threatens more flooding in area.

/in , /by

Inside the decision to reverse the Chicago River as storm system threatens more flooding in area.

ABC 7 News, 7/5/23 | Source: https://abc7chicago.com/

 

CHICAGO (WLS) — As Chicago braces for more rain, this is why the city decided to reverse the flow of the Chicago River Sunday to prevent major downtown flooding.

Wednesday, staff at the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago was bracing for more rain.

“When we have a severe weather event coming it’s a little stressful, a little nerve-wracking,” said Assistant Director of Maintenance and Operations Ed Staudacher.

ABC7 visited the MWRD’s Waterway Control Center on one of those stressful days, as engineers try to make room in the system for today’s anticipated storm.

Heavy rain over the weekend caused MWRD to make a rare and hazardous decision to allow untreated floodwater from the Chicago River into Lake Michigan to relieve pressure on the system.

As it was, some residents still experienced flooding in their homes and neighborhoods.

Staudacher explained they had to wait until the river level was higher than the lake to make the call; opening too earlier, he said, would cause catastrophic flooding with a tsunami effect.

“The lake is the source of our drinking water, so you want to protect that drinking water at all costs,” he said. “Then you turn to protecting the public from flooding, then we have to do what we do to protect them.”

“We are issuing an overflow action day alert, basically our McCook Reservoir and tunnel are still full from the last extreme rain event,” said MWRD president Kari Steele.

Steele asked all Chicagoans to get in the habit of conserving water use when there is heavy rain in the forecast.

“Hold off on running that dishwasher or doing laundry, take shorter showers, conserve water to make sure we are able to capture as much storm water we as we can to keep it out of those unwanted places,” she said. “Basically, we are asking everyone to be a good neighbor.”

Overflow action day goes until the storm system passes.

Cicero officials question decision-making amid Sunday flooding in Chicago area

/in , , /by

NBC 5 News, 7/5/23 | Cicero officials question decision-making amid Sunday flooding in Chicago area.

Officials in suburban Cicero are asking for better communication after storms deluged the area on Sunday, but the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago says it acted appropriately to try to limit flooding amid the heavy rain.

The district has a variety of tactics it can use to help ease burdens on sewers and prevent flood damage in areas near the Chicago River. They executed many of those plans on Sunday, including reversing the flow of the river both in downtown and near the Wilmette locks.

Still, Cicero officials say the district waited too long to open drainage lines, which could have mitigated flood damage that many residents suffered.

“When they don’t release it back in a timely manner, it just backs right up,” Cicero Assessor Emilio Cundari said. “It’s into our sewer system and into the streets of our town, and into the basement of the residents of our town.”

Ed Staudacher of the MWRD defended the decisions made Sunday, saying that opening drainage channels too early would have had disastrous consequences.

“If we open a lock too early, we’re going to be bringing the lake into the river system,” he said.

Staudacher also argued that if drainage had occurred too early, which was achieved by opening locks and allowing water from the branches of the Chicago River to enter Lake Michigan, then damage could have been done to not just the Chicago Riverwalk, but also to other communities located downstream.

 

Source: https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/cicero-officials-question-decision-making-amid-sunday-flooding-in-chicago-area/3180696/

MWRD raises awareness about Black History

/in , /by

The Beverly Review, 5/7/23 | MWRD raises awareness about Black history.

Raising awareness for environmental justice, equity and the African-American experience, the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) continued its tradition of Black History Month programming and celebration by hosting a forum that featured a talented lineup of insightful speakers.

For the first time since 2020, the MWRD held its Black History Month celebration, convening a panel of speakers to highlight African American History Month, while bringing important issues to the forefront of the MWRD’s work to protect the region’s water environment.

“Our Black History Month event presents an evening to celebrate, commemorate and highlight our work in the context of equity and diversity,” said MWRD President Kari Steele.

“We take into consideration environmental justice protections in our work to protect area water quality, and tonight’s forum elevates this important work for the diverse communities we serve. Thank you all for helping us celebrate and contribute to this conversation.”

Speakers included Steele and MWRD Vice President Kimberly Du Buclet, along with Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, Chicago Urban League President/CEO Karen Freeman-Wilson and MWRD Environmental Justice Section Principal Civil Engineer Lolita Thompson.

A panel, moderated by WBEZ Data Projects Editor Alden Loury, featured Blacks in Green Founder/CEO Naomi Davis, People for Community Recovery Executive Director Cheryl Johnson, SEIU Healthcare President Greg Kelley and Faith in Place Policy/Advocacy Director the Rev. Scott Onque.

The speakers were recognized earlier that day with a resolution introduced by the MWRD Board of Commissioners.

The panel discussed environmental justice issues and how community leaders and others advocate for equity. The event follows the MWRD’s recent adoption of a new policy to integrate environmental justice considerations into all MWRD programs, policies and activities wherever possible. The MWRD is in the middle of its five-year Strategic Plan, 2021-2025, that expanded its values of excellence, respect, innovation, safety and accountability to also include equity and diversity.

“We appreciate the opportunity to bring so many unique perspectives together for one night to commemorate Black History Month and advance causes of justice and equity in our region,” said Du Buclet.

“Thank you to the many guests and staff who attended and made this a memorable occasion.”

The event was part of a series of Black History Month festivities in February. On Feb. 1, the MWRD raised the Pan-African flag at its headquarters as well as at all seven of its water-reclamation plants. On Feb. 22, the MWRD held a virtual business roundtable to discuss how community leaders advocate for equity in contracting and how minority-owned business enterprises can learn more about business opportunities with the MWRD.

Participating in the roundtable were MWRD staff, including Diversity Administrator Regina Berry, Director of Engineering Catherine O’Connor and Director of Procurement and Materials Management Darlene LoCascio. They were joined by area business leaders including Larry Ivory, president/CEO of the Illinois Black Chamber of Commerce; Jonathan Jones, director of diversity for Mid-America Carpenters Regional Council-Labor Brother’s United; and Omar Shareef, president of the African American Contractors Association.

The MWRD also participated in the Black Creativity Career Showcase at the Museum of Science and Industry to engage students in STEM careers and shed light on the important work of the MWRD in protecting the region’s water environment.

For more information, visit the website at mwrd.org.

Source: https://www.beverlyreview.net/news/community_news/article_9aa65a14-bd12-11ed-b897-ef7e70d6a9c1.html

Commissioners elect leadership to guide MWRD for 2 years

/in , /by

The Crusader, 1/17/23 | Commissioners elect leadership to guide MWRD for 2 years.

 

The nine-member Board of Commissioners for the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) has elected three officers to two-year terms of leadership. President Kari K. Steele was re-elected president for a third term and Vice President Kimberly Du Buclet was elected for a first time as vice president. Chairman of Finance Marcelino Garcia was elected by his peers for a second term.

CRUSADER POST PICS
Kari K. Steele

President Steele was elected to the Board of Commissioners in 2012 and re-elected in 2018 before being chosen by her colleagues in 2019 as the first African American female president elected in the history of the MWRD. She was nominated as president at the Jan. 5 Board of Commissioners’ meeting and unanimously elected as president.

“I am honored to be nominated and unanimously elected for a third term by my fellow commissioners to lead the MWRD to continue to fulfil our critically important work to protect the region’s water environment,” said President Steele. “I appreciate my esteemed colleagues on the Board for their trust and support, our staff for their commitment and diligent hard work, and the collaboration of so many municipal, regional, and non-governmental partners striving to protect the citizens and health of our environment. As I always say and it is reflected in our work, teamwork makes the dream work.”

A chemist by trade, President Steele worked for more than 11 years for both the MWRD, as a water sampler and lab technician, and with the Chicago Department of Water Management before joining the Board of Commissioners.

Vice President Du Buclet, now in her second term serving as commissioner since being elected in 2018, is a South Side native and lifelong Chicagoan. Vice President Du Buclet replaces former Vice President Barbara McGowan, who retired after 24 years of service on the Board of Commissioners.

“Thank you to the Board of Commissioners for placing me in this important role of leadership for the MWRD,” said Vice President Du Buclet. “We are setting our sights on achieving many major accomplishments and protecting the water resources for millions of people who are impacted by our services each day.”

Prior to serving as commissioner, Vice President Du Buclet served as the legislative and community affairs director for the Chicago Park District and state representative of the 26th District in the Illinois General Assembly. As commissioner, she strives to increase awareness of environmental justice issues throughout Cook County, and to increase open green space for communities while providing additional green infrastructure opportunities for water conservation.

Having been elected commissioner in 2018, Chairman Garcia was elected as an officer for the second time. He first became chairman of finance in 2021.

“I thank my fellow commissioners and staff for their support and acknowledgement,” said Chairman Garcia. “I look forward to continuing towards achieving our funding policy goals and projects and maintaining our strong fiscal resiliency. This is what allows us to do the work to protect our water environment and advance the many important initiatives established in our five-year Strategic Plan.”

An attorney with expertise in local and international governments, healthcare and community affairs, Chairman Garcia works to connect all communities to resources to protect public health, a stable environment and economic opportunity. He was a leader in expanding the MWRD’s long-term vision through the creation of the 2021-2025 Strategic Plan. Chairman Garcia brings a wealth of experience to the Board of Commissioners as director of community affairs for Cook County Health, the nation’s third largest public health system.

Cook County Safe Disposal of Pharmaceuticals Ordinance

/in , , /by
Serving Our Community, Protecting the Environment

The Cook County Sheriff’s Prescription Drug Take Back Program is a free service for Cook County residents to collect their unused and expired prescription and nonprescription drugs.

Download Brochure

This free service is provided by authorization of the Cook County Board of Commissioners to reduce access to unused and expired prescription and non-prescription drugs in order to prevent misuse that can lead to poisoning or death.

Please dispose of unused and expired prescription or non-prescription drugs responsibly.

Do not leave them lying around unattended.

Do not throw them in the trash or down the sink.

Do not flush them down the toilet.

Please bring any unused or expired prescription or non-prescription drugs to any one of dozens of collection boxes located in public safety buildings and other locations throughout Cook County.

This free service is not available for use by retail businesses or other companies that handle prescription drugs.

On October 28, 2016, the Cook County Board of Commissioners authorized the Cook County Sheriff’s Prescription Drug Take Back Program to implement a comprehensive pharmaceutical drug collection and disposal program to assist residents throughout Cook County with properly disposing of unused and unexpired prescription drugs. Phase I went into effect on January 23, 2017 with the establishment of a Producer Registry. Under the current phase of implementation a toll-free hotline with information for accessing pharmaceutical drug collection sites has been established for Cook County residents with pre-recorded messages in seven different languages (English, Spanish, Polish, Russian, Arabic, Chinese and Korean) along with program information displayed on our webpage in the seven languages.

Tips for dropping off your medications:

Always call before dropping off medications. You may want to:

  • Confirm the days and hours of operation

  • Ask if the program accepts controlled and non-controlled substances

  • Ask if the program accepts sharps

  • If planning to drop off medications at a site in a municipality other than where you live, ask if the program is available to non-residents

  • Ask if the program does NOT accept any kinds of medications (e.g., liquids, ointments, cancer treatment drugs, etc.)

  • Ask if there are any other requirements for dropping off medications

Additional tips for dropping off medications:

  • Unless otherwise specified, use original prescription containers and use permanent marker to mark out your name and personal information.

  • Take medications to the collection site ONLY during the drop-off site’s open hours of operation.

  • Please follow direction at the drop-off site carefully. Only give medications to personnel at the drop-off site.

  • These are NOT share or reuse opportunities. All medications received will be destroyed in an environmentally responsible manner.

Commissioner K. Steele and Future City Competition

/in , , /by

This year marks the 25th Anniversary of the Future City Competition and preparations are underway for the 2017 Future City Competition on Saturday January 7, 2017.  The competition needs judges for both the Remote Essay & Computer Model Judging and the Competition Preliminary Judging.

Volunteers sign up to help judge either or both activities.  Please feel free to contact me with any question about the Future City Competition or volunteering opportunities.  All judges will need to register online on the Future City Website.

For 2017 the “Pre-Judging” will done remotely.  Essays and computer models (along with a free copy of SimCity) will be emailed to volunteer judges in the weeks before the competition.  Judges can score the essays and computer models at their leisure and return them by deadline.  We expect to send out essays and computer models for judging in early December 2016.

The competition date is again early in January 2017.  The Chicago Region Future City Competition will be held on Saturday January 7th, 2017 on the UIC Campus at the Student Center West Facility on Wolcott Ave.  There the presentations and physical models will be judged.

This year’s theme is the “The Power of Public Spaces”, and challenges teams to design a network of innovative, multi-use public spaces throughout their city that serves their city’s diverse population.

For those not familiar with program, The Future City Competition is a national, project-based learning experience where students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grades imagine, design, and build cities of the future. Students work as a team with an educator and engineer mentor to plan cities using SimCity™ software; research and write solutions to an engineering problem; build tabletop scale models with recycled materials; and present their ideas before judges at Regional Competitions in January. Regional winners represent their region at the National Finals during Engineer’s Week in Washington, DC in February.

Please feel free to pass this on to any friends and co-workers that may be interested and have them contact me with any questions. Additional info can be found on the national website at www.futurecity.org or the Chicago region website at futurecity.org/illinois-chicago or http://futurecity.org/region/chicago-regional-volunteer-opportunities

Space to Grow – $1.5 million Green Infrastructure Transforms Chicago Schoolyard

/in , /by

Renovations to a Chicago elementary school campus totaling $1.5 million will allow the space to retain more than 492,103 L (130,000 gal) of stormwater. The schoolyard’s transformation will promote physical activity, accommodate STEM-focused experiential learning, reduce runoff pollution, and demonstrate the benefits of green infrastructure construction as well as reduce flood risks.

Space to Grow transforms Chicago schoolyards into vibrant spaces to play, learn and be outside. As a funding and engineering partner of the program, the MWRD was excited to help document the schoolyard transformation at Wadsworth Elementary with a time-lapse camera. The schoolyard opened in November and our video is complete! This final version shows more than three months of construction work in less than three minutes! Learn more about Space to Grow at http://www.spacetogrowchicago.org/.

The improvements to James Wadsworth Elementary School, nestled within the Woodlawn neighborhood of Chicago, enable more than 50% of the schoolyard’s previously impervious grounds able to absorb stormwater effectively. Underground, an aggregate-filled storage area will release captured stormwater gradually into the city’s combined sewer system.

Unveiled on Nov. 29, 2016, Wadsworth’s 3530-m2– (38,000-ft2-) outdoor play area and 223-m2– (2400-ft2-) playground was replaced with an artificially turfed athletic field, a running track, a basketball court, a playground with a rubberized surface, and vegetable gardens donated by The Kitchen Community (Boulder, Colo.). A newly installed cistern and rain garden will help to curb runoff from the school’s roof and new running track, respectively. In addition, landscapers planted 33 trees, 42 shrubs, and 1788 perennial flowers on the premises.

 

Sustainable schools

Wadsworth is the latest beneficiary of investments from “Space to Grow”, an award-winning joint effort between the Healthy Schools Campaign (Chicago), Openlands (Chicago), Chicago Public Schools, the Chicago Department of Water Management, and the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD). The stormwater-management-centered program has invested $1.5 million each in nine Chicago schools since 2014, bringing total investments under the program to about $13.5 million.

“Wadsworth is one shining example of the positive impact Space to Grow has on the overall education and quality of life for a community,” said MWRD Commissioner Kari Steele in a release. “By lessening the load on our sewer system, we are reducing flooding and also improving area water quality. We are happy to partner on this program and make a difference in educating students and the community about the value of water.”

Last year, Space to Grow won the National Association of Flood and Stormwater Management Agencies’ first place Green Infrastructure award. The group also earned the 2016 Best of Green Schools Award for Collaboration by the Center for Green Schools (Washington, D.C.); the Sustainability award from the Illinois Association for Floodplain and Stormwater Management (St. Charles); and a New Champions award from the National Physical Activity Plan Alliance (Columbia, S.C.).

School Name Address  City 
2014
Grisson Elementary School 12810 S. Escanada Chicago
Leland Elementary 512 S. Lavergne Ave Chicago
Donald L. Morrill Math & Science Specialty School 6011 S. Rockwell Chicago
Schmid Elementary School 9755 S. Greenwood Chicago
2015
Willa Cather Elementary 2908 W. Washington Chicago
Orozco Elementary 1940 W. 18th St Chicago
2016
James Wadsworth Elementary School 6650 S. Ellis Chicago
Gunsaulus Elementary Scholastic Academy 4420 S. Sacramento Chicago
Daniel J. Corkery Elementary School 2510 S. Kildare Chicago
2017
Fernwood Elementary 10041 S. Union Ave Chicago
Cook Elementary 8150 S. Bishop Chicago
Nathan Davis Elementary School 3014 W. 39th Pl Chicago
Morton School of Excellence 431 N. Troy St. Chicago
Eugene Field Elementary 7019 N. Ashland Ave. Chicago

 

 

Commissioner Kari Steele and Jack Darin, Sierra Club, Illinois Chapter

/in , , , /by

You may have heard the latest bad news for the Great Lakes- the President’s proposed budget is expected to include a 97% cut to the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), a fund that the EPA receives and distributes to groups doing work on the ground to protect and restore our precious freshwater resource and its ecosystems. This morning, we held a press conference with the Alliance for the Great Lakes and other advocates calling on our elected officials to reject these outrageous cuts and invest in our Great Lakes and the communities across our region.

Our Director, Jack Darin, kicked off the morning with an important message to the Administration in response to the proposed cuts: “When you cut the Great Lakes, you cut jobs, you cut our health, you cut the future of an asset for our entire region” and a call to our members of Congress and all of us who depend on the Great Lakes: “Together we can stand up and do what our region has always done to show that protecting the Great Lakes should not be a partisan issue- it should be something that we all rally around and support.”

Joel Brammeier, President & CEO of the Alliance for the Great Lakes, spoke of the bipartisan support for the GLRI, which started as a partnership between Republican and Democratic members of Congress and has grown to fund over 2,000 projects with over $2 billion and support from dozens of members from both sides of the aisle. The GLRI has funded projects and programs that have helped clean up the legacy pollution and contamination from the many years of industry in the region, which helped build our country but left many communities in danger. Joel remarked that “full funding for the GLRI is critical.”
FullSizeRender (4).jpg

MWRD Commissioner Kari Steele speaks out for the Great Lakes.

Commissioner Kari Steele of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District said that as the agency that treats Chicago’s wastewater and manages flood control, “we 100% understand the importance of clean water.” The Commissioner said she was here to “support the Sierra Club and all the other organizations here today…to support the Great Lakes program and stress the importance of our primary natural resource.”
 Krista Grimm, President of the League of a Women Voters – Lake Michigan Region, spoke of the water issues our region deals with that require funding to resolve- issues like nutrient pollution and resulting algae blooms, invasive species and pollution from combined sewer overflows. These issues are cumulative, are made worse by climate change and will only get more expensive to resolve the longer we wait. Krista stressed that we can’t go back on the progress we’ve made with the GLRI, and we must continue to fix these problems and invest in our drinking water infrastructure to prevent situations like the Flint water crisis.

FullSizeRender (6)

Bria Foster speaks of how the GLRI supports jobs like hers

We heard stories about the impact of the GLRI, such as the restoration work it funds in the Cook County Forest Preserves. Bria Foster, a crew member with the Friends of the Forest Preserves, told of the importance of the work she and other young adults are doing with help from the fund. “We are the future and what we do is help protect the future, and that’s the environment. Without clean air and clean water, we have nothing to stand on.” Bria said that funding from the GLRI has helped her be successful in this field and she hopes that success will be shared by others like her.

Natalie Johnson, Executive Director of Save the Dunes, spoke of what the GLRI has meant for the Grand Calumet River system and how far we’ve come since the days when the river used to catch on fire. The 13-mile river system runs through the underserved communities of Hammond, Gary, and East Chicago in northwest Indiana and empties into Lake Michigan. Once plagued by industrial pollution, the GLRI has helped the river system see a total transformation. Today, the region enjoys a cleaner waterway with wildlife in areas that have been remediated and species that had been missing for over 30 years.
 Mila Marshall, a PhD candidate at University of Illinois-Chicago and research associate at their Freshwater Lab, as well as a member of the Alliance for the Great Lakes Young Professionals Council, shared some facts about the importance of Great Lakes water, which serves as 21% of the world’s supply of freshwater, 84% of North America’s surface freshwater and 100% of our drinking water in Chicago.
Mila said that “to reduce the GLRI budget by 97% is an attack on the Great Lakes economy because it would annihilate the progress we’ve made and would paralyze efforts for redeveloping what we like to call the ‘water belt’ region. This is a direct attack on our future.” Mila spoke of how clean, affordable freshwater is our lifeline to an equitable and a sustainable future and how disinvestment of this or any nature will continue to reinforce poverty. She stressed that funding cuts will destabilize the road to environmental reconciliation for current environmental justice communities in cities such as Flint, East Chicago, Gary, Benton Harbor, Detroit and Toledo and further put communities at risk of lead poisoning and other threats. Mila said that “with full funding of the GLRI, this Administration can indeed continue to revitalize the Great Lakes for welcoming industrial allies and for reducing threats to the quality of life for nearly 30 million Americans.”
Michael Mikulka, an EPA Region 5 employee and President of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 704, spoke of the potential cuts to EPA funding that would devastate the agency’s important work to protect human health and restore the places where we live, work and play. Michael said that much progress has been made in the Great Lakes to clean up legacy contamination and restore beneficial uses such as fishing and swimming. Budget cuts threaten this progress and the additional work needed to maintain the value of our natural resources.
These speakers gave powerful insights into the impact of the GLRI and what it would mean to lose it. Here in Chicago, we understand what the Great Lakes mean for us- clean drinking water, tourism and economic growth, places for our communities to gather, not to mention a great backdrop to our city’s skyline. But we’re not the only ones who depend on this resource, benefit from its provisions and have an impact on its health. We want to be good water neighbors and work together with our neighbors to protect the resource we all depend on. This includes other states, Canadian provinces and Native American tribes along the lakes. Now more than ever, we must combine forces to maximize our impact and achieve our shared goals.

On Wednesday, I’ll be heading to DC with some of the advocates who spoke today and many others from all seven Great Lakes states to request the support of our members of Congress in protecting our freshwater resource. We will not let the Great Lakes- which provide drinking water, jobs and recreation to millions of people- be a casualty of this Administration.