[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 39 (Wednesday, March 7, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2797-S2801]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. LEVIN (for himself, Mr. Voinovich, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. 
        Schumer, Mr. Coleman, Mrs. Clinton, and Mr. Obama):
  S. 791. A bill to establish a collaborative program to protect the 
Great Lakes, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Environment 
and Public Works.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I am pleased to introduce the ``Great Lakes 
Collaboration Implementation Act'' with Senator George Voinovich and 
our co-sponsors. I also want to thank Representatives Vern Ehlers and 
Rahm Emanuel for introducing similar Great Lakes restoration 
legislation in the House today.
  The Great Lakes are vital not only to Michigan, but to the Nation. 
Roughly one-tenth of the U.S. population lives in the Great Lakes basin 
and depends daily on the lakes. The Great Lakes provide drinking water 
to 40 million people. They provide the largest recreational resource 
for their 8 neighboring States. They form the largest body of 
freshwater in the world, containing roughly 18 percent of the world's 
total; only the polar ice caps contain more freshwater. They are 
critical for our economy by helping move natural resources to the 
factory and to move products to market.
  While the environmental protections that were put in place in the 
early 1970s have helped the Great Lakes make strides toward recovery, a 
2003 GAO report made clear that there is much work still to do. That 
report stated: ``Despite early success in improving conditions in the 
Great Lakes Basin, significant environmental challenges remain, 
including increased

[[Page S2801]]

threats from invasive species and cleanup of areas contaminated with 
toxic substances that pose human health threats.'' More recently, many 
scientists reported that the Great Lakes are exhibiting signs of stress 
due to a combination of sources, including toxic contaminants, invasive 
species, nutrient loading, shoreline and upland land use changes, and 
hydrologic modifications. A 2005 report from a group of Great Lakes 
scientific experts states that ``historical sources of stress have 
combined with new ones to reach a tipping point, the point at which 
ecosystem-level changes occur rapidly and unexpectedly, confounding the 
traditional relationships between sources of stress and the expected 
ecosystem response.''
  The zebra mussel, an aquatic invasive species, caused $3 billion in 
economic damage to the Great Lakes from 1993 to 2003. In 2000, seven 
people died after pathogens entered the Walkerton, Ontario drinking 
water supply from the lakes. In May of 2004, more than ten billion 
gallons of raw sewage and storm water were dumped into the Great Lakes. 
In that same year, over 1,850 beaches in the Great Lakes were closed. 
Each summer, Lake Erie develops a 6,300 square mile dead zone. There is 
no appreciable natural reproduction of lake trout in the lower four 
lakes. More than half of the Great Lakes region's original wetlands 
have been lost, along with 60% of the forests. Wildlife habitat has 
been destroyed, thus diminishing opportunities necessary for fishing, 
hunting and other forms of outdoor recreation.
  The Great Lakes problems have been well-known for several years, and, 
in 2005, 1,500 people through the Great Lakes region worked together to 
compile recommendations for restoring the lakes. These recommendations 
were released in December 2005, and, today, I am introducing this 
legislation to implement many of those recommendations.
  This bill would reduce the threat of new invasive species by enacting 
comprehensive invasive species legislation and put ballast technology 
on board ships; it specifically targets Asian carp by authorizing the 
improvement, operation and maintenance of the dispersal barrier. The 
bill would improve fish and wildlife habitat by providing additional 
resources to States and cities for water infrastructure. It would 
provide additional funding for contaminated sediment cleanup and would 
give the EPA additional tools under the Great Lakes Legacy Act to move 
projects along faster. The bill would create a new grant program to 
phase out mercury in products and to identify emerging contaminants. 
The bill would authorize the restoration and remediation of our 
waterfronts. It would authorize additional research through existing 
Federal programs as well as our non-federal research institutions. And 
it would authorize coordination of Federal programs.
  The Great Lakes are a unique American treasure. We must recognize 
that we are only their temporary stewards. If Congress does not act to 
keep pace with the needs of the lakes, and the tens of millions of 
Americans dependent upon them and affected by their condition, the 
current problems will continue to build, and we may start to undo some 
of the good work that has already been done. We must be good stewards 
by ensuring that the Federal government meets its ongoing obligation to 
protect and restore the Great Lakes. This legislation will help us meet 
that great responsibility to future generations.
                                 ______