Great Lakes Aquatic Habitat News
The Newsletter of the Great Lakes
Aquatic Habitat Network and Fund
Volume 10, Number 3 • May-July 2002
Great Lakes Aquatic Habitat NewsThe Newsletter of the Great Lakes
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by Jen Nalbone,
Great Lakes United
The Buffalo River is one of 43 “toxic hot spots” in the Great Lakes Basin that have been designated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the International Joint Commission (IJC) as “areas of concern” (AOC). The river and its sediments have been impaired by over a century of industrial activities and municipal waste discharges. Contamination of the river channel continues today from upstream non-point sources, combined sewer overflow systems, and historic contaminants contained in river sediments and riverfront brownfields.
Flowing through several of Buffalo’s poorest neighborhoods, including the Old First Ward, Valley, Seneca—Babcock, South Park—Bailey communities, the river presents a continuing health risk to the community, which utilizes the river for swimming and fishing. In addition, the mouth of the Buffalo River is the site of a $27.1 million Buffalo Inner Harbor economic development project where impacts and accessibility will be undermined by the river’s continuing contamination.
Last fall, Friends of the Buffalo and Niagara Rivers (FBNR) undertook a collaborative initiative with Great Lakes United to organize the Buffalo River Partnership, an unincorporated association of non-profits, technical advisors, scientists, businesses, academics, and government and agency representatives. The primary goal of the Buffalo River Partnership is to raise $70,000 of non-federal cash and in-kind services to serve as the required cost-share match for $200,000 in Federal Water Resources Development Act funding for the planning, engineering, and design of plans to remove contaminated sediments, improve water quality, and restore habitats to the Buffalo River.
The non-federal cost share match will be comprised of several local river restoration efforts:
The Friends have submitted grant proposals to the EPA, Community Foundation of Greater Buffalo, and the Army Corps of Engineers for funding to administer the Partnership and coordinate project outreach and volunteer efforts.
by Mary Beth Brandoni,
Great Lakes United
In June 2001, the United States House of Representatives displayed strong bipartisan support for Great Lakes protection by voting 265 to 157 to withhold federal funds for oil or gas drilling activities in the Great Lakes. In July 2001, the Senate strengthened federal opposition to Great Lakes drilling by unanimously prohibiting the issuance of federal permits for oil or gas drilling in the Great Lakes for two years. The Senate further called for a scientific investigation into risks of drilling within the Great Lakes Basin.
States around the Great Lakes are using this two-year window to permanently protect the Great Lakes by passing state legislation banning the practice. Michigan: Michigan was first out the door, establishing a state law in April 2002 that bans any new drilling underneath the Great Lakes. The public and the state legislature overwhelmingly supported this ban. Ohio: State legislation is currently before the Ohio General Assembly and Senate to enact a ban on Lake Erie drilling and support increased energy efficiency and renewable energy resources, such as solar and wind. New York: Recently, legislation was introduced to prohibit oil and natural gas drilling under Lake Erie. The proposed legislation is a major step toward protecting the unique ecosystem found along the Great Lakes shoreline in New York.
During the course of directional drilling, oil, water, or synthetic oil is combined with other chemicals to form a drilling mixture that is circulated through the well hole. These mixtures frequently contain toxic materials, such as oil and grease, suspended solids, phenol, arsenic, chromium, cadmium, lead, mercury, naturally occurring radioactive materials, and barium. Additionally, fragile — and increasingly rare — coastal habitat for wildlife would be consumed by well construction and operation.
In order to further protect coastal and aquatic habitat of the Great Lakes from directional drilling, a ban on such drilling needs to occur in all states throughout the Great Lakes Basin. It is up to individuals and community organizations to work toward extension of this initiative across the Great Lakes States.
Maria Maybee |