Original Story: Freep.com
It was a remarkable moment Tuesday, after 40 years of fierce fighting among Detroit and its suburbs over water rates and control, to see Mayor Mike Duggan, flanked by the county executives of Oakland, Macomb and Wayne, jointly announcing a deal for regional governance of the water system.
But make no mistake, those guys would still be haggling if not for the hammers wielded by Detroit emergency manager Kevyn Orr, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes and Gov. Rick Snyder to force a settlement.
FAQ: How Detroit's regional water deal affects you
The fault lines between Detroit and its suburbs, the decades of deep mistrust, could not have been breached unless the local elected leaders were given no other option but having an edict imposed upon them by the court or the state.
L. Brooks Patterson, the Oakland County executive, acknowledged as much in the news briefing on the water deal.
"I was a doubting Thomas going in. I didn't think we'd get there," Patterson said about being forced into court-ordered mediation by Rhodes to seek a regional solution.
In the end, Patterson added: "We didn't have any options. If we didn't come up with a deal, Judge Rhodes and the bankruptcy court could have imposed a cram-down ... He could cram down our throats his settlement of the issue ... and this was always looming over our heads like the sword of Damocles."
Gov. Rick Snyder holds another powerful weapon as part of the water deal struck by Duggan and the three county leaders. If the elected commissioners of Oakland, Macomb or Wayne counties vote not to ratify the water deal, Snyder gets to appoint the representative for the reluctant county on the six-member board.
"I don't want the governor appointing my representative for Oakland," Patterson said. "I want to pick a guy or a gal who will be as conscious as we've all been in crafting this."
In other words, Patterson doesn't trust either Snyder or Rhodes to be as protective of Oakland's ratepayers as he would be.
Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel concurred, saying he found it "troubling" and "upsetting" that Macomb would not get to appoint its own water authority representative if county commissioners vote against the deal.
Patterson told me in late May that he felt like "the last of the Mohicans" for resisting pressure from Snyder and Orr and others to rejoin talks to create a regional water authority. He said then that he'd rather bargain a deal with Duggan on water system governance "than have it crammed down my throat by court edict or the Legislature."
"I have to fight the fight, " Patterson said then, "even though I know the train's coming down the track. I can see it. But I won't sign off. I just cannot in good conscience sign off. I'd rather have the train run me over."
In the end, Patterson got half his wish. The bankruptcy court and Orr still insisted that a regional water deal be part of Detroit's plan to exit bankruptcy, but Duggan worked closely with the suburban executives to frame a deal acceptable to all.
Even lame-duck Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano, who lost his re-election bid in the August primary, can take a small bit of solace in the outcome, having supported court-ordered mediation on water issues back when Patterson and Hackel were still playing hard to get.
Ultimately, as the old saying goes, a crisis is a terrible thing to waste. So even if the parties had to be dragged into the fray, regional governance certainly makes sense for a regional water system.
Showing posts with label Water. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Water. Show all posts
11 September 2014
22 February 2010
Feds Outline Plan to Nurse Great Lakes to Health
USA Today
TRAVERSE CITY, Michigan — The Obama administration has developed a five-year blueprint for rescuing the Great Lakes, a sprawling ecosystem plagued by toxic contamination, shrinking wildlife habitat and invasive species.
The plan envisions spending more than $2.2 billion for long-awaited repairs after a century of damage to the lakes, which hold 20% of the world's fresh water. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the document, which Lisa Jackson, head of the Environmental Protection Agency, was releasing at a news conference Sunday in Washington.
"We're committed to creating a new standard of care that will leave the Great Lakes better for the next generation," Jackson said in a statement.
Among the goals is a "zero tolerance policy" toward future invasions by foreign species, including the Asian carp, a huge, ravenous fish that has overrun portions of the Mississippi River system and is threatening to enter Lake Michigan.
Others include cleanup of the region's most heavily polluted sites, restoring wetlands and other crucial habitat, and improving water quality in shallow areas, where runoff from cities and farms has led to unsightly algae blooms and beach closings.
Also promised is a strategy for monitoring the ecosystem's health and holding federal agencies accountable for carrying out the plan.
During his 2008 campaign, Obama pledged $5 billion over a decade toward fulfilling a Great Lakes cleanup wish list developed by a coalition of agencies, scientists and activists.
Congress last year approved his request for a first installment of $475 million. The newly released plan assumes yearly appropriations of the same amount through 2014, except for the $300 million President Obama requested this month in his 2011 budget.
The 41-page plan sets out ecological targets and specific actions to be taken by 16 federal agencies working with state, local and tribal governments and private groups.
Among the goals it seeks by 2014: finishing work at five toxic hot spots that have languished on cleanup lists for two decades; a 40% reduction in the rate at which invasive species are discovered in the lakes; measurable decreases in phosphorus runoff; and protection of nearly 100,000 wetland acres.
It also will help save species such as the lake sturgeon, a prehistoric fish that can reach 8 feet long and 200 pounds but is endangered because of overharvesting and habitat degradation. The plan promises to provide 25,000 young sturgeon for stocking programs.
Combined with enforcement of environmental rules and new ones where needed, officials said the plan would help make Great Lakes fish safe to eat, their waters suitable for drinking and swimming, and their native plants and animals thriving.
The lakes provide drinking water to more than 30 million people and are the backbone of a regional economy dependent on tourism, outdoor recreation, shipping and manufacturing.
"We now have a golden opportunity, even a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, to make huge progress," Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle, co-chairman of the Council of Great Lakes Governors, said in a telephone interview Saturday. "We've been talking about this for a long time. Now the federal government is putting some real resources behind it."
Jeff Skelding, director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition, which represents environmental groups across the region, praised the plan's commitment to long-range funding for the restoration but said Congress should boost Obama's 2011 spending request to $475 million.
The coalition also says too much restoration money is being diverted to fighting Asian carp, which could endanger the region's $7 billion sport fishing industry by gobbling plankton and unraveling the food chain.
An "all-out effort" is needed to keep the carp out of the lakes, but funding should come from elsewhere in the federal budget, the coalition said.
Cameron Davis, EPA's senior adviser on the Great Lakes, said about $58 million in restoration funds would go to the carp battle this year. But invasive species programs are getting less restoration money than other needs such as toxic cleanups and habitat improvements, he said.
The plan envisions spending more than $2.2 billion for long-awaited repairs after a century of damage to the lakes, which hold 20% of the world's fresh water. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the document, which Lisa Jackson, head of the Environmental Protection Agency, was releasing at a news conference Sunday in Washington.
"We're committed to creating a new standard of care that will leave the Great Lakes better for the next generation," Jackson said in a statement.
Among the goals is a "zero tolerance policy" toward future invasions by foreign species, including the Asian carp, a huge, ravenous fish that has overrun portions of the Mississippi River system and is threatening to enter Lake Michigan.
Others include cleanup of the region's most heavily polluted sites, restoring wetlands and other crucial habitat, and improving water quality in shallow areas, where runoff from cities and farms has led to unsightly algae blooms and beach closings.
Also promised is a strategy for monitoring the ecosystem's health and holding federal agencies accountable for carrying out the plan.
During his 2008 campaign, Obama pledged $5 billion over a decade toward fulfilling a Great Lakes cleanup wish list developed by a coalition of agencies, scientists and activists.
Congress last year approved his request for a first installment of $475 million. The newly released plan assumes yearly appropriations of the same amount through 2014, except for the $300 million President Obama requested this month in his 2011 budget.
The 41-page plan sets out ecological targets and specific actions to be taken by 16 federal agencies working with state, local and tribal governments and private groups.
Among the goals it seeks by 2014: finishing work at five toxic hot spots that have languished on cleanup lists for two decades; a 40% reduction in the rate at which invasive species are discovered in the lakes; measurable decreases in phosphorus runoff; and protection of nearly 100,000 wetland acres.
It also will help save species such as the lake sturgeon, a prehistoric fish that can reach 8 feet long and 200 pounds but is endangered because of overharvesting and habitat degradation. The plan promises to provide 25,000 young sturgeon for stocking programs.
Combined with enforcement of environmental rules and new ones where needed, officials said the plan would help make Great Lakes fish safe to eat, their waters suitable for drinking and swimming, and their native plants and animals thriving.
The lakes provide drinking water to more than 30 million people and are the backbone of a regional economy dependent on tourism, outdoor recreation, shipping and manufacturing.
"We now have a golden opportunity, even a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, to make huge progress," Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle, co-chairman of the Council of Great Lakes Governors, said in a telephone interview Saturday. "We've been talking about this for a long time. Now the federal government is putting some real resources behind it."
Jeff Skelding, director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition, which represents environmental groups across the region, praised the plan's commitment to long-range funding for the restoration but said Congress should boost Obama's 2011 spending request to $475 million.
The coalition also says too much restoration money is being diverted to fighting Asian carp, which could endanger the region's $7 billion sport fishing industry by gobbling plankton and unraveling the food chain.
An "all-out effort" is needed to keep the carp out of the lakes, but funding should come from elsewhere in the federal budget, the coalition said.
Cameron Davis, EPA's senior adviser on the Great Lakes, said about $58 million in restoration funds would go to the carp battle this year. But invasive species programs are getting less restoration money than other needs such as toxic cleanups and habitat improvements, he said.
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