NEMWI To Host Webinar on Invasive Carp Tomorrow, Tuesday, July 18, As Its Great Lakes Primer and Orientation Program Continues
The Northeast-Midwest Institute (NEMWI) is hosting a webinar briefing on invasive carp in the Great Lakes on Tuesday, July 18, at 2 p.m. EDT as its Great Lakes Primer and Orientation Program continues.
The Great Lakes Primer and Orientation Program is presented with the support of the Erb Family Foundation and is designed to introduce Congressional staff to critical topics relating to the Great Lakes and the work of the Great Lakes Task Forces. This series of webinars is introducing Congressional staff and other policymakers in Washington, D.C., to issues that are directly impacting the Great Lakes community.
Invasive Carp and the Great Lakes Webinar – Tuesday, July 18th, 2 p.m. EDT
The introduction of Asian carp to the Great Lakes would greatly endanger the $7 billion fishery that helps fuel the region’s economy. These invasive species pose a significant threat to existing native fish populations, while also creating a dangerous safety risk to recreational boaters and other users of the Great Lakes, and thus would have a devastating impact on the region. In response to the threat, federal, state, local, and nongovernmental organizations have been crafting a multifaceted strategy to prevent the spread of invasive carp into the Great Lakes, especially through the Chicago Area Waterway System (CAWS).
The Invasive Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (ICRCC) was formally established in early 2010 under the name Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee and represents the collective efforts of international, federal, state, and municipal agencies to combat the spread of invasive carp into the Great Lakes. The ICRCC provides oversight and coordination of interagency prevention activities through the development and implementation of an annual Invasive Carp Action Plan and complementary Monitoring and Response Plan.
The webinar will focus on the current activities that the ICRCC is engaged in to prevent the spread of invasive carp into the Great Lakes, including an overview of its 2023 Invasive Carp Action Plan. Participating organizations will include:
Tuesday's webinar on invasive carp follows a webinar on HABs in the Great Lakes held on Monday, July 17. A recording of the HABs webinar will be made available in the near future.
Environment America Research & Policy Center Releases 2023 Safe for Swimming Report
The Environment America Research & Policy Center has released itsSafe for Swimming Report, examining data from across all 50 states to present an in-depth review of contamination levels at U.S public beaches. The report finds that nearly 55% of all public beaches in the U.S. were contaminated with unsafe levels of fecal matter on at least one day of testing, which can be harmful to both human health and local wildlife.
The Great Lakes region had higher contamination levels than the national average, with 63% or 347 public beaches in the Great Lakes region reaching unsafe levels.
The report includes an interactive map and detailed summary of all tested beaches and their individual contamination levels. The prevention of further beach pollution can be made possible through government efforts, with the Safe for SwimmingReport describing what actions need to be taken at the local, state, and federal levels.
The full 2023 Safe for Swimming Report can be found here.
Reported by NEMWI Intern Sallie Newman
House Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee Holds Hearing
To Review Fiscal Year 2024 Budget Request
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment held a hearing on July 13, 2023, to review the FY 2024 budget requests by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), International Boundary and Water Commission, Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Subcommittee Chairman David Rouzer (R-NC), in his opening remarks, underscored the definition of WOTUS under the Clean Water Act and looked forward to discussing the work of the Environmental Protection Agency and other critical entities in the Subcommittee’s jurisdiction.
Five witnesses from federal agencies offered testimony in support of their budget requests:
The Honorable Radhika Fox, Assistant Administrator at the EPA, highlighted their progress and goals in implementing Clean Water Act programs heading into FY 2024. She emphasized that $13 billion of $50 billion from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will flow through the Clean Water State Revolving Loan Funds to continue tackling challenges from 19th-century pipes to 20th-21st century issues resulting from climate change and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
Dr. Maria-Elena Giner, Commissioner at the International Boundary and Water Commission, shared their top priority issues on water delivery, sanitation, flood control, and dam safety in support of the President’s budget requests.
Mr. Louis Aspey, Associate Chief at USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, highlighted how funding will provide critical support in addressing public health and safety concerns through NRCS watershed programs— Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations, Watershed Rehabilitation Program, and DAMWATCH®. He emphasized that an increase of $8 million from last fiscal year's funding will, “allow NRCS to address the increased cost of projects.”
Dr. Aaron Bernstein, the Director of the National Center for Environmental Health at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stated that “modest increases in funding in FY 2020 through FY 2023 have allowed ATSDR to provide enhancements in its support to state and local health departments and expand its environmental health education efforts.” He added that the requested $1 million additional funding will allow them to expand their collaboration and “partnership with communities to address their concerns, monitor and investigate hazardous exposures, build environmental health capacity, and respond to environmental health emergencies.” Some of the work ATSDR is working towards includes providing guidance for clinicians to address patient concerns on PFAS and investigating the potential health impacts of microplastics.
Lastly, Nicole Leboeuf, the Assistant Administrator at the Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), highlighted that the proposed budget of $6.5 billion in discretionary appropriations represents an increase of $450.5 million from the FY 2023 funding. That additional funding will support NOAA goals to (1) expand NOAA's climate products and services, (2) provide science and data to inform economic development, (3) integrate equity across the organization, and (4) continue investments in satellites and the NOAA Facilities Strategic Plan and Facilities Investment Plan.
A recording of the House Subcommittee hearing is available here.
Reported by NEMWI Intern Haeun Baek
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