Getting Lake Erie healthy

Great Lakes Restoration Initiative will fund projects across Ohio and Michigan to combat problems like algae blooms and invasive species.

It's one of our region's greatest resources. Now, millions of dollars will go toward cleaning up the Great Lakes.

President Obama signed the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative two weeks ago. The $475-million measure will fund projects across Ohio and Michigan to combat problems like algae blooms and invasive species.

One of the problems is the huge mats of algae, toxic algae, in Maumee Bay. It's just one sign of trouble in Lake Erie. But Ohio environmental leaders say this new initiative will fund some solutions. Kristy Meyer says, "The hope is we'll stop seeing these huge algal mats in Lake Erie. It'll reduce or slam the door on invasive species continuing to come into our Great Lakes."

How? By curbing agricultural runoff and other nutrients that now feed the algae, and controlling ballast water from ships that could carry invasive species like zebra mussels. In all, Ohio has a "wish list" of 57 projects just waiting to be funded. Chris Korleski, Ohio EPA director, says, "Everything from habitat restoration to invasive species protection to, here in the Toledo area, Toledo harbor dredging and sediment issues. If you add all those up, it comes to about 135 million dollars. That's just what Ohio came up with."

But Michigan also wants money and so does New York. "So obviously not everything is going to get funded. But there's no question in my mind that whatever projects end up being funded by the federal government, they'll be vetted very carefully. They'll be good projects and it's actually going to result in boots on the ground, shovel in the sand, actually making a difference," says Korleski.

Meyer says, "One of them is the removal of the Ballville Dam down in the Fremont area. That would restore free flow to the river which would then restore critical habitat for walleye." That's good not just for the Great Lakes environment, but also for the region's economy.

The federal government will start looking over these projects and funding requests over the next few months. We should start to see some of them take shape next summer.

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