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Brandon Road Study to be Released August 7
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has announced that the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS) Brandon Road Study will be released on August 7 via the GLMRIS
website
.
The report will address the transfer of aquatic nuisance species (ANS) from the Mississippi River Basin to the Great Lakes Basin through the Chicago Area Waterway System by considering structural and nonstructural options and technologies near the Brandon Road Lock and Dam.
The Study's release was delayed by the administration on February 27, prompting key Great Lakes legislators led by Great Lakes Task Force Chairs Senator Debbie Stabenow (MI), Representatives Marcy Kaptur (OH), and Representative Bill Huizenga (MI) to introduce the Stop the Asian Carp Now Act, which would have required the Corps to release the report 7 days after passage of the bill.
Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
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Senior Fellow Presents on Trump's Impact on Brownfields
NEMWI Senior Fellow Charlie Bartsch addressed concerns over the Trump administration's approach to brownfield redevelopment efforts with
a
presentation
at the
Minnesota Brownfields Association
on July 24. The presentation examined actions the administration has considered that would reduce federal involvement in brownfield redevelopment and advised state governments and nonprofits seeking to combat brownfields with decreased federal support.
In explaining the significance of the presentation, Mr. Bartsch stated: "Brownfield redevelopment is at a critical juncture, in terms of the type and level of federal involvement. It is important to make local governments and advocates such as the Minnesota Brownfields Association aware of the current situation-and the opportunities still available to move ahead with brownfields."
According to Mr. Bartsch, Congress has ignored the President's requested FY 2018 budget cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) brownfields program, the administration still can take unilateral actions to undermine federal brownfields redevelopment efforts. Keeping political appointee positions unfilled, buying out experienced staff for early retirement, and changing grant guidelines and enforcement priorities are all actions reserved for the executive branch.
Mr. Bartsch's presentation concluded that brownfields redevelopment organizations will need to rely on tools such as state government guarantees, tax credits, public-private partnerships, and other creative financing methods to fill the gap left behind by the EPA. He cites promising examples of public-private partnerships from across the nation as inspiration for such unconventional thinking. Bartsch also encouraged engagement with Congressmen to push for continued federal involvement in brownfields redevelopment.
For more information, please contact
Charlie Bartsch, Senior Fellow at the Northeast-Midwest Institute. The slides used during Mr. Bartsch's presentation can be viewed
here.
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Minnesota Displays Leadership on the Social Cost of Carbon
Last week Minnesota
increased
the state's social cost of carbon by 44 cents, bringing it to $4.53. Unfortunately, only a handful of states have comparable policies. However, Minnesota remains on the cutting edge of this issue by continuing to update a social cost of carbon policy that was first set twenty years ago.
Emitting one ton of carbon dioxide makes it incrementally harder to address climate change and imposes a cost on the rest of society. The
social cost of carbon is a monetary estimate of this harm. By quantifying it, policymakers can factor it into the costs and benefits of any proposed policy.
For example, a simple analysis of a proposal to build a new road might take into account the construction and maintenance costs. A more environmentally friendly analysis would also consider the cost of the extra carbon that will be emitted by drivers using the road. Similarly, it is possible to use the cost of carbon to estimate the benefits of actions that would reduce carbon emissions.
The Obama administration formed the Interagency Working Group (IWG) to estimate the
social cost of carbon. However, President Trump has expressed skepticism,
disbanding the IWG and leaving it up to each agency to estimate the cost for itself.
As plenty of leaders in the region have
recognized, the Mississippi River Basin faces significant threats from climate change. More widespread use of the social cost of carbon in the region not only can help improve policymaking, but would also signal that the region takes the threat of climate change seriously.
For more information, please contact
Joe Vukovich, Senior Policy Analyst for the Upper Mississippi River Basin Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
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This Week on Capitol Hill
The House begins its month-long August recess this week.
The Great Lakes Environmental Sensitivity Index Act, which was introduced by Senators Gary Peters (MI) and Todd Young (IN), is scheduled to be marked up by the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportion Committee this Wednesday. The bill seeks to update NOAA's Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) maps for the Great Lakes. ESI maps are an essential tool for oil spill responders and coastal zone managers to prepare and respond to potential spills, while protecting the habitat, species, and structures that are most vulnerable to them.
More details about the bill can be found
here
.
A full list of key Senate committee activity that impacts the region can be viewed below:
Wednesday, August 2nd
- The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation will be holding an executive session to consider a number of bills at 10:00 AM in 216 Hart Senate Office Building.
- Of special note is S.1586, The Great Lakes Environmental Sensitivity Index Act, introduced by Sen. Peters (MI) and Sen. Young (IN).
- Also of note is S.1322, the American Fisheries Advisory Committee Act.
Director of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
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NEMWI: Strengthening the Region that Sustains the Nation
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