Chicago, IL (February 17, 2022) – Earlier today President Biden traveled to northeast Ohio to announce an investment of $1 billion for Great Lakes restoration from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. In response, Alliance for the Great Lakes Director of Federal Relations Don Jodrey issued the following statement:
“The Alliance for the Great Lakes applauds President Biden and the U.S. EPA for announcing today that the agency will use the bulk of the $1 billion investment in the Great Lakes from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to clean up and restore Areas of Concern (AOCs) in the Great Lakes region, which include some of the Great Lakes’ most environmentally degraded sites.
“This specific allocation of funds is exactly in line with the Alliance’s top federal priorities for the Biden administration for 2022, and in fact, the Alliance has been asking for federal help in cleaning up these toxic hot-spots since 1987, when the U.S. and Canada designated 43 AOCs in the Great Lakes that held dangerous and carcinogenic pollutants such as heavy metals, PAHs and PCBs, and could not support recreation or habitat for wildlife.
“Today’s commitment has been a long time coming, but the Alliance is thankful that Congress has recognized the need for this investment. We’re eager to get to work alongside our local partners to make progress so that these beautiful cities and rivers can once again be places where current and future Great Lakes residents can enjoy time outdoors without worrying about the effect on their health.”
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Media Contact: Jennifer Caddick, jcaddick@greatlakes.org