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May 31, 2007
Milwaukee
Common Council acts to protect river corridor
Friends of
Milwaukee's Rivers, acting with Urban Ecology Center and River
Revitalization Foundation as the "Milwaukee River Work Group", has
been working to create a Central Park along the Milwaukee River
Corridor between North Avenue and Silver Spring Drive. The
banks of the river here are lush with grasses and trees that provide
habitat for animals as well as great recreational opportunities for
paddlers, anglers, runners, and birdwatchers.
Although the
river corridor is largely wild, there is very little protection to
keep it that way. The Milwaukee River Work Group seeks to
create a special zoning district that would limit new developments
along the river, keeping the wild character of the area intact.
The river corridor would become Milwaukee's own Central Park.
The Milwaukee
Common Council voted on Wednesday to create a zoning district that
will protect the river corridor for two years while a more detailed
Central Park plan is developed.
The plan would
not prohibit new developments, but would create setbacks from the
river and height limits so that buildings do not come to dominate
the landscape.
"The river
belongs to all of us," says Cheryl Nenn, Milwaukee Riverkeeper with
Friends of Milwaukee's Rivers. "While we support economic
development, our top priority is to protect this resource for the
entire community. And in this case that means putting
restrictions on what developers can and can't build."
The Common
Council's support of this plan is a key step in moving forward with
the Central Park idea.
Journal
Sentinel coverage
May 30, 2007
Summer cleanup
series planned
The success of
our Spring River Cleanup was so great that we decided to run a
series of 8 mini-cleanups this summer. We are identifying
areas of special need in the watershed so that we can address the
ongoing buildup of trash that threatens the rivers.
The cleanups
will take place roughly every other Saturday starting June 9 and
running through September.
Watch
Riverkeeper News and our events page
for updates.
May 29, 2007
Riverkeeper advocates
reducing mercury emission from Wisconsin coal plants
In the United
States 1,100 coal-fired power plants spew roughly 50 tons of mercury
into our air each year, settling into our waterways, bioaccumulating
in fish and entering our bodies through fish consumption. Recent
studies indicate that mercury emissions are having a more pronounced
local effect than was once thought and that control of local sources
can have an immediate and dramatic effect on local water conditions.
Although mercury comes from many sources, power plants make up the
largest source of Wisconsin mercury emissions into the atmosphere
and represent the most effective reductions to protect our waterways
and human health.
Full letter
to Wisconsin DNR
May 23, 2007
FMR endorses
shipping moratorium in Great Lakes
The Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition, including Friends of
Milwaukee's Rivers, calls for a moratorium of ocean-going ships in
the Great Lakes until Congress stops the introduction of aquatic
invasive species.
“Our call for a moratorium stems from the fact that the Great Lakes
are under attack and Congress has yet to respond,” said Jeff
Skelding, campaign director for the Healing Our Waters- Great Lakes
Coalition. “We have solutions. It is time to use them. Congressional
delay is exacerbating the problem and costing citizens more money.
It is time for elected officials to pass legislation that will slam
the door shut on new invasive species in the Great Lakes.”
The call for a moratorium comes as the latest non-native pathogen in
the Great Lakes—a deadly fish virus—spreads throughout the region,
prompting state legislators in Wisconsin, Minnesota, New York and
Ohio to consider bills to curb introductions of non-native species
from ballast water—the No. 1 way invasive species enter the Great
Lakes and possible source of VHS
introduction.
Those efforts are following the lead of lawmakers in Michigan, whose
state statute to stop invasive species introductions went into
effect this year, and was recently challenged in court by the
shipping industry.
“Congressional inaction has caused the situation to degrade into a
regional crisis marked by a lot of frustration and finger pointing,
and very little in terms of results,” said Skelding. “Congress can
pass comprehensive legislation now to combat invasive species. Until
protections are in place, we stand committed to protecting the Great
Lakes and its citizens through a moratorium on ocean
vessel operation on the lakes and the use of transportation
alternatives.”
The Coalition also released a letter to key congressional committees
outlining the need to pass a bill or bills this year that
comprehensively address aquatic invasive species.
“We take this position with all seriousness knowing that a
moratorium would likely impact people’s lives,” wrote the
Coalition’s co-chairs to congressional leaders. “We also know,
however, that allowing ocean-going vessels to continue entering the
Great Lakes without requiring them to treat their ballast water
leads to more invasions of invasive species and to greater economic
and
environmental harm of the Great Lakes and U.S. waters.”
The Coalition supports passage of the Great Lakes Collaboration
Implementation Act, a comprehensive bill to prevent invasive species
introductions, stop sewage contamination, and restore wetlands.
There are 185 invasive species in the Great Lakes. One new
non-native species is discovered on average once every 28 weeks.
More than 60 percent of all non-native invaders—54 of 85
invaders—discovered in the Great Lakes since the opening of the St.
Lawrence Seaway in 1959 are attributable to ballast water discharge
from ocean-going vessels.
The Great
Lakes have proved an entryway for invasive species to the rest of
the country. Recently, one of the most infamous invaders to the
Great Lakes—the quagga mussel—was discovered as far West as Lake
Mead, Nevada.
“Every year Congress fails to act means another invasion that will
destroy the lakes, undermine our economy and way of life, and then
spread inland across North America’s freshwater resources,” said
Jennifer Nalbone, campaign manager for Great Lakes United, the
Healing Our Waters Coalition member which originally called for a
moratorium on ocean-vessel access into the
region. “It is time to take a stand for the Great Lakes and the
nation’s freshwaters, and use available transportation alternatives
until Congress provides a national solution to what is clearly a
national problem.”
Ocean-going vessels have introduced some of the most infamous
invasive species including:
• The zebra mussel, which has decimated the base of the Great Lakes
food chain, played a role in the re-emergence of the Lake Erie “Dead
Zone” and toxic algae blooms.
• The round goby, which has decimated small-mouth bass populations.
• The Eurasian ruffe, which competes with Yellow perch and feeds off
eggs of the commercially important Lake Whitefish.
Invasive species foul beaches, harm commercial and recreational
fishing, clog power plant and municipal water infrastructure, and
disrupt the food chain. Aquatic invasive species in the Great Lakes
can also cause public health impacts, including harmful algal
blooms, deterioration in drinking water quality, and beach closures.
Invasive species cost Great Lakes citizens, businesses and
municipalities $5 billion annually in damage and control costs.
Nationally, aquatic and terrestrial invasive species cost more than
$120 billion annually.
Transportation experts estimate that the United States and Canada
would have to spend an additional $55 million jointly to utilize
transportation alternatives such as Laker, barge, rail or truck, to
move the bulk cargo currently carried by ocean-vessels.
Letter to
congress
May 9, 2007
Wastewater
spill blamed on operator error
4.1 million gallons discharged into lake
Journal
Sentinel article
May 7, 2007
Riverkeeper
Comments on Proposed Restoration Project for Blatz Pavilion Bay
The
contaminated sediments in the Milwaukee River as it passes through
Lincoln Park pose a high risk to paddlers, anglers, volunteers
working in the river, and adjacent landowners. FMR represents
these people who live work and play along the Milwaukee River.
We urge the Wisconsin DNR to remove and landfill these pollutants as
opposed to capping them and treating them on-site. We also
support removing as much of the PCB's as is possible.
Read full
comments
May 3, 2007
Riverkeeper
Comments on MMSD's 2020 Facilities Plan
Friends of
Milwaukee's Rivers, in collaboration with other environmental
groups, issued comments on the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage
District (MMSD) 2020 Facilities Plan. Our primary concern with
the plan is that the proposed 5-Year Level of Protection for SSOs is
illegal under Federal and State law. MMSD must eliminate SSOs and
address both point and non-point sources of pollution affecting our
waterways. Cost effectiveness can be used to prioritize future
actions but not to justify continuing pollution of our waterways.
Read full
comments
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