An additional $1 billion in federal funding will bolster current efforts to clean polluted water sources and restore ecosystems in the Great Lakes region.
An infusion of cash from the federal government will boost efforts to restore the Great Lakes. As John Flesher and Zeke Miller report, the funding will supplement the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, an Obama-era program that funds cleanup and restoration activities in the region. "It’s been one of the few matters on which the region’s congressional Democrats and Republicans routinely agree. They thwarted President Donald Trump’s early efforts to gut the program, which GOP lawmakers from Michigan eventually persuaded him to support."
As the nation's largest source of fresh water, the Great Lakes fueled rapid economic growth in the region, where they provide water to 40 million people. But decades of industrial uses and runoff have created toxic conditions. According to the article, "The $1 billion for the Great Lakes from the bipartisan measure enacted in November, combined with annual funding through an ongoing recovery program, will enable agencies by 2030 to finish work on 22 sites designated a quarter-century ago as among the region’s most degraded, officials said Thursday."
"The more than 6,000 projects funded under the restoration initiative also deal with some of the lakes’ other biggest problems," the article goes on to explain. "They include invasive species such as quagga mussels that unravel food chains; toxic algae blooms caused by agricultural runoff and sewage overflows; and loss of wetlands and other wildlife habitat."
FULL STORY: Biden: Infrastructure plan gives $1 billion for Great Lakes cleanup
Comment: EPA Cuts will Send Atlanta Back to Eye-burning Ozone, Lung-damaging Smog, and Raw Sewage in the Chattahoochee River
A veteran political journalist takes stock of the hard-earned ground Georgia stands to lose with slashed environmental protection.
El Paso Wastewater Purification Facility Breaks Ground
As water supplies become strained and technology advances, cities look to wastewater as a viable source of drinking water.
Report: European Rivers Are in Trouble
Some of the continent’s most important rivers are suffering from overuse and pollution.
Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Canada vs. Kamala: Whose Liberal Housing Platform Comes Out on Top?
As Canada votes for a new Prime Minister, what can America learn from the leading liberal candidate of its neighbor to the north?
Paris Voters Approve More Car-Free Streets
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo says the city will develop a plan to close 500 streets to car traffic and add new bike and pedestrian infrastructure after a referendum on the proposal passed with 66 percent of the vote.
Making Mobility More Inclusive
A new study highlights the challenges people with disabilities continue to face in navigating urban spaces.
Texas Bills Could Push More People Into Homelessness
A proposal to speed up the eviction process and a bill that would accelerate enforcement of an existing camping ban could make the state’s homelessness crisis worse, advocates say.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Ada County Highway District
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service