State-by-State Wrap Up: Ohio

I’m doing interviews with some state leaders to follow up with Great Lakes Day – finding out how it went and how everyone back home can get involved. Here’s my email interview with The Buckeye State’s Matt Misicka of League of Ohio Sportsmen and Central Ohio Anglers & Hunters Club:

How did it go? Where does the Ohio delegation stand with their support for Great Lakes restoration?

Representatives Kaptur, Tubbs-Jones, Sutton and LaTourette are all on board. Some other officials from outside the basin are iffy this year – some are locked in tough reelection campaigns and they don’t have it near the top of their lists.

The Ohio coast and watershed of Lake Erie has some urban areas that have problems that might overshadow an unhealthy watershed and Lake. How do you demonstrate Lake Erie’s importance in these areas?

Hit them over the head with the Brooking's Institute findings that suggest a 4 to 1 return on investment. Funding the Great Lakes Legacy Act and State Revolving Loan Fund will help create jobs and increase property values. If they are not interested in the environment, interest them in the economics.

A woman spoke passionately at the opening meeting about the fact that her constituents (single moms, working poor, etc) lack access to clean drinking water and from her perspective that need far outweighed the environmental issues that we seemed so occupied with. On that I had some thoughts:

A lack of clean drinking water in the USA is not the problem; rather it is the economics of getting affordable clean water to people. Clean water is, or can be, available if we can develop better infrastructure (state revolving loan fund) and create a stronger basin economy through increased appropriation of great lakes issues.

The group gathered in DC last week was primarily joined to one another by environmental issues. Indeed we are greatly fortunate that we are wealthy enough to take time out of our days to care about these things. However, our desire to focus on these keystone concepts of water and the ecosystem will in the long-run result in cleaner waters for more than just ducks and fish and plants – we ought to remember that when communicating with our public officials, the media, and our friends and neighbors.

What can people in Ohio do to get involved with Great lakes and wetland restoration?

Participate in opportunities like Great Lakes Days. Make it as inexpensive a trip as possible... by participating in these activities, you'll learn (and better appreciate) an incredible amount about the Washington process.

I’m originally from southern Ohio – what are some pretty places up in the Erie watershed I should take my family to fish and swim?

My favorites are MaumeeBay State Park and East Harbor. Add South Bass and Kelly's too. And don't forget all the great walleye and perch charters...

LINKS:
“Lakes cleanup would give $50B lift to economy” (Ann Arbor Business Review)
“Healthy Waters, Strong Economy” (PDF of Brookings Institution Report)
Maumee Bay State Park
East Harbor State Park
South Bass Island Lighthouse
Kellys Island

Photo of a catch by Ed Jefferson from walleye.com

New blood pitching in on Great Lakes Day

Young people are the new hot voting bloc this year. Facebook debates, YouTube campaign videos, and throngs of twentysomethings screaming "yes we can!" are the most apparent images of this in the campaign season, but the numbers check out as well, with young voters turning the tide in key primaries, most notably the Iowa caucuses.

I caught up with three fellow Gen Yers (or is it Millenials?) at Great Lakes Day: William Ellison, who just graduated from Claremont McKenna College, Seth Buchsbaum, a freshman at the University of Michigan, and Marco Tori, A High School Senior involved with Ducks Unlimited. Their voices were welcome in planning discussions, and their activism key in a political season in which politicians will be paying attention to the youth vote again. Note to other young activists: notice the jackets, slacks, button-down shirts in the photo - looking sharp never hurts when you're speaking to power.

So for alla youse kids with your bloggy mumbo jumbo and your internets chat feeds, check out some Great Lakes social networking and other online stuff:

• Excellent blogs The Political Environment, Black Bear Speaks, and Great Lakes Blogger
• Healthy Lakes, Healthy Lives blog, Facebook group, and MySpace Page

Friend you later!

Perform routine acronym checks

GLRC, AOC, USEPAGLNPO, ... looks like a tray of Scrabble tiles. It's enough to confuse even the wonkiest Great Lakes wonk.

"Be sure to do an acronym check," was a great tip coming out of the New York round table yesterday, "you never do know how familiar a official or staffer is with the issue."

It's a good tip for a lot of activists, whether you're talking to a congressperson or media or your grandma. Spell out what your saying, explain what the groups or concepts you're discussing are about, and most importantly, how they effect the person to whom you're explaining them. Running around rattling off acronyms and legalese West Wing-style should be done back at home or the office, safely in the company of other wonks.

BTW: Those letters? Great Lakes Regional Collaboration, Area of Concern, and U.S. EPA's Great Lakes National Program Office. Triple word score! Take that, Grandma!