This past Sunday (Feb 21), the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) presented the details of its five year plan known as the "Great Lakes Restoration Initiative" in a meeting with political leaders of the Great Lakes.

Circle of Blue Water News has this report:

"Congress has authorized $475 million for improving the Great Lakes ecosystem this year, $60 million of which would go to the fight against the invasive Asian carp. Earlier this month, President Barack Obama proposed to direct $300 million of his 2011 budget request to the plan. The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative assumes similar funding allocations in each of the plan’s subsequent years.

"Specific goals of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Action Plan include:

• Collecting or preventing the release of 45 million pounds electronic waste, 45 million pills of unwanted medicines, and 4.5 million pounds of household hazardous waste;
• Cleaning up 9.4 million cubic yards of toxic sediment;
• Cutting runoff from cities and farms and improving habitat in lake watersheds;
• Reducing algae blooms at Great Lakes beaches to reduce the number of beach closures; and

You can read the full Great Lakes Restoration Initiative report by clicking here.

According to the GLRI website:

"The Initiative is not intended to be another grand statement about the Great Lakes; it is intended to operationalize those statements. It builds on countless hours by elected, agency, business, public interest and other leaders, which resulted in the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration Strategy (GLRC Strategy). The GLRC Strategy provides a framework for the Action Plan, and the Action Plan is just that: an action driver. It articulates the most significant ecosystem problems and efforts to address them in five major focus areas: Toxic Substances and Areas of Concern, Invasive Species, Nearshore Health and Nonpoint Source Pollution, Habitat and Wildlife Protection and Restoration, Accountability, Education, Monitoring, Evaluation, Communication and Partnerships."

And the issue of the Asian Carp came to the front as the plan was rolled out. Circle of Blue Water News reports:

"While most environmental groups have praised the plan [the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative], one group leader questioned the amount of attention being given to Asian carp to the detriment of broader lake protection efforts.

"Jeff Skelding, campaign director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition, warns that too much funding is being diverted to the fight against the carp, The Associated Press reported. He also called on President Obama to match Congress’ 2010 funding level of $475 million in his 2011 budget request."

On that issue, Derek Bailey, Chairman of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, wrote this op-ed "Work Together Against Asian Carp" regarding the legal role the tribes can play in stopping the Asian Carp:

"It has been almost six years since the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimated that "Asian carp could have a devastating effect on the Great Lakes ecosystem and a significant impact on the $7 billion fishery." During this time the Army Corps of Engineers failed to act promptly, in effect fiddling while Rome burned. To the extent the Army Corps is responsible for the impending disaster, the tribes may be better situated than the state to challenge the federal government.

"In the scramble to stop Asian carp, the issue of American Indian "treaty-fishing" rights has not been considered at all. The 1836 Treaty tribes (the Bay Mills Indian Community, the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians and the Sault Ste Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians) retain rights to fish for commercial and subsistence purposes in vast areas of lakes Michigan, Superior and Huron.

"Given the Supreme Court's refusal to act in the state's litigation filed against Illinois, the tribes are considering an alternative litigation strategy to combat the latest and perhaps most serious threat to the Great Lakes from invasive species.

"The issue isn't just protecting tribal property rights. It's past time for the state and tribes to put aside perceived differences, and to begin concentrating on how together we can cooperate to preserve the Great Lakes for all Michigan citizens."

Read the full op-ed here.

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Photo: Leelanau Moonrise by SkySnapper.