(Washington D.C.) - The U.S. House of Representatives today voted to override President Bush’s veto of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), a bill to provide investment in crucial infrastructure projects to protect lakes, wetlands, coastline and communities near water.  With 361 members voting for the legislation and only 54 voting against, the bill easily passed the two-thirds majority threshold necessary to override a presidential veto.

“This bill is critical to the health of the Great Lakes, Lake St. Clair and other water resources around the country,” said Rep. Sander Levin.  “Because of the Democratic majority’s new ‘pay-as-you-go’ rules to restore fiscal discipline to the federal government, we must be choosy in deciding which spending programs we authorize.  With this legislation, we had a choice to either provide needed investment now to keep our lakes protected, or likely face huge costs later—when irreversible damage to the Great Lakes, Lake St. Clair, and other waterways has already been done.  Prioritizing this funding makes good fiscal sense.  Clearly, members of both parties agree, and that is why President Bush’s shortsighted veto has been resoundingly overridden today.”

In total, WRDA will authorize approximately $23 billion in infrastructure protecting waterways.  A vast majority of House members of both parties, even those often prone to vote against spending, agreed that the funding authorized by the legislation will be money well spent.

Home to the Great Lakes and many other lakes and waterways, Michigan stands to benefit much if WRDA is enacted.  The legislation will specifically authorize funding to keep invasive species out of the Great Lakes; address the Lakes’ navigation routes’ very serious dredging backlog; provide for construction of a second lock in Sault St. Marie; authorize $35 million for the correction of combined sewer overflows in Michigan; authorize projects for the Au Sable, Cass, Ontonagon, Sebewaing, Flint and Clinton rivers; provide $3 million for emergency stream bank and shoreline protection near Detroit; and extend authorization of the Great Lakes Remedial Action Plans and Sediment Remediation Program so that the United States can meet its international obligations, among other programs. 

The legislation also includes a $20 million authorization co-authored by Congressman Levin for restoration projects in and around Lake St. Clair.

“Lake St. Clair continues to experience beach closings, loss of wetlands, and damage from aquatic invasive species like the zebra mussel.  This legislation is essential in the fight to curb these problems,” said Levin.

Damaging aquatic invasive species arrive in the Great Lakes, and connected waterways, at a rate of one every eight months.  One particular aquatic invasive species – the Asian Carp – poses an especially menacing threat and is present in waterways just outside of Lake Michigan.  Scientists say the Carp would devastate the Great Lakes fishery and destroy the ecosystem if it entered the Lakes.  The only thing keeping the Great Lakes safe is an electronic barrier in the Chicago Sanitary Canal.  But the current barrier is only a stopgap measure; it was never intended to be permanent.  WRDA would authorize funding to build a more permanent barrier and ensure the Great Lakes’ ecosystem remains protected.  Without the barrier, much more money may be needed in the future to attempt to salvage the Great Lakes ecosystem.

Said Levin, “So much of Michigan’s economy is dependent on the Great Lakes and Michigan’s inland waterways.  If the shipping, tourism and natural beauty our water provides us is diminished, our quality of life will be detrimentally affected.  Our water is our greatest natural resource, and an overwhelming, bi-partisan majority of the House of Representatives agrees an investment in this resource is money well spent.”

The Senate is expected to take up WRDA as early as Wednesday.  The Senate is expected to join the House in overriding Bush’s veto, as they originally passed the legislation 81-12.  If that happens, it will be the first time a veto by President Bush has been overridden. 

(####)

Home Page  |  Press Releases