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As an individual who grew up on the shores of Lake Michigan, Fred Upton has a deep appreciation for the need to protect our environment. He has constantly been a steward for the underlying goals of our nation’s environmental laws like the Clean Water Act and the Clean Air Act. Over the years, Upton has also supported legislation to promote recycling, the development of alternative sources of power such as wind and solar energy, and allocating more money for our national parks.
- Working to Protect Southwest Michigan
As a member of both the Great Lakes Caucus and the Michigan Nature Conservancy, Upton cares deeply about protecting our natural resources. He has long been working to protect Southwest Michigan from being penalized for pollution that is generated from across Lake Michigan . In the House passed comprehensive energy bill, Upton added a logical, common sense amendment that gets to the heart of the matter, requiring the EPA to conduct a two-year study to assess any difficulties West Michigan might experience in complying with the 8-hour National Ambient Air Quality Standard due to the effect of transported ozone into West Michigan. The provision would spare West Michigan from sanctions and emissions controls and address transported pollution from upwind areas such as Milwaukee and Chicago .
Also, Upton tirelessly worked to “bump down” Cass County ’s clean air designation from “moderate” nonattainment to “marginal.” Although Cass County is a rural community, it was slapped with a moderate classification and subjected to harsh penalties due to dirty air blowing across Lake Michigan . Upton urged Governor Granholm to request that the EPA reconsider its clean air designation for Cass County , since Cass fell within the 5 percent threshold of the lower “basic” designation.
- Constant Voice of Support for Our Great Lakes
Upton’s first bill to be enacted into law, as Congressman, was one to help clean up the Great Lakes. A related bill, which was also enacted, ensures a quicker response to oil spills in the Great Lakes Basin and around the country. Upton has also been adamantly opposed to oil exploration in our Great Lakes. The Great Lakes are the world’s largest fresh water body and we need to do everything to protect this valuable resource. He has always been, and will continue to be concerned about the welfare of the Great Lakes . In 2002, Upton supported a successful amendment to the Energy and Water Development, which places a ban on drilling in our Great Lakes.
In the 106 th Congress, Upton supported the Clean Lakes program. This legislation would have provided grants to the states for the control of pollution sources and restoring water quality. Unfortunately this bill did not get signed into law. He will also continue to support the effort of banning the export of Great Lakes water.
- Cleaning-Up the Kalamazoo River
While in Congress, Upton has worked hard to ensure that Michigan receives its fair share in funding from the Superfund/Brownfields program to help finance such projects as cleaning up the PCB contamination in the Kalamazoo River and the radiation contamination in the old aircraft parts site in Benton Harbor. He was successful in securing a $1.25 million federal grant to help clean up the Kalamazoo River and the water flowing into Lake Michigan.
- Fighting Canadian Trash Entering Our State
After a report by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, that the amount of Canadian trash dumped in Michigan increased nearly one-third to 9.4 million cubic yards in the 2003 fiscal year, Upton cosponsored H.R. 382. This legislation would effectively give states, like Michigan, full control over trash imports. Currently, Toronto sends about 60 percent of its trash to Michigan. That’s enough to fill more than 2,200 Olympic-size swimming pools. Upton does not believe that this is acceptable and will continue to send the message to Congress that we need to act now and do something about this dumping.
- Led the Fight to Remove Dangerous Nuclear Waste from Our Communities
Congressman Upton, in the 103rd – 106th Congresses, wrote and passed legislation moving dangerous nuclear waste off the shores of Lake Michigan to a federally secured site in the Nevada Desert . This legislation removes nuclear waste from over 100 communities throughout the United States and two in Michigan ’s Sixth District. President Bush signed this legislation into law during the 107 th Congress.
- Secured Needed Disaster Funding for Southwest Michigan Farmers
Upton has made providing federal assistance to Michigan ’s farmers a top priority. He worked to secure $9.7 million for Michigan farmers who suffered substantial losses from the bacterial disease that ravaged local apple orchards in 2000. The Michigan Tree Assistance Program (TAP), provides needed relief to Michigan tree owners who have been battling this devastating tree infestation for several years. This $9.7 million has proven to be a great victory for Michigan ’s apple growers.
In addition, after the devastation that frost had on Southwest Michigan fruit farmers in April of 2001, Upton helped to secure disaster designation loans for local grape growers. This designation allowed farmers to qualify and obtain emergency loans. In response to Upton’s urging, the United States Department of Agriculture designated 27 counties in Michigan a disaster area. This area included Allegan, Berrien, Cass, Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties in Michigan’s 6 th Congressional district.
- Protecting Michigan Forests from the Emerald Ash Borer
In July of 2002, an invasive insect, new to the North American continent and native to Asia, was discovered and identified in Michigan . The insect, the Emerald Ash Borer, aggressively attacks ash trees, killing even healthy trees in one to three years by burrowing under the bark of trees and cutting off critical flow of water and nutrients. After personally witnessing the devastating effects of the Ash Borer on Michigan trees, Upton was pleased when the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) released $28.2 million in funding for states battling the Emerald Ash Borer. Michigan received $11 million to protect the state’s forests from the pest.
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