In the last days of this legislative session, that is now adjourned until January 2009, the State Assembly had the chance to pass the most sweeping protection for the Great Lakes ever proposed – the Great Lakes Water Compact.
The compact is the result of seven years of negotiation between the Great Lakes States and Canadian Provinces – a historic document that would allow Great Lakes States to control the largest source of freshwater in the world under our own terms for generations to come.
We were very close to passing our own version of the Compact in Wisconsin. Our version is supported by a bi-partisan coalition of State Legislators, citizen activists, local elected officials, business groups, and many others. The final product even passed the State Senate overwhelmingly on a bipartisan 26-6 vote, and enjoys the support of our governor.
Despite this popular support in our state, the Republicans in charge of the Assembly and every single one of their members, voted not to take the compact up for a vote. Even Republicans who had stood with the governor just hours before the vote, echoing his call to pass a strong Compact quickly, voted against bringing the bill up for a vote.
Our governor and the other Great Lakes governors took five years to negotiate the founding compact document. We spent another two years negotiating it in Wisconsin. Facts that make Assembly Republican claims that this bill is being rushed ring a little hollow.
The threats that the compact would protect us against are very real. Last summer, calls came from the parched Southeast and Southwest to use Great Lakes water to solve their problems. We can never allow that to happen. The compact will help us protect our water so that we never have to fall victim to another state selling our water without our permission.
In Wisconsin, we have always prided ourselves on being leaders in environmental conversation and in promoting our natural spaces. If we’re the last state to ratify the compact, it will be a major embarrassment.
As one of the millions of people who enjoys and depends on our Great Lakes, I was beyond disappointed with what happened in the Assembly. The Great Lakes are vital to our state and we must take bold action to save them. Not protecting our lakes puts our tourism, our economy, and our environment at risk. That’s not a risk I’m willing to take – especially not when we have a sound bill just waiting to be passed.
Rep. Jon Richards (D-Milwaukee) is the assistant minority leader in the Wisconsin State Assembly.
