As the new home of Ohio PIRG's environmental work, Environment Ohio can be contacted regarding this news release. After massive public outcry
from citizens across the Great Lakes region and much of the country, including
nearly 98,000 public comments, the Bush administration's EPA has withdrawn its
controversial plan that would have let partially treated sewage flow into Ohio's
waterways, including Lake Erie.
"Today's announcement by the EPA demonstrates that allowing more sewage
to flow into waterways like Lake Erie was an attack on our environment and public
health that even the Bush administration couldn't stomach," stated Erin
Bowser, State Director for the Ohio Public Interest Research Group. "Now
we need to get Gov. Taft to take the same approach here in Ohio by cracking
down on illegal sewage treatment practices that are rampant across our state,
including blending."
The EPA's sewage "blending"
policy would have allowed wastewater treatment plants to mix fully treated sewage
with mostly untreated sewage and release this directly anytime that it rained
or snow melted. Research conducted at Michigan State University showing that
"blended" sewage has 100-1000 time greater health risks than fully
treated sewage helped drive EPA to take back this policy.
Ohio suffers more than most
states in terms of sewage releases into lakes and rivers across the state. Last
year over 200 beach advisories and closings were issued along the Lake Erie
shore and a U.S. Geological Survey revealed that Hepatitis A in the Cuyahoga
River had come from Akron's wastewater treatment plant. The Cuyahoga River feeds
into Lake Erie and runs through the Cuyahoga Valley National Park putting local
residents and visitors at risk of exposing this health threatening virus.
"Gov. Taft should take this opportunity to protect Lake Erie as the precious
natural resource that it is. Lake Erie helps to fuel Ohio's economy, is a drinking
water source for millions of Ohioans and is the lifeblood of many Ohioans' livelihood
and heritage," continued Bowser. "Gov. Taft must commit to ensuring
that this unlawful practice of 'blending' sewage is no longer an option for
treating sewage."
The EPA announced their decision in a press release this morning, just hours
before a vote was likely to happen in the U.S. Congress to block the proposal
from being issued.
