Will JD Vance save the Great Lakes from Trump?

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Grist, Interlochen Public Radio in Northern Michigan, and WBEZ, a public radio station that serves the Chicago metropolitan area, have partnered to provide this coverage.

Vice President JD Vance, a senator from Ohio at the time, was a member of a bipartisan coalition that called for more funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, or GLRI, one of the biggest investments in the nation for the preservation and restoration of the Great Lakes, last year.

As co-chair of the Senate Great Lakes Task Force at the time of the renewal bill’s announcement, Vance stated, “The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative provides the tools we need to combat invasive species, algal blooms, pollution, and other threats to the ecosystem.” He supported increasing the project’s funding and extending it until 2031.

“I encourage all of my colleagues to support this bipartisan, commonsense effort,” Vance added.

He hasn’t changed his mind, advocates hope.

About 10% of the nation’s population gets their drinking water from the five Great Lakes: Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario. Together, they make up the world’s biggest freshwater environment. Climate-resilient shorelines, the eradication of algal blooms, and research on microplastics have all benefited from the enormous GLRI expenditure package since 2010. A bill that would reauthorize funding at $500 million year for the next five years was just presented this week by Republican Senator Todd Young of Indiana and Democratic Senator Gary Peters of Michigan. The effort is frequently cited by politicians as evidence that they can reach a consensus on environmental and conservation problems.

However, its future might be in jeopardy. Trump’s government made multiple unsuccessful attempts to cut or even eliminate GLRI funding during his last term in office. Trump is now attacking environmental spending, including financing for initiatives related to climate change and environmental justice. As he has climbed through the political ranks, Vance’s stance on environmental problems has evolved. Examples include his support for coal, electric vehicles, and even his remarks regarding climate change caused by humans. Additionally, he invested in and served on the board of AppHarvest, a disastrous indoor farming company. Despite a difficult political climate, supporters are hopeful that Vance could salvage the GLRI.

The Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, two significant programs signed into law under former President Joe Biden, have already had billions of dollars frozen by the Trump administration. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker took proactive measures earlier this week to pause the development of a billion-dollar megaproject to stop the spread of invasive fish in the Great Lakes due to growing uncertainty around federal assistance. However, Trump’s decision to block federal funding for DEI and climate projects may conflict with Vance’s and other bipartisans’ longstanding support for the Great Lakes.

Laura Rubin, head of Healing Our Waters Great Lakes Coalition, a Michigan-based advocacy group for federal environmental policy, stated, “We know [Vance] supports Great Lakes restoration and protection.” We hope that his support for it carries over into his position as vice president.

Grist’s requests for response were not answered by the vice president’s office.

Beginning in the early 2000s, the GLRI was a bipartisan response to the expanding environmental issues of dwindling fish stocks, increasing invasive species threats, and widespread industrial and agricultural contamination.

The effort was started 15 years ago, during the Obama administration, with assistance from recently retired Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow. She stated at a policy conference in January that we require a fund with broad authority that can be launched instantly in the event of a crisis.

Prior to the GLRI, previous President George W. Bush issued an executive order in 2004 to establish a regional task force in an effort to improve collaboration between federal agencies, states, and tribes in the remediation of freshwater ecosystems.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the federal government has spent around $5 billion over the previous 14 years on the GLRI, which has financed over 8,000 projects since it started.

According to Rubin, that [money] is used to clean up some of the most polluted properties in our cities and harbors. It goes toward eliminating invasive species and enhancing environments. It goes toward outreach and education as well as lowering phosphorus and nitrogen runoff.

The GLRI’s economic advantages, including increased tourism, job creation, and commercial growth, have garnered the backing of numerous MPs.According to a 2018 economic analysis by the Council of Great Lakes Industries and the Great Lakes Commission, for every federal dollar invested in the historic initiative, around three more benefits were obtained.

The most recent effort to reauthorize the GLRI was co-sponsored by Republican Representative Bill Huizenga of Michigan. He recently shared a video from a regional environmental forum, calling for a strategy to leverage the connections with JD Vance and those who are aware of the GLRI and explain the ecological and economic implications of this investment. Requests for comment from Huizenga’s office were not answered.

However, without someone to oversee it, money cannot be used to protect the Great Lakes.

As part of a larger strategy, the Trump administration has launched a vigorous effort to dismantle government agencies, such as the EPA, which is in charge of the GLRI. EPA employees were informed last week that over 1,000 positions that were filled in the past year could be eliminated at any time. Shortly thereafter, 168 workers involved in environmental justice initiatives were put on paid administrative leave.

Nicole Cantello, president of the union representing regional EPA employees, said both are a serious setback to the EPA office that oversees a large portion of the Midwest and Great Lakes. She calculated that the office might lose about 200 workers, or a fifth of its total personnel, as a result of the Trump administration’s cuts.

For organizations like the EPA’s Great Lakes National Program Office, which oversees the execution of GLRI, Cantellos said that is bad news. I’m not sure how robust that program will be following all of these dismissals and resignations. “I said,” she said.

Compared to many other programs, the one that has utilized monies from the bipartisan infrastructure package to restore some of the Great Lakes region’s most ecologically harmed places has a substantially lower share of obligated funds. According to an EPA assessment, as of January 6, less than half of the $597 million that had been allotted had been obligated, which suggests that it may be more vulnerable to clawbacks.

Don Jodery, director of federal relations for the nonprofit Alliance of the Great Lakes, said the GLRI was not affected when the Republican-controlled House of Representatives lowered overall expenditure levels last year.

According to Jodery, it is reasonable for new administrations to examine agency staffing and federal financing. However, he asserted that some of these programs are extremely vital and that the question of whether or not they should receive funding should not be up for debate.

The original version of this article can be found at Grist.org/politics/will-j-d-vance-save-the-great-lakes-from-trump/.

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