Great Lakes Compact Heads to Congress
Posted on: Wednesday, 23 July 2008, 18:00 CDT
Leaders of eight Great Lakes states gathered Wednesday in Milwaukee to present Congress with an agreement to prevent water diversions from the lakes.
The multi-state agreement, or compact, was ratified by the Legislatures of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Pennsylvania and New York, and now must gain Congressional approval to become law, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle joined members of Congress to make the case for the Great Lakes Compact, saying that, if enacted, it would bolster the legal standing of the Great Lakes states' efforts to prevent water diversions by outside parties.
The Great Lakes contain about 22 percent of the world's surface fresh water.
U.S. Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn., chairman of the House Transportation Committee, predicted Congress would ratify the compact this year, while Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., said he saw no significant opposition to it in the U.S. Senate.
Source: United Press International
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