AG COX TAKES ACTION
Protecting and Preserving Michigan's Remarkable Environment
One of Attorney General Cox's highest environmental priorities is protecting the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes are a globally significant resource, containing approximately 20% of the world's, and 95% of the United States', fresh water. Michigan is the only state to be located entirely within the Great Lakes water basin.
Keeping the Great Lakes Clean by Fighting Ballast Water Discharges
Attorney General Cox has actively sought to protect the Great Lakes from the harmful effects of biological pollutants. Aquatic invasive species can enter the Great Lakes when vessels discharge ballast water.
Lightly loaded oceangoing vessels carry the ballast water in tanks for stability and then discharge that ballast water as they take on cargo. The Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimates that controlling zebra mussels and sea lampreys – two of the most harmful aquatic nuisance species – costs the nation $45 million each year.
Fighting Ballast Water Discharges - Legal Initiatives
In 2009, Attorney General Cox went to court against the EPA in the federal court of appeals arguing in support of Michigan's law requiring treatment of ballast water discharges, and the greater protection that provides for the Great Lakes. The challenge alleges that EPA failed to meet its obligations to create a federal "floor" for the protection of the Great Lakes; in other words, a sufficiently strong environmental safety net, which should include treatment of ballast water discharge, thus threatening the water quality of the Great Lakes.
Attorney General Cox's efforts include intervening in Northwest Environmental Advocates, et al v United States E.P.A., a case challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s 1972 decision to exempt ballast water discharges from the Clean Water Act.
At the urging of Cox and other Great Lakes Attorneys General, the Court ruled that EPA's refusal to regulate ballast water discharges under the Clean Water Act is inconsistent with the Act. In July, 2008, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that decision. EPA will now be required to regulate those discharges.
Cox also successfully defended Michigan's ballast water discharge regulation in Fednav v Chester, the first such state law in the country. The District Court ruled in Cox's favor in 2007. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the decision in 2008.
Most recently, Cox joined another front in the battle against aquatic nuisance species. Michigan, eight other states, and a Canadian province again sued EPA for their failure to protect Michigan's water resources. In that case, Cox and the other Attorneys General are challenging EPA's recently created rule exempting "water transfers" from the Clean Water Act. This rule would allow someone to pump water from one body of water into another without any oversight under the Act. This could allow someone in another state to dump water infested with aquatic nuisance species or other pollutants into the Great Lakes. This case is currently pending in court.
Great Lakes Diversion and Water Use
Attorney General Cox has also been a leader in preserving Michigan's authority to prevent diversion of Great Lakes water outside of the Great Lakes Basin, while allowing reasonable water use by Michigan citizens. Cox closely monitored and provided comments on a proposed multi-state agreement designed to address water use in the Great Lakes Basin, and opposed early drafts that would have weakened Michigan's authority to prevent diversions. In August 2008, Cox wrote a letter to the U.S. Senate urging its members to approve an improved version of the agreement - the Great Lakes – St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact - which would clearly prohibit diversions. Cox also continues to monitor Illinois' compliance with the U.S. Supreme Court order overseeing Chicago's diversion from Lake Michigan.
The Attorney General has a representative on the Water Resources Conservation Advisory Council. The Council was recently created by the Michigan Legislature to evaluate and make recommendations for improving the State's regulation of water withdrawals and use.
Great Lakes Water Quality
In Rapanos and Carabell v United States, Attorney General Cox authored and filed an amicus brief on behalf of 34 states in the United States Supreme Court opposing an effort to severely limit the extent of federal Clean Water Act jurisdiction. The brief argued that historically broad Clean Water Act protections for the wetlands and streams that feed the Great Lakes should be maintained.
In 2008, Cox urged Michigan's Congressional leaders to pass the Great Lakes Legacy Act. The Act would provide federal funds for cleaning-up contaminated sediments in the Great Lakes. The removal of these sediments not only results in less contamination in the Lakes but also improves recreational and commercial boating. The act was enacted by Congress and authorizes $50 million for projects in the Great Lakes.
Public Use of Great Lakes Shorelines
In Glass v Goeckel, Attorney General Cox argued before the Michigan Supreme Court that the historic and treasured right of beach walking, enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of Michiganders and tourists yearly, must be protected and preserved. Several key arguments raised in the Attorney General’s brief, filed in 2005, were adopted in the Supreme Court's opinion preserving the public interest in Great Lakes shorelines.
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