Dave Camp: “just 30 years ago, the Great Lakes had been all but pronounced dead. Lake Erie was filled with garbage, and rotting fish…”

“just 30 years ago, the Great Lakes had been all but pronounced dead. Lake Erie was filled with garbage, and rotting fish regularly washed up on the beach. The Cuyahoga River, which flows into Lake Erie, was so polluted that in 1969 it caught fire. Lake trout in Lake Michigan and Lake Huron were all but wiped out. The Federal Government even banned the consumption of walleye because of the high levels of toxic mercury. Today, however, we can say that through dedication and hard work, the Great Lakes are one of environmentalism's most dramatic success stories. Lake Michigan's fish population has recovered with steelhead, salmon, and brown trout. Lake trout and lower Huron and Superior are recovering rapidly as well. We have our Great Lakes back, but now we are facing a new threat. Water scarcity is becoming a worldwide problem. Over 166 million people in 18 countries are suffering from water shortages. Almost 270 million more in 11 additional countries are considered water stressed. Experts predict that by 2025, one-fourth of the world will suffer from lack of water. Given the pressures of population increase and dropping water tables, present-day water usage cannot be sustained. Some are trying to change fresh water from a resource to a commodity. Given these disturbing statistics, it is not surprising that there are now proposals to withdraw bulk quantities of water from the Great Lakes Basin.”