July 11, 2008
Radio Address discusses defining moment in Michigan's history
LANSING - In her weekly radio address, Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today said that historic new legislation she signed into law this week protects the Great Lakes and establishes Michigan as the nation's leader in the scientific management of water.
"It's not every week that we make history in Michigan; it's not every day that we do something so monumental that it will be remembered for generations to come," Granholm said. "But this was one of those weeks, and Wednesday was one of those days. Overlooking the beautiful blue waters of Lake Michigan, I signed into law new protections for the Great Lakes that mark a defining moment in our state's history and establish Michigan as the nation's leader in the scientific management of water."
The legislation establishes clear guidelines to ensure that no one person or company can harm the Great Lakes through new or increased water diversions and makes our state the first state in the nation to manage the quantity of water through scientific means.
Lt. Governor John D. Cherry, Jr. kicked off a Great Lakes tour this week, as well, traveling across Michigan to raise public awareness of the significance of the lakes to Michigan's economy and quality of life and the importance of protecting and restoring the Great Lakes.
"The Great Lakes not only represent 20 percent of the world's freshwater supply," Granholm said, "but they define who we are as a state."
Michigan has joined with its neighbors around the Great Lakes in urging Congress to quickly ratify the Great Lakes Compact that the governor signed in December 2005 along with eight other governors and the premiers of Ontario and Quebec.
The governor's weekly radio address is released each Friday morning and may be heard on broadcast stations across the state. The address is available on the governor's Web site at (
www.michigan.gov/gov
) for download, together with a clip of the quote above. The radio address is also available as a podcast on the Web site, as well as on iTunes and via RSS feed for general distribution to personal MP3 players and home computers. Links to the audio files and text of today's address follow.
Governor Jennifer M. Granholm
Radio Address - Water Package/Great Lakes Compact Signing
July 11, 2008
Hello, this is Governor Jennifer Granholm.
It's not every week that we make history in Michigan; it's not every day that we do something so monumental that it will be remembered for generations to come.
But this was one of those weeks, and Wednesday was one of those days. Overlooking the beautiful blue waters of Lake Michigan, I signed into law historic new protections for the Great Lakes that mark a defining moment in our state's history and establish Michigan as the nation's leader in the scientific management of water.
The Great Lakes not only represent 20 percent of the world's freshwater supply, but they define who we are as a state.
That's why there was tremendous bipartisan support and a tremendous bipartisan effort in the Legislature, led by Senator Patricia Birkholz and Representative Rebecca Warren, to ratify the Great Lakes Compact that I signed in December 2005 along with eight other Great Lakes governors and the premiers of Ontario and Quebec.
Simply put, the Great Lakes Compact bans water diversions outside the Great Lakes basin with strictly regulated and very limited exceptions. The compact ensures that every Great Lakes governor has the power to stop a diversion.
This package establishes clear guidelines to ensure that no one person or company can harm these waters through new or increased diversions.
And the legislation contains protections for our sensitive trout streams and makes Michigan the first state in the nation to manage the quantity of water through scientific means.
This week, Lt. Governor John Cherry kicked off a Great Lakes tour, traveling across Michigan to highlight the importance of the lakes to our economy and to our quality of life. He is working to raise public awareness of protecting and restoring our Great Lakes, building on the historic action we took just days ago.
Now that all the states and provinces in the Great Lakes basin have approved the compact, the focus now shifts to Washington where Congress must ratify it. We have joined with our neighbors around the Great Lakes in urging Congress to quickly provide that ratification so that Michigan can carry on its proud tradition as a leader in water protection.
So as people across the state make plans to enjoy another summer day on one of our Great Lakes and men and women go to work at jobs that depend on their pristine waters, let's remember the importance of protecting our Great Lakes and the values they represent. Let us remember that on Wednesday July 9, we made history.
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