Bill Text: MI HR0409 | 2017-2018 | 99th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: A resolution to memorialize the President of the United States and the United States Environmental Protection Agency to reverse their decision to close the Large Lakes Research Station in Grosse Ile, Michigan.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-10-04 - Referred To Committee On Natural Resources [HR0409 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2017-HR0409-Introduced.html
Rep. Camilleri offered the following resolution:
House Resolution No. 409.
A resolution to memorialize the President of the United States and the United States Environmental Protection Agency to reverse their decision to close the Large Lakes Research Station in Grosse Ile, Michigan.
Whereas, The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) intends to close the Large Lakes Research Station located in Grosse Ile, Michigan. The closure is scheduled for early 2019, with operations and personnel relocated to the site of the National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory in Ann Arbor, Michigan; and
Whereas, Staff of the Large Lakes Research Station play a critical role in responding to environmental emergencies and enforcing environmental laws to protect human health and the environment. Over the station's 48-year history, emergency response staff have responded to more than a thousand chemical, oil, and hazardous substance releases in Michigan, principally in southeast Michigan, and more than 70 percent of EPA law enforcement criminal prosecutions have occurred in southeast Michigan; and
Whereas, The Large Lakes Research Station lies within minutes of the McLouth Steel Trenton and Gibraltar Superfund sites, allowing rapid response to emergencies at these sites. Due to this proximity, emergency response staff have been able to respond quickly to past emergencies—including a sedimentation basin fire, leachate release, and mercury spill—and oversee time critical cleanup actions. This McLouth Trenton site will only demand more attention in the future if the southern portion is added to the National Priorities List as recently proposed; and
Whereas, Relocating Large Lakes Research Station personnel will delay emergency response times where every minute counts to protect the public and our natural resources. Nearly 40 percent of emergencies have occurred within 25 miles of the current office location. Instead of being within 20 to 30 minutes of these emergencies and the McLouth Steel Superfund sites, these first responders will now be up to an hour away and within the busy Ann Arbor area where long traffic delays are common; and
Whereas, The Large Lakes Research Station includes staff for the Great Lakes National Program Office, which implements the highly successful Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI). The GLRI has played a key role in restoring the biological and physical integrity of many Michigan waterways; and
Whereas, Protecting our water, one of our most precious natural resources, should be a top priority in southeast Michigan and our entire Great Lakes state, and the EPA's Large Lakes Research Station on Grosse Ile plays a vital role in this effort; and
Whereas, The closing of the Large Lakes Research Station does not appear to result in any significant cost savings that justify the loss in efficiently responding to environmental emergencies or the other critical functions of this local office; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives, That we memorialize the President of the United States and the United States Environmental Protection Agency to reverse their decision to close the Large Lakes Research Station in Grosse Ile, Michigan; and be it further
Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States, the Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, and the members of the Michigan congressional delegation.
