EPA Administrator Announces Lake Erie Cleanup Grants

LAKEWOOD, OH — During a sunny afternoon news conference in Lakewood, EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler announced the recipients of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Trash Free Water grants.

“I was in Cleveland a year ago announcing the creation of the Trash Free Waters program with the aim of removing large amounts of marine litter from waterways adjacent to the Great Lakes,” Wheeler said. “Today EPA is proud to announce nearly $1.2 million in grants to remove hundreds of tons of trash from the Great Lakes. Trash Free Waters has the chance of becoming one of the most successful new programs launched by EPA in recent years, given how quickly it’s traveled from idea to execution.”

The following organizations were announced as Trash Free grant awardees:

• $299,918 to the Alliance for the Great Lakes in Chicago, Ill.;
• $300,000 to the Belle Isle Conservancy in Detroit, Mich.;
• $106,000 to the Great Lakes Community Conservation Corps in Milwaukee, Wisc.;
• $299,977 to the Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper in Buffalo, N.Y.; and
• $171,695 to the Macatawa Area Coordinating Council in Holland, Mich.
• $414,000 GLRI Trash Free Waters grant to the city of Toledo

Prior to his stop in Lakewood, Wheeler toured the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District's Fleet Avenue Green Infrastructure site and Superior Avenue Pump Station. The facilities reduce the volume of water reaching combined the sewer system and keep untreated wastewater out of the Cuyahoga River and Lake Erie.

Wheeler also spent part of Tuesday touring the Gorge Dam in Akron. He announced a $1 million grant to the city of Akron to aid the removal of the dam, located on the Cuyahoga River. When the dam is removed, the dam pool area behind the dam should be restored.

“Today’s announcement represents another significant step in our larger goal of restoring the Cuyahoga River,” said Ohio EPA Director Laurie A. Stevenson. “A free flowing river, unimpeded by dams, is a healthier river. This is great news for the region and the entire State of Ohio.”