Senate approves Great Lakes Compact

[undeterred]

MADISON, Wis. -- The state Senate passed an interstate treaty Thursday designed to keep arid states from pulling water out of the Great Lakes. But it appears doomed anyway in the Wisconsin Legislature.

The 26-6 vote in the Democratic-controlled chamber sent the Great Lakes Compact to the state Assembly, where Republican leaders have raised objections to part of it.

The Republicans run the Assembly, and they aren't happy with a provision that would let one Great Lakes state block a city's request to use lake water. The legislative session is set to end next week, too, leaving little time for revisions or compromises that could pass both houses.

"This is one of those bills everybody knows is not going to pass next week," Sen. Glenn Grothman, R-West Bend, told his colleagues before they voted Thursday.

The governors of all eight Great Lake states, including Wisconsin's Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle, signed the compact in 2005. Each state's legislature and Congress must approve the treaty before it can take effect. Illinois, Indiana and Minnesota have passed the compact. A bill has passed both houses of New York's legislature and one chamber in Ohio, Pennsylvania and now Wisconsin.

Michigan hasn't passed the treaty through any legislative house, according to the office of Sen. Mark Miller, a Monona Democrat who has been pushing the compact through the Wisconsin Legislature.

The compact generally prohibits removing water from the lakes' basin. Counties and communities that straddle the basin could use water if all eight Great Lake states approve and the municipality follows guidelines laid out in the compact. If even a single state objects, no water could be drawn. Any substantial changes of the compact would then have to be approved by all the states and would probably blow up the deal, critics say.

The half-dozen Republican senators who opposed the treaty Thursday complained one governor could block cities such as Waukesha from using Lake Michigan water. They also said they hadn't had enough time to study the 143-page package.

Sen. Mary Lazich, R-New Berlin, began to scream at Miller at one point, saying he introduced too many complex amendments too quickly and she didn't have time to read them before the vote. She said those tactics are a "slap in the face" to democracy.

"This is absolutely disgusting!" Lazich shrieked. "I'm feeling so thwarted in my ability to represent my constituents on this issue."

Sen. Robert Cowles, R-Green Bay, tried to persuade senators to get on board, warning that people are coming for the water that shouldn't have it. "We're talking about Arizona, tons of other places," Cowles said. "We have to give up a little of our sovereignty to deal with the big picture."

Doyle spokesman Lee Sensenbrenner called the single-veto argument a "red herring." Federal law already allows a lone governor to stop any diversion, he said _ a power they need to protect their states.

The compact gives cities like Waukesha a chance at Great Lakes water by laying out the criteria they would have to meet to use it, Sensenbrenner said. Waukesha Mayor Larry Nelson said in a statement Thursday he supports the compact for just those reasons.

The compact's fate now lies in the hands of Assembly Speaker Mike Huebsch, R-West Salem, and Rep. Scott Gunderson, R-Waterford, chairman of the Assembly natural resources committee.

Both have said they want it changed to allow states to block community water use only by majority vote, not a single veto. They're also worried the compact could expand state powers over basin ground water, making it more difficult to sink wells.

Gunderson said he's considering holding a hearing on the compact next week, but the package needs more work. "We're not trying to kill this bill," he said. "This is about making sure we have a good piece of legislation."

http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7978413&nav=0Rce

[HereSince1628]

1. No mention of the problem with unsafe levels of radiation in SE WI water

Many cities, like Waukesha, are only a few dozen miles from Lake Michigan whose water is not contaminated. The desperately want to find a cost effective solution to providing citizens with water that meets state and federal health standards.

It's understandable why these representatives are keen on not getting cut off from water. It's true that Waukesha is a red county but letting them them drink and glow in the dark isn't much of a solution.