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The Board of Lucas County Commissioners filed a lawsuit last
week to force the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to
comply with its legal obligations under the Clean Water Act
regarding the impaired status of Lake Erie.
The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in Toledo,
states that the refusal of the Ohio Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) to submit a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) to
the federal EPA violates the requirements of the Clean Water
Act and other federal regulations.
“The Clean Water Act and other federal regulations require
the U.S. EPA and the Ohio EPA establish a Total Maximum
Daily Load for phosphorus and other nutrient pollution
causing the harmful algal blooms that blight Lake Erie and
prevent its waters from meeting state water quality
standards,” the Lucas County Commissioners said.
The Commissioners, who are the plaintiffs in the suit, are
asking the court to order the federal EPA to create a TMDL
for the western basin of Lake Erie or have the agency order
the Ohio EPA to develop and submit a TMDL to federal
environmental officials.
“Lake Erie is a leading economic driver for the entire Great
Lakes region. Tens of thousands of people rely on the lake
for clean, safe drinking water, their livelihood, and
recreational opportunities. We are asking the court to
order the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to comply
with its obligations to establish a TMDL for phosphorus and
other nutrient pollution causing impairment to Lake Erie or
order the state EPA to create one and oversee its
implementation,” the Commissioners said.
A basin-wide, phosphorous limiting TMDL is necessary to
begin to drive collaboration and science-based solutions for
the survival of Lake Erie. |
