A recent Great Lakes Brewing Company e-mail distribution calls on us to Toast the Great Lakes. With good reason: without the Great Lakes, there would be no Great Lakes beer. Check it out at http://www.greatlakesbrewing.com/earthday/. The ad started me thinking . . . 75% of the fresh water in the United States and 20% of the entire world’s stock of water is in the Great Lakes. We know it’s a great resource but do we really think about it enough?We can support our Great Lakes and clean water around the globe by joining the Northeast Ohio Sierra Club this Sunday. The Sierra Club has partnered with Aveda salons across the state to support the Sierra Club’s Clean Water Campaign. The Rocky River Walk for Water fundraiser kick off celebration starts at 8AM at The Brown Aveda Institute, 19336 Detroit Avenue, Rocky River, and continues through the Metroparks for six kilometers.
But if the walk doesn’t work in your schedule, think about the Great Lakes as we celebrate Earth Day this week. Support environmental groups like The Earth Day Coalition and EarthWatch Ohio, which educate us in ways to protect the Earth and help make Cleveland’s EarthFest, one of the longest standing Earth Day celebrations in the country, a success. Visit the Zoo, which hosted EarthFest this past weekend and is involved in conservation, horticulture, protection of endangered species, and education programs designed to promote stewardship of the Earth.
We missed World Water Day on March 22, but groups like The Nature Conservancy’s freshwater program support freshwater conservation projects that sustain life and livelihood along some of America’s most celebrated bodies of water. Our own Lake Erie is one of them.
Who and what are the enemies of our Lake? People, and their industry. We sometimes overuse our water resources by letting our water run too long into our drains and watering our lawns. Historically, waterways have been used as dumping grounds for industrial chemicals. While our habits have improved and laws enforce compliance of business activities, we need to continue to think of ways to improve and preserve our water supply.
Invasive species, like zebra mussels, threaten our water as well. Recent test results warn that an undetermined number of Asian carp have likely entered Lake Michigan. The Nature Conservancy’s Great Lakes Aquatic Invasive Species program is trying to develop a new genetic surveillance method to detect the presence of Asian carp. The sites where carp have been found in areas above the electric barriers designed to prevent carp infiltration. As more fish get through the barriers, the populations will grow. The hope is to prevent any further fish from getting through and find those that have and prevent them from breeding.
The Environmental Defense Fund reports that runoff and erosion threaten the Lake. Improvements must be made to improve Lake Erie water quality by reducing Maumee watershed runoff. In May of 2000, the State of Ohio initiated a Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program in the Lake Erie watershed. The program seeks to enroll 67,000 acres in conservation practices like preservation of wildlife habitats and wetlands and putting in buffers by getting farmers to volunteer to take portions of their land out of production, and improve water quality. The Lake Erie Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program hopes to extend benefits provided to participants over the Great Lakes region.
Small changes in personal habits can make a big difference. Support programs that protect the Lake and think about ways you can help preserve fresh water, our most precious natural resource. Commit yourself to short showers, re-wear clothes, flush less frequently, replace your faucets and showers with water-efficient ones, and get a rain barrel to collect water for yard and garden use.
The Great Lakes hold 75% of the fresh water in the United States and 20% of the fresh water in the entire world. Think about it. Then toast the Great Lakes on Earth Day!
Walk for Water with the Northeast Ohio Sierra Club this Sunday starting at 8PM at The Brown Aveda Institute, 19336 Detroit Avenue, Rocky River. Call Michelle McGuire at 513-247-0675 for more information.
From Cool Cleveland contributor Claudia Taller, whose passion for words has led to creation of the Lakeside Word Lover’s Retreats, an outgrowth of her work with Skyline Writers.
Her favorite foods are red wine, salmon, ice cream, and chocolate. She loves to read, write, tour wineries, ride her bike, ease into yoga, and cook gourmet meals for friends. Find her at http://www.claudiatallermusings.blogspot.com.