Ann Arbor, Mich. – The Great Lakes Commission (GLC) today applauded Congress and the Biden Administration for enacting the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The bipartisan infrastructure legislation includes significant investments in key Great Lakes priorities, including $1 billion in funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, $55 billion for drinking water and wastewater projects, $10 billion for action on emerging contaminants such as PFAS, $2.25 billion for port infrastructure development grants, and $1.9 billion for Army Corps of Engineers aquatic restoration projects.

“The Great Lakes Commission is grateful to our region’s bipartisan congressional delegation and President Biden for their work on the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act,” said GLC Chair Todd L. Ambs, deputy secretary for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. “This legislation represents historic investment in longstanding GLC priorities, including $1 billion for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Since it was launched in 2010, the GLRI has funded more than 5,000 projects across the Great Lakes. These projects have cleaned up toxic contamination, restored wetlands, prevented the spread of aquatic invasive species and more. They also produce a substantial return on investment, with every dollar spent generating an estimated $3.35 in additional economic activity.”

In June, the GLC led a coalition of regional agencies, legislators, mayors, and business and environmental groups in urging Congressional leaders to include key Great Lakes priorities in the legislation. The GLC will continue to advocate for Great Lakes priorities in upcoming legislation, including investments in climate resiliency and Great Lakes icebreaking capacity. 

The Great Lakes Commission, led by chair Todd L. Ambs, deputy secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, is a binational government agency established in 1955 to protect the Great Lakes and the economies and ecosystems they support. Its membership includes leaders from the eight U.S. states and two Canadian provinces in the Great Lakes basin. The GLC recommends policies and practices to balance the use, development, and conservation of the water resources of the Great Lakes and brings the region together to work on issues that no single community, state, province, or nation can tackle alone. Learn more at www.glc.org.