| Northeast-Midwest Institute Weekly Update |
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NEMWI to Address "Profound Lack of Data" on Invasion Risk from Ships
| The Northeast-Midwest Institute (NEMWI) today launched, with support from the Great Lakes Protection Fund, a major new project to assess effectiveness of various ballast discharge standards at preventing aquatic organism invasions in the Great Lakes. The $1 million, 2-year effort through the Institute's Great Ships Initiative will directly address what the National Resource Council (NRC) in its 2011 report, Assessing the Relationship Between Propagule Pressure and Invasion Risk in Ballast Water, termed "a profound lack of data and information." Currently, State ballast discharge standards in the Great Lakes region differ by up to three orders of magnitude. Environmentalists claim that national and international standards are too weak given the huge volumes of ballast water involved. Shipping interests claim that tighter standards may cripple their industry and delay environmental protection. The debate revolves around an unknown: How clean is "clean enough" to prevent new invasions? The Institute, in collaboration with state, federal and global academic experts, will generate a detailed plan and the first primary empirical data to assess the degree of protection from invasion risk that is afforded by the range of ballast discharge standards currently in regulatory play in the Great Lakes region. The effort accords with recommendations of the NRC for a national research effort, and will assure that Great Lakes realities are at the forefront of that effort.
For more information, contact Allegra Cangelosi, President of the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
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Great Lakes River Mouths: Most Valuable as a Boxed Set?
| The Northeast-Midwest Institute, with support from the Great Lakes Protection fund, will investigate options for strategic care and use of Great Lakes river mouths culminating in a scoping report for the region's policy-makers. As a network, Great Lakes river mouths are ecological and hydrological workhorses capable of securing the quality and quantity of the region's water supply, aquatic wildlife, and rich upland soil resources over time. They also offer unmatched transportation, recreation, quality of life, and industry opportunities to the region. Synergies associated with a region-wide network of interdependent and environmentally compatible river mouth uses could yield significant and long lasting local and regional benefits. The project will help the region capitalize on the largely latent assets afforded by the network of Great Lakes river mouths as the region pursues economic recovery and Great Lakes restoration.
For more information, contact Allegra Cangelosi, President of the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
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NRCS to Hold Briefing on Mississippi River Basin Healthy Waters Initiative and Related RFP: December 22
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USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will hold a December 22, 10 AM (Eastern) briefing to update conservation and agricultural partners on the Mississippi River Basin Healthy Waters Initiative (MRBI). The briefing coincides with this week's publication of the next MRBI Request for Proposals (RFP) in the Federal Register. Attend in person, or connect remotely by telephone and internet (read meeting details here). MRBI brings together stakeholders around voluntarily conservation practices that avoid, control and trap nutrient runoff in Mississippi River Basin watersheds where high nutrient loading is particularly problematic.
For more information, contact Mark Gorman, Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
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NEMWI Note to the Coalitions: Population Change in the Region's Largest Cities
| The 2010 decennial census shows that the populations of the Northeast and Midwest regions of the United States continue to grow slowly relative to the South and West. This trend accounts for steady losses in the number of the Northeast-Midwest region's congressional seats. However, population growth within the Northeast-Midwest region has not been uniformly sluggish. In particular, a closer look at the Northeast-Midwest region's largest cities reveals that some cities have enjoyed population growth while other cities' populations have held steady or plummeted dramatically over time. This Note to the Coalitions, "Inside the Northeast-Midwest: Population Change in the Region's Largest Cities," summarizes the story that U.S. Census Bureau data can tell about how the populations of the region's largest cities-and in some cases, their metro areas-have fared since the 1950s, when many Northeast-Midwest cities' populations were at their peak. It also offers possible explanations for divergent patterns of population change among these cities.
For more information, contact Colleen Cain, Senior Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
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"Megabus" Funding for Mid-Alantic Watersheds Programs and Related News
| On December 17, the President signed the final "megabus" appropriations package, providing funding for the federal government for the remainder of fiscal year 2012. Included in that package is funding important for the mid-Atlantic watersheds:
- Chesapeake Bay Program: $57.391 million; $2 million for small watershed grants
- Chesapeake Bay Executive Order: $1.5 million; directive for an analysis of endocrine disruptors
- National Estuary Program: $27.058 million
- Chesapeake Bay Oyster Recovery: $4.9 million
- North American Wetlands Conservation Act: $35.554 million
Read about this and more in NEMWI's Mid-Atlantic Watersheds Update for December.
For more information, contact Rachel Dawson, Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
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NEMWI Briefing Recap: Combined Heat and Power as an Effective Economic Development Tool
| The Northeast-Midwest Institute and its partners, Redevelopment Economics, Pace Energy & Climate Center, and Future Energy Development, hosted a briefing on the role of combined heat and power technologies in brownfield and economic development strategies on December 13, 2011. Presenters shared case studies in the NEMW region and beyond that successfully employ on-site energy as an integral element of redevelopment projects, and explored policy issues and opportunities to connect energy incentives with redevelopment and reuse strategies. Panelists included:
- William Pentland, Senior Energy Systems Analyst, Pace Energy and Climate Center
- Neeharika Naik-Dhungel, Program Manager, U.S. EPA Combined Heat and Power Partnership Program
- Pat Mahoney, President and CEO, Energy Answers
- Evans Paull, Principal, Redevelopment Economics
Presentations and other materials are available here on the NEMWI website.
For more information, contact Colleen Cain, Senior Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
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TIGER III Program Funds 18 Projects in NEMW Region
| The Department of Transportation announced funding for $511 million toward 46 projects under the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) program. TIGER is a competitive grant program started under the stimulus package which aims to provide jobs while funding projects often neglected by formula funding. About $194 million went to 18 projects in the Northeast-Midwest region, approximately 38% of the funding and 39% of the projects. The types of projects funded range from bringing Chicago's Blue Line into a state of good repair to improvements to Main Street in St. Albans, VT. The complete list of projects can be viewed here.
For more information, contact Fritz Ohrenschall, Research Associate at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
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November State Unemployment Data Encouraging for NEMW Region
The Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics released preliminary (p) November state unemployment numbers yesterday. State unemployment rates were generally lower for November than October, and 45 states registered unemployment rate decreases from a year earlier. Regionally, the Northeast led the country with the lowest unemployment rate at 7.9 percent; the Midwest rate was 8.2 percent. Listed below are the NEMW state numbers for October and November:
State October November(p)
CT 8.7 8.4
DE 7.9 7.6
IA 6.0 5.7
IL 10.1 10.0
IN 9.0 9.0
MA 7.3 7.0
MD 7.2 6.9
ME 7.3 7.0
MI 10.6 9.8
MN 6.5 5.9
NJ 9.1 9.1
NH 5.3 5.2
NY 7.9 8.0
OH 9.0 8.5
PA 8.1 7.9
RI 10.4 10.5
VT 5.6 5.3
WI 7.7 7.3
| For more information, contact Kate Ostrander, Legislative Director of the Northeast-Midwest Congressional Coalition.
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