Clean Water legislation makes sense
Published 12:00am Sunday, February 12, 2012Although the federal legislation dubbed The Clean Water Affordability Act would certainly address water we drink, it could have a big impact locally on how Ironton and other communities get rid of their water.
U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat representing Ohio, proposed this law, one that we hope his fellow legislators approve because it could have a massive impact on the city of Ironton and its residents.
One of the primary components of the federal legislation is the relief it could provide to municipalities dealing with aging combined sewer overflow systems like Ironton’s.
Several years ago, the Environmental Protection Agency mandated that communities put plans into place that eliminate systems that allow for stormwater and wastewater to mix and be discharged into the environment, a costly proposition for which the government did not provide any funding.
If Brown’s legislation would pass there are variety of positive changes incorporated including allowing the city a larger window in which to get these upgrades completed, providing some funding for projects like this and preventing future penalties by the EPA.
This type of relief could translate to savings for Ironton citizens because it could allow the city to revisit its current CSO fee set at $2 per thousand gallons of water used.
Mayor Rich Blankenship said he talked with Brown about how important this legislation would be and is hopeful that it is passed.
At a time when almost everyone in Washington seems to be entrenched in partisan bickering, it is encouraging to see that Brown is proposing common sense legislation that could eliminate an unfunded mandate that put many communities in difficult situations.
Ultimately this can help improve the quality of life in communities across Ohio. That is what we want to see from our lawmakers.
One thing we all know — human beings along with other creatures must have water to survive. What many people from this area do not realize is that the water wars have already begun across the country. In fact, they have been going on for some time now. The Appalachian area is blessed with an over abundance of fresh water so everyone here takes it for granted – turn the lawn sprinklers on, take a 20 minute shower, have a pool. WV treats this precious resource admirably by throwing trash, garbage, and filth in nearly every waterway in their state, not to mention the coal mine crap and selling their water resources to other countries for MONEY. Eastern KY is as bad if not worse than WV. And Ohio isn’t much better either, particularly in the Appalachian counties (which is nearly half the state). Lawrence County is WELL KNOWN statewide for the exorbitant number of straight pipes in our waterways along with the trash, garbage and other filth that still prevails — but really, what can one expect from a bunch of idiots who run water lines all over the county without sewer lines in the same trench? This is the genus of elected officals without one iota of rural or urban planning knowledge or experience! Sure, lets hold out for a bit longer, give cities a lot more time to create more extensive problems with the existing fresh water resources.
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