The LWVE is a member of the League of Women Voters Lake Michigan Region (LWVLMR), an inter-league organization of 60 local Leagues and the Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Michigan state Leagues. LWVLMR advocates for protection of the Lake Michigan watershed region and the Great Lakes under the Natural Resources position of the League of Women Voters of the US (LWVUS). Recent LWVLMR efforts include support for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Inflation Reduction Act, and Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. This year’s LWVLMR annual meeting was held on October 24-25 in Porter, Indiana and on Zoom, and included three speakers addressing threats and solutions for our critical region.
Helena Volzer, Senior Water Policy Manager for the Alliance for the Great Lakes and author of A Finite Resource: Managing the Growing Water Needs of Data Centers, Critical Minerals Mining & Agriculture in the Great Lakes Region, was the first speaker. She described hyperscale data centers as massive users of 1 to 5 million gallons of water per day for cooling (equivalent to the water used by 12,000 to 60,000 people). Water use is not generally a factor in states’ economic development and data center siting decisions, and fewer than one-third of data centers track their water use.
The Great Lakes Water Resources Compact disallows removal of water from the basin, but it does not offer full protection from drawdown within. Groundwater shortages are an even greater concern; around half of Great Lakes state residents rely on groundwater for drinking water, and groundwater-use laws are inadequate to curb use before a crisis occurs. Regional water planning is difficult due to the nondisclosure agreements that most data centers require, and groundwater shortages are already occurring in several areas, including the Joliet region, southwest Michigan, Little Rock Creek in Minnesota, and South Bend. Regional planning measures recommended by the Alliance include:
- Regional water-demand studies that consider environmental and ecosystem needs, including collaboration where watersheds cover multiple states
- Required information submittals early in the siting process, including opportunities for water reuse or closed-loop systems, studies of impacted wells, and opportunities for waste-heat use
- Strengthening of consumptive use permitting standards, efficiency standards, and requirements for reporting to the Great Lakes Water Use Database
- Serious consideration of non-potable water for data centers
The Alliance for the Great Lakes website contains a wealth of additional information on the impact of large water users on the Great Lakes.
Keynote Speaker Howard Learner, CEO of the Environmental Law and Policy Center (ELPC), spoke next about “Protecting the Great Lakes in Turbulent Times”. In the summer of 2024, ELPC began planning a five-point strategy in case the election resulted in anti-environment policies. This strategy is now in practice:
- Defend the environment in federal courts and hire ten additional attorneys (a 25 percent increase)
- Be on the environmental offense in state policy, including wetlands protection in Illinois
- Advocate for bipartisan support of Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funding
- Focus on state Public Utilities Commissions regarding power plants, data centers, and energy efficiency
- Advocate for state environmental policy acts in the absence of federal protections
The speaker shared some positive news. With bipartisan support, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is still funded at $368 million. On the southeast side of Chicago, the US Army Corps proposed a toxic waste dump in an environmental justice community, but the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency denied the permit following community activism. He then identified additional areas where advocacy could make a difference:
- Pressure the Illinois governor’s office for passage of Illinois wetland protection legislation in the next session; support from the governor is considered key for passage
- Advocate against environmental harm in the federal PERMIT Act, which would weaken the Clean Water Act
- Advocate for NOAA funding for Great Lakes meteorological and water quality research and monitoring
- Question public utility commissions about why small customers should subsidize power developments for data centers and large industries
More information about advocacy for these and other issues is available on the Environmental Law and Policy website.
Erin Argyilan, Education Coordinator at Great Lakes Research and Education Center, spoke last, addressing protection of the Indiana Dunes. Indiana Dunes National Park is the fifth most biologically diverse national park in the country, as it includes coastal regions, prairies, wetlands and rivers, prairie savannahs, and boreal relicts. Because the dunes include open lands adjacent to urban and industrial areas, the region faces threats from industrial pollution, habitat destruction, invasive species, and climate change.
The Save the Dunes Mission, an official partner of the Indiana Dunes National Park and headquartered in Michigan City, focuses on habitat restoration and preservation, policy and budget advocacy, and community engagement. Their current priorities include:
- Fundraising for Indiana Dunes National Park to offset federal funding cuts
- Advocacy for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative
- Shoreline protection and preservation of public areas as water levels fluctuate
- Coastal resiliency across northern Indiana, especially with regard to flooding
- Training the next generation of dunes advocates
More information is available at the Great Lakes Research and Education Center website and the Save the Dunes website.