WATER POLLUTION PROBLEMS
OF THE GREAT LAKES AREA
-------
WATER POLLUTION PROBLEMS OF THE GREAT LAKES AREA
September 1966
(Revised October 196?)
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
FEDERAL WATER POLLUTION CONTROL ADMINISTRATION
Great Lakes Region Chicago, Illinois
-------
FOREWORD
IMPORTANCE OF THE GREAT LAKES
WATER POLLUTION PROBLEMS
WHAT IS BEING DONE
ACTION NEEDED
-------
FOREWORD
The first edition of this information pamphlet was published in
September 1966. The -water pollution problems identified in that edi-
tion have not materially changed in significance or gravity. However,
such is the pace of evolution in water pollution control today that a
need was felt for revision to incorporate some of-the recent develop-
ments on the legislative and organizational front. This revision was
prepared to fill that need.
The fight for clean waters is being pressed today as never
before. At the signing of the Water Quality Act of 1965 on October 2,
1965, President Johnson said, in part:
"...This moment marks a very proud beginning for the
United States of America. Today, we proclaim our
refusal to be strangled by the wastes of civilization.
Today, we begin to be masters of our environment.
"But we must act, and act swiftly. The hour is
late, the damage is large...
"Wo one has a right to use America's rivers and
America's waterways that belong to all the people as
a sewer...
"...This bill that you have passed, that will
become law as a result of a responsive Congress, will
not completely assure us of absolute success. Addi-
tional bolder legislation will be needed in the years
ahead. But we have begun. And we have begun in the
best American tradition - with a program of joint
Federal, state and local action..."
That Congress was in a mood for bolder legislation is evi-
denced by subsequent congressional actions. Outstanding among these
actions was passage late in 1966 of the Clean Waters Restoration Act.
This further amendment to the basic Federal water pollution control
law expanded and strengthened the Federal role and increased the
assistance, especially financial, made available. Intergovernmental
relations in this field are still undergoing evolution, and the ulti-
mate role of the national government will be determined by the kind
of job the municipalities, the States, and industries are able and
willing to do.
Nowhere in the Nation is the tidal wave of reaction - the
mounting alarm over pollution - more evident than in the Great Lakes
-------
Area. Governors of the Lake States have given strong sttpport to water
pollution control - convening top-level conferences, promoting State
programs of financial aid to cities as a supplement to Federal con-
struction grants, and establishing standards for enhancing water
quality.
Once buried on the back pages of newspapers, water pollution is
now front-page news. Civic groups, labor unions, and crusading private
citizens have added their voices to those of public health and conserva-
tion spokesmen.
The present generation holds the Lakes in trust, with an obli-
gation to posterity- to pass along this magnificent resource in the best
possible condition.
The water pollution problems of the Great Lakes are myriad and
complex. But the will to do something about it is strong. Ways will
be found.
-------
IMPORTANCE OF THE GREAT LAKES
The Great Lakes Area (see map in the middle of this booklet)
is characterized by large concentrations of people, industry and fresh •
water. In I960 more than 2^ million people lived within its boundaries;
more than 20 million or 80 percent of the total live in metropolitan
areas. In 1963 manufacturing activity exceeded IiO billion dollars -
almost one-fourth of the Nation's total. For many decades much of the
area has been referred to as the industrial belt of the Nation. The
area has the largest, most dependable, and most valuable fresh water
resources in the United States. It is imperative that they not be
lost or degraded. Not only is a large part of the existing popula-
tion and industry of our country dependent upon them, they also are
vital to future growth. ¥ithin less than fifty years the population
of the Great Lakes Area is expected to double, or exceed 5>0 million
people; industrial activity during the same period may well increase
four or even fivefold.
Industrial water use in I960 in the Great Lakes Area was esti-
mated to be 2,660 billion gallons. The quantity may triple within £0
years. These industries employed almost a half million persons. Muni-
cipal water use in the same year was approximately 1,1^00 billions of
gallons. It may reach 3,000 billion by the year 2010. Municipal water
facilities drawing water from the Lakes or connecting waters serve
almost 13> million persons.
World's largest municipal water
treatment plant - Chicago.
-------
To state the value of the water resources to industry and for
municipal consumption only partially tells the story. The importance
of the Lakes and their tributaries for recreation and for commercial
fishing, although difficult to measure in dollar terms, is clearly
enormous. During the summer months of I960 in the Lake Michigan
Basin alone there were more than £0 million "activity days" of water-
oriented recreation. If suitable facilities exist, the number may be
five times as large by the year 2010. With regard to commercial fish-
ing the United States catch in 1961; totalled over 5>3 million pounds -
half of which was taken from Lake Michigan.
The enhancement of recreational opportunities, the improvement
or maintenance of water quality for municipal and industrial use, and
the over-all betterment of the esthetic aspects of lake shores and
tributaries will result not only in dollar savings but also in greater
personal enjoyment to millions of people. To a great extent the future
growth of the area is dependent upon the adequacy of a suitable quan-
tity and quality of its water resources.
Little Waters of
Big Lakes Country.
-------
WATER POLLUTION PROBLEMS
Physical Problems
When the Great Lakes were formed by receding glaciers some
20,000 years ago, their waters were excellent in quality. Although
the overall quality remains generally good, particularly when compared
to some of our severely polluted streams, it has undergone continuous
deterioration as a result of waste inputs from natural runoff and the
activities of man. The widely publicized water quality problems of .
Lake Erie dramatically emphasize the consequences of this deteriora-
tion.
The major physical problems of the Great Lakes Area are:
Biological imbalance.
Buildup of dissolved solids.
Bacterial contamination.
— Chemical contamination.
Oxygen depletion.
Discussion of each of these significant water quality problems
follows:
Biological Imbalance
Every lake, including our own Great Lakes, undergoes an aging
process which is inevitable and leads - in time measured on a geologic
scale - to its destruction. Of immediate concern, however, is not the
lake's inexorable fate but the rate of its evolution. Aging is rapidly
accelerated by inputs of nutritive materials, nitrogen and phosphorus,
that enrich the aquatic environment. Fertilizers carried into a lake
by land runoff, along with the nitrogen and phosphorus contained in
municipal and industrial waste discharges, hasten the aging or eutro-
phication process.
At some stage in the life history of the lake, nutrient concen-
trations reach a level where the addition of more nutrients produces
"blooms'1 of algae and the water becomes murky. Initially, the blooms
are not dense but blooms of greater density follow, and the algal popu-
lation and species change to the blue-green types that cause noxious
odors and appear as unsightly scums on the water surface.
Concurrent with the development of algal blooms, other signifi-
cant changes occur. Dissolved oxygen levels become depressed in the
bottom of thermally stratified lakes. (See subsequent discussion of
oxygen depletion.) Bottom-dwelling fauna change from clean water forms
-------
to pollution-tolerant forms. Drastic changes take place in the
fisheries "with the highly-prized game fish, such as pike, trout
and whitefish becoming scarce as the coarse, less valuable fish
such as carp, catfish, and sheepshead become dominant. In shal-
low waters near shore, attached filamentous forms of algae grow
abundantly, forming long strings which break loose and wash up
onto the shore. Unsightly odorous messes result, interfering
with the recreational use of waters and beaches, clogging water
intakes, and depressing property values.
.
Dead algae foul beaches and
swimming waters.
Sad as it may seem, we have in effect just described the prin-
cipal water quality problems in the smallest of our Great Lakes, Lake
Erie. A Federal enforcement conference in August, 1965 disclosed that
17h,000 pounds of soluble phosphate are being discharged to Lake Erie
each day. Algal concentrations have reached such proportions that
extensive blooms have been observed. A bloom occurred in 1961* which
affected 2,600 square miles of the central basin. Oxygen levels in
the 2,600 square mile area, near the water bottom, were as low as
zero to 2 milligrams per liter (mg/l). Algae in other areas of the
Lake foul beaches and waterfront property, often result in filter
clogging in water treatment plants, and produce taste and odors in
drinking water under some conditions.
-------
Evaluation of biological conditions in Lake Ontario shows that
this Lake is on the verge of becoming eutrophic (waters with a good
supply of nutrients, capable of supporting rich organic productions).
The ability of the Lake to support algal blooms and great masses of
attached filamentous forms of algae along the shoreline is a definite
indication of eutrophication. Apparently the major reason Lake Ontario
has not already become eutrophic is its deep waters.
In Lake Michigan enrichment of the waters has not reached the
stages of Lakes Erie or Ontario. However, in isolated locations such
as the southern part of Green Bay near the mouth of the Fox River, the
Milwaukee Area and the Calumet Area, biological findings have indicated
the presence of waters subject to organic enrichment. Much filamentous
algae has been found at nearly every beach in the southwestern corner of
the Lake. Clogging of water intake screens has cause serious trouble at
Chicago's South District Filtration Plant.
Many smaller lakes in the Great Lakes Area have reached a state
of deterioration even more advanced than Lake Erie's. Notable among
these are some of the famed Finger Lakes, in upstate New York.
Another dramatic example of an upset in the balance of nature
is the invasion of the Great Lakes by the alewife. These little fish,
descendants of a species which has migrated into the Lakes from the
ocean and adapted itself to the fresh-water environment, have become
pests mindful of the great locust plagues recorded in history in some
land areas of the world. The alewife is a useless fish. They are not
good to eat, and there is no sport to catching them. Efforts to find
a commercial market for them, as animal food, have been only partially
successful. By competing for food supply, they crowd out more desirable
species. Worst of all, they move in enormous schools from the deeper
recesses of the lakes, especially Lake Michigan, into inshore waters
and die there by the millions - clogging water intakes and piling up
in stinking masses on shores.
The massive influx and die-off of alewives has become an annual
event each spring in Lake Michigan and, to a lesser extent, the down-
stream Great Lakes. It reached record proportions in Lake Michigan
last spring and early summer, when deaths estimated in the billions
occurred. On that occasion our agency conducted a special water sampl-
ing survey to determine the quality of the water and whether water
pollution could have played a part in the die-off. All evidence col-
lected indicates that water pollution did not contribute to the deaths.
The Interior Department's Bureau of Commercial Fisheries i-s
spearheading the search for further answers to the alewife problem,
including ways to bring the alewife population into balance with other
aquatic life.
-------
Buildup of Dissolved Solids
Waste inputs to the Lakes have also resulted in a buildup in
average concentrations of dissolved constituents such as chlorides,
sulfates, and the hardness-producing salts. The rate of buildup is
increasing in Lake Michigan, for example, -where the chloride concen-
tration has doubled since 1910, increasing from l|-to 8 mg/1. Sulfates
are increasing at a slightly greater rate, averaging about 1 mg/1 in
7 years. The present sulfate level in Lake Michigan is 20 mg/1.
Although these concentrations are well below levels that would
seriously impair water uses, they are heavily influenced by popula-
tion and industrial growth. Localized problems are being experienced
in the vicinity of heavy waste input points. These problems emphasize
the need to prevent indiscriminate dumping of unwanted materials into
the Lakes.
Bacterial Contamination
Another indication of deteriorated water quality, and one which
can be traced more directly to man, is the presence of coliform bac-
teria. Coliform organisms are significant because they occur in the
fecal matter of all warm-blooded animals, including man. Consequently,
the presence of these bacteria in a .body of water is interpreted as
evidence of fecal contamination. Since contamination of water by fecal
matter is one avenue of transmission of certain waterbome diseases,
the presence of coliforms is an indication of a potential health
hazard.
Studies have shown that the bacterial quality of Lake Michigan
is generally good in deep water but is degraded along the shoreline and
in harbor areas. High bacterial densities show a close correlation with
heavily populated areas. Evidence of severe bacterial contamination of
tributaries to Lake Michigan has been found in the Fox River between
Lake Winnebago and Green Bay, Wisconsin; the Milwaukee River within
Milwaukee County, Wisconsin; and the streams of the Calumet Area
Illinois and Indiana.
Tributaries of Lakes Erie and Ontario introduce fairly high
quantities of polluted water, but the main bodies of the Lakes are
not considered to be bacterially contaminated. As the tributaries
enter the Lakes, their waters mix and dissipate the pollutional load
with the Lakes and, except for harbor-inshore areas in close proximity
to or downflow of tributaries, the quality remains good. The Niagara
River, the connecting link between Lakes Erie and Ontario, is severely
polluted in terms of bacterial contamination.
Generally the severe problems of bacterial contamination in
the Great Lakes Area are located around the population centers. But,
-------
of course, this is precisely •where the great demands for water usage
occur. Many Great Lakes beaches are currently closed because of
health hazards.
The large number of vessels, commercial ships and recreational
boats, now plying the waters of the Great Lakes and their tributaries
also represent significant sources of both untreated and inadequately
treated wastes capable of causing local problems of bacterial pollu-
tion.
IF YOU
MUST
mi SWIM FOR AN HOUR AnffEATING
NEVER SWIM ALONE
DON'T SWIIMN WATER COLDER THAN 65°
OOJfTSim IF YOU HAVE HEART TfOUK
ONLY AT PATROLLED
JOffH S
To close or not to close the beach?
This is the way one Great Lakes
city approaches the question.
Chemical Contamination
Discharges from industrial plants and commercial ships, and
careless practices in loading and unloading of cargoes, cause chemi-
cal contamination of water in many areas. Such contamination takes
the form of oil and tarry substances, phenolic compounds or other
persistent organic chemicals contributing to taste and odor problems,
ammonia and other nitrogenous materials, phosphorus, suspended matter,
and highly acidic or alkaline materials.
The principal areas exhibiting pollution of this nature are
as follows:
Duluth-Superior Area, Minnesota and Wisconsin
Southern Green Bay, Wisconsin
-------
Milwaukee Area, Wisconsin
Calumet Area, Illinois and Indiana
Saginaw River and Bay, Michigan
Detroit Area, Michigan
Maumee River, Indiana and Ohio
Lower Cuyahoga River, Ohio
Niagara Area, New York
Rochester Area, New York
Syracuse Area, New York
Chemical wastes produce unsightly conditions, contribute to
taste and odor problems and treatment problems at water treatment
plants, and in some cases are toxic to desirable fish and aquatic
life. The detrimental effects of these chemicals on man have not
been fully evaluated.
Paper mill wastes - one of the largest
causes of pollution.
Oxygen Depletion
The small quantity of oxygen normally dissolved in water is
perhaps the most important single ingredient necessary for a healthy,
balanced, aquatic environment. Dissolved oxygen is consumed by living
organisms through respiration and is replenished, if a well-balanced
environment exists, by absorption from the atmosphere and through the
life processes, of aquatic plants. When organic pollution enters this
10
-------
environment, the balance is altered. The bacteria, present in the
water or introduced with pollution, utilize the organic matter as
food and multiply rapidly. The resulting deficiency may be great
enough to inhibit or destroy the fish and other desirable organisms
and to convert the stream or lake into an odor-producing nuisance.
Solubility of oxygen in water is quite low, saturation values rang-
ing from 8 to 13 milligrams per liter (mg/l) depending on water
temperature and, in lesser degree, on atmospheric pressure. Commonly
accepted minimum concentrations that should be maintained at all times
to prevent nuisance and promote desirable aquatic life, range from a
minimum of 3 mg/l, which will support minimal aquatic life and rough
fish, to 6 or more mg/l for certain types of game fish.
Both sport and commercial fishing
are affected by pollution.
As previously mentioned, the main body of Lake Erie has
exhibited oxygen depletion in widespread areas due primarily to
widespread algal blooms. Oxygen depletion has also been observed
in some of the major tributaries to Lake Michigan. Prime examples
of this water quality problem are the Lower Fox River, the Grand
River below Jackson and Lansing, and the Calumet Area streams.
Tributaries to Lake Ontario at the Barge Canal, Black River,
Rochester, and Lockport Areas have also demonstrated poor dissolved
oxygen resources.
11
-------
MOR
Jt
o
(/>
UJ
z
1;
MILWAI
CHICAGO
O
S AGIN AW-
GARY
ILLINOIS
FORT WAYNE]
INDIANA
-------
THE GREAT LAKES AREA
GREAT LAKES AND MAJOR RIVERS
CENTER OF POPULATION
AND INDUSTRY
:HESTI
UFFALO
PENNSYLVANIA
OHIO
-------
In general the discharge of treated.and untreated municipal
and industrial wastes in these areas produces these polluted condi-
tions. The high concentrations of biochemical oxygen demand CBOD)
in the waste discharges combine, in some cases, with severe drought
flows of receiving waters to intensify the problems of this nature.
Management Problems
Although the physical problems discussed above are very com-
plex, their solution depends in turn upon the solution of extremely
complex economic and political problems. One of the primary prob-
lems is the diversity of, and need for coordination between, the
large number of organizations at all levels of government which have
an interest in and authority for various phases of water pollution
control. Two nations, Canada and the United States, a number of
international and interstate organizations, eight States and two
Provinces, and many local communities are actively involved in the
control of water pollution in the Great Lakes.
12
CPO SOS—927-U
-------
WHAT IS BEING DONE
Federal Activities
The Federal ¥ater Pollution Control Administration through
the Great Lakes Regional Office is pursuing a vigorous water pollu-
tion control program in the Great Lakes Area in cooperation with the
State and local agencies. The following is a summary of the actions
being taken under existing authority to enhance the quality and value
of the waters of the Great Lakes Basin. Included is a brief descrip-
tion of a nationwide program which is a background for the actions
taken in the Great Lakes Basin.
National Program
Increasing interest and concern over the widespread problems
related to water pollution are reflected in Federal legislation,
particularly during the past 10 years. The Water Quality Act of
1965 and the Clean Waters Restoration Act of 1966 are the most
recent and significant legislative milestones. These Acts amend
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 195>6, which was previ-
ously amended in 1961.
The basic Act, as amended in 196l, authorized certain water
pollution control activities, including the development of compre-
hensive water pollution control programs, research, technical assist-
ance, training, grants for State programs and the construction of
sewage treatment facilities, enforcement, and pollution control from
Federal installations. A Federal program of this stature 'required
substantial resources in personnel, facilities, and funds. The years
1961 through 1965 were a period of widely expanding effort in the war
on water pollution. Ten of the Nation's major basins, including the
Great Lakes, were under study for the development of comprehensive
programs. The construction grants program, from its beginning in
19^6 to the middle of 1967, granted over $800 million in Federal
funds to help finance some 7,319 municipal sewage treatment pro-
jects. Equally ijnportant, U2 Federal-State enforcement conferences
have brought recommended measures and schedules for pollution abate-
ment.
The two recent amendments, previously mentioned, established
a new Federal Water Pollution Control Administration, removed the
dollar ceilings on sewage treatment construction grants, provided
for increased Federal participation if States enacted grant programs
and adopted water quality standards, and authorized an additional 10
percent for any such grant conforming with metropolitan or regional
master development plans. These amendments require the development
of water quality standards for interstate waters and also authorizes
increased grants for research and for research and demonstration
projects. The new provisions of the Act were designed to strengthen
13
-------
and expand the collective effort in attaining adequate pollution
control throughout the country.
Research
The 1961 amendments to the Federal Water Pollution Control
Act, provided a research program to develop and demonstrate prac-
ticable means of treating sewage and other waterborne wastes to
restore the Nation's waters to quality suitable for reuse. This
program was vastly expanded to include a Research and Demonstration
Grants program by the 1965 and 1966 amendments, which authorized a
total of $325> million for these purposes. Encouraging progress has
resulted and initial research has indicated that advanced waste
treatment can be made both technologically and economically feasi-
ble. The most promising processes developed to date are: l) foam
separation, 2) coagulation - solids removal, 3) granular carbon
adsorption, and 1;) electrodialysis. Much research and development
work remains to be done, however, before the goal of accomplishing
any degree of waste treatment required, at any location, under any
condition, and at a minimum cost is reached.
The 1961 amendments also authorized the establishment of
water pollution laboratories throughout the nation. The National
Water Quality Laboratory at Duluth is the first such laboratory in
the Great Lakes Area. A second laboratory has been authorized for
the Great Lakes Area at Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Secretary Udall dedicates water
quality laboratory at Duluth.
Ill
-------
Recent investigations of phosphate removal efficiencies in
conventional municipal sewage treatment plants have also proved
rewarding. It appears that relatively minor modifications in plant
operation can result in much higher phosphate removal efficiencies.
The value of such research findings could prove quite significant,
particularly in the Great Lakes where many of our large communities
discharge large phosphate loadings to the Lakes and algal problems
have resulted.
Water Quality Standards
The Water Quality Act amendments of 1965, as previously men-
tioned, required the establishing of water quality standards for all
interstate streams. In compliance with the deadline of June 30, 1967
set by the law, all States submitted water quality criteria and a
plan of implementation for the interstate waters and portions thereof
for their respective jurisdictions. These submissions are now under
review by the Secretary of the Interior and will become the Federal
standards on the interstate streams upon approval by the Secretary.
In the Great Lakes Basin, as of August 1967, submissions by the States
of Indiana and New Tork have been approved. Establishment of these
standards will mark a significant step toward improving the water
quality in the Great Lakes. Enforcement of these standards is the
primary responsibility of the respective States. Federal enforcement
action is called for only if enforcement action by the State does not
secure abatement of pollution.
Federal Installations
The Federal Government has not overlooked the pollution hazards
created by its own activities. By Executive Order 11288, President
Johnson has directed the heads of the departments, agencies, and
establishments of the Executive Branch of the Government to provide
leadership in the nation-wide effort to improve water quality.
All agencies have been directed to present a phased and orderly
plan for needed corrective and preventive measures and facilities to
the Bureau of the Budget to facilitate budgeting. In addition, all
Federal installations are required to provide at least secondary
waste treatment. Federal installations such as Air Force bases,
NIKE Sites, Army ammunition plants and depots, Job Corps Centers,
National Forest recreation facilities, and Coast Guard stations in
the Great Lakes Area have initiated pollution abatement programs in
furtherance of the Order. General improvement in housekeeping and
surveillance as well as the 'upgrading of existing waste treatment
facilities have resulted from each agency's desire to provide the
leadership necessary to effect the,Nation's goal of clean water.
-------
Federal water resources projects and facilities and opera-
tions supported by Federal loans, grants, or contracts are also
included in Executive Order 11288. ¥ater resource projects must be
designed, constructed, and operated in a manner •which will reduce
pollution from such activities to the lowest practicable level. The
head of each Federal department, agency, and establishment has been
directed to conduct a review of the loan, grant, and contract prac-
tices of his own organization to determine to what extent water
pollution control requirements set forth in the Order should be
adhered to by borrowers, grantees, or contractors. This review has
resulted in practices designed to reduce water pollution in various
programs. Urban renewal projects now require the construction of
separate storm and sanitary systems rather than combined systems.
The nation-wide highway construction program, financed with Federal
funds and administered by the Bureau of Public Roads, is now being
conducted in accordance with practices aimed at preventing water
pollution through their design, construction, and maintenance. The
various agencies have consulted with the Federal Water Pollution
Control Administration in an effort to insure maximum consideration
of water quality in their activities.
The disposal of dredgings from harbor and channel areas which
contain polluted material contributes to the pollution of the Great
Lakes. In an effort to reduce this pollution the Corps of Engineers
of the Department of the Army and the Federal Water Pollution Control
Administration are cooperating in an effort to develop alternate means
of disposal at the earliest practical date. Agreement for attacking
this problem was entered into by the two agencies in the form of a
joint public statement released on March 1, 196?. The exclusion of
polluted dredged material from the Great Lakes will aid in the over-
all water quality enhancement.
This Order represents a major step forward in the battle to
preserve and enhance the quality of our Nation's waters. It has
sparked a keen awareness on the part of government officials of
the need for corrective action and vigorous pollution abatement
programs. The effort being shown by these various Federal agencies
provides leadership in the nation-wide quality improvement program.
Enforcement Action-Great Lakes Area
Under the provisions of the Federal Water Pollution Control
Act, the Secretary of the Interior is authorized to call an enforce-
ment conference when requested to do so by the Governor of a State,
and when, on the basis of reports, surveys, or studies, he has
reason to believe that pollution of interstate waters subject to
abatement under the Act is occurring.
16
-------
The purpose of the conference is to bring together the State
water pollution control agencies, the representatives of the Depart-
ment of the Interior, and other interested parties to review the
existing situations, the progress which has been made, to lay a
basis for future action by all parties concerned, and to give the
States, localities, and industries an opportunity to take any
indicated remedial action under State and local laws.
There have been four such Federal-State enforcement actions
in the Great Lakes Area.
Conference Area
Detroit River-Western
Lake Erie
Menominee River
Calumet Rivers and
Lake Michigan
Lake Erie and its
Tributaries
States Involved
Michigan
Michigan and
Wisconsin
Indiana and
Illinois
Pennsylvania,
New York,
Michigan,
Indiana, and
Ohio
Date
March 27, 1962
(Reconvened on
June 15
November 7, 1963
March 2, 1965
(Technical Session
January U, 1966)
(Conferees Meeting
March 22, 1967)
(Conferees Meeting
September 11, 1967)
August 3, 1965
(Cleveland)
August 10, 1965
(Buffalo)
(Conferees Meeting
June 12, 1966)
(Conferees Meeting
March 15, 1967)
The conclusions and recommendations reached by the conferees
cover subjects peculiar to the problems of each conference area. In
the Menominee Conference pulp and paper wastes were the greatest con-
tributors to pollution. In Lake Erie the prime concern was over-
fertilization that causes excessive algae growths. In the Calumet
River-Lake Michigan area the prime concern is industrial pollution.
17
-------
Because of these differences., clean-Tip agreements and poli-
cies have been reached covering several aspects of pollution control.
These clean-up agreements vary from one conference area to another.
The required control measures range from "construction and operation
of sewage treatment plants for maximum phosphate removal" to preven-
tion of garbage dumping along streams and lake shorelines."
Periodic progress meetings are held when appropriate in connec-
tion with the various enforcement actions to assess progress in complii
ance with the agreed upon schedules.
Comprehensive Program-Great Lakes Area
The Great Lakes-Illinois River Basins Project was formed for
the purpose of developing comprehensive water pollution control pro-
grams for the Great Lakes and Illinois River Basins. The major
objectives of the comprehensive program are:
- Identification of the causes of water pollution and the
effects of such pollution on the quality of water
resources and on beneficial uses.
- The development of agreements on the desired beneficial
uses and the water quality required to accommodate those
uses.
- The development of water quality control measures to
achieve the desired objectives, including the establish-
ment of a timetable for their accomplishment.
- Provision of the mechanisms for carrying out program
objectives, including continuing surveillance for the
purpose of updating the programs to accommodate changing
technology and changing water quality needs.
State Activities
All Federal water pollution control legislation has recognized
that the primary responsibility for the control of pollution resides
in the States. The rising public concern over water pollution which
has resulted in stronger laws at the Federal level has also had a
significant impact on State water pollution control legislation.
Federal grant assistance is provided to all State water pollution
control agencies. This assistance comprises 30 to 60 percent of
the States' water pollution control budget.
18
-------
The eight States that border the Great Lakes are among the
richest and most progressive in the Nation and their approach to
the problems of water resource management is broad. The tools
available to the State governments in their anti-pollution efforts
range from the power to prohibit waste discharges to the use of
tax incentives to encourage the construction of needed facilities.
An example of recent water resource legislation is the new
Wisconsin law which went into effect August 1, 1966. The law pro-
vides for financial aid to local communities, the establishment of
water quality criteria for the waters of the State, and for compre-
hensive planning by regions within the State. In addition, the
staff and funds of the water resource agency were greatly increased.
In the State of New Tork a bond issue totaling approximately one
billion dollars for the construction of sewage treatment facilities
was passed last year; In Illinois a one billion dollar bond issue
is scheduled to be placed before the voters in 1968. Other States
in the Great Lakes Area have also shown significant increases in
the amount of funds allocated to State water pollution control pro-
grams. The Governors of several Great Lakes States have shown their
interest in the pollution problem in their respective States by call-
ing conferences to emphasize the seriousness of the problems.
The above factors indicate that the States are becoming
increasingly aware of their central role in water pollution control,
and that they must do much more in the future than has been done in
the past.
Regional and Local Activities
In recent years there has been an increase in the number of
regional planning agencies concerned with the water pollution prob-
lems of metropolitan areas. However, such regional agencies do not
at the present time, have sufficient funds, manpower or authority to
adequately implement the master plans needed for our complex urban
areas. Recognizing this, the 1966 amendment to the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act provided for grants to local water pollution
control planning agencies.
Local pollution control activities often receive less recog-
nition than the actions taken at the Federal and State levels. It
is essential to realize, however, that remedial action to correct
many of our major water pollution problems must ultimately be taken
at the local level. There are many signs that our municipalities
are becoming increasingly aware of their pollution problems and are
taking appropriate steps to eliminate them.
19
-------
Industrial Activities
Industries in the Great Lakes Area are demonstrating their
concern over the problems of water pollution. Many leaders of
industry have come to the realization that the cost of pollution
control is a necessary and legitimate cost of production. Planning
for pollution abatement is an integral part of the construction of
new plants, and methods to reduce the pollutional load from older
plants are receiving much attention.
Interstate and International Cooperation
Several organizations have been established to attempt to
deal with the complex interstate and international problems of
water resources management in the Great Lakes Area.
In order to establish effective organizations to plan basin-
wide water resource management programs, Congress passed significant
legislation in 196£. The Water Resources Planning Act provides for
the creation of river basin commissions. Each commission would
serve as the principal agency for the coordination of Federal, State,
interstate, local and non-governmental plans for the development of
water and related land resources in its area. The Great Lakes Basin
Commission was established under this authority to provide for such
a coordinated effort in the Great Lakes Basin.
The Great Lakes Commission, although not recognized as an
interstate compact, is composed of the States of Wisconsin, Michigan,
Minnesota, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Illinois and New York. It was
formed to conserve and develop the water resources of the Great
Lakes Area.
The Great Lakes Study Group is composed of representatives of
several Canadian and II. S. government agencies, formed on an informal
basis to exchange technical information concerning studies of the
Great Lakes.
The Great Lakes Fisheries Commission was established by the
United States and Canada in accordance with the terms of the Con-
vention on Great Lakes Fisheries ratified in 195£. Its major func-
tions are to formulate and carry out research programs to protect
the fisheries of the Great Lakes Area.
The Boundary Waters Treaty between the United States and
Canada, signed in 1909, established the International Joint Commis-
sion. The Commission appointed two Advisory Boards on Control of
Pollution of Boundary Waters, composed of Federal and State engineers
20
OPO 805—927—3
-------
from the two Nations, to examine and evaluate pollution problems and to
interpret progress of abatement programs. Since 1952, field units have
been maintained by the United States in Detroit and Buffalo to collect
basic water quality data, study transboundary travel of pollution,
determine improvements resulting from municipal and industrial waste
treatment, assemble data on water uses, and apply new analytical tech-
niques in boundary water pollution control investigations. In October,
1.96k, the Commission was requested by Canada and the United States to
report upon pollution in the waters of Lake Erie, Lake Ontario and the
International Section of the St. Lawrence River. An Interim Report on
the subject was prepared by the Commission in December, 1965. Recom-
mendations were made for the maximum possible removal of phosphates
from all municipal and industrial waste discharges, the prohibition of
the construction of combined sewer systems, and the separation of exist-
ing systems, and an effective system of sampling effluents of waste
sources. A program of investigation and research was also recommended.
The Diversion Case
A significant step toward preservation of Lake Michigan and the
entire Great Lakes was realized when the Lake States agreed to the rec-
ommendations of the Special Master of the Supreme Court in the Chicago
Diversion Case. The Special Master's report recognized the need to
protect the waters of both Lake Michigan and the Illinois River. The
Special Master's recommendations are summarized as follows:
1. That the Metropolitan Sanitary District of Greater Chicago
not be required to return its treated effluent to Lake
Michigan.
2. That total diversion including pumpage be limited to the
present 3*200 cubic feet per second and that diversion be
averaged on a biennial rather than an annual basis.
3. That the State of Illinois be given the responsibility for
allocating the diversion.
k. That the most wise and effective use of the water be demon-
strated before consideration is given in the future to
requests for diversion. This will require improvements
in the water supply distribution and waste collection and
treatment practices.
The first of the above recommendations was the most significant for the
protection of the water quality of Lake Michigan.
21
-------
Waste from Watercraft
A report of pollution of the navigable waters by wastes from
watercraft was submitted to Congress on June 30, 1967. This report
recognizes the serious problems that are caused by all types of water-
craft, including the problem of oil pollution. Implementation of the
recommendations in this report by Congress will provide an effective
means for dealing with this problem on the Great Lakes. The City of
Chicago has already taken the lead in strengthening its requirements
for controlling pollution from watercraft.
Control of Oil Pollution •
The increasing occurrence of oil pollution in inland waters
was recognized by Congress in the 1966 amendments to the Oil Pollu-
tion Act of 192lj.. These amendments extended the provisions of the
Act to cover inland as well as coastal waters, and made the Federal
Water Pollution Control Administration responsible for enforcement.
Today there are two Federal laws covering oil pollution in
navigable waters: the above-cited Oil Pollution Act, as amended;
and the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, commonly known as the Refuse
Act. The first covers oil discharged from vessels and the second,
oil from harbor or land sources which reaches navigable waters.
Three Federal agencies are now carrying out an expanded program for
oil pollution control. These are the JWPCA for the Oil Pollution
Act, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers for the Refuse Act, and the
U. S. Coast Guard. The Coast Guard, with its surface and air recon-
naissance capability, serves as the fact-finding and intelligence arm
for the enforcement agencies. A report, to any one of these agencies,
of incidents of oil pollution will swiftly bring coordinated action —
to stop the discharge if it is continuing, to contain the spread of
discharged oil where feasible, to apprehend and prosecute violators,
and see that steps are taken to prevent a recurrence. Close communi-
cation is maintained with State water pollution control authorities
and with conservation groups, both governmental and private.
22
-------
ACTION NEEDED
1. All municipal waste treatment facilities should be
designed to provide at least secondary (biological)
waste treatment. Such facilities should be effi-
ciently and continuously operated to achieve an
overall 90 percent, or higher, removal of the
untreated waste load, as measured in terms of
oxygen-consuming wastes.
2. Continuous disinfection should be provided through-
out the year for all municipal waste treatment plant
effluents.
3. All separately discharging industrial wastes should
receive the equivalent of at least secondary treatment,
as described above. Action should also be taken toward
the exclusion or treatment of industrial wastes causing
chemical pollution. Where practicable, industrial wastes
should be discharged to municipal sewerage systems.
h- Organic wastes and sanitary sewage discharged by indus-
tries should receive treatment comparable to that recom-
mended for municipal wastes.
5. Maximization of phosphate removal, through modification
in the operation and/or design of existing and newly
constructed secondary waste treatment facilities shouldr
be an immediate objective. Records of phosphorus removal
at treatment plants should be carefully evaluated after
one year to determine if significant phosphorus removals
have been achieved. If such removals are not achieved,
consideration should be given to the installation of
chemical precipitation facilities at such plants.
6. Combined sewers should be prohibited in all newly devel-
oped urban areas and should be separated in coordination
with urban renewal projects. Existing combined sewer
systems should be patrolled and overflow regulating
devices should be adjusted to convey the maximum practi-
cable amount of combined flow to treatment facilities.
7. Agricultural practices should be reviewed to ensure the
maximum protection of the waters of the Great Lakes from
the improper application of fertilizers and pesticides.
The use of pesticides and herbicides should be more
closely scrutinized. At a minimum, accurate estimates
of quantities utilized on a county basis should be devel-
oped. This will aid in pinpointing potential problem areas.
23
-------
8. "Where practicable, waste heat discharges, particularly
from steam power plants, should "be reduced where other
water uses are adversely affected. In the planning of
new installations requiring large amounts of cooling
water, the quality requirements of the receiving bodies
of water should be a prime factor in determining the
location of such installations and the need for cooling
towers to dissipate heat.
9. Master plans for future waste collection and treatment
facilities should be developed for the rapidly urbaniz-
ing metropolitan areas as quickly as possible. Such
plans should provide, among other things, for maximum
use of integrated facilities which will permit eventual
elimination of the conglomeration of small, inefficient
facilities surrounded by residential and commercial
development. Master plans should encompass whole met-
ropolitan areas and should not be restricted by political
boundaries.
10. Forceful action is needed now at all levels of govern-
ment to control and prevent pollution by the wastes
from watercraft. Details of these needs are spelled
out in the report, Wastes from Watercraft, submitted
to the Congress by the Department of the Interior,
Federal Water Pollution Control Administration, and
published as Senate Document No. Ij8, 90th Congress,
1st Session. Especially pressing is the need for
strengthening of laws and regulations—Federal, State,
and local—governing waste handling and disposal from
vessels. The mobility and ubiquity of watercraft make
it necessary that laws of the several Great Lakes States
be mutually consistent—though not necessarily identi-
cal, for more stringent restrictions would apply to
some waters than to others.
11. The offshore disposal of dredgings from harbor and chan-
nel areas which contain residues from the sewage of cities
and industries is a poor practice, if the quality of the
Great Lakes is to be maintained. It is recommended that
those involved in such practices provide other means of
disposal which will not adversely affect the water qual-
ity of the Lakes.
12. Monthly reports covering the operation of all municipal
and industrial waste treatment plants, including the
quality and quantity of discharged effluent, should
be submitted to the appropriate State agencies for
review, evaluation and appropriate action.
-------
13. The operation of all streamflow regulation facilities
should be reviewed to ensure the availability of the
maximum practicable streamflow at all times.
111. The water quality monitoring programs of the State
agencies of the Great Lakes' Area should be strength-
ened. The programs should be geared to indicate
change or trends in water quality and the need for
additional quality improvement measures. The use of
automated equipment in key locations is recommended.
l£. State agencies should conduct waste treatment plant
inspections at least annually for small and medium-
sized plants, and at least twice annually for the
larger plants.
16. It is recommended that the water pollution control
activities in each of the Great Lakes States be
strengthened in terms of staffing and budget. ¥ith
additional resources and the support available from
the Federal Water Pollution Control Administration,
the implementation of the program outlined herein
can be accelerated to meet the growing need for
clean water.
-------
It's 30-mile lakefront
is today the pride of
Chicago, because 70
years ago the pollution
was shifted to other
waters..
...the other waters
are still polluted.
JJnv*:
'
26
GPO 805—927-2
------- |