September 20, 2007: OHIO DELEGATION MEETS FINDLAY OFFICIALS TO DISCUSS FLOODING ISSUES
Alsoin attendance were U.S. Representative Jim Jordan, who represents the FourthCongressional District, which includes Findlay,as well as U.S.Senators George V. Voinovich and Sherrod C. Brown and a representative of OhioGov. Ted Strickland. Mayor Iriti wasjoined by a delegation of business and community leaders from Findlay.
"For years, the entire watershedlagged behind other regions in accessing federal money for managing our waterresources," said Kaptur, who is serving her 13th term inoffice. "Now we're moving forward withthe largest watershed assessment in the country, but it's still not fast enoughfor families and businesses that were hit by the recent floods.
"Last month's disaster in Findlay and Ottawa hasfocused new attention on the water management issues before us in Northwest Ohio. Although I do not represent Findlay, I am fully aware the next flood could happen in Toledo or Sanduskyor elsewhere in my district. Our regionmust speak with one voice and use this attention to our advantage."
The meeting with CongresswomanKaptur, Congressman Jordanand the two senators was organized cooperatively to hear first hand from MayorIriti about ongoing cleanup efforts and his attempt to organize legislativesupport for a comprehensive approach to flood issues.
Participants focused on the task ofmarshaling federal funding not only for cleanup but also water managementissues in a broader sense.
Congresswoman Kaptur noted that theU.S. Army Corps of Engineers had proposed a flood control program for the Blanchard River watershed in 1962 that would havegreatly minimized or even prevented the recent flooding. At the time, however, the political will didnot exist to address the issue in a comprehensive manner.
Congresswoman Kaptur secured federalfunding in 1999 for the WesternLake Erie Basinstudy under Section 441 of the Water Resources Development Act. The study area includes a 7,200 square-miledrainage area, including the watersheds of the Maumee,Portage and Ottawa rivers. The Western Lake ErieBasin partnership wasformed to provide a framework for sustainable development; the Corps ofEngineers is scheduled to complete a comprehensive watershed assessment inApril 2008.
For more information on Maumee watershedprotection efforts, visit https://www.wleb.org/