This is just embarrassing and really bad PR for our tourism industry, but thankfully we're not worst. Louisiana handily took that title. By contrast, Michigan beaches ranked the cleanest on the Great Lakes coast and fared pretty well compared to the Pacific and Atlantic.

 

Want clean beaches? Go east — and north

 

By James Rosen | McClatchy Newspapers

WASHINGTON — The nation's cleanest beach-waters are along the upper half of the Atlantic seaboard, in Virginia, Delaware and New Hampshire, a national environmental group said Wednesday.

 

At the other end of the spectrum, Louisiana has the most contaminated waters, followed by Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, the Natural Resources Defense Council said in its new report....

 

 

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/72715.html

Yeah, this is definitely a hugely complex problem. Kinda an easier said than done type of thing. I have to believe there are cheaper and easier ways than revamping an entire sewer system .. at least, steps that can be taken to help offset the problem, like planting greenery that can help absorb rainwater, etc. It can't just be all about revamping an entire sewer system, but there does need to be something done about this. It should absolutely be a multi-tiered solution.

We can help so much with the health of our waters by choosing to recycle, or throw trash in a garbage can...and NOT on the ground---no matter how small it is. Stop using lawn chemicals from services like Chem Lawn. Thanks to such nutrients, the Mississippi Delta is nearly a dead zone for aquatic life....in an area where it should be teeming with life.

 

People think I go overboard on the litter thing.... But if we cannot even curb this very preventable pollutant--harmful to water and wildlife---how can we foster a mentality that will tackle larger pollutant problems we cannot see, such as non-point source?  Any litter that is thrown onto the ground can make its way to our water.

 

Also, people changing oil and dumping it down the storm drain. Illegal and an act that can potentially pollute thousands of gallons of water.

 

These are just a couple things we can do as individuals to help...Also, when you go to the beach...Bring a bag and try and clean up litter as you go. I see people at Edgewater ALL the time carelessly plop litter on the ground as though it were as common and acceptable as a sneeze. The lake is our biggest asset..and no one wants to be near polluted areas...so we should have learned by now with the river...what happens to image and economy when you kill the environment.

 

 

"The economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment---when it files chapter 11...so will the economy" - Sen. Gaylord Nelson 1970.

EC, I know you are against lawn services like Chem Lawn, but do you feel the same about induvidual use of fertilizers and weed chemicals?  I am sure that these are still harmful to the environment if used excessivly, like a Chem Lawn, but I know that when using htem on my own lawn that they dont get used that often?  Anyway curious on your thoughts and how they might affect the local watershed.

EC, I know you are against lawn services like Chem Lawn, but do you feel the same about induvidual use of fertilizers and weed chemicals?  I am sure that these are still harmful to the environment if used excessivly, like a Chem Lawn, but I know that when using htem on my own lawn that they dont get used that often?  Anyway curious on your thoughts and how they might affect the local watershed.

 

I feel the same about that material as well, in basic principle. Collectively, the use of this stuff adds up. If you walk into any Lowe's or Home Depot, for example... The next time you see a huge crate of this stuff with a 'spring sale' sign on it... Just imagine/figure that all of that material will eventually wind up in the water supply....Now multiply that times 'x' amount of how many other crate sales. The sad fact is...that we are using more of this stuff on lawns today than for agricultural uses. 

 

several cities around the world have banned the uses of these kinds of services for mere cosmetic use. Canada has several communities that did this...and I believe Minneapolis, Buffalo also placed restrictions to some degree (phosphates, I think). When thinking more holistically and in the terms of bio-diversity,  we will often find that these products actually help to contribute to escalate pest/or weed conditions to levels worse than before....by compromising a lawn's natural immunity and system of checks and balances---where 95% of all organisms are beneficial. Kind of like over doing it with the anti-biotics and what that does to compromise the human immune system.

 

The lawn care related industry spends millions of dollars each year to get people to think we need to use this stuff. The ads are clever and effective...but to those who see through them...are very deceptive and full of wind.

 

There are so many safer and benign alternatives to such products. I wrote an article about it a while back... If you want some information on it...Just PM me. Check out Ohio Coalition Against The Misuse of Pesticides, locally, or "Beyond Pesticides" nationally to discover more about the negative health implications, both to people and water resources. If you want that brief article I did, I can get you that as well. :-)

C-Dawg thanks so much for posting this.

 

Because I spend a lot of my time in the water, I've been contacted by several people regarding this issue. It's disheartening, yet not exactly shocking, how Ohio has been so prominently linked with this news release.

 

This is the type of story that absolutely no one wants to hear. But we have to know the truth, only then can we properly go forward and find solutions to these problems.

 

The state of Edgewater Park in CLE is an example for all of these.

 

C-Dawg you mentioned the archaic combined sewers, so awful. Jpop these need a complete overhaul, I'm not sure there's any other way around the issue.

 

EC you mentioned litter, mostly plastic, which washes up courtesy of the Cuyahoga River and sewers at an alarming rate. For too many people, the site of garbage in the water and on the sand is a first and lasting impression.

 

Then there is the larger issue that is a culture of indifference and neglect. We live in a state, as C-Dawg mentioned, where agriculture rules. With a legacy of industrial pollution. Where public access is sorely lacking. Where the Dept. of Natural Resources is located 150 miles away in Columbus, acting much like an absentee landlord. Where some people at Edgewater absentmindedly leave their garbage right there in the sand just ten feet from a garbage can.

 

Many in the Cleveland area have been understandably divorced from the beaches for years, but this has to change. It's been my passion to help grow the beach culture, to help spur public and private investment in our shoreline. We need to help educate the public that our beaches deserve respect; that they can truly become a clean, safe and beautiful refuge for everyone.

 

Scott

www.outofplacemovie.com

 

Scott,

 

You are absolutely right... Thanks for adding your thoughts.....

 

I just want to mention that as I have lived in Australia for a while..... (Sydney) and hope to actually retire there... Here is a metro area of 5 million plus people, but the beaches surrounding the city are at least in the visual sense, spic and span. I have never..ever...witnessed anyone littering, at least on purpose or with carelessness... And, in the area....No one uses lawn chemicals which can add up to creating a great deal of nutrients in the water, resulting in excess algae blooms that rob the water of oxygen for aquatic life.

 

The big agriculture in this region has been compounded with the addition of the suburban lawn-care mentality. In fact, there is a book out... Don't know the author, but it is called something like "THE SUBURBAN LAWN-THE GLOBAL MENACE" While there are many constituents of pollutants in the lake, chemically, this is one of the most frequent and unnecessary. On the other hand...some of the other obvious stuff I mentioned....Litter and garbage in water, and on beaches has a far more reaching effect than visual.... 

 

If anyone gets a chance.. Just watch this 14 minute video (I will post below) that aired on 60 Minutes Australia to see the impact of litter/plastic on the oceans. After seeing this, you can imagine the impact it plays on what is a mere puddle in comparison--The Great Lakes Region-- Yet, amongst the biggest concentrated sources of surface fresh water sources in the world! It is astonishing! In a city that has notoriously raped its waterfront and riverfront with past development/industrial practices, we need to be among the first to promote the opposite behavior when living near such water resources. Dirty water, beaches, are NOT good for the economy...socially...environmentally.

 

Collectively, we have all become a part of creating the problem...so collectively, we have to each do our part in trying to reverse the problem. By the way, exotics, like the zebra muscles and round goby..and ruffe...have wreaked havoc on native aquatic habitats. There are literal dead zones in Lake Erie--And while the pollution these days may seem less visually dramatic, they can have just as grave consequences.

 

With all this said...  I shudder to think people living along the lake cannot even seem to do the simplest of things to help our lake... by NOT using lawn chemicals...and while we're at it.. let's pick up litter. These two things along link to other problems that become much larger.  I see kids throwing trash down at Edgewater, clueless.... Parents who don't say a damn thing about it!!!....and I remind them that doing so is inappropriate and illegal.... Anyway, it is infuriating how someone can go to see such a beautiful body of water..have the brains to have the appreciation to do such, but NOT the brains to respect it! I am tired of cleaning up after pigs.. Our lakefront state parks...13 miles or more.. have only two rangers watching over things. Anyway, enough of my rants..

 

 

Please, everyone watch the video below..... If this does not make us shake our heads, have a gut wrenching feeling of disgust... and say "enough is enough!" I don't know what will... I hope the video is still available...

 

http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=598914

 

 

By the way, while we're at it, I would suggest flooding ODNR's offices with letters demanding they take a more proactive approach in preventing litter in our parks, along our shores...and promoting more recycling...leaving the vending machines OUT of the parks as we never needed this in the past..and they only attract more litter... Tell them to promote a "if you can't take it home with you...please don't take it into the park" mentality, implemented in other parks... on a lot of types of packaging that only wind up as litter... 

 

Instead, they can encourage the uses of thermos and reusable items for drink and food, whenever and where ever possible.  This is what happens when our parks are over promoted and marketed with a dismal minimum of staff. Too bad we have to make all this happen due to lack of common sense.

And I'll bet Port Clinton's are dirtiest of all.

EC that clip is alarming...plastic is truly wreaking havoc both aesthetically and much more so biologically.

 

Plastic is viewed as "cheap" and so prevalent, but then the real costs that we all bear with regard to cleanup, that externality must be factored in to the equation. And then consider that nobody knows the extent of the harm involved.

 

The litter issue, I just hope that can change here. You have Australia which is so culturally in tuned with the water, and here in Cleveland you simply have a good number of people without any "beach etiquette" with regard to trash...but that can change.

 

It's like I have some older friends and relatives who still throw cigarette butts out of the car window or on the sidewalk...they just grew up doing that without any regard. Once people take a broader look at their actions, no matter how small they are perceived, there will be an improvement.

 

Kingfish, I've heard that PC's beaches are pretty good.

 

Scott,

 

You are absolutely right... Thanks for adding your thoughts.....

 

I just want to mention that as I have lived in Australia for a while..... (Sydney) and hope to actually retire there... Here is a metro area of 5 million plus people, but the beaches surrounding the city are at least in the visual sense, spic and span. I have never..ever...witnessed anyone littering, at least on purpose or with carelessness... And, in the area....No one uses lawn chemicals which can add up to creating a great deal of nutrients in the water, resulting in excess algae blooms that rob the water of oxygen for aquatic life.

 

The big agriculture in this region has been compounded with the addition of the suburban lawn-care mentality. In fact, there is a book out... Don't know the author, but it is called something like "THE SUBURBAN LAWN-THE GLOBAL MENACE" While there are many constituents of pollutants in the lake, chemically, this is one of the most frequent and unnecessary. On the other hand...some of the other obvious stuff I mentioned....Litter and garbage in water, and on beaches has a far more reaching effect than visual....

 

If anyone gets a chance.. Just watch this 14 minute video (I will post below) that aired on 60 Minutes Australia to see the impact of litter/plastic on the oceans. After seeing this, you can imagine the impact it plays on what is a mere puddle in comparison--The Great Lakes Region-- Yet, amongst the biggest concentrated sources of surface fresh water sources in the world! It is astonishing! In a city that has notoriously raped its waterfront and riverfront with past development/industrial practices, we need to be among the first to promote the opposite behavior when living near such water resources. Dirty water, beaches, are NOT good for the economy...socially...environmentally.

 

Collectively, we have all become a part of creating the problem...so collectively, we have to each do our part in trying to reverse the problem. By the way, exotics, like the zebra muscles and round goby..and ruffe...have wreaked havoc on native aquatic habitats. There are literal dead zones in Lake Erie--And while the pollution these days may seem less visually dramatic, they can have just as grave consequences.

 

With all this said... I shudder to think people living along the lake cannot even seem to do the simplest of things to help our lake... by NOT using lawn chemicals...and while we're at it.. let's pick up litter. These two things along link to other problems that become much larger. I see kids throwing trash down at Edgewater, clueless.... Parents who don't say a damn thing about it!!!....and I remind them that doing so is inappropriate and illegal.... Anyway, it is infuriating how someone can go to see such a beautiful body of water..have the brains to have the appreciation to do such, but NOT the brains to respect it! I am tired of cleaning up after pigs.. Our lakefront state parks...13 miles or more.. have only two rangers watching over things. Anyway, enough of my rants..

 

 

Please, everyone watch the video below..... If this does not make us shake our heads, have a gut wrenching feeling of disgust... and say "enough is enough!" I don't know what will... I hope the video is still available...

 

http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=598914

 

 

By the way, while we're at it, I would suggest flooding ODNR's offices with letters demanding they take a more proactive approach in preventing litter in our parks, along our shores...and promoting more recycling...leaving the vending machines OUT of the parks as we never needed this in the past..and they only attract more litter... Tell them to promote a "if you can't take it home with you...please don't take it into the park" mentality, implemented in other parks... on a lot of types of packaging that only wind up as litter...

 

Instead, they can encourage the uses of thermos and reusable items for drink and food, whenever and where ever possible. This is what happens when our parks are over promoted and marketed with a dismal minimum of staff. Too bad we have to make all this happen due to lack of common sense.

I always have a good time at Mentor Headlands. 

Headlands! Such an amazing place with the beautiful lighthouse and quite a unique system of sand dunes.  I want to amend my "absentee landlord" comment with regards to Headlands, they certainly take much better care of the beaches there vs. here in Cleveland.

 

C-Dawg I wonder when we're going to turn the corner from wetlands mitigation to actual talk of restoring some of that 90 percent that has been lost.

 

I always have a good time at Mentor Headlands.

^No. Maumee Bay takes the title and has owned it for years. :cry: The confluence of industrial pollution and runoff from the Ottawa and Maumee Rivers makes that pretty much a give in. To put it in perspective, though the Ottawa River hasn't been on fire, it is today more polluted than the Cuyahoga. Also, there is open water dumping of dredge materials in Maumee Bay. This has got to stop. A lot can be done to reduce runoff. Seriously, all it takes are buffer strips along streams and ditches. There needs to be financial incentives for farmers to do this. A fair amount of Northwest Ohio has already installed these (30% I think??). Indiana needs to join the fight too. We also seriously need to increase our marshland (nature's water filters). Something like near 90% of Ohio's marshland has been destroyed. That's a big part of the problem, but we have some politicians working to protect what's left and restore at least some of what was lost. Thankfully, we have Kaptur in the Ohio 9th. :wink:

 

C-Dog.... So true...

 

I have a website I made several years ago that may interest you...Now that buffer zones are brought up. I never could understand any farm community not seeing the 'financial incentives'  in maintaining buffer zone. The biggest incentive is...Is that they don';t lose theiur farm land to soil erosion.

 

 

Here is the website...with an educational project included, a friend and me made some time ago. Everyone, please feel free to spread it around. The project site contains my old address. But the email is good.

 

 

http://www.nanfa.org/education/carillio/riparian.htm

EC that clip is alarming...plastic is truly wreaking havoc both aesthetically and much more so biologically.

 

Plastic is viewed as "cheap" and so prevalent, but then the real costs that we all bear with regard to cleanup, that externality must be factored in to the equation. And then consider that nobody knows the extent of the harm involved.

 

The litter issue, I just hope that can change here. You have Australia which is so culturally in tuned with the water, and here in Cleveland you simply have a good number of people without any "beach etiquette" with regard to trash...but that can change.

 

It's like I have some older friends and relatives who still throw cigarette butts out of the car window or on the sidewalk...they just grew up doing that without any regard. Once people take a broader look at their actions, no matter how small they are perceived, there will be an improvement.

 

 

Definitely this is true... There is a mindset that too often does not see the problem in doing what you mention... I believe it can change. But when litter laws are better enforced, people will not believe it is not a big thing to do...or that it is a 'freedom' .....when what was illegal all along goes unchecked, naturally, everyone assumes its no big deal. Watch them pitch a bitC! when a ranger decides to slap them with a fine. I would not hesitate to do it..no warnings. People need to start learning what a garbage can is for, and this may be the only way to get their attention right quick.

 

Yes...I simply envy Australia's regard for their waterfront environments..... At Edgewater, near the bathroom house, it is filthy...plastic pieces, ribbons, bottles, cig. butts, plastic cigar tips....Cheetos bags. To the quick glance it looks relatively clean in the overall park. But let me take people on a tour and show them how much I will collect in just 15 minutes. We cannot afford to allow this park to become. Staff never does a litter walk.. Instead, they run it over with mowers! If anyone wants to start a litter brigade to regularly clean up the park... let's do it. PM me... I am in. BUT.... Still, the people doing this need to know why they should not do it...and many who do, if you politely ask them to not do this...Will likely greet you with indifference or some poetic four letter word gesture.

 

Man!!!...the toilet mouths I have heard on some kids. Dirtier than the litter!  Please..anyone interested, I still say to write to ODNR Division of Parks and Recreation. These are separate from Cleveland and are all of Ohio's...so write there. Demand better attention to lakefront state parks...

 

Also, putting vending machines in Edgewater...with some of its current patrons who do not give a crap about the litter... and use the waterfront as their dump... Is like placing a distillery next to an alcoholic camp.  Get rid of vending machines in state parks, period. Trust me... We who worked for the parks several years ago knew it was bad news. I think there is one/some in Lower Edgewater. 

 

 

Someday...and hopefully it will not be too late..But there will be a generation that will look back at this one and think.. "WTF were they thinking...How STUPID they were!" I believe the American Indians call this generation the "Seventh Fire." By the way, that was a great play/musical Just jaw dropping... For thousands of years, for the most part our environment lived in general sustainable harmony with people...and in a mere 200 years..some of it may be damaged beyond repair.  I was never the type to look at those old flats photos and admire them. As someone with a naturalist background, I see such photos as a reminder of the biggest crime we can commit against our nation's waters....but as I indicated earlier, although less visually dramatic, our waters face major new challenges that could prove equally destructive.  Jacques Cousteau saw it coming.

Attention: To forumer "THEGUY", if you're out there reading this.... You PM'd me and I tried to reply but your inbox is full... Please clean so I can send you my note.

 

Thanks!

 

Also... Anyone willing to committed to a weekly litter sweep of Edgewater..on say, Saturdays.....say I...But only if you are seriously able to do it and WILL. Maybe seeing people pick up litter instead of throwing it down, will be a lead by example opportunity. Such clean-ups are not a once a year one shot deal..it is an ongoing lifestyle like brushing teeth everyday. This place could use a once a weeker. If you can do this... Let's agree to regular times and days off board.

Just wondering... where "THEGUY" is on this thread or forum... Message me if you get this and please empty your mail box.