Great Lakes United Offers Limited Endorsement of Green Marine
October 22, 2007 – The Maritime industry of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River has launched a new initiative to reduce the environmental impact and improve the environmental performance of the industry. Called Green Marine, the program encourages participants to take voluntary actions above those required by current regulation to help protect the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River from the damage inflicted by aquatic invasive species, air emissions, greenhouse gases, cargo residue, oily-water, and conflicts of use at ports and terminals.
In a letter to Marc Gagnon, Director General of the St. Lawrence Economic Development Council (SODES), Great Lakes United expressed its support of the initiative and offered to advance objectives that aim to improve the environmental performance of the industry, strengthen dialogue between the industry and the environmental community, and establish collaborative strategies with partners across the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River region.
However, Great Lakes United cannot endorse all elements of the program. Current maritime industry practices continue to cause severe damage to the environment and costing billions of dollars to correct. As such, Great Lakes United does not endorse the objective of “increasing understanding… of the environmental advantages of marine transportation” until such time as the disadvantages of maritime transportation are mitigated through regulation or achievement of Green Marine’s highest goals on a consistent basis.
As a coalition, Great Lakes United inherently supports a diversity of approaches to protect the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River, whether through regulatory reform or legal challenges, advancing alternative business models, or voluntary actions. The Green Marine initiative represents an opportunity for the industry to step forward into a leadership role as we continue to work toward a healthy and prosperous Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River.
Read the Letter:
[HTML] [PDF]
Green Marine links:
www.green-marine.org
Program outline (pdf)
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