CLEVELAND -- Cleveland has had a challenging history when it comes to environmental advocacy, conservation and protection, but we have always taken those challenges and turned them into opportunities. The devastating burning of the Cuyahoga River in 1969 led to our city playing a critical role in jump-starting the modern environmental movement, and in the aftermath of the fire, active citizens and local political leaders like Cleveland Mayor Carl Stokes and his brother, U.S. Rep. Louis Stokes, combined to form a powerful force for the healing of Cleveland’s waterways. Their advocacy also contributed to the passage of the Clean Water Act in 1972, which benefited the entire country, in addition to Cleveland. This seminal moment would not have occurred if it hadn’t been for engaged local citizens and the leadership of city officials.
As this year’s Cleveland mayor’s race stretches into its final weeks, many issues will be weighing on voters’ minds as they make their final choice of who they want to succeed Mayor Frank Jackson. As the vice president of policy and strategic engagement at the Alliance for the Great Lakes, one of the issues that is top of mind for me is how the candidates plan to handle our city’s most important resource — water.
Clevelanders live within miles of one of the world’s richest freshwater resources, yet some residents still face challenges to accessing clean, safe and affordable water.
According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, Ohio has the second-highest number of lead pipe service lines in use among U.S. states, which puts residents at higher risk of lead poisoning. In Cleveland, specifically, between 59% and 89% of such water pipes are potentially made of lead, News 5 has reported.
Toxic algal blooms in Lake Erie, which are largely caused by agricultural runoff pollution, are an annual threat to the health and drinking water of more than 11 million people. And research from the Alliance for the Great Lakes and Ohio Environmental Council has found that water affordability is an issue prevalent in both urban and rural communities throughout Ohio — and Cleveland is no exception.
The final two mayoral candidates have spoken out on some of these issues: Kevin Kelley has promised to increase tree canopy as a way to address stormwater management, while Justin Bibb has proposed classifying environmental and racial injustice as a public health emergency and renaming the Office of Sustainability the Office of Environmental and Climate Justice. These are important commitments and fantastic first steps, but ultimately, actions speak louder than words.
Over 30 community organizations, representing thousands of Clevelanders from across the city’s diverse neighborhoods, joined together with the Alliance to develop a collective vision for the city’s environmental future. The Cleveland Comprehensive Environmental Policy Platform includes detailed policy recommendations, such as banning water shutoffs due to inability to pay, improving water quality through long-needed infrastructure upgrades, reducing contaminants and lead exposure in drinking water, and ensuring that Cleveland’s existing codified ordinances addressing stormwater runoff and drinking and recreational water are consistently enforced.
Moving forward, Cleveland must become a more sustainable, diverse, and equitable place for all people — regardless of color or background. Any future legislation must work to reverse present inequities that prevent communities from accessing clean drinking water. Programs should be intentionally designed to include community voices to ensure they are meeting the needs of those most impacted.
Addressing these issues will be difficult — they’re problems that many other cities throughout the Great Lakes struggle with, as well — but if Cleveland addresses them directly and proactively, the city could become a national model other places look to when confronting their own environmental problems. Although the problems may be different, the kind of leadership we relied upon 50 years ago from people like the Stokes brothers is more vital than ever. I hope this is something Mr. Bibb and Mr. Kelley keep in mind once the campaigns are over and the real work begins.
Crystal Davis is the vice president of policy and strategic engagement of the Alliance for the Great Lakes. She is based in Cleveland.
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