George Voinovich grins as he recalls the bond he's had with Lake Erie since his days walking along the shore after class at Collinwood High School. That connection followed him into his first campaign running for the state legislature, and stuck with him through the end of his second term in the U.S. Senate.
"I call it •The Second Battle of Lake Erie,' " says Voinovich, who also served as governor of Ohio and mayor of Cleveland during his 46-year career in public service. "That's what I've been waging."
Great Lake Brewing Co. and The Burning River Foundation founder Patrick Conway will present Voinovich the inaugural Outstanding Environmental Leadership Award at this year's Burning River Fest, July 21 and 22, in recognition of his dedication to our Great Lake.
"He believes this is our Grand Canyon," Conway says. "This is our Yosemite."
We asked Voinovich to share what he sees as his three biggest accomplishments when it comes to preserving what he calls "our greatest natural resource."
1. HELPED BAN EXPLORATORY DRILLING: Voinovich focused on the lake after his election to the Ohio House of Representatives in 1967. "Lake Erie was the poster child for a dying lake. I was going to do everything I could to restore [it]." One of his early battles was working to halt the state's plan to drill for gas and oil in the lake. Voinovich helped create a four-state legislative committee on Lake Erie, and drilling was abandoned in 1968. "I met with a group of Rocky Mountain legislators who told me to never give up your environment on the altar of economic development."
2. ESTABLISHED LAKE ERIE PROTECTION FUND: In 1991, Voinovich took over the governorship of Ohio, inheriting $1.5 billion in debt. Determined, Voinovich found the $14 million necessary to breathe new life into the Ohio Lake Erie Commission and established the Lake Erie Protection Fund, which focuses on projects that lead to better management decisions, both for environmental and economic impact. "I thought that was a wonderful way to show how important it was to the future of Ohio • If you really want to find out where somebody's convictions are, see how much they're willing to take out of their pocket."
3. Co-Sponsored Great Lakes Compact: "One of the most significant things I did when I first went to the Senate was co-sponsor legislation for the Great Lakes Compact." The agreement outlined states' roles in managing the Great Lakes Basin's water supply. President Bush signed the bipartisan agreement into law in October 2008. "If we didn't come together and understand that we have a symbiotic relationship with each other, other states would start to look at our lakes as a source of water for them. And water, as time goes on, is going to be a tremendous issue."
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