Environment Program 2010 Annual Report

In a year dominated by seemingly intractable policy disputes, Joyce grantees made significant progress on both Great Lakes and energy issues. Their strategy: patiently educating policy makers and using research to make a case for support.

Standing Up for the Lakes
The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative implements regional priorities identified and agreed upon by advocates and public office-holders: cleaning up legacy toxins, combating invasive species, reducing pollution, and restoring wildlife habitat. It received $475 million in federal funds for 2010.

Current and former Joyce grantees and their partners received nearly $10 million for restoration work through the Initiative in 2010, particularly in the Maumee River and Milwaukee River watersheds—two river systems where the Joyce Foundation has made concentrated investments in watershed restoration.

The Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition issued two reports during 2010: Progress and Promise: 21 Stories that Showcase Successful Great Lakes Restoration Projects and Faces of Restoration: People Working to Restore the Great Lakes. The reports showcase successful restoration projects around the region and document the economic benefits to communities. Highlighting successes and achieving results on the ground is critical to building the case for future federal support of the Initiative.

The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has also been critical in allowing federal agencies to respond to the immediate threat posed to the Great Lakes by Asian carp. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers used $14 million from the Initiative to take immediate action on Asian carp, including constructing barriers to prevent Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes during flood events and conducting monitoring to determine the location of Asian carp. However, additional research is needed to find a long-term solution, because these exotic invasive species could devastate the Great Lakes’ multi-billion-dollar commercial and recreational fishery if they get established in the Lakes.

In a parallel process, Great Lakes states, cities, and stakeholders are working together to find a permanent solution to stopping invasive species, especially Asian carp, from entering Lake Michigan via the Chicago River. The Chicago Area Waterways System, which includes the Chicago River, is the only location where the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins are connected continuously throughout the year. It serves as a pathway for invasive species to enter the Great Lakes from the Mississippi River system and vice versa.

With support from Joyce and other regional funders, the Great Lakes Commission and the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative are studying options to permanently separate the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins to block invasive species while also securing other goals important to the Chicago area, including improved commercial and recreational transportation, water quality, and flood management.

“We’re talking about a problem that goes beyond Asian carp,” said Tim Eder, executive director of the Great Lakes Commission. “This is about protecting the ecological and commercial vitality of the Great Lakes. We’re committed to finding a long-term solution that will serve Chicago and the Great Lakes region.” Results of the study are due in early 2012.

Pushing Energy Efficiency
Regional energy policy, too, is benefitting from a patient and methodical approach, providing information to policy makers and consumers. With demand down in a faltering economy, plans for new power plants have been shelved and states and utilities are instead encouraging residents to use energy more efficiently. Rate-payer energy efficiency programs, some of which are state-mandated, invested more than $1 billion annually in the Midwest in 2010 growing to $1.5 billion by 2015. Consumer programs include incentives to retire old refrigerators, switch to compact fluorescents, and otherwise cut power use, according to Stacey Paradis of the Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (MEEA).

Recognizing the likely shifts as a result of political changes and state term limits, MEEA and another group, RE-AMP, worked to inform the next generation of state policy makers about energy efficiency as a win-win strategy. RE-AMP, a network of more than 100 nonprofits and foundations working on Midwest climate and energy issues, offered education on clean energy policies for candidates of all parties prior to the election. MEEA, whose membership includes utilities, states and nonprofits, connected with groups to educate new governors, state legislators, public utility commissioners, and staff coming into office to offer help bringing them up to speed on energy issues.

“Energy generally is not an issue that newly elected officials are knowledgeable about,” Paradis says. “That’s why it’s so important to explain what energy efficiency is, let them know what is required in their state and show the benefits for constituents and businesses.” Overall reception has been positive, Paradis adds. “We think efficiency is one of the most bipartisan of all issues, because it brings cost savings for consumers and businesses and creates jobs.”

Read the 2010 Annual Report
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Download a PDF of the 2010 Education Program and Grants