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June 2002
Candidate Granholm announces environmental plan for Michigan
DEARBORN -- Sounding on the themes of Woods, Water and Wildlife, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Attorney General Jennifer M. Granholm
unveiled her environmental agenda on Monday, June 10. The 11-page agenda outlines Granholm's commitment
to balancing environmental protection with necessary economic growth to sustain Michigan's quality of life.
 "Michigan's proud legacy of environmental stewardship and conservation has
been put at risk by the current administration," Granholm said. "A Granholm Administration will pursue polluters and vigorously enforce
environmental laws. We will create comprehensive water protection laws, and we will
implement innovative land use strategies that preserve woodlands and farmlands for future generations to enjoy."
The major highlights of Granholm's environmental plan include:
- Expansion of farmland and open space preservation programs.
- Implementation of a "Clean Water Forever" initiative to protect the Great Lakes from exports to other areas, protect critical wetlands, enlist the
public in water monitoring and reduce the release of toxins in our water supplies.
- Management of Michigan's fish and wildlife resources with stewardship and sustainability, and protecting them from disease outbreaks.
- A ban on all new medical and municipal waste incinerators to improve air quality.
- A phase out of the worst toxic pollutants.
- Limitations on the number of landfills so that there are only enough to meet
Michigan's needs, therefore reducing the amount of trash imported into our state.
- Giving the people the "right to know" the air and water quality where they
live.
- Recombining the Department of Natural Resources and the Department of Environmental Quality.
"My plan to expand farmland and open space preservation will help reverse the present trend of 10 acres of Michigan farmland being gobbled up every hour by land speculators and new development that completely disrespects the beauty of our countryside," Granholm said. "We must make sure that dollars and development are not the only measures of success in our
state and that preservation and conservation also are considered signs of progress."
Granholm also said her administration would view the Great Lakes as a natural wonder -- not a potential moneymaking asset.
"The Great Lakes must remain our top priority for protection," Granholm said. "Western states that would prey on our water, companies that would bottle it and sell
it and big oil companies that would exploit what lies beneath must get the message loud and clear -- our Great Lakes are not for
sale at any price."
Sustaining fish and wildlife habitats and populations around the state also would be a major focus of a Granholm Administration.
"Hunting and fishing are major components of our tourism economy," Granholm said. "When fishermen can't eat what they catch in Michigan and hunters stay away from our state because of disease in deer herds, it can have a ruinous effect on small businesses around the state. My administration will boost efforts to protect and sustain fish and wildlife populations to ensure Michigan remains an outdoorsman's paradise."
The complete Granholm environmental plan, "Protecting the Environment, Growing Our Economy," is available on the
Granholm campaign
Web site. 
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