Three governors in the Midwest want New York to loosen its new boat-ballast water regulations because, they say, it could cut-off shipping to the other Great Lakes.

A story on the Watertown Daily Times website says Ohio Governor John Kasich, Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels, and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker wrote New York Governor Andrew Cuomo last week. It includes this quote from the letter:

“Unless the NYDEC regulations are amended, they will possibly force the closure of the St. Lawrence Seaway, and imperil thousands of maritime-related jobs in the Great Lakes States and Canada.”

I have trouble with this request for a couple of reasons. The conservative governors have tried to roll back environmental protections in their states; they all seem to favor big industry over environmental protection.

But there’s another, more substantial reason. As these governors note, the St. Lawrence Seaway is the Great Lakes entry point for ocean-going ships. That means the first lake these ships enter is Lake Ontario.

It’s no secret that Lake Ontario has struggled with invasive species. And its most prominent troublemakers all entered the lake via ballast water from oceangoing ships. Zebra mussels, quagga mussels, the round goby, microscopic organisms that disrupt the food chain, and lampreys all are believed to have entered the lake through ballast water.

It makes sense for New York to have strict ballast-water discharge regulations. Introduced species can wreak havoc on native ecosystems. And those ecosystems generate a lot of money for New York businesses.

It may be that New York’s regulations are so strict they can’t be met, as the Daily Times story suggests. In that case, the state may have no choice but to make a change, and the DEC seems willing to consider the option. But maybe the state’s high standards could be used as leverage: a way to push shipbuilders into developing better ballast-water management systems. That should at least be part of this discussion.

via ENVIRONMENT: Ballast water brouhaha – News Blog – Rochester City Newspaper.