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Regulating the Rocky River Watershed

Thursday, November 15, 2007 10:25 AM EST

The Clean Water Act, a pioneering piece of legislation responsible for the systematic cleaning of our nation's waters, was the 1972 governmental response to the Cuyahoga River igniting in flames.

This historic fire was the result of industrial sludge being released directly to the waterway; the easiest, cheapest mode of waste disposal, and with little governmental controls or opposition, the most feasible.

With the passage of this legislation, the federal government told the nation that if we are unable to act as stewards of our water resources, Uncle Sam will take the reigns. Since then, water quality from the arid southwest to our great lakes has improved.

The Cuyahoga fire, along with numerous others, including Michigan's Rouge River fire, illustrates the need for proactive governmental regulation that effectively protects and manages the resources that are of public interest.

Regulation, as averse to this as many are, grants as much personal freedom as possible while not compromising your next door- or down stream neighbors'- quality of life. It is the goal of environmental ordinances and laws to balance this contention.

Many guidelines work to find this middle ground. Michigan GAAMPs, for example, protect farmers' rights against urbanites' emigration to the countryside while protecting the general public and natural resources from the potential nuisances and dangers of agriculture.

Everyone likes clean water, healthy forests, and most appreciate the rural character of our landscape. But these attributes are vulnerable, and their exploitation is profitable. Without regulation and careful planning, these blessings are bought and sold.

The political will must exist at a local level to preserve these characteristics. The higher the level of accountability of townships, villages, and cities to safeguard these resources, the softer the heavy hand of state and federal mandates will fall.

A compromise of some personal autonomy must be made to ensure the long term health and vitality of our communities, which return dividends back to the individual.

Local regulations may say you can't fill your wetland, it may say you can't build a house within 50 feet of the stream, and it may say you can't place your septic system there. All of this may get your dander up, but it is better than a flooded home full of sewage, for you and your neighbors.

Daniel Stanaway is the Rocky River Watershed Coordinator.

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