BROOKFIELD – Today Clean Wisconsin Action Fund presented awards for outstanding environmental
achievement to three mayors – Tom Barrett of Milwaukee, Jack Chiovatero of New Berlin, and Gary
Becker of Racine – and one citizen, Jim Te Selle, President of the Great Lakes Coalition for their work
in helping to move forward legislation to ratify and implement the Great Lakes Compact. That
legislation passed the State Senate yesterday by a vote of 26 to 6. In the spring of 2006 New Berlin
was the first community in Wisconsin to submit an application for a diversion of Great Lakes water
since the eight Great Lakes Governors sign the 2001 Water Resources Agreement (precursor to the
Compact).
“Mayors Barrett and Chiovatero are on opposite ends of what could soon become the first Great Lakes
diversion in Wisconsin and both deserve a lot of credit for taking the approach that we need to pass
strong Compact ratifying and implementing legislation before the DNR grants any diversions under
this agreement,” said Keith Reopelle, Program Director for Clean Wisconsin Action Fund. “Senate
Bill 523 passed with strong bipartisan and diverse stakeholder support yesterday in no small part
because of the work and support of the three mayors we are honoring with awards today.”
“I thank Clean Wisconsin’s Action Fund for this honor, and I am proud to fight for Great Lakes
Compact,” said Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. “The Great Lakes provide drinking water to more
than 42 million people, support a $15 billion regional economy, and supply 20% of the world’s
available fresh water – they must be protected. The Compact ensures accountability, consistency and
fairness in Great Lakes governance, and safeguards critical water resources. With drought and sprawl
in other parts of the country encouraging people to turn their thirsty eyes to the Great Lakes, now is the
time to pass the protections provided by the Compact. I look forward to continuing to work with Clean
Wisconsin, Mayor Becker and Mayor Chiovatero to protect our Great Lakes, and other key regional
issues.”
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Clean Wisconsin Action Fund
Mayors Receive Awards for Support of Great Lakes Compact
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Mayor Gary Becker of Racine was honored for his work as the Chairman of the Great Lakes Cities
Initiative, a group of city official across the Great Lakes basin dedicated to supporting adoption of the
Great Lakes Compact and other policies aimed at protecting the Great Lakes. “Mayor Becker has
made an enormous contribution to Great Lakes protection not only in Wisconsin, but across the entire
basin,” said Reopelle. “All three of these Mayors have played unique and important roles in helping to
protect the Great Lakes – the economic lifeblood of the region and the greatest freshwater resource on
Earth,” added Reopelle.
Mayor Becker stated, “I am pleased that we have collectively been able to raise awareness of this
critically important issue. I am confident that we will continue with the progress that has been made in
protecting and preserving our Great Lakes.”
Clean Wisconsin Action Fund also honored Jim Te Selle of Cedarburg with an environmental
achievement award for his role as the President of the Wisconsin Great Lakes Coalition, a group of
shoreline property owners supporting the Compact and other policies to protect the Great Lakes. Te
Selle was the catalyst for the creation of the Legislature’s Great Lakes Caucus Chaired by State
Senator Joe Leibham and the Lake Michigan Forum, a stakeholder group organized by the Department
of Natural Resources.
“Jim Te Selle is a great example of how one citizen can make an enormous difference in protecting our
most precious natural resources,” said Reopelle. “Jim Te Selle played an important role in bringing
legislators in the Great Lakes basin together in a bipartisan way to support the Great Lakes Compact
and other policies to protect this world-class resource.”
Clean Wisconsin Action Fund also gave an outstanding environmental achievement award to
Milwaukee-based Johnson Controls for their work in developing and providing state-of-the-art energy
efficiency and renewable energy systems for businesses and municipalities. “Johnson Controls is
providing the corporate leadership needed to show that Wisconsin can become a leader in meeting the
challenge of global warming,” said Mark Redsten, Executive Director for Clean Wisconsin Action
Fund. “Johnson Controls is proving every day that the solutions to global warming will create goodpaying
jobs and boost our manufacturing and farming economies,” Redsten added.
Clean Wisconsin Action Fund is the political sister organization to Clean Wisconsin, Inc. The Action
Fund, an environmental advocacy organization, protects Wisconsin’s clean water and air and
advocates for clean energy by being an effective voice in the state legislature and by holding elected
officials accountable. Phone: 608-251-7020, extension 11; Fax: 608-251-1655; Email:
beweber@cwactionfund.org, Website: www.cwactionfund.org.
