In this edition of Eco Report, Julianna Dailey interviews Mark Nowotarski, an environmental and climate advocate and other members of the Southwestern Indiana Citizens for Quality of Life organization in Part 2, about Indiana being considered a “sacrifice zone.” What does that mean?
This story is based on a commentary by John Ketsenberger, Director of Government Relations at The Nature Conservancy. Hoosiers overwhelmingly support protecting Indiana’s water supply and ensuring it’s available to everyone well into the future, according to a recent survey commissioned by The Nature Conservancy. A full 95% of Hoosiers agree that water is a public resource that should be protected.
Around 80% believe Indiana should have a comprehensive policy to manage its water resources, and 81% said protecting Indiana’s water and other natural resources is “important to (their) voting decisions in state elections.” Bellwether Research surveyed 800 registered voters in Indiana in mid-November. Forty percent said they were Republican and 22% Democrat, while the rest said they were independent. The survey has a 3% margin of error.
This is important because it represents voters across the spectrum and provides a clear window into Hoosiers’ thinking about water and natural resources. This is especially significant as the General Assembly convenes, and water is an issue on the minds of legislators. Several water-related bills have been filed and more are expected. They run the gamut from protecting withdrawals to establishing new regulations.
It’s the ideal time for the Braun administration and legislators to appoint a wide-ranging commission — representing all the diverse needs of Hoosiers — to spend the next two years understanding our water resources and how best to protect them for the future. The charge should include a comprehensive agenda of policies and legislation to ensure our future is rich with abundant clean water for everyone.
This is a reasonable approach, like what Ohio has done in recent years. The H2Ohio program was enacted after a study and has since spent billions of dollars on the state’s water future. Texas likewise just approved more than $2 billion for new water projects in water districts across that state. Texas first enacted its comprehensive water program in 1957.
Indiana would be wise to take the time to learn from Texas and others how to manage our most precious resource, but we still need more information. The Indiana Finance Authority recently released its latest regional water study, this one for north-central Indiana, which found there’s plenty of water, but it’s not distributed evenly across the area.
Hoosiers also recognize wetlands play an important role in our water system. Seventy-three percent said they support restoring protections for wetlands that were repealed by the General Assembly in 2021, including 48% who strongly support it. And 83% support incentives for residential and commercial developers who protect wetlands as part of their planned developments. This is good news, but there are large portions of the state that still need similar study, and this proposal would allow time for that to happen.
WFYI reports that Rep. Alan Morrison (R-Brazil) has been tapped to head up Indiana’s Department of Natural Resources. He said he intends to help carry out Gov. Mike Braun’s agenda to “look for efficiencies” in rulemaking. For more than a decade, Morrison has served House District 42 — which represents Parke and Vermillion counties as well as parts of Vigo, Fountain and Clay counties. He also served as a member of the House environmental affairs and natural resources committees.
Morrison said he plans to use his position to make regulations more efficient at the DNR, along with the Indiana Department of Environmental Management and the Utility Regulatory Commission. “Working as a team to help move forward that economic development and make it easier for businesses to grow, move in — that’s what our goal is,” he said.
Morrison has sponsored bills in the past to significantly reduce protections for the state’s wetlands — which benefitted home developers. He also supported bills to allow industries to capture their carbon emissions and store them underground. He’s also co-authored other environment-related bills — including some that support mine reclamation in the state and a bill that requires utilities to note coal plant closures in their long-term plans. That bill originally would have prevented utilities from closing coal plants until the state comes up with a statewide energy plan.
Congress is set to vote on a repeal of Biden administration climate regulations. Two bills scheduled this week would roll back rules to limit methane emissions from oil and gas operations and efficiency standards for water heaters. They would also bar similar rules in the future.
Congress is scheduled to vote on two bills this week that would roll back climate regulations issued in the final months of the Biden administration. The agencies that implemented the rules, which limit methane emissions from the oil and gas sector and set efficiency standards for water heaters, expected them to prevent tens of millions of tons of climate pollution in coming decades if left in place.
Indiana has been experiencing La Niña conditions, which are expected to continue from February–into April 2025. La Niña is a phase of the El Niño-Southern Oscillation La Niña typically brings more precipitation to the Midwest. In Indiana, NOAA predicts above-average precipitation from February to April. The models predict that La Niña conditions will transition to neutral in byApril 2025.
In this week’s feature report, Julianna Dailey interviews Mark Nowotarski, an environmental and climate advocate and other members of the Southwestern Indiana Citizens for Quality of Life organization in Part 2, about Indiana being considered a “sacrifice zone.” What does that mean?
Credits:
On Air…………………………………Julianna Dailey
On Air……………………………………….Zero Roze
Headlines………………………………….Norm Holy
Feature Report……………………….Julianna Dailey
Script…………………………………..Julianna Dailey
Events Calendar………………………Julianna Dailey
Engineer…………………………….Branden Blewett
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