Biden to promote Great Lakes clean up efforts on Ohio trip

[February 17, 2022]  By Jarrett Renshaw

(Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden will visit Ohio on Thursday to tout $1 billion in funding from the bipartisan infrastructure bill signed last November aimed at cleaning up and restoring environmentally damaged areas in the Great Lakes region.

The trip is part of the White House's efforts to showcase the benefits of the infrastructure bill ahead of crucial midterm elections where the Democrats hope a results-oriented message will allow them to retain power in Washington.

Biden is expected to visit the Ohio cities of Cleveland and Lorain.

In Lorain, which sits on Lake Erie, Biden will provide more details on how the funding will help remove toxic sediment and restore habitats in the Great Lakes region, a senior administration official said.

The $1 billion is the single largest federal investment in Great Lakes restoration efforts.

"This level of progress would have been inconceivable just a few years ago," the official said.

U.S. President Joe Biden arrives to speak about the situation in Russia and Ukraine from the White House in Washington, U.S., February 15, 2022. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

The administration believes the funding will help accelerate completion of clean ups in federally-designated "Areas of Concern," or AOCs, which were damaged by decades of manufacturing and agricultural interests. It now expects 22 of the remaining 25 AOCs to come off the federal list by 2030.

The infrastructure package will also provide $10 billion in highway funding for Ohio, plus more than $33 billion in competitive grant funding for highway and other transportation projects. It also provides $60 billion for state and local governments to fund major projects.

This will be Biden’s second trip to northeast Ohio in less than a year. The state is home to several important elections this year, including a governor's race and a closely-watched U.S. Senate race to fill the seat of retiring Republican Rob Portman.

(Reporting by Jarrett Renshaw; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)

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