Posted on August 9, 2016
It used to be that the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority would just keep an eye on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as the federal agency managed the dredging that would keep the Cuyahoga River channel open for commercial shipping.
Making sure the Corps did its job of keeping the channel deep enough for the big ore boats to navigate the Cuyahoga without scraping bottom was light duty for Port Authority officials, who spent most of their time managing the lakefront docks and helping developers and public agencies finance projects like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Flats East Bank project.
But then it started looking like it was going to cost the state $1 million a year if the Port Authority, and the state of Ohio, wanted the dredging done in what they consider the right way.
Now, the Port has charged its vice president of external affairs, Jade Davis, with keeping his eyes on the Corps and better asserting the Port’s interests in the halls of Congress and at the statehouse in Columbus.
Until now, the external affairs position had been more a media relations position, and the Port Authority’s interests in Washington were largely represented by a variety of Great Lakes maritime associations. The job had gone unfilled for two years before Davis was hired in September 2015.
“When the board and (president and CEO) Will Friedman looked at the public affairs division of the Port, we went more this time for a skilled legislative advocate,” said Chris Ronayne, the board chairman. “We very intentionally went after a person expert in the legislative process in D.C. and Columbus, and Jade was the right pick.”
What changed was the Corps deciding that the dredged material was no longer toxic enough to require dumping it inland, into what is called a confined disposal facility, or CDF, where it wouldn’t pollute Lake Erie. Instead, the Corps would be able to save money by dumping it directly into the lake.
The Port and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency objected, saying the material’s toxicity continues to make it a threat to drinking water and the aquatic food chain. The Corps said, in essence, “Fine, we’ll put the stuff in a CDF, but you pay the $1 million-plus that it will cost.”
That dispute landed in federal court in Cleveland. In April 2015, U.S. District Court Judge Donald Nugent issued an injunction temporarily preventing open-lake dumping and the two sides have been arguing the issue before Nugent ever since.
So Davis, a native Clevelander, is pressing the local view of the toxicity of the dredged material in Washington. Until Davis joined the Port Authority, he was senior director of state affairs and outreach for the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity.
He also has launched an effort at making state government in Columbus more aware of the Port Authority’s role in economic development and transportation logistics, Ronayne said. He credited Davis with being instrumental in helping the Port Authority win a $2.5 million allocation in the state capital budget, the first construction money committed to the rebuilding of the slowly collapsing hillside above the Irishtown Bend of the Cuyahoga River.
Davis said he also will lead an effort to make the Port Authority a thought leader on water quality and related environmental issues.
“Part of the job is to make sure we educate decision makers (on water quality) and position (the Port Authority) as a thought leader on maritime issues,” he said. “We’re cleaning up the lake, we’re cleaning up the harbor, cleaning up the river and we’re making investments to lower our emissions on the docks, and we want to make sure we’re seen as a leader on that.”
In the near term, Davis is working to make sure pending water and energy legislation includes provisions that will keep the sediment out of Lake Erie without a $1 million annual price tag.
“One of the reasons I was brought on is (because of) my experiences being on the front lines of legislative fights,” he said.
Davis is helping the Ohio congressional delegation on legislation to prevent future toxic dumping into the lake.
In May, the Senate passed H.R. 2028, a House-passed appropriations bill that includes language that for the current financing cycle prevents the Corps from disposing of dredged materials in Lake Erie without approval by the Ohio EPA. It now awaits approval from a joint conference committee before going to President Barack Obama for his signature.
In addition, Davis is closely following the Water Resources Development Act of 2016 (WRDA), now winding its way through both houses. It’s part of Davis’ job to make sure sections that would permanently require dredged material disposal to meet state water quality standards stay in the bills.
“The Cleveland Port does a tremendous job of making sure everyone in Ohio and Washington knows the economic importance of the port by keeping everyone informed and engaging them in solutions when issues arise in transportation, infrastructure and economic policy,” said Rep. Bob Gibbs of Holmes County, who chairs the House subcommittee on water resources and the environment, in an emailed statement.
“In particular, the Cleveland Port has been an incredible ally in my efforts to ensure the Cuyahoga River gets dredged,” Gibbs said.
Source: Cleveland Business
