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New school generates support and opposition
RESS September 15, 2014
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By Larry Limpf News Editor news@presspublications.com A proposal to build a new elementary school in the Eastwood School District drew fervent support and opposition from residents Thursday during a town hall forum. A spokesman for the Committee to Save our Elementaries said the group will consider legal action to have the matter placed before voters. “The recent decision by the board has frustrated the intent of the voters regarding the central campus and denies them the ability to exercise their fundamental right to vote on the issue,” said Roger Mullholand. “The committee intends to pursue all legal remedies available to them in order to bring the issue back before the voters.” Others, however, said the new school is needed and students aren’t being well served by the aging Pemberville and Luckey elementary schools. The school board is proposing to construct a building for kindergarten through the fifth grade at the central campus, using $7 million from the Ohio School Facilities Commission and $12.5 in local revenues to finance the project. Brent Welker, district superintendent, presented figures showing the district wouldn’t need to ask voters for additional revenues but instead would rely on tax abatement funds from a Home Depot facility and public utility taxes from a Troy Energy plant. Even with a conservative valuation appraisal for the Troy Energy facility factored into the district’s budget forecast, the two revenue streams would provide at least $1.275 million annually, Welker explained. The general fund, which has had a carry-over balance, would be tapped for $1.5 million to be used as a down payment and the district would borrow the rest at an expected interest rate of 2.6 to 2.7 percent, he said. “No new tax monies are needed to do Continued on page 2
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Monarch mania
A butterfly festival held at Maumee Bay State Park gave visitors an opportunity to see the monarch butterly develop through its life cycle. The event included a tagging and release of butterflies, and crafts for kids. According to Monarch Watch, the monarch population in the U.S. has declined due to the loss of habitat from development, intensive agriculture, and herbicides affecting the monrach’s food source. At left, Brad Martin, of Liberty Center, assists 19 month old Leah Reeder with a caterpillar craft project. At right, a monarch lands on ODNR naturalist Jake Pavlica. (Press photos by Ken Grosjean)
Drinking water
Bill first step to U.S. standard By Kelly J. Kaczala Press News Editor kkaczala@presspublications.com A bipartisan bill that would be an interim measure towards setting a federal drinking water safety standard was introduced in Congress last week by Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur and Ohio’s two senators, Rob Portman and Sherrod Brown. The bill, the Safe and Secure Drinking Water Act, directs the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to publish a health advisory on microcystin and to submit reports on what level of the toxin in drinking water is safe for human consumption, according to a press release issued by Kaptur’s office. The acceptable level of microcystin in drinking water is 1 part per billion, according to the World Health Organization, but there are no state or federal standards. The issue has been heightened since microcystin, produced by blue green algal blooms in Lake Erie, was detected at 3 parts per billion in a sample taken at Toledo’s water treatment plant on Aug. 2 that prompted an advisory against drinking tap water for
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three days. High levels of microcystin can cause abnormal liver function in humans and animals and can be lethal. The algae is believed to be fed mainly by phosphorus from agricultural runoff Since the ban was lifted, there have been calls for federal standards of safe levels of microcystin in the drinking water. “Our legislation would fill a gap in the EPA’s response to date on toxic algae,” Kaptur said in a prepared statement. “The water emergency in Toledo highlighted the need for a more robust federal response, and our local communities still very much need recommendations on consumption, treatment and testing.” Portman agreed. “After the Toledo water crisis, it’s critical that all levels of government work together to determine if our drinking water is safe for human consumption,” Portman stated in a press release. “As we continue to work to ensure that Ohioans have access to safe and clean drinking water, this legislation is an important step toward knowing what is safe and what is not.” Brown said consumers and businesses “deserve a safe and reliable water supply.”
“Our bill will ensure that the United States sets a standard for safe drinking water,” he said in a prepared statement. Former Oregon Councilwoman Sandy Bihn urged city officials last month to support the need for federal standards for acceptable levels of microcystin in the water. Bihn, who is also Western Lake Erie Waterkeeper, has been sounding the alarm on the dangers of increased algae in Lake Erie for years. Although Oregon has its own water treatment plant and was not affected by the ban, the water source for Toledo’s and Oregon’s water treatment plants is drawn from Lake Erie’s Western Basin, which has been plagued by large blue green algal blooms for years. The raw water intake for each community is just a mile apart. Bihn told The Press last week that the bill is a step in the right direction. “I support it. This is what we’ve been asking for. There’s a lot of confusion about microcystin, and at what levels it should or shouldn’t be. That will take a while to flesh out. It’s not easy. But I support the bill,” she said. Continued on page 2