Remarks by President Biden on the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Great Lakes Restoration
FEBRUARY 17, 2022
Location: Lorain, Ohio

12:15 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Thank you, thank you, thank you.  Thank you.  (Applause.)  Thank you.  They’re all for Marcy.  God love you, kiddo.  You’re the best.

Before I begin, I want to just point out I was having a –just sitting and talking for a second with the Director of HUD and a former congresswoman just on the other side of this district.  And she said something that reminded me of what I miss as well.  She said, “It’s so good to be home in Ohio.”  No, I really mean it.

And I said, “You’re probably the only one here that understands that every time I get a chance, I go home to Delaware.”  (Laughter.)  You think I’m joking.  I’m not.  I represented Delaware for 36 years as a United States senator.

And just like most congressional districts, the good news is the bad news: Everybody knows you.  (Laughs.)

But it’s great to — it’s great hearing you say that.  It’s great hearing you say that.

Well, Administrator Regan — I talked him into coming out of what they consider God’s country down in the North Carolina area.  And he came up and took on this job. 

And — and as I said, and a proud daughter of Ohio, Secretary of Housing and Urban Affairs Marcy — Marcia Fudge, who’s represented the district as well.

And Mitch Landrieu, who is leading the implementation of our infrastructure — where are you, Mitch?  They don’t know anybody from New Orleans down here.  He used to be the mayor of New Orleans.  And I called him — mayors know how to get things done, as the Mayor will tell you here.  And I called him, asking if will he be the hands-on guy to actually implement the law — implement it, get it done, and let people know how they can access it.

And Brenda — Brenda Malloy [Mallory], Chair of our Council of Economic [on Environmental] Quality.  Brenda, where are you?  There you are.  Thank you, Brenda.  We rode up together on the aircraft together, and it’s great to have you as well.

I also asked to say hello from someone who you know in Lorain but couldn’t be here today.  A tremendous fighter and Ohio — for Ohio workers and a guy who could easily be standing where I’m standing right now: Sherrod Brown.  (Applause.)  He —  Sherrod Brown, working in the Senate and keeping an eye on those other team — that other team to see what’s going on.

It’s good to see you, Congresswoman Shontel Brown.  Where are you, Shontel?  I said — there you go.  Right in front there.  Congratulations.  And it’s great to — great to have you here.

And, of course, Marcy — Marcy Kaptur.  Marcy has not only made history as the longest-serving woman in the history of the House of Representatives, every day she’s making a difference.  She never, ever slows up.  And she’s helping this region compete, thrive, and come back.   

You know, that’s what I want to talk a little about today — (coughs) — excuse me: the historic investment we’re making to restore the Great Lakes, strengthen the region’s economy, provide clean drinking water, clean up our communities, and create good-paying jobs. 

A year ago, when I spoke at a joint session of the Congress, I was coming off the podium — the platform — and Marcy came up to me and, with all the press in the gallery looking down, handed me a note — a letter.

And the commentators and reporters were so damn curious.  “What did she hand you?  What’s in that note?”  And I said, “I can’t tell you.”  No, I —

But — well, if you know Marcy, you know what that letter was about: the Great Lakes.  The Great Lakes.

She described the treasure — the treasure the Great Lakes are.  They connect eight states, two nations.  They provide more drinking water than any set of lakes in the world, that more than 40 million people benefit from that.  They support more than 1,300,000 jobs in manufacturing, tourism, transportation, warehousing, farming, and fishing.  And they’re essential to shipping goods made in the Midwest, all across the country, and around the world.

Generations of families have depended on them being boating — on the boating and fishing and hunting and swimming that they provide for everyone in this region and those who come and visit.

They are home to countless natural and cultural wonders that — that should be conserved for all to enjoy today, tomorrow, and for generations to come.

     And Marcy — by the way, I saw her today.  She said, “I got another letter for you.”  I don’t what the hell — (laughter) —

     Marcy, I promise you, I’m working like hell.  (Laughter.)  But I’ll read it, I promise.  Whatever you say, I’ll do.

But Marcy’s letter said — and this is why I want — why I bring it up.  She said, and I quote, “[The Great Lakes] undergrid [undergird] life, work, and recreation for millions of people…”

And we need them — we need to invest in them if we want a brighter, more prosperous future for the region.

Well, they are.  They are.  And we are going to.  We’re investing like never, ever in history. 

Back in 1987, an independent commission identified 43 places called “areas of concern” along the Great Lakes.  They’re areas where pollution, as — as the EPA director said, where pollution from industry, runoff from agriculture, poor wastewater treatment put the Great Lakes and everyone who depends on them at risk.

Twenty-six of these areas are in the United States side of the border.  Twelve of them are in Canada.  And five are shared between the United States and Canada.

And our mutual nations made a commitment to clean them up, to be good partners, to protect these shared treasures.

And for decades, there was a lot of talk, a lot of plans, but very little progress.  It was slow. 

That changes today.

Today, we’re announcing an investment of $1 billion — $1 billion — (applause) — from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill.  It’s going to allow the most significant restoration of the Great Lakes in the history of the Great Lakes. 

We’re going to accelerate cleanup of sites across six states in the Great Lakes Basin — from Duluth, Minnesota, to Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Gary, Indiana, to Buffalo, New York, and everywhere in between.

And we know these sites were dangerously polluted for decades.

We’re committed to clean them up.  Three decades ago, we made this commitment.

And, yes, we’ve gotten a couple of them done, like right here, like the — one of my old hangouts as well.  I went to Syracuse University.  I was a lifeguard on Lake Oswego.  I — and I — and I know the Oswego River up in New York.  That was another one that’s been taken care of.

Now we’re talking about cleaning up the Cuyahoga River behind the Cuyahoga Gorge Dam and in the process — and it passes through Cleveland.

The — the — I always mispronounce it — the Wa- — Wa- — Mauwamee [Maumee] River.  Right?

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Maumee.

THE PRESIDENT:  Maumee River in Toledo.  I can say “Toledo.”  (Laughter and applause.)

Restoring the shoreline around the Detroit River in Michigan, the St. Louis River in Minnesota and Wisconsin, the Grand Calumet River in Indiana, and so much more.

Dredging polluted sediment; restoring wetlands and habitats; making the water safer for swimming and fishing and drinking; providing habitats for wildlife and wildfowl.  

And the study found that every dollar we spend
cleaning up the Great Lakes generates between three and four dollars in economic benefit.  That’s a fact.  And it’s a really good investment.  These are not the only investments in making — that we’re making in the Great Lakes.

Last month, we announced over $500 million to upgrade the Soo Locks in Michigan, which connect Lake Superior and the Great Lakes.

Seven thousand vessels and 90 percent of our country’s iron ore moves through these locks every single year.  That ore makes nearly all the high-strength steel that goes into U.S.-made cars and appliances.

Replacing and modernizing the locks will not only create good jobs doing that, it’s going to strengthen our supply chains and get goods moving faster and reduce cost.

This is not the totality of what we’re going to do, but it’s an example of what I’ve said from day one: We’re rebuilding America.  We’re going to invest in America and build a better America than we found.

And for the better part of the 20th century, we used to lead the world by a significant margin because we invested in ourselves.  We invested in our infrastructure, our roads, our highways, bridges, ports, airports — the arteries of the nation that allow commerce to function smoothly and move swiftly.

And we invested in our people and in opportunity.  We were among the first nation to provide universal high school at the turn of the 20th century.

We invested to win the Space Race that facilitates — that — in facilities like the Lewis Research Center in Cleveland, which is now named for my buddy John Glenn.  God rest his soul.

And we led the world in research and development that led to the creation of the Internet.

But somewhere along the way, we took our eye off the ball.  We took our eye off the ball.

Our infrastructure used to be rated number one in the world.  Today, according to the World Economic Forum, we rank number 13 in the world.  China and the rest of the world is catching up and passing us.