Two Michigan legislators discussed their bipartisan work that successfully led to the passage of the Great Lakes Water Compact during a Campus Sustainability Week event held October 19 in the Kirkhof Center.
Sen. Patty Birkholz (R-Saugatuck Township) and State Rep.
Rebekah Warren (D-Ann Arbor) discussed their work to create the
compact, a multi-state agreement designed to protect the Great Lakes.
The compact was based largely on scientific data, establishing a new
fish health standard to determine the health of a body of water.
Michigan was the first state to develop this standard.
The Women's Center and the Political Science department
sponsored the event.
Despite many criticisms and doubts from others that two women
would be able to pass a compact of this magnitude, Birkholz and Warren
said they took on the challenge with a vengeance.
"We were a team made up of a conservative from West
Michigan and a liberal from Ann Arbor," Warren said. "We
knew that this was an important issue for Michigan and we stayed at
the table, using our different perspectives to make us a stronger team."
Birkholz and Warren proved that they were a strong team when,
after only two years of working together, they were able to get the
compact passed through Michigan's Legislature and signed by Governor
Jennifer Granholm and President George W. Bush. "This was the
moment when people realized that this was three women getting things
done," Birkholz said of Granholm signing the compact. "This
was a huge accomplishment for women in politics."
