Transportation and Sustainable Development program

Learn more about the Commission's 2006 Projects (PDF, 667k)

Our goal
To promote sustainable, water resource-based economic activity and the use, development and maintenance of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence transportation system.

What we do
The Transportation and Sustainable Development Program focuses on economic activity in the Great Lakes region and its relationship to the environment. Primary areas of interest are maritime transportation, recreational boating, and land use and conservation, all pursued under the guiding principles of sustainable development. Program staff have extensive experience in Great Lakes policy development and maritime issues, and wide-ranging contacts with the region’s maritime, policy and natural resource communities.

• Land Use The loss of greenfields and open spaces to sprawl while older urban areas decay and are abandoned is not only wasteful, but also has negative economic, social and environmental consequences. With an underlying theme of linking urban revitalization and open space protection, the Commission’s Land Use Policy Roundtable Series was established to support state efforts to develop sustainable land use strategies and encourage a regional approach to land use. Three roundtables, tailored to meet individual state needs, were held in 2005 in Ohio, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, with others to follow. The U.S. EPA-funded series grew out of a 2001 Commission report, which outlined a suite of 32 regional strategies to promote sustainable land use.
• Maritime Support of an economically viable and environmentally responsible marine transportation system has been a priority for the Great Lakes Commission since its creation in 1955. In 2005, the Commission continued its work to identify and promote the environmental advantages of the marine transportation mode through modal shift research. Other efforts focused on the safety and reliability of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway system through infrastructure maintenance and improvement, such as the Soo Lock replacement project and the Great Lakes Dredging Team; enhanced navigation aids, such as the Great Lakes Observing System; and assessing the technical needs of ports and harbors through a new partnership with the NOAA Coastal Services Center. The Commission also neared completion of a first-ever study identifying the economic benefits of recreational boating, and initiated efforts to work with a number of partners in “branding” and marketing Great Lakes coastal tourism.

• Great Lakes Coastal Tourism: Develop a “branding” strategy for Great Lakes coastal tourism, including promotion of the Great Lakes Circle Tour, among other efforts.
• Great Lakes Dredging Team: Provide staff support for a partnership of federal and state agencies created to assure that Great Lakes dredging operations are conducted in a timely, cost-effective and environmentally sound manner.
• Land Use Roundtable Series: Support ongoing series of state roundtables designed to encourage sustainable land use policies in the region.
• Modal Shift Study: Update 1993 Commission report on the safety, energy and environmental implications of shifting from land-based to maritime modes of transportation.
• Recreational Boating Study: Conduct a comprehensive analysis of the total economic impact of recreational boating to the eight Great Lakes states.
• Regional Needs Assessment: Examine regional needs in the areas of ports and navigation, coastal community development, and the integration and distribution of related data.
• “Restructuring Marine Transportation: A Global Overview of Sustainable Development:” Produce English translation of recent report sponsored by the Québec Transport Ministry.
• Soo Lock Replacement Project: Serve as nonfederal sponsor and agent for the eight Great Lakes states in apportioning and managing the nonfederal cost share for a second large lock on the St. Marys River.
• Submerged Lands Management: Compile survey results on state policies and programs for submerged lands management and application of the public trust doctrine.