Summary Paper

• Originally established in 1997 by the Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan state geological surveys in partnership with the U.S. Geological Survey, the Coalition expanded in 2008 to include all eight states that border the Great Lakes. It has received strong bipartisan and bicameral Congressional support since 1999.
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  PURPOSE
  

  •	Emphasizes the importance of interstate/interagency cooperation by pooling expertise and equipment
  •	Constructs geologic maps and geologic products characterizing the uppermost, unconsolidated (glacial) deposits and underlying bedrock
  •	Prioritizes mapping where it is most needed, in urban and suburban areas and in regions with known environmental and homeland security risks

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  JUSTIFICATION
  

  •	Provides decision makers with objective geological information required to address critical societal issues
  •	Assists local and county government, developers, and planners by providing up-to-date geologic data and outlining possible dangers that may exist, such as aquifers susceptible to contamination, soils that enhance earthquake shaking, and terrain subject to erosion, flooding, or subsidence
  •	Delineates ground-water resources to sustain public, heavy industrial, and agricultural use
  •	Identifies and determines long-term sustainability of ground-water resources for CO2 sequestration, ethanol production plants, and “peaker” power plants
  •	Delineates sand and gravel resources for infrastructure construction and upgrades
  •	Evaluates the cost and long-term performance of landfills and other waste-disposal sites
  •	Identifies environmentally safe areas for redevelopment of abandoned industrial lands, commercial and manufacturing enterprises, and new or expanded waste-disposal facilities
  •	Assesses sustainability and suitability of areas designated for reclamation, preservation, and restoration, or for creation of wetlands, open spaces, and surface water bodies
  •	Identifies and addresses shoreline issues along the Great Lakes
  •	Provides a model that may be applied to other areas of the United States, particularly large urban areas located on coastlines and in river valleys
  •	Saves municipal, state, and federal governments millions of dollars annually by providing pertinent geologic information

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  FUNDING
  

  •	$500,000 line item in the federal budget since FY2000
  •	$500,000 included in the President's budget since FY2004

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  FY 2010 Request–Since FY2000, the program has been a $500,000 line item in the Federal Budget, and from 2004 to 2008, the $500,000 has been included in the President's budget. In the FY2009 President’s Budget request, the $500,000 was removed and then restored and increased to $750,000 in the House Appropriations Committee mark. To supplement federal funds, Coalition members have been dedicating millions of their other funds to this mapping effort. However, to expand the program and provide this societally important geological information in a more timely fashion, additional Federal funds are needed. Therefore, for FY2010, the Coalition requests an incremental programmatic increase of $4,500,000 in the House/Senate Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bills, and that specific funds for the Great Lakes Geologic Mapping Coalition be placed within the USGS’ National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program.
  
  
  
  
  
  
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