Crown Jewel at Risk 

In Chicago Life Magazine's fall supplement, writer Christopher Johnson details the BP tar sand oil spill that occurred on March 24 of this year at their greatly enlarged refinery.  "The spill posed an immediate threat to drinking water and wildlife, but perhaps just as significant, it pointed to the threat of more spills - from the refinery, "  Johnson says.  He notes that BP's expansion on Indiana's shoreline cost $3.8 billion and allows it to process heavy Canadian tar sands oil, controversial in its own right due to its higher mercury levels and increased difficulty for clean-ups.  Already the Kalamazoo River has been contaminated by pipeline leakage of tar sands oil with disastrous effect.

Why leave Lake Michigan's fate to the states that enforce the Clean Water Act?  We need to act now to protect the Lake as we do our national parks.  By making all of Lake Michigan a mercury-free zone, the U.S. can better shield our freshwater treasure from this lethal toxin.

Thanks to Jill for sending the Chicago Life Magazine, a fall supplement to the NYTimes, that includes the article beginning at page 30:
http://edition.pagesuite-professional.co.uk/Launch.aspx?EID=bf0a62cf-745c-4d0e-8822-0cb10c8f5cbe