Ramaswamy promises to protect Lake Erie

LAKESIDE-MARBLEHEAD — Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican frontrunner for governor, said Tuesday he plans to continue Gov. Mike DeWine's H2Ohio program and will work to protect Lake Erie if he's elected governor in November. Ramaswamy, running in the May primary against two lesser-known GOP candidates, Heather Hill and Casey Putsch, hosted a town hall meeting in a Lakeside Chautaqua building that drew a standing-room-only crowd. While the event's talking points did focus on safeguarding Lake Erie, Ramaswamy also took questions on other topics. Protecting natural resources Ramaswamy said he is committed to supporting funding for H2Ohio, Wine's program for preserving water quality in Ohio, including Lake Erie. DeWine's program includes teaching farmers better fertilizer use and paying them to follow good practices. It also includes spending money to preserve and build up wetlands, which serve as a kind of natural filter for water flowing into Lake Erie. Both provisions are aimed at reducing harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie. Ramaswamy said he supports the voluntary program to encourage farmers to reduce phosphorus runoff into Lake Erie and said he likes the fact that the program backs farmers but also helps the lake. "We can all win together," he said. "It's good to celebrate success." Ramaswamy signalled that he also plans to listen to his running mate, state Sen. Rob McColley, R-Napoleon, who is the current president of the Ohio Senate and is seeking the office of lieutenant governor. McColley, standing near Ramaswamy at the town hall meeting, said the health of Lake Erie "is very personal to me," and heaped praise on Chris Winslow, director of Stone Laboratory at Put-in-Bay, as "the foremost expert on water quality in Ohio." "H2Ohio is a crucial asset for us to continue funding," McColley said. Ramaswamy and McColley did not commit to a specific level of funding. The Ohio General Assembly continued funding for H2Ohio in the last budget but made significant cuts. The two did not address DeWine's efforts to fund wetlands restoration, but the Register took the opportunity to ask them as Ramaswamy left the scene to go to his next event. "In principle, it makes a lot of sense," Ramaswamy said, referring to wetlands restoration. He said he needs to study factors such as scale, size and type of wetlands. Ramaswamy invited McColley to comment also, and McColley added, "We also have to be focused on the location of them." It's important to restore wetlands where they will have the biggest impact, he said. Ramaswamy also spoke Tuesday at the Sandusky-area Kalahari Resorts and Convention Center. Preview of May primary Ramaswamy is a billionaire businessman with little government experience. McColley has been touted as a running mate who brings expertise in state government. A spokeswoman for Amy Acton's campaign for governor said Acton is the candidate who can be trusted to protect Lake Erie. "While Dr. Acton is hearing directly from farmers and lakefront communities about how we can protect our most precious natural resources, Vivek Ramaswamy is flying around in a private jet without any real solutions to our biggest challenges," said Addie Bullock, spokeswoman for Acton for Ohio. "Vivek Ramaswamy is an out-of-touch billionaire who believes that Medicaid is a mistake, tells Ohioans that rising costs are in our imagination, and now wants to close down our colleges. We can't trust him to protect Lake Erie, and we can't trust him to fight for our working families," Bullock said. Acton, the former director of Ohio's state health department, was on the Lake Erie Commission when she served in state government and backed DeWine's H2Ohio program. Both candidates and their running mates will be on the May 5 primary ballot.