PORT CLINTON, Ohio — Standing in back of the boat, Gov. Bob Taft cast his fishing line into the water, hoping to catch a walleye.

        After more than four hours of fishing a week ago on Lake Erie, a prized walleye eluded him, although he did catch a small white perch.

        Mr. Taft, a noted outdoorsman, enjoys fishing, a pastime he learned as a young boy fly-fishing with his father in Canada.

        The image of Mr. Taft out on the lake or hiking on nature trails isn't out of character for him. But it is also smart politics as he heads into the 2002 election touting his environmental policies.

        “For me, the environment is an important part of my legacy as governor,” the Cincinnati Republican said. “And we've made a lot of progress.”

        Environmental groups, however, contend Mr. Taft's carefully cultivated outdoor image masks a mixed record.

        “He has shown real leadership on Lake Erie,” said Bryan Clark, a lobbyist with the Ohio Public Interest Research Group. “But on other issues his environmental record has been poor.

        “I think he is using the Clean Ohio Fund to try and secure an environmental legacy that just isn't there.”

        The voter-approved Clean Ohio Fund earmarks $200 million for redevelopment of old industrial sites and another $200 million for acquiring green space for parks and trails, among other things.

        Last year, Mr. Taft campaigned enthusiastically for the $400 million bond issue, touring the state to drum up support.

        After voters passed the measure, lawmakers, with input from Mr. Taft, crafted the details. The governor last week signed it into law.

        “All of the projects under the Clean Ohio Fund will be an important part of my administration's legacy,” he said.

        The environmental lobby has been split over its support of the Clean Ohio Fund.

        Bruce Cornett, director of the Green Environmental Coalition, backed the plan, saying it will help decaying urban and rural areas clean up contaminated sites.

        “On the other side of the fence, you have all of the green space work,” Mr. Cornett said. “And quite frankly I think the bill is going to do a lot for recreational and open space and farmland preservation.”

        Meanwhile, other groups — Ohio PIRG and the state chapter of the Sierra Club — describe the fund as “too little, too late.”

        “I know the administration talks a lot about the Clean Ohio Fund, but it's housed at the department of development,” said Marc Conte, a lobbyist with the Sierra Club.

        “And it is such a small amount of money that I just don't think it's going to make that much of a difference,” he said.

        Mr. Clark also worries polluters will benefit from the fund, even though those responsible for contaminating a site are ineligible for money.

        “There are ways to get around the language,” he said.

        For example, he said a city can take over polluted property, apply for funds to revitalize it and then sell it back to the company that polluted it.

Lake Erie drilling
               The environmental group strongly supports Mr. Taft's refusal to allow oil and natural gas companies to drill in Lake Erie.

        “I don't want to do anything to jeopardize Lake Erie's incredible image and reputation,” Mr. Taft said. “I also don't want to jeopardize its place as a sports-fishing center and a center for boating and recreation.”

        Mr. Taft, chairman of the Great Lakes Council of Governors, said he would sign legislation banning drilling in Lake Erie. But he doubts the Legislature would pass such a measure because Congress is considering similar legislation.

        Mr. Clark, though, would like to see state legislation.

        “We're not guaranteed passage in the federal government,” he said.

        The threat was seemingly reduced Friday when President Bush said he will not add the Great Lakes to the sites where the government is looking for new sources of energy.

        “We're not going to have Great Lakes drilling. We never proposed Great Lakes drilling and it was never a part of our plan,” Mr. Bush said in a meeting with reporters at the White House.

        Although environmentalists agree with Mr. Taft's position on drilling, they harshly criticize the governor for failing to enforce the Clean Air Act.

        Four Ohio environmental organizations requested the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to strip the state of its authority to enforce federal air regulations.

        Nevertheless, Mr. Taft said Ohio is making progress on complying with clean air standards set by the federal government.

        “We're now in attainment for all of the areas in the state under the current standards,” he said. “But we're close to the margin there and we need to continue to make progress.”

        He said the state has a plan and a proposal for a 65 percent reduction in nitrogen oxide by the year 2004.

        But Mr. Clark countered that Ohio's coal-burning power plants aren't required to meet all the standards under the Clean Air Act.

        “They're grandfathered into the act,” he said. “Besides, there have been numerous instances in Ohio where these plants have significantly altered their operations, but have not upgraded their equipment.

        “That means some of these plants aren't even in compliance with the grandfather portion of the Clean Air Act,” he said.

Decreasing wetlands?
               Environmentalists also have criticized Mr. Taft for his support of the wetlands protection bill.

        When asked about the legislation, the governor said he signed the bill because it protects the state's highest quality wetlands from development. Mr. Conte said the wetlands bill actually decreases the protection for isolated wetlands.

        The legislation, he said, fails to protect wetlands not classified in the highest quality category, allowing developers to move into areas they otherwise could not under federal laws.

        Mr. Cornett, who also opposed the wetlands protection bill, said his strongest criticism of Mr. Taft was his failure to push for more money in the Ohio EPA budget.

        “The General Assembly has systematically stripped the Ohio EPA of its funds,” he said. “It's to the point where the agency can barely do its job.”

        Mr. Cornett contrasts that with Mr. Taft's role in crafting the Clean Ohio Fund.

        “He stomped his foot down and he held the line,” he said. “That's the kind of governor we need every day.”

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