State Rep. Rebekah Warren, D-Ann Arbor, was named the 2009 Lawmaker of the Year by the Clean Water Action at the Great Lakes Awards Celebration.

Organizers said the prestigious award is one of seven given statewide "honoring prominent lawmakers, citizens, leaders and volunteers who work to protect the state's national treasures and create a clean energy economy for Michigan."

“Michigan’s natural resources have suffered under the current budget crisis, but Rep. Warren can always be counted on to protect our water, air and the many special places that define Michigan,” Cyndi Roper, Michigan Clean Water Action executive director, said in a press release today.

State Rep. Rebekah Warren, D-Ann Arbor, right, receives the Lawmaker of the Year Award from Clean Water Action Executive Director Cyndi Roper at the Great Lakes Awards Celebration. Warren was honored for her work to protect Michigan's natural resources.

Courtesy Photo

According to CWA, Warren earned the honor for reaching across the aisle to negotiate several pressing issues, including a bill to keep Michigan's wetlands program under state authority and the landmark Great Lakes Compact legislation, which effectively banned the diversion of Great Lakes water from outside the basin.

Throughout her tenure, Warren also has been a leader in efforts to reduce out-of-state and Canadian trash, and to protect children from toys and household products that contain toxic chemicals, according to CWA.

Warren, who is serving her second term as state representative, was appointed chairwoman of the Great Lakes and Environment Committee as a freshman legislator in 2007 and was reappointed in 2009. She also is active in the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators and co-chairs the Recycling Caucus.

CWA is the state’s largest environmental organization, known for its ability to mobilize public support for environmental and public health policies.

“Clean Water Action is an organization known for its steadfast convictions and staunch advocacy on behalf of our pristine natural resources,” Warren stated in the press release. “They are the standard bearer who can always be counted on to hold legislators accountable for our votes. To be selected as their lawmaker of the year is an esteemed honor that I pledge to continue to earn throughout the rest of my tenure."

Ryan J. Stanton covers government for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com 734-623-2529.