Before you hit the road, check the list of Michigan beaches that are closed or under contamination advisories for water quality that’s unacceptable or questionable for human contact. Last week, there were two on Lake St. Clair and the Detroit River. Read the full story by the MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230605-beach-closures
In May, people might have noticed large amounts of dead fish in Lake Erie. Wildlife officials in the Ohio Department of Natural Resources said Sandusky, Ohio experienced a higher mortality rate this year due to a deadly fish virus called Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia, commonly referred to as VHS which is not transmittable to humans. Read the full story by the Advertiser-Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230605-fish-kills
Underserved communities will be able to access $30 million in environmental justice grants for restoration projects in the Great Lakes region under a new federal program. The Environmental Protection Agency recently announced it is setting aside the funds as part of the Great Lakes Environmental Justice Grant Program, funded through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Read the full story by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230524-justice-grants
President Joe Biden’s administration took the first step Thursday toward designating the Pennsylvania-owned section of Lake Erie as the state’s first national marine sanctuary. The announcement sets up a public comment period before the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration writes a draft plan for the sanctuary. Read the full story by the Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230524-marine-sanctuary
A report by the Environmental Law and Policy Center has identified 12 hot spots along Lake Michigan already impacted by changing water levels and storms related to climate change. Read the full story by WBBM-TV – Chicago, IL.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230524-lake-michigan-levels
Although it’s been standing in Lake Michigan since the 19th century, Chicago’s Harbor Lighthouse is little known except as a quaint feature in social media photos. Now a rescue group hopes to transform it into a tourism magnet. Read the full story by Crain’s Chicago Business.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230524-lighthouse
In recent weeks a lot of folks have noticed a plethora of dead fish washing up on the shorelines around Western Lake Erie, and in East Harbor and West Harbor. With the public worried that something might be killing our beloved yellow perch or walleye, the Lake Erie Fisheries Administrator for the Ohio Division of Wildlife weighs in. Read the full story by The Beacon.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230524-fish-die-off
Before the water begins flowing through the new pipeline system to and from Lake Michigan later this summer, the city of Waukesha, Wisconsin, will manage a different kind of flow: public information. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230524-waukesha-water
Lake Erie and its annual algal blooms are the subjects of a recent legal ruling and a topic of discussion for lake goers. According to the most recent projections from the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, the 2023 harmful algal bloom is expected to be moderate based on observations through May 16 and the bloom will be smaller if precipitation is at or below average. Read the full story by the WEWS-TV – Cleveland, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230524-ohio-algae
A fishing coalition can’t intervene in negotiations between five Native American tribes, the United States, and Michigan over who gets to manage Great Lakes fisheries, the Sixth Circuit ruled Tuesday. The Coalition to Protect Michigan Resources has been allowed to participate in negotiations as an amicus, but moved to intervene because it says that Michigan is no longer adequately representing its interests. Read the full story by Bloomberg Law.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230524-fishing-negotiations
Some regional leaders have a vision for the Midwest’s freshwater seas as 94,000 square miles of untapped wind energy potential, boasting consistently strong winds in a region that’s already home to an established manufacturing sector. Read the full story by Stateline.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230524-offshore-wind
After an alarming number of Great Lakes beach drownings last summer, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources has updated its flag alert system, adding a new, more serious designation: the double red flags, which goes beyond the single red flag and requires, not just recommends, swimmers to stay out of the water. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230524-red-flags
The city of Chicago trumpeted a deal with the Illinois city of Joliet to divert treated drinking water from Lake Michigan, starting in 2030. But how and why Illinois can divert that much water inland underscores risky concessions the other seven Great Lakes states had to make when they negotiated the 2008 Great Lakes Compact. Read the full story by The Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230515-joliet-diversion
Partners working to clean up a polluted hotspot on Lake Superior are now looking to monitor emerging threats from harmful algal blooms. A team of scientists is now deploying sensors to collect more than 300 water samples from the St. Louis River Estuary to track emerging water quality issues. Read the full story by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230515-estuary-monitoring
New York state water officials are keeping an eye on the Lake Ontario shoreline as the water is higher but still below flooding levels. The lake is seeing more water flow in from seasonal snowmelt up north, and less water flow out a dam on the New York-Canadian water border. Read the full story by WAER – Syracuse, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230515-lake-ontario-levels
In a move to tackle an acute mariner shortage accentuated by the rapid retirement of boomers, Canada has signed an unprecedented agreement with the Philippines, allowing Filipino merchant mariners to serve on Canadian-flagged vessels. This marks a significant shift in international labor arrangements, opening new doors for the robust Filipino seafarer population, but causing worry among Canadian Merchant Mariners that wages could fall. Read the full story by gCaptain.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230515-filipino-mariners
Michigan remains the only state without a septic code, with recent efforts failing to gain traction within the Legislature. As the state contends with flooding and sewer backups, addressing individual septic systems is yet another element in addressing aging infrastructure and water quality issues for both inland waters and the Great Lakes. Read the full story by The Michigan Advance.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230515-septic-code
Local officials have been pursuing a public marina off the Belle River, citing a lack of docking space for boaters around the mid-point along the St. Clair River waterfront between Algonac, Michigan and the city of St. Clair. Read the full story by the Port Huron Times Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230515-marine-city-marina
On a windy, Saturday morning, the UAL Fortitude arrived under the Aerial Lift Bridge in Duluth, Minnesota. The Fortitude’s arrival is significant because she’s the first of a regular liner service from overseas. Read the full story by WDIO-TV – Duluth, MN.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230515-fortitude-duluth
In Michigan’s Port Huron Township, fifth graders released 65 chinook salmon into the Black River as part of an education program with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. An aquatic education coordinator for the DNR said the program teaches students the importance of Great Lakes ecology. Read the full story by the Port Huron Times Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230515-student-salmon
In Michigan, the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center recently partnered with Alpena Public Schools to host the first-ever “3rd grade Get Into Your Sanctuary Program”, a multi-visit field trip that culminated with the students taking a boat ride to explore the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Read the full story by The Alpena News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230515-sanctuary-program
The village of Geneva-on-the-Lake in Ohio has joined the Lake County Communities Shoreline Special Improvement District, which will provide an additional funding option for the village to deal with erosion issues harming Lake Erie. Read the full story by the Star Beacon.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230515-shoreline-improvement
As Lake Michigan fisheries managers and stakeholders have approved chinook salmon stocking increases for this year, the latest prey fish assessment shows forage levels remain low historically but with some positive year-over-year changes. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230410-prey-fish
A roundtable discussion of the water quality of the Western Basin of Lake Erie is scheduled for April 11 at the Maumee Bay State Park convention center in Ohio. The discussion will include thoughts from local officials and activists on the lake’s current condition and factors contributing to harmful algal blooms. Read the full story by The Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230410-western-lake
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ (ODNR) work as part of the H2Ohio Initiative has earned national attention by receiving the 2023 Wetland Conservation Achievement Award, presented by Ducks Unlimited. Read the full story by The Delaware Gazette.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230410-odnr-award
After being designated as a national marine sanctuary in 2021, Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary is working toward community engagement for its region on Wisconsin’s shore of Lake Michigan. Read the full story by The Press Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230410-shipwreck-coast
This season is an especially great time to scout for Petoskey stones on Lake Michigan shores because the winter ice and waves have moved and shifted the stones, churning up new ones and making them more accessible. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230410-petoskey-stones
To learn more about harmful algal blooms in the Great Lakes, as well as new freshwater acidification research findings, attend Thursday’s lecture at the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center in Alpena. Read the full story by The Alpena News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230410-habs-glmhc
The Michigan Invasive Species Grant Program (MIGSP) provides research grants to reduce the impact of invasive species in the state. This year, MIGSP has funded $3.6 million for 35 projects, several with impacts for aquatic invasive species in Southeast Michigan. Read the full story by WDET- Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230410-invasive-species
In Ontario, Port Windsor welcomed the first “salty” – or foreign vessel – of the 2023 shipping season last week when the M/V Egbert Wagenborg arrived at arrived at ADM Agri Industries on April 4 to load grain for export. Read the full story by the Windsor Star.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230410-port-windsor
Over the last few years, Walstrom Marine has been making progress towards its goal of becoming a premium marine operator across the Great Lakes. In November, the company acquired Grand Bay Marine and is now working to merge the companies together. Read the full story by The Petoskey News-Review.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230410-charlevoix-marine
In Michigan, Chesterfield Township officials are considering the possibility of constructing a new water storage facility in the community. The Chesterfield Township Board of Trustees voted to award engineering services for a water storage feasibility study. Read the full story by The Voice.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230410-chesterfield-storage
For three days in March the world came together at the United Nations in New York City to discuss ways to place water at the center of decision-making. Public officials, business leaders, and scientists from the Great Lakes region attended the conference, linking global debates about freshwater supply and management with local experience. Read the full story by Michigan Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230405-united-nations
The federal government says it’s making Canada’s largest investment ever in protecting the nation’s sources of fresh water, including the Great Lakes. Commitments announced by the government during U.S. President Joe Biden’s visit and in the recent budget bring the federal government’s total investment to $750 million. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230405-canada-investment
A massive sewage discharge into Lake Erie over the Christmas holidays has Niagara Region reviewing policies and making improvements at its Crystal Beach wastewater treatment plant in Ontario. Read the full story by The Record.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230405-discharge
New research reveals the progress scientists at The University of Toledo are making in their ongoing efforts to capture and remove invasive grass carp from the Great Lakes. Read the full story by Science Magazine.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230405-grass-carp
On March 30, a lawsuit was filed against H. Wood Farms in Jefferson County, New York, with claims that runoff from the over 2,000-cow dairy farm has previously polluted nearby creeks that run into the St. Lawrence River. However, the Wood Farms President and Co-Owner said these accusations are false. Read the full story by WWTI- TV – Watertown, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230405-wood-farms
In their annual meeting held last week in the Ontario city of Hamilton, the Lake Erie Committee established the total allowable catches for 2023, a determination of how many walleye and yellow perch can be harvested from the lake. Read the full story by the Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230405-allowable-catches
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported that February 2023 was Earth’s fourth-warmest on record. In the Great Lakes basin, this is being witnessed through less lake ice cover, which is already having major impacts. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230405-ice-cover
The National Weather Service offices across Michigan have issued Gale Warnings for parts of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron ahead of the approaching storm system. Lake Superior’s conditions are expected to be especially dangerous. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230405-storm-winds
Of the 945 charter boat guides licensed in Ohio, there are 18 who are female, and only two in Ottawa County. Earning success in a male-dominated profession is a significant accomplishment, but the discrepancies between them and their male colleagues pretty much end there. Read the full story by The Beacon.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230405-female-captains
The National Museum of the Great Lakes will explore the uncharted chapter of Great Lakes pirate history on April 19, when Arrgh: A History of Piracy on the Great Lakes comes to the Clinton-Macomb Public Library in Michigan. Read the full story by the Macomb Daily.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230405-pirates
Canada has pledged a significant increase in spending to improve water quality in the Great Lakes following Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden, whose administration also has boosted funding for the shared waters. Read the full story Minnesota Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230327-canada-pledge
For two to three weeks each year, the Army Corps of Engineers pulls tons of sludge from the Black River in Ohio. Normally, that material would be poured into a collection facility in the harbor. But by next year, it will find its way farther downriver and, eventually, shipped back out as topsoil or other usable material. Read the full story by the Chronicle Telegram.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230327-dredge-material
The National Park Service is about halfway through the prescribed burns it has planned for this spring to restore and renew natural habitats in the Indiana Dunes National Park, adjacent to Lake Michigan. Read the full story by The Times of Northwest Indiana.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230327-indiana-dunes
Parking was hard to come by Friday night as people made their way into the Soo Locks Park to watch the first freighter officially open the 2023 shipping season in Sault Ste Marie, Michigan. A few hundred people packed the viewing platform at midnight to photograph, video, and talk about the 1004′ x 105′ Edwin H. Gott slowly working its way into the Poe Lock. Read the full story by Soo Today.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230327-soo-locks
The “status quo” for the Hamilton (ON) Waterfront Trust isn’t among the mix as the new city council pursues a fresh approach to the harbor. That involves studying the arm’s-length agency’s dissolution with the city taking over its functions. Read the full story by the Hamilton Spectator.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230327-hamilton-waterfront
In Michigan, Muskegon River anglers should be on the lookout this spring for Michigan Department of Natural Resources personnel collecting walleye eggs to stock ponds in the state. Read the full story by Up North Voice.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230327-walleye-eggs
A strong geomagnetic storm caused the Northern Lights to be visible over Lake Erie last Thursday night into Friday morning. Read the full story by WJET-TV – Erie, PA.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230327-northern-lights
It’s important in Northeast Ohio to have places that provide boats with clear access to Lake Erie. The Ohio Department of Resources has released $500,000 for an important project in the Mentor Harbor Channel based on an announcement recently made by state Rep. Callender and State Sen. Cirino. Read the full story by The News-Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230327-odnr-grant
