President-elect Joe Biden is expected to reverse dozens of Donald Trump’s environmental policies while emphasizing a crackdown on polluters in Illinois and beyond. Read the full story by Chicago Sun-Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201110-environmental-policies
The Pyatt Lake Trail on Old Mission Peninsula in Michigan had been experiencing high water levels due to rising waters in the Great Lakes and frequent rainstorms, which blocks off parts of the trail. The Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy is building boardwalks and improving the trailway and observation platforms, making it the peninsula’s first universally-accessible trail. Read the full story by 9&10News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201110-accessible-trails-michigan
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that the Center for EcoTechnology, RTI International and the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio have been awarded grants totaling $170,907 to support sustainable materials management projects in Ohio. Read the full story by Waste Today.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201110-recycling-waste-grants
A vast chunk of Mississauga’s prime lakeshore in Ontario will be converted from a former oil refinery. Highlights of the redevelopment named Brightwater will include nearly 3,000 new residences in a mix of condominiums and townhomes, as well as up to 150 affordable housing units. Read the full story by The Globe and Mail.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201110-oil-refinery-redevelopment
Historically sailors often found Lake Erie to be the most challenging of the Great Lakes, as its shallowness can cause violent waves. As Great Lakes shipping increased in the 19th century, during the time the Lake Erie Canal was built, three lighthouses were constructed in Monroe, Michigan guiding ships through the perilous waters. Read the full story by Monroe News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201110-lake-erie-lighthouses
Officials on Monday celebrated the completion of the Route 5 break wall repair project in Hamburg, New York. The break wall has, for years, deteriorated so much to the point that cars were splashed by the waters from Lake Erie during storms. The upgrades will prevent these hazards with the installation of 1,325 foot stones and a ten-foot “splash apron”. Listen to the full story by WBEN-FM, Buffalo NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201110-break-wall-erosion
The Erie Canal Harbor Development Corp. board of directors met Monday and adopted the Buffalo Outer Harbor’s general project plan (GPP). The Outer Harbor GPP outlines future improvements including recreational facilities to improve what is currently vacant, substandard or underutilized property along a nearly one-and-a-half mile stretch of Lake Erie waterfront. Read the full story by Niagara Frontier Publications.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201110-harbor-plan-improvements
A $40 million data center that will serve the Chicago area has opened in northwestern Indiana at a former coal-fired power plant site along Lake Michigan that was shuttered in 2012 and had long been one of the Chicago area’s worst polluters. The 105,000-square-foot Digital Crossroads data center was designed to serve soaring demand for data storage, such as for streaming movie and music services. Read the full story by The Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201110-coal-data-indiana
Canadian grain shipments through the St. Lawrence Seaway topped 6.2 million tonnes at the end of September, maintaining its 20 per cent increase over the 2019 season, according to the latest results. While the ‘grain rush’ has helped lift cargo totals, Great Lakes-Seaway shipping also reported decreases in commodities related to steel production, and the energy and construction sectors. Read the full story by Manitoba Co-operator.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201027-shipping-seaway
A western Michigan city has been selected to receive a $5.1 million federal water infrastructure improvement grant to help pay for lead service line replacement. The grant will help fund 1,700 lead service line replacements in the coming years. Read the full story by The Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201027-water-lead-infrastructure-grant
Approximately 20 households in East Bay Township near Traverse City, Michigan could have drinking wells contaminated with PFAS chemicals linked to cancer and other health risks with state and local health officials seeking to test the properties, provide bottled water as a short-term safety precaution, and potentially switch the homes to municipal hookups going forward. Read the full story by The Ticker.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201027-pfas-pollution-michigan
The oil pipeline company Enbridge pushed to limit what a state regulator could consider regarding relocating the Line 5 twin pipelines across the Straits of Mackinac. Read the full story by NPR.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201027-line-5-review
Rainstorms dumped 4.4 inches in 36 hours on Traverse City, and its sewage system didn’t overflow has it had in previous large rain events. City officials continue to investigate infiltration to prevent a repeat of the past three spills; the worst sent more than 50,000 gallons of sewage into the Boardman River. Read the full story by The Record-Eagle.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201027-sewer-traverse-city-infrastructure
The Great Lakes Sports Commission has awarded $150,000 in grant funding for infrastructure development at the Tech Trails. The Tech Trail system is part of a larger trail system, providing both extensive mountain biking and ski trails. Read the full story by The Mining Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201027-recreation-trails-grant
A graduate student’s road trip around Lake Michigan revealed the effects of small streams and their nutrient loads on the Great Lakes. Read the full story by The Science Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201027-tributaries-nutrients-pollution
State studies show an encouraging drop in PFAS levels along the Huron River. Though it’s still not safe to eat the fish, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) said last week that ongoing monitoring of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance levels in the Huron River are on the decline. Read the full story by WHMI-FM, Howell MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201027-pfas-huron-river
The current approach to nonpoint source pollution and polluted urban runoff is insufficient to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation’s waters. To achieve the goals of the Clean Water Act, Congress must provide grant funding and financing to state and local authorities, as well as private landowners, commensurate with the scope of the pollution challenge. Read the full story by Center for American Progress.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201027-pollution-non-point-nutrient
Perhaps no other Great Lakes shipwreck has as much notoriety as the ill-fated SS Edmund Fitzgerald, a 729-foot iron ore carrier that sunk to the bottom of Lake Superior on Nov. 10, 1975, during a fierce November gale. Read the full story by WiscNews.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201027-edmund-fitzgerald
The Wisconsin DNR has proposed new permanent administrative rules that would increase fees for nonferrous mining exploration and operation permits, licenses and fees by about $502,000 per project. Applicants also would be required to provide substantially greater detail in feasibility reports, operational plans and construction documentation as conditions for permits. Read the full story by The Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201027-mining-dnr
The results of a multi-year assessment found that conditions in the inner-bay were suitable for restoration, and identified the Coreyon Reef as a priority restoration site. With financial support from the Environmental Protection Agency and Saginaw Bay Watershed Initiative Network, the collaborative reef restoration team began moving forward with the design, permitting, construction, and restoration. Read the full story by Marine Technology News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201020-reef-restoration
A proposed ban on some single-use plastics should serve as a wake-up call to Canadians concerned about the potential harms everyday items may pose, say experts who expect the move will spur research into settling ongoing questions about whether and how microplastic affects human health. Read the full story by the Chronicle Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201020-micro-plastics
On this fall’s ballot for Michigan, Proposal 1 enshrines in the state constitution a long-term funding source that protects our clean water sources, wildlife habitats, and beloved state parks, for generations to come — without a dime of taxpayer money. Read the full story by Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201020-michigan-fund-proposal
The 80-year-old structure offers spectacular views of the big lake from atop a crumbling bluff at Orchard Beach State Park in Michigan’s Manistee Township. The pavilion will be moved to the park’s day-use area, which is a safer location that will also provide better access – although it’s view of Lake Michigan won’t be quite as impressive. Read the full story by MLive.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201020-michigan-erosion
The good news is that Lake Superior’s last surviving wild caribou appear to be thriving on their new island homes on Ontario’s Slate Islands, though hope is dwindling that any caribou remain on the Ontario mainland of Lake Superior’s North Shore, with an aerial survey last winter finding no caribou, not even any tracks. Read the full story by Brainerd Dispatch.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201020-wildlife-caribou
Wisconsin power plants would no longer have to further reduce emissions as part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s proposal to change regulations for air pollution that crosses state lines. Read the full story by NPR.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201020-wisconsin-air-emissions
Michigan’s Invasive Species Grant Program is now accepting proposals for the 2020 funding cycle through a joint effort of the Michigan departments of Natural Resources; Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy; and Agriculture and Rural Development as a part of a statewide initiative launched in 2014 to help prevent, detect and control invasive species in Michigan. Read the full story by WLUC-TV-Negaunee, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201020-invasive-species-grants-michigan
Under New York State’s goal of 70 percent renewable energy consumption by 2030 under the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, the New York State Public Service Commission directed the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority to conduct a feasibility study regarding “stakeholder outreach, analysis, and policy options” for offshore wind facilities in the Great Lakes. Read the full story by JD Supra.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201020-great-lakes-wind-energy
Baby wipes clogged the wastewater system in Beulah in northern Michigan, causing a backup of 10,000 gallons of human waste from a manhole. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201020-wipes-waste
The Ports of Indiana and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are working to have the northern and southern portions declared as maritime districts; the alignment will create one district for Lake Michigan shipments and one district for Ohio River shipments, allowing the state to be better represented in national rankings. Read the full story by The Center Square.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201013-ports-martime
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Chicago District, has completed construction for the final phase of the Fort Sheridan Great Lakes Fishery and Ecosystem Restoration project at Fort Sheridan Forest Preserve in unincorporated Lake County, including 60 acres of shoreline and placement of artificial underwater reefs. Read the full story by the Daily Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201013-fort-sheridan-restoration
The owner of a Detroit River dock that collapsed in November 2019, spilling large piles of gravel-type rocks into the river, has been fined $60,000 by state regulators for violating state environmental laws. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201013-detriot-dock-collapse
The Duluth City Council approved a resolution that will halt any further work to advance the path and redirect $915,000 in federal disaster aid that had been earmarked to repair a crushed stone shoreline path, to be used to help fund repairs of other storm-damaged areas. Read the full story by the Duluth News Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201013-duluth-construction
Consumers Energy spent from May through mid-September pulling four to eight 46 kV cables from the water. The cables had been installed in 1956 to carry electricity to the Upper Peninsula. Read the full story by MLive.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201013-mackinac-energy
The project on Detroit’s Oakman Boulevard will drain 64 acres to prevent flooding by installing permeable medians as much as 15 feet below the street surface. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201013-green-infrastructure
According to the Chamber of Marine Commerce, from April through the end of August, cargo volumes in the St. Lawrence Seaway, was down 8% compared to 2019’s figures. Read the full story by NPR.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201013-shipping-slowdown
More than 91,000 dams impede the passage of rivers all around the United States. Most dams have a lifespan of about 50 years, and many that exist in the United States were built long before the 1970s—including the Edenville Dam in Michigan, which failed earlier this year. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201013-aging-dams
The ongoing disaster striking the coastal communities of the Great Lakes has not captured national attention like hurricanes and wildfires in other parts of the country, but those communities are reeling from untold billions in damage and the prospect that climate change will make things worse in the years to come. Read the full story by Wisconsin Examiner.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201013-coastal-damages
Michigan voters will decide next month whether to change how money can be spent under a popular program that buys land for public use and supports projects such as construction of trails, playgrounds and boat launches. Read the full story by The Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201006-michigan-natural-resources-fund
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has confirmed reports of zebra mussels in Lake Minnie-Belle, near Litchfield in Meeker County, after a watercraft inspector reported finding a zebra mussel on a four subsequent settlement samplers. Read the full story by West Central Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201006-minnesota-zebra-mussels
Lake Erie’s Western Basin received an overall C+ on its report card produced by the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science based on a variety of factors regarding the lake’s condition. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201006-lake-erie-report
As a part of a three year study including 61 ecosystem indicators and 40 organizations a report out from the 2019 Canada-United States State of the Strait Conference indicates improving ecosystem health including the return of birds of prey, lake sturgeon, lake whitefish and beaver; but also is evidence that these ecosystems are facing eight health challenges including climate change, eutrophication and algal blooms, and toxic substance contamination among others. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201006-great-lakes-ecosystem
The Indiana Department of Natural Resources has named Terry Coleman the new director of Indiana State Parks. Coleman has served as deputy director of state parks since 2014 and has been serving as interim state parks director since his predecessor, Dan Bortner, was appointed director of the DNR in August. Read the full story by Inside Indiana Business.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201006-indiana-parks-director
The William Richard is a $4M jet ferry that officially completed necessary trials by transporting only luggage to and from Mackinac Island on behalf of Grand Hotel guests on Sunday. Read the full story by MLive.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201006-mackinac-ferry
The Great Lakes Children’s Museum is reopening to the public on October 14 in Traverse City, MI after going through air and soil vapor testing. Staff is currently adding COVID-19 safety measures, including sanitizing stations. Read the full story by UpNorthLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201006-great-lakes-museum
A Detroit site tied to the notorious “green ooze” on I-696 last year was purportedly on its way to having its contaminants removed last January; now more than eight months later, the site is unsecured, easily accessible, with pollution remaining. Read the full story by Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201006-detroit-pollution
The company is one of six shipbuilders to receive a $7 million award on Sept. 4 from the Navy to develop a prototype for a new unmanned ship that would be between 200 and 300 feet long with a focus on being low-cost, reconfigurable designs with capabilities to attack both land and sea targets. Read the full story by the Green Bay Press Gazette.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201006-ship-design
The Canadian federal government is in the market for another used icebreaker that could be converted for use by the Canadian Coast Guard on the Great Lakes, much to the dismay of shipbuilders across the country as this decision would represent a loss of domestic jobs and investment into local economy hard hit by the coronavirus outbreak. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201006-canadian-icebreaker
Sault Ste. Marie (Ontario) City Council agreed Monday to try to persuade the federal government to locate a new Canada Water Agency to keep our water safe, clean, and well-managed in the city. Read the full story by Sootoday.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200929-sault-ste-marie-agency
A lot in the water and shoreline of the Detroit River and western Lake Erie is much more environmentally sound than a generation or two ago, but new threats to the ecosystem are approaching tipping points, according to a study by an array of concerned officials and private citizens from the United States and Canada. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200929-shoreline-ecosystem-threats
Enbridge’s plans for drilling an oil pipeline tunnel beneath a channel linking two of the Great Lakes do not meet industry standards and pose significant hazards to workers and the environment, experts who reviewed project documents on behalf of opposition groups said Monday. Read the full story by The Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200929-line-5
