Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced the Michigan Maritime Strategy, a 10-year plan with the goal to boost the state’s maritime industry, create jobs, and protect the Great Lakes. Read the full story by WBUP-TV – Marquette, MI.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260128-gov-whitmer-ten-year-maritime-strategy-michigan

Hannah Reynolds

The Great Lakes Fishery Commission and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are seeking public comments on a proposed seasonal sea lamprey barrier on the Sucker River in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The barrier is designed to block the invasive lamprey’s spread and make control efforts more effective. Read the full story by Michigan Public Radio.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260128-public-feedback-sea-lamprey-barrier-upper-peninsula

Hannah Reynolds

The international ice bridge connecting the U.S. and Canada is officially open. When the conditions are right, an approximately 12-mile stretch of Lake Huron creates a frozen path between Drummond Island, Michigan and St. Joseph Island, Ontario. Read the full story by MLive.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260128-frozen-lake-huron-international-ice-bridge

Hannah Reynolds

A multimillion-dollar project will begin later this year to restore the shoreline, bluffs and ravines at the Jean and John Greene Nature Preserve in Lake Forest, Illinois, along Lake Michigan. Read the full story by the Daily Herald.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260128-window-past-preservationist-restore-lake-michigan

Hannah Reynolds

Ontario’s government has decided to transfer about 60 % of Wasaga Beach Provincial Park to the Town of Wasaga Beach to support local tourism and economic development, even though roughly 98% of public comments opposed the change due to concerns it could endanger sensitive piping plover habitat and reduce public protections for the shoreline. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260128-ontario-wasaga-beach

Hannah Reynolds

Lake Erie is now nearly completely frozen over with rapidly growing ice cover due to persistent Arctic cold, making it the most ice-covered of the Great Lakes this winter. Officials warn despite a Great Lake being fully frozen, shifting ice can be unstable and hazardous. Read the full story by Erie Times-News.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260128-lake-erie-frozen-over-safety

Hannah Reynolds

The Lake Huron Coastal Centre’s Coast Watchers community science program is celebrating 20 years of shoreline monitoring, with volunteer citizen scientists collecting long-term data on coastal conditions, wildlife, pollution and storm impacts that help track environmental trends and support conservation and resiliency efforts along the Lake Huron coast. Read the full story by Kincardine News.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260128-lakehuron-coastline-monitoring-program

Hannah Reynolds

A prolonged cold spell is rapidly increasing ice coverage on Lake Superior — with ice cover jumping from about 6% to around 31% in recent weeks — as persistent sub-zero temperatures continue across the region. Read the full story by MPR News.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260128-cold-persists-lakesuperior-icecover

Hannah Reynolds

The U.S. Coast Guard is asking those using the ice on the bays of Green Bay and Sturgeon Bay for fishing and recreation to be especially aware as the service’s ice breaking operations continue in the waters around Door County, Wisconsin. Read the full story by the Green Bay Press-Gazette.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260128-coast-guard-advises-icebreaking-greenbay

Hannah Reynolds

Lake Zurich, Illinois, officials last week authorized revenue bond issues of $52 million to secure low-interest loans from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency as part of the village’s transition to Lake Michigan water. The target date for the transition is 2028. Read the full story by the Daily Herald.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260128-lake-zurich-lake-michigan-water

Hannah Reynolds

Lawmakers from Michigan and Illinois are seeking answers from federal administrators this month about an “administrative review” pause in the Brandon Road Interbasin Project, a $1.5 billion project that aims to keep invasive carp out of Lake Michigan. Read the full story by MLive.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260126-carp-barrier-delays

Nichole Angell

Lawmakers from Michigan and Illinois are seeking answers from federal administrators this month about an “administrative review” pause in the Brandon Road Interbasin Project, a $1.5 billion project that aims to keep invasive carp out of Lake Michigan. Read the full story by MLive.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260126-carp-barrier-delays

Nichole Angell

An Ontario park known for its sandy beaches in the summer transforms during the winter months, turning its landscape into a snowy wonderland with possible sightings of rare ice formations called ice volcanoes. Read the full story by Toronto.com.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260126-ice-volcanoes

Nichole Angell

The Executive Director and Chief Research Scientist of the River Institute is featured in a in a special edition of Canadian Geographic magazine celebrating individuals working to understand and protect the Great Lakes. Read the full story by Seaway News.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260126-scientist-highlight

Nichole Angell

The Executive Director and Chief Research Scientist of the River Institute is featured in a in a special edition of Canadian Geographic magazine celebrating individuals working to understand and protect the Great Lakes. Read the full story by Seaway News.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260126-scientist-highlight

Nichole Angell

The U.S. and Canada this week released the 2025 State of the Great Lakes report, outlining successes and ongoing threats to the Great Lakes. The report scores each lake based on indicators established in the Great Lakes Water Quality agreement, a commitment between the two countries to protect and restore the Great Lakes. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260123-great-lakes-report

James Polidori

Oil and gas company officials continue cleaning up a crude oil and brine spill in the Pigeon River Country State Forest in Gaylord, Michigan, that turned out to be more than four times larger than initially estimated. Those leaked materials totaled 221 barrels, amounting to more than 9,200 gallons. Read the full story by MLive.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260123-oil-spill

James Polidori

Ohio ranks fifth in the nation when it comes to the number of data centers being constructed to power the rise of artificial intelligence and other computer services. But with that growth comes environmental concerns regarding both power and water usage. Read the full story by The Plain Dealer.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260123-data-center-impacts

James Polidori

The U.S. Coast Guard Great Lakes escorted the freighter American Spirit through Lake Erie Wednesday after it requested assistance. The Coast Guard said it dispatched the Neah Bay, an ice cutter, which assisted in breaking ice, enabling the American Spirit to safely transit the lake. Read the full story by WTOL-TV – Toledo, OH.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260123-ice-breaking

James Polidori

Employees with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission collected steelhead trout in the cold waters of Trout Run on Wednesday morning. One fish culturist said the trout species doesn’t reproduce enough to keep up with the demand of fishing, and their efforts keep the population steady. Read the full story by WJET-TV – Erie, PA.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260123-trout-collection

James Polidori

Construction is still underway at the environmental DNA (eDNA) lab expansion that is taking shape at the River Institute’s main site on the St. Lawrence College Cornwall, Ontario, campus. The concept for the eDNA lab evolved out of the River Institute’s Fish Identification Nearshore Survey (FINS) program, which used traditional methods, such as seine netting, to catch and identify fish and collect and analyze water samples. Read the full story by the Cornwall Standard Freeholder.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260123-environmental-lab

James Polidori

As of this Tuesday, 25.08% of the Great Lakes were ice-covered, with Lake Erie recording the most ice at 76.57%., according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. Read the full story by The Detroit Free Press.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260123-ice-coverage

James Polidori

A partnership between North Central Michigan College, the Little Traverse Conservancy, the State of Michigan and the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians will protect and preserve nearly 13 acres and 1,700 feet of Crooked Lake frontage in Emmet County, Michigan. Read the full story by the Petoskey News-Review.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260123-conservation-partnership

James Polidori

There is growing fear that Lake Superior’s window of avoiding a full takeover by invasive mussels may be closing. Efforts are underway to remove mussels where possible, and better understand how vulnerable the last of the Great Lakes to avoid a broader invasion has becomeRead the full story by Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260121-lake-superior-mussels

Autumn McGowan

As the influx of data centers becomes Wisconsin’s leading energy issue, a new report warns that without stronger consumer protections and clean energy policies, carbon emissions and costs to ratepayers could riseRead the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260121-data-center-controls

Autumn McGowan

Two Republican legislators from northern Ohio are urging Ohio EPA to decline to approve a new general discharge permit for all data centers going forward, arguing that it would exclude Lake Erie from protections being given to other bodies of water deemed to have exceptional ecological valueRead the full story by the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260121-ohio-datacenter-permits

Autumn McGowan

The Ontario government says it is committing an additional $700 million to help 127 municipalities and First Nations communities repair, upgrade, and expand aging water and wastewater infrastructure—work the province says will improve access to safe drinking water while also helping unlock new housing and support local jobsRead the full story by Net News Ledger. 

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260121-ontario-water-infrastructure

Autumn McGowan

Despite a presidential memorandum nine months ago that called for maximum speed and efficiency in moving to block invasive Asian carp from reaching the Great Lakes, the Brandon Road project remains under administrative review by the Trump administrationDemocratic senators from Michigan and Illinois wrote to the White House budget director and the U.S. Army Corps, urging them to release the federal funds that Congress already approved to allow the project to proceed. Read the full story by the Detroit News. 

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260121-carp-barrier

Autumn McGowan

Senator Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) spoke on the Senate floor on Thursday about the struggle of the Flint, Michigan, community in the wake of their water crisis. Slotkin said the community’s still in pain, and in the process of seeking accountability and justice for a water crisis they didn’t cause. Read the full story by Michigan Public.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260119-flint-water-crisis

Taaja Tucker-Silva

The Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development could prohibit or restrict several invasive plant species, including banning aquatic water hyacinth and water lettuce. Read the full story by Michigan Public.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260119-invasive-plants

Taaja Tucker-Silva

About 20% of all the data centers in the U.S. are located in eight states around the Great Lakes. Ohio is slated to get another 77 by 2030, which will propel Columbus to become the second-largest data center hub in the region, after Chicago. Read the full story by WOSU – Columbus, OH.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260119-ohio-data-centers

Taaja Tucker-Silva

By way of a promise made by companies across the Great Lakes region, the practice of dumping commercial fish waste into landfills has effectively been ended, according to the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Governors and Premiers. Read the full story by WXMI-TV – Grand Rapids, MI.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260119-fish-waste

Taaja Tucker-Silva

The Atlantic Huron, an iron lady of the St. Lawrence Seaway and a familiar site along the waterway, has completed her final voyage to close out more than 40 years of service. The ship now rests at Sheet Harbor, Nova Scotia, where work has commenced to dismantle and recycle the bulk carrier. Read the full story by the Watertown Daily Times.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260119-atlantic-huron

Taaja Tucker-Silva

Although most lakes across lake trout range freeze early and reliably each winter, not so for Lake Superior. For those who brave Lake Superior’s ice-capped waters, the awards are amazing. Read the full story by Sports Illustrated.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260119-superior-fishing

Taaja Tucker-Silva

Among the nine parks highlighted by National Geographic is the sprawling Muskegon State Park on the eastern edge of Lake Michigan in Michigan. The park is known for its snow-covered dunes and forested trails, which offer cross-country skiing and fat-tire biking. Read the full story by MLive.

Original Article

Great Lakes Commission

Great Lakes Commission

https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260119-park-rankings

Taaja Tucker-Silva