Every few years or so, pieces of the Jennie & Annie shipwreck make an appearance on the Lake Michigan shoreline near Empire, Michigan. Pieces of the schooner have been making their slow but steady way down the coast from her resting place off Sleeping Bear Point for nearly 150 years. Read the full story by the Traverse City Record-Eagle.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200518-shipwreck
Michigan’s commercial fishing is critical infrastructure during the pandemic, yet some of its practitioners may not survive COVID-19. Read the full story by the Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200518-Commercial-fishing
May typically marks the start of the season for cruise vacations on the Great Lakes, a burgeoning segment of the market that was shaping up to have a banner year in 2020. Read the full story by the Greater Milwaukee Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200518-Cruise
Two days of rain overwhelmed Chicago’s underground labyrinth of sewers Friday, forcing a noxious mix of sewage and stormwater into local waterways and Lake Michigan. Read the full story by the Chicago Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200518-Deep-Tunnel
As Great Lakes communities begin easing up on physical distancing, a group of scientists is peering into the bowels of our cities and towns for signs of potential flare-ups. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200518-wastewater
Great Lakes water levels are shattering high records and the experts agree there is rather little that can be done to change that — the environment is almost entirely in control. Read the full story by the Traverse City Record-Eagle.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200518-water-levels
Park rangers with the Indiana Dunes National Park Service in Northwest Indiana are working hard to connect people with nature, virtually. They have recorded a series of videos, which can be found on the Facebook page and website. Read the full story by The Chicago Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200515-virtual-hikes
A letter this week signed by Minnesota’s St. Louis County’s four rural-most commissioners is calling for immediate action to address solid-waste leachate discharged into Lake Superior. The local authority, meanwhile, the Western Lake Superior Sanitary District, defended itself, saying there was no basis for the outburst of concern. Read the full story by the Duluth News Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200515-landfill-discharge
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy announced that it has proposed to deny Macomb County’s application to modify its discharge permit to allow for an open-air sewage structure off Lake St. Clair. Read the full story by WDIV-TV – Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200515-water-sewage-storage
Scientists from the University of Toledo, Bowling Green State University, Ohio State University, and the University of Akron are splitting another $2.08 million in state higher education grants announced Thursday for harmful algal bloom research. Read the full story by The Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200515-algae-research-grant
Shrinking Michigan beaches and the need for social distancing are making it difficult for people to safely visit beaches across the state. Read the full story by the Bridge Magazine.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200515-beachgoers
The Mayor of Port Clinton, OH asked the City Council for authorization of a project that is solely focused on burying the exposed cable at the city beach and encasing it in concrete. That project is estimated to cost a total of just under $100,000. Read the full story by the Port Clinton News Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200515-port-clinton-beach
Scientists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are forecasting a relatively small harmful algal bloom in western Lake Erie this year, one that will be smaller than last year’s. Read the full story by the Sandusky Register.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200515-algal-bloom-smaller
Approximately 55,000 cubic yards of sand are being removed from the mouth of the Grand River channel and deposited into the Grand Haven State Park Beach in west Michigan, to help replace lost sand. Read the full story by the Grand Haven Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200515-river-dredging
With restrictions slowly being lifted, tourism leaders are hopeful since most of Ohio’s tourism industry traditionally picks up after Memorial Day. Read the full story by WTOL-TV – Toledo, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200515-lake-erie-toursim-industry
Lake Erie set a new monthly mean water level during April based on records dating back more than 100 years. Read the full story by The Monroe News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200515-lake-erie-water-record
In Erie, Pennsylvania, a multimillion-dollar dose of relief and protection is coming to East Dobbins Landing’s shoreline. Construction has begun on a new $2.65 million dock wall along the edge of Presque Isle Bay. Read the full story by the Erie Times-News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200514-portauthority
Sobering new research out of New York’s Rochester Institute of Technology is deepening our understanding of the extent of Lake Erie plastic pollution. Read the full story by the Erie Times-News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200514-lakeerieplastic
As Lake Michigan’s waves relentlessly pound sea walls in Ogden Dunes, Indiana, emergency repairs have begun. Now the question is how the town can pay for all the work. Read the full story by The Times of Northwest Indiana.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200514-ogdendunes
Ohio’s Department of Natural Resources asked residents to help take a census of bald eagle nests in the state — the first such eagle census since 2012. The results: Ohio is now home to more than 700 eagle nests, up from 281 in 2012, and just four nesting pairs in 1979. Read the full story by The Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200514-savetheeagles
In Duluth, Minnesota, city parks and beaches could look a bit different this summer due to new guidelines to prevent disease transmission as well as drastic cuts to maintenance staff. Read the full story by the Star Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200514-duluthparks
As if shoreline erosion wasn’t enough, communities and property owners on Lake Michigan are now dealing with another problem due to record high water levels — trash. Up and down the lake, large amounts of it are washing up on shore. Read the full story by Interlochen Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200514-debris
Since February, 161 residential and business wells in Emmet County, Michigan, have been sampled for PFAS contamination. 14 of the wells have been found with PFAS contamination above the 70 parts per trillion that is allowed by the Environmental Protection Agency. Read the full story by WPBN-TV – Traverse City, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200514-pellston
After nearly two months of reduced access, restrictions and outright closures, thousands of national, state, provincial and municipal parks, boating ramps, wildlife areas and other outdoor recreation areas are making their return from COVID-19. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200514-recreation
2020 was supposed to be a banner year for Milwaukee’s cruise industry. Although some of the cruises have been cancelled, there still could be major economic benefits if they can begin operations later in the summer. Read the full story by WTMJ-TV – Milwaukee, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200513-cruise
Crews are installing flood barriers near two water treatment facilities in South Haven, Michigan, to protect from rising water levels in Lake Michigan. Read the full story by WOOD-TV – South Haven, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200513-barriers
Lakes Michigan, Huron, St. Clair and Erie set new monthly mean water level records for April 2020, records which were previously set in the 1980s. Read the full story by WLNS-TV – Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200513-record
The lack of lake ice on Lake Erie this year and record high water levels have led to significant erosion issues in Presque Isle, Pennsylvania. Read the full story by WJET-TV – Erie, PA.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200513-presque
The city of Gladstone, Michigan, recently received an enforcement notice to provide the state with a plan to fix previous sewer and wastewater issues that have occurred when the area received heavy rainfall that the city’s wastewater system was unable to handle. Read the full story by Daily Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200513-wastewater
The International Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Board is forecasting that water levels in Lake Ontario will peak between now and the next two weeks. Read the full story by Durham Radio News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200513-levels
The Flint City Council has approved the construction of a $14.7 million pipeline to supply Flint with clean water if its main transmission line is out of service. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200513-backup
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a replacement clean water standard, rolling back regulatory standards designed to protect community rivers, creeks, streams and wetlands that provide safe clean drinking water, essential wildlife and fish habitat, and recreational use and enjoyment for many people. Read the full story by MLive
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200513-wotus
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is preparing to hear from the public on Enbridge’s proposal to build an oil pipeline tunnel beneath Michigan’s Straits of Mackinac. Read the full story by The Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200513-enbridge
A broad coalition is coming together to seek investment in the Great Lakes region as Congress decides how to divvy up more coronavirus stimulus money. Read the full story by The Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200513-stimulus
For the time being, the Toledo City Council will not be challenging a federal judge’s ruling on the Lake Erie Bill of Rights. Read the full story by WNWO – TV – Toledo, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200512-lakers
A coalition of cities, business and labor leaders and environmental groups is calling on the Minnesota Legislature to provide at least $300 million to repair aging water infrastructure throughout the state. Read the full story by MPR News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200512-minnesota-pipeline
A team of Michigan State University researchers hope to make use of an unlikely tool in Michigan’s fight against the new coronavirus: human waste. Read the full story by The Bridge.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200512-corona-wastewater
As construction of the Great Lake Tunnel Project is set to begin in 2021, Earthjustice and Native American Rights Fund attorneys have filed a petition to participate as a party in the Enbridge Line 5 Tunnel Project proceedings. Read the full story by Up North Live.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200512-enbridge
As Flint’s city council considered a possible backup source of drinking water from Lake Huron, some councilmembers expressed concern that the lake may become contaminated. Read the full story by WEYI – TV – Flint, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200512-flint-water
Water levels in the upper St. Lawrence River are close to peaking well below the record levels experienced during the flooding of 2017 and 2019, the Cataraqui Region Conservation Authority said on Monday. Read the full story by The Recorder and Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200512-stlawrence
With improved weather conditions, sea wall construction has been continuous along the Lake Michigan shoreline for the past month. Read the full story by The Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200512-seawall
The water level forecast into summer from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers shows a range of possible outcomes; with heavier than normal precipitation Lake Michigan and Lake Huron could reach the highest level recorded since the late 1800s. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200512-lake-levels
The $922 million passage now under construction at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, would be large enough to handle the 1,000-foot lakers that carry taconite from Minnesota and Michigan to steelmakers along the lower lakes. Read the full story by Star Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200512-lakers
In 2021 Navy Pier will be home to Chicago’s newest marina. Navy Pier Marina will be the first marina on Lake Michigan to exclusively offer short term, transient docking facilities with immediate access to The People’s Pier dining, shopping and entertainment. Read the full story by WITI-TV-Milwaukee, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200511-Navy-Pier
May is typically a huge month for hunting and guiding businesses. Coronavrius shut-down restrictions will prevent most of that business from happening this year. Read the full story by Crain’s Detroit Business.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200511-fly-fishing
The walleye are out there, but Lake Erie charter boats not willing to engage in rule-breaking haven’t been; that is scheduled to change in Ohio on Tuesday. Read the full story by the Columbus Dispatch.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200511-Erie-charter
Due to the coronavirus pandemic and concerns for employee safety, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources will not collect lake sturgeon or muskellunge eggs this spring. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200511-DNR-stocking
PFAS compounds have been detected in Milwaukee Estuary, which was designated as an Area Of Concern. Thirteen locations in the Milwaukee, Menomonee and Kinnickinnic Rivers, along with the inner and outer harbors, and one location in Lake Michigan, were sampled for 35 different PFAS compounds. Read the full story by the Wisconsin Examiner.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200511-PFAS-milwaukee
The U.S. Navy has awarded a $795 million contract to Marinette, Wisconsin based Fincantieri Marinette Marine Corp. for detail design and construction of its FFG(X) class of guided-missile frigates. Read the full story by the Traverse City Record-Eagle.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200511-Navy-contract
A new Rochester Institute of Technology study estimated that Lake Erie includes 381 metric tons of plastic – more than 50 times greater than the previous estimates at the surface. Read the full story by The Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200511-plastic
