By Michael Phillis, Associated Press
ST. LOUIS (AP) — For years, testing of the tap water in an upscale Detroit suburb showed the city was in the clear. Then residents got a notice seemingly out of the blue: Their water could be contaminated with elevated levels of lead.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-lead-testing-method-higher-levels/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan and Lester Graham, Michigan Radio
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/enbridge-line-5-wont-close/
The Great Lakes region wasn’t always the freshwater realm we know today: rewind to a couple centuries ago and it was actually covered in tropical seawater. That’s why many of the fossils found in the area today are portions of coral reefs and ancient sea creatures.
“When you think of Michigan or Illinois, you imagine cold and snow, but it wasn’t always that way.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/fossil-great-lakes-coral-remnants/
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Thursday proposed $300 million in water spending to help local utilities address elevated lead levels, plan for pipe replacement and connect users of contaminated wells to municipal supplies.
The governor said the funding would expand her $500 million MI Clean Water Plan, some of which has been authorized since it was unveiled more than a year ago.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-whitmer-300m-water-funding-communities/
This story is the fourth in a four-part series looking at sturgeon restoration efforts.
Lake sturgeon restoration efforts are taking place across the Great Lakes basin.
But what that restoration looks like is entirely dependent on location and other factors, such as whether or not any lake sturgeon remain in the area.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/sturgeon-restoration-public-festival/
From lead pipes to PFAS, drinking water contamination is a major issue plaguing cities and towns all around the Great Lakes. Cleaning up contaminants and providing safe water to everyone is an ongoing public health struggle.
Keep up with drinking water-related developments in the Great Lakes area.
Click on the headline to read the full-story:
Illinois:
The state of Illinois’ Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) decided to invest over $29 million in wastewater and drinking water projects for the first quarter of the 2022 fiscal year.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/drinking-water-news-roundup-algae-blooms-dnr/
PFAS, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of widespread man-made chemicals that don’t break down in the environment or the human body and have been flagged as a major contaminant in sources of water across the country.
Keep up with PFAS-related developments in the Great Lakes area.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/pfas-news-covid-vaccine-minnesota-businesses-new-york-standards/
By John Flesher, Associated Press
A federal judge retained jurisdiction Tuesday in a dispute over a Canadian oil pipeline that runs through a section of the Great Lakes, rejecting Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s contention that the case belongs in state court.
The clash over whether Enbridge Energy’s Line 5 should continue operating raises issues “under consideration at the highest levels of this country’s government” involving a U.S.-Canada treaty and federal pipeline safety regulation, U.S.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-judge-michigan-oil-pipeline-case-in-federal-court/
Watching how fish move, how they use the water to their advantage has made me a better diver. Underwater, I strive to be as trim as a walleye and as effortless as a sturgeon. And while my cameraman husband hunts for photo ops with the stealth of a muskie, I can usually be found frolicking in the shallows like a carefree sunfish.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/speak-fish-teamwork-swimming-lessons/
BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (AP) — State officials announced a pilot program Wednesday aimed at helping eligible residents of a Michigan city where there’s been a lead crisis pay water and wastewater bills.
The federally-funded program is designed to help households that have had water disconnected or are facing disconnection pay to have it restored.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-program-benton-harbor-residents-bills/
By Ed White, Associated Press
DETROIT (AP) — A judge on Wednesday approved a $626 million deal to settle lawsuits filed by Flint residents who found their tap water contaminated by lead following disastrous decisions to switch the city’s water source and a failure to swiftly acknowledge the problem.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-judge-million-settlement-flint-water-litigation/
By Lester Graham, Michigan Radio
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/flooding-sewers-app-research/
By Dustin Dwyer, Michigan Radio
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/mayor-benton-harbor-support-state-fix-water-system/
By Sarah Cwiek, Michigan Radio
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/white-house-line-5/
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Researchers at Michigan State University are collecting data on how Great Lakes shoreline, including how residents view coastlines and the impact of high water levels.
Assistant professor Erin Bunting said the goal is to empower local communities, which is important to the future of the lakeshores and future research.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-msu-researchers-data-great-lakes-shoreline/
BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Officials with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will soon start testing the water in 300 homes in a Michigan city where there’s been a lead crisis to check certified filters given area residents by the state to remove lead from the drinking water.
EPA officials will collect water samples in Benton Harbor, according to The Herald-Palladium.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-epa-testing-water-benton-harbor-homes/
By John Flesher, Associated Press
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — The U.S. and Canada will discuss the future of an oil pipeline that crosses part of the Great Lakes and is the subject of rising tension over whether it should be shut down, the White House said Monday.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/white-ap-house-michigan-pipeline-canada/
By Kelly House and Jonathan Oosting, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/benton-harbor-water-response-poor-messaging/
“The legend lives on…”
Nov. 10 has been an unassailable part of Great Lakes culture and history since 1975 when the SS Edmund Fitzgerald sank in Lake Superior with its entire crew of 29 and was immortalized in the famous song by Gordon Lightfoot.
The ship went down in Lake Superior, near Whitefish Point, but it’s a piece of history that connects people all around the region who care about the lakes and their history or have experienced their own loss.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/edmund-fitzgerald-shipwreck-memorial-service-2021/
This story is the third in a four-part series looking at sturgeon restoration efforts.
Lake sturgeon restoration efforts are taking place across the Great Lakes basin.
But what that restoration looks like is entirely dependent on location and other factors, such as whether or not any lake sturgeon remain in the area.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/sturgeon-restoration-starting-anew-in-sturgeon-and-saginaw-bays/
BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Shortly after sunrise on a recent Saturday in Benton Harbor, Michigan, residents began lining up for free bottled water so they could drink and cook without fear of the high levels of lead in the city’s tap water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-michigan-benton-harbor-lead-water-crisis-persists/
DETROIT (AP) — The state of Michigan said Friday it agreed pay $300,000 to settle wrongful discharge claims by the only employee who was fired as a result of lead-contaminated water in Flint.
The deal with Liane Shekter Smith, who was head of the state’s drinking water division, came weeks after an arbitrator said she was wrongly fired in 2016 by officials who were likely looking for a “public scapegoat” in one of the worst environmental disasters in U.S.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-michigan-pay-300k-staffer-fired-flint/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/michigan-environmental-leader-flaws-benton-harbor-lead-crisis/
By Laura Gersony, Circle of Blue
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/climate-change-trout-streams-nation-anglers/
BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (AP) — A Michigan city that is urging residents not to drink tap water failed to timely warn people about high levels of lead and must make improvements at the water plant, federal regulators said Tuesday after an inspection revealed a variety of problems.
The Environmental Protection Agency said the situation was dire enough to order Benton Harbor to consider turning the water system over to someone else.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-michigan-city-lead-water-fix-plant/
Looking at them, you wouldn’t guess that the unisexual Ambystoma salamanders are any different than the other members of what was once considered their group.
These interlopers were previously grouped with five other mole salamander species: the tiger salamanders with yellow stripes; the blue-spotted salamander, marked as its name suggests; the brownish smallmouth salamander and Jefferson salamander; and the pale streamside salamander.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/genetic-mystery-female-salamanders-great-lakes/
By Lester Graham, Michigan Radio
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/researchers-tech-cities-manage-stormwater/
By Lester Graham, Michigan Radio
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/michigan-avoid-products-containing-pfas/
By Matthew Brown, Associated Press
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — A group of Democratic lawmakers on Thursday urged the Biden administration to enact emergency protections for gray wolves in the U.S. West in response to Republican-backed state laws that make it easier to kill the predators.
Twenty-one U.S.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-senators-emergency-protections-wolves/
DETROIT (AP) — A high-tech strategy could help Detroit save $165 million while also pinpointing the number of lead water lines in the city.
Data crunched with software from technology startup BlueConduit will hopefully provide a report of the probable locations and number of lead lines, the water department said.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-software-inventory-lead-water-detroit/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Emilie Appleyard, Great Lakes Echo
Artists in the Great Lakes region are taking trash and turning it into art.
Dave Matsen, a retired professional photographer from Ludington, Michigan, found inspiration from his garbage at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/great-lakes-artists-trash-art/
Great Lakes Moment is a monthly column written by Great Lakes Now Contributor John Hartig. Publishing the author’s views and assertions does not represent endorsement by Great Lakes Now or Detroit Public Television.
A small catfish that is endangered in both Michigan and Ontario is making a comeback thanks to improved water quality and artificial reef construction in the Detroit and St.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/endangered-catfish-health-detroit-rivers/
This story is the second in a four-part series looking at sturgeon restoration efforts.
Lake sturgeon restoration efforts are taking place across the Great Lakes basin.
But what that restoration looks like is entirely dependent on location and other factors, such as whether or not any lake sturgeon remain in the area.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/sturgeon-restoration-streamside-hatcheries-manistee-milwaukee-maumee-rivers/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/michigan-map-for-childhood-lead-levels-community/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/michigan-water-systems-finding-lead/
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker will travel to the United Kingdom next week to discuss the state’s efforts to neutralize climate change while bolstering economic development, his office said Wednesday.
The Democrat and top staff members will travel to Britain and Scotland from Nov. 2-9 and attend the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/ap-pritzker-uk-climate-change/
Although it’s been seven years since the Flint water crisis became one of the state’s biggest public health disasters, Flint’s struggle with both the repercussions of the initial incident and with getting clean water have not ended. The court cases continue to unfold, and the city slowly replaces its lead lines.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/seven-years-flint-water-crisis/
From lead pipes to PFAS, drinking water contamination is a major issue plaguing cities and towns all around the Great Lakes. Cleaning up contaminants and providing safe water to everyone is an ongoing public health struggle.
Keep up with drinking water-related developments in the Great Lakes area.
Click on the headline to read the full-story:
Indiana:
The Indiana community of Elizabethtown has recently been granted about $1.4 million to protect the quality of their drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/drinking-water-aging-infrastructure-pennsylvania/
By Sophia Kalakailo, Michigan Radio
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/nestle-water-withdrawal-permit/
SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. (AP) — Lake Superior State University in Michigan’s eastern Upper Peninsula has been selected as a hub for a center that will look at the impacts of oil spills in freshwater environments.
The U.S. Coast Guard National Center of Expertise for the Great Lakes also will help develop effective responses to spills, according to the school.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/ap-center-impact-oil-spills-freshwater/
Canada’s plan to store spent nuclear fuel 1,600 feet below ground in the Great Lakes basin, some 30 miles from Lake Huron, is continuing to ruffle feathers throughout the Great Lake states.
Earlier this month, U.S. lawmakers called out the Canadian plan for failing to prioritize the health of the Great Lakes and the 40 million residents who depend on it for clean drinking water ahead of its own energy needs.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/storage-nuclear-waste-great-lakes/
BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said she visited Benton Harbor on Tuesday to listen to residents who have been urged to use bottled water because of elevated levels of lead in their tap water.
Whitmer’s stop, which wasn’t publicly disclosed until it was over, came hours after city commissioners unanimously declared an emergency and empowered Mayor Marcus Muhammad to lead Benton Harbor’s response.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/ap-michigan-city-declares-emergency-governor/
The operator of a Michigan oil pipeline said it temporarily shut down Line 5 Tuesday after protesters warned the company that they planned to turn an emergency valve.
Video posted on social media showed someone with a hard hat and a wrench inside a fenced area in Tuscola County, 90 miles north of Detroit.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/ap-enbridge-michigan-pipeline-protests/
By Ed White, Associated Press
DETROIT (AP) — The only Michigan official fired in the Flint water catastrophe likely was a “public scapegoat” who lost her job because of politics, an arbitrator said in ordering $191,880 in back pay and other compensation.
It’s a remarkable victory for Liane Shekter Smith, who served as head of the state’s drinking water office when Flint’s water system was contaminated with lead.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/ap-official-wrongly-fired-flint-water/
This story is the first in a four-part series looking at sturgeon restoration efforts.
Lake sturgeon restoration efforts are taking place across the Great Lakes basin.
But what that restoration looks like is entirely dependent on location and other factors, such as whether or not any lake sturgeon remain in the area.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/sturgeon-restoration-studying-michigan-wisconsin-populations/
This story is the first in a four-part series looking at sturgeon restoration efforts.
Lake sturgeon restoration efforts are taking place across the Great Lakes basin.
But what that restoration looks like is entirely dependent on location and other factors, such as whether or not any lake sturgeon remain in the area.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/sturgeon-restoration-studying-michigan-wisconsin-populations/
Keep up with energy-related developments in the Great Lakes area with Great Lakes Now’s biweekly headline roundup.
Click on the headline to read the full story:
Indiana:
CenterPoint Energy recently proposed to construct two natural gas combustion turbines in place of its former coal-based plant.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/energy-illinois-clean-energy-bill-michigan-heating/
This article is part of a collaboration between The Alpena News and Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television to bring audiences stories about the Great Lakes, especially Lake Huron and its watershed.
LUDINGTON (AP) — The SS Badger backed into its dock Oct.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/ss-badger-makes-final-lake-michigan-crossing-of-season/
Even when the topic is cars and climate change, in Michigan it still comes back to the Great Lakes.
“To me, really, the take home is always, always, always water,” said Liesl Clark, director of the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy. She appeared at an event in Detroit that previewed COP26.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/un-climate-conference-michigan-role/
PFAS, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of widespread man-made chemicals that don’t break down in the environment or the human body and have been flagged as a major contaminant in sources of water across the country.
Keep up with PFAS-related developments in the Great Lakes area.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/10/pfas-study-michigan-wisconsin-minnesota-billions-transparency/
