Microplastics are turning up everywhere, including our water, our food, and even our bodies. And the Great Lakes are no exception.
Ripples of Plastic is a documentary from Ohio filmmakers Chris Langer and Josh Heese that investigates how plastic pollution is making its way into the largest freshwater system in the world.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/06/how-much-plastic-is-in-the-great-lakes/
Shortly after Chelsea Rochman moved to Toronto to start her current faculty job at University of Toronto, she began working with the Government of Canada to sample microplastics in fish from Lake Ontario. What she found, she said, shocked her. They found microplastics in every single fish they tested. Every single fish.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/05/everything-to-know-about-microplastics-in-the-great-lakes/
MILWAUKEE – The confluence of the Milwaukee and Menominee rivers, in the downtown core of Wisconsin’s largest city, is a prime vantage to assess the collection of assets that define the past and future of Great Lakes water use, and the array of technology development encompassing the region’s water.
Together and in complement, universities, research labs, tech incubators, water-focused businesses, and forward-thinking utilities here and in other cities are pushing for something greater than the sum of their parts.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/05/despite-u-s-research-resistance-great-lakes-aims-to-be-silicon-valley-for-water/
My first glimpse of Lake Superior, in all its lore-and-song-inspiring glory, is a blurry one from the backseat of a taxi driving through Thunder Bay.
Superior, or Gitchigumi, which means Great Lake in Anishinaabemowin, is the largest of those lakes, and the second largest lake in the world, containing 10 per cent of the planet’s fresh surface water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/05/thunder-bay-is-bringing-its-great-lake-shoreline-back/
Significant areas of the Earth’s surface across continents are gradually sinking and that process brings environmental, social and economic consequences to urban centers in the United States. Great Lakes cities Detroit and Chicago are among those at risk.
That’s the conclusion of a recent study conducted by Columbia University researchers, published by the science journal Nature Cities.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/05/sinking-cities-great-lakes-cities-not-immune-from-under-recognized-threat/
Not since DDT was introduced to U.S. agriculture to kill insects after World War Two has a farm chemical been as important to American crop production, and come under more scientific, political, and legal scrutiny as the weedkiller Roundup, and its active ingredient, glyphosate.
With the election of President Donald Trump, the conflict over glyphosate’s risks and benefits entered a new realm of confrontation that has the potential to alter its stature as the favored chemical tool in agriculture, the largest user of fresh water in the blue economy of Michigan and the Great Lakes.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/05/conflict-over-a-blockbuster-farm-chemical/
Catch the latest updates on what’s happening with PFAS in the Great Lakes region. Check back for more PFAS news roundups every other week on our website.
On May 14, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced their plan to roll back significant portions of the Biden administration’s first nationwide drinking water standard for PFAS.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/05/epa-outlines-new-pfas-strategy-amid-expert-concerns/
Livelihoods and economies in the Great Lakes region always centered on water. From the manoomin, or wild rice, grown and revered by the Ojibwe people to the whitefish catch in Lake Michigan, to the water-dependent ports, steel mills, and manufacturers that dot thousands of miles of Fresh Coast lakeshore. The area’s liquid assets and the industries that developed around them form a “blue economy.”
The treasure trove of clean fresh water is seen as a competitive edge in a region hungry for growth and whose leaders boast about exporting the scientific breakthroughs and infrastructure hardware to solve the world’s water challenges.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/05/water-determines-great-lakes-regions-economic-future/
By Anna Clark, ProPublica
This story was originally published by ProPublica.
Just one year ago, JD Vance was a leading advocate of the Great Lakes and the efforts to restore the largest system of freshwater on the face of the planet.
As a U.S.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/05/millions-of-people-depend-on-the-great-lakes-water-supply-trump-decimated-the-lab-protecting-it/
Chequamegon Bay plays a significant role in our human lives, including past residents like the Huron and Ottawa; and current residents, the Ojibwe-Anishinaabeg, who have gathered and made history there for a millennia. An oblong, shallow bay (61 feet at the deepest point), on the south shore of Lake Superior, the water also holds dark history as a federal Superfund site.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/04/chequamegon-bay-superfund-site-history-impact-importance-to-indigenous-communities/
Catch the latest updates on what’s happening with PFAS in the Great Lakes region. Check back for more PFAS news roundups every other week on our website.
On April 15, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) staff were told to cancel tens of millions of dollars worth of pending and active grants.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/04/epa-nixes-pfas-grants-teases-new-strategy/
Invasive phragmites are overwhelming Ontario’s wetlands, choking out native plants and wildlife. Towering up to 15 feet (5 meters) tall and spreading in dense clusters, this plant outcompetes native species, disrupts ecosystems, and threatens wildlife. But a team of dedicated experts and community members are fighting back.
Wetland ecologist Janice Gilbert is leading efforts at Kettle and Stony Point First Nation to combat phragmites.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/04/can-these-invasive-reeds-be-stopped/
The Great Lakes, the world’s largest system of fresh surface water, supply drinking water to about 40 million people. But industrial pollution, agricultural runoff, and invasive species have caused significant problems. The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) was created to address these issues and has received bipartisan support since its inception.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/04/could-the-great-lakes-lose-billions-in-restoration-funding/
A tropical lake in Central Africa might not seem like the first place you would look to gain insights into North America’s Great Lakes. But that’s just what researchers from Bowling Green State University (BGSU) in Ohio have been doing for the past three years.
Lake Victoria is the largest of Africa’s Great Lakes, the second largest in the world after Lake Superior.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/03/one-world-two-great-lakes/
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of San Francisco in a case about the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) sewage permits issued under the Clean Water Act (CWA). The court ruled that the EPA’s “end-result” water pollution permits are too speculative and that the EPA overstepped its authority in the case of San Francisco v.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/03/what-a-recent-supreme-court-ruling-could-mean-for-the-future-of-the-clean-water-act/
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 PBS.
Common terns are known for their aerial acrobatics, performing rapid turns and swoops to the delight of those watching.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/03/great-lakes-moment-detroit-river-common-terns-under-threat/
For over 70 years, a massive U.S. Steel plant on the shores of Spirit Lake near Duluth, Minnesota dumped toxic waste into the water, causing lasting environmental damage to this sacred site.
Spirit Lake, once a vital ecosystem rich in fish, wild rice, and wildlife, was central to the homeland of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/how-do-you-heal-a-sacred-lake/
By Izzy Ross and Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco
This coverage is made possible through a partnership between Grist, Interlochen Public Radio in Northern Michigan, and WBEZ, a public radio station serving the Chicago metropolitan region.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/will-jd-vance-save-the-great-lakes-from-trump/
By Isabelle Tavares, Planet Detroit
This article was republished with permission from Planet Detroit. Sign up for Planet Detroit’s weekly newsletter here.
Manuel Nolasco stood in frigid air outside his flooded Southwest Detroit home early Tuesday, chipping away at thick ice chunks that had frozen his car wheels in place.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/southwest-detroit-homes-flooded-families-displaced-by-water-main-rupture/
By Adam Yahya Rayes and Sarah Cwiek, Michigan Public
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS, Michigan Public and The Narwhal 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/2025/02/after-water-main-break-officials-say-homes-in-detroits-southwest-will-get-repairs-covered/
Rolling back clean water protection, gutting agencies and defunding science, research and monitoring is a non-starter for the Great Lakes region, says Ann Arbor environmental advocate Laura Rubin.
She was reacting to the new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Lee Zeldin’s recently released economy-oriented plan for the agency under President Donald Trump.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/veteran-great-lakes-advocate-cautions-prioritizing-economic-development-over-protecting-environment/
Catch the latest updates on what’s happening with PFAS in the Great Lakes region. Check back for more PFAS news roundups every other week on our website.
On February 5, New York state lawmakers announced a group of five bills aimed to reduce per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure for New York residents.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/new-york-proposed-pfas-legislation-other-great-lakes-states-efforts-combat-forever-chemicals/
This article, first posted here, was republished with permission from Wisconsin Watch.
By Bennet Goldstein, Wisconsin Watch
A year and a half after Wisconsin lawmakers earmarked $125 million to clean up toxic “forever chemicals” known as PFAS, the funds have yet to flow to contaminated communities.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/wisconsin-is-still-sitting-on-125-million-for-pfas-cleanup/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Isabella Figueroa, Great Lakes Echo
New grants to Great Lakes states to measure harmful chemicals in marginalized communities are facing uncertainty under increased White House scrutiny on federal spending.
In September 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention awarded a first round of $5 million across six state biomonitoring programs that measure chemicals in people.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/cdc-awards-biomonitoring-grants-to-great-lakes-states-future-funding-unclear/
If you’ve been outside, you’ve probably run into branta canadesis — the Canada Goose.
From urban parks to rural fields, these birds seem to be everywhere. And their presence isn’t always welcome. Goose poop can contain e. coli bacteria, and the birds themselves can carry — and spread — avian flu.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/geese-are-a-problem-what-can-we-do/
By Izzy Ross, Interlochen Public Radio
This coverage is made possible through a partnership with IPR and Grist, a nonprofit independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate solutions and a just future.
A business competition to tackle environmental and infrastructure issues in the Great Lakes kicked off last week.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/blue-tech-challenge-aims-at-gathering-business-solutions-to-great-lakes-problems/
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 PBS.
In the 1960s, an oxbow was eliminated in the lower Rouge River when a concrete channel was built to move stormwater out of the watershed.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/great-lakes-moment-rouge-river-oxbow-enhances-education-the-henry-ford/
By Michael Livingston, Interlochen Public Radio
Points North is a biweekly podcast about the land, water and inhabitants of the Great Lakes.
This episode was shared here with permission from Interlochen Public Radio.
Microplastics are everywhere.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/points-north-a-sticky-solution-for-microplastics/
In the Great Lakes region alone, Ducks Unlimited (DU) has been involved in hundreds of projects in the past decade that involve either the conservation of wetlands through acquisition, or the restoration and management of wetlands. These projects — always in concert with public and private partners, universities and other organizations — seek to establish or conserve the maximum amount of acreage possible with available funds.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/how-ducks-unlimited-became-heroes-of-the-conservation-movement/
Catch the latest updates on what’s happening with PFAS in the Great Lakes region. Check back for more PFAS news roundups every other week on our website.
A new study out of Notre Dame shows that some smart watch wristbands, often labeled as waterproof, contain unusually high levels of “forever chemicals.” In a university press release, it was noted that nine out of the 22 bands tested, showed elevated levels of a per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS).
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/study-shows-smart-watch-wristbands-contain-pfas-meanwhile-epa-tracks-nine-new-versions-of-forever-chemicals/
By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS, Michigan Public and The Narwhal 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/2025/01/fertilizer-from-sewage-a-utility-money-maker-faces-uncertain-future/
A recent Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan report documents substantial progress in creating The Great Lakes Way — an interconnected set of greenways and water trails stretching from Port Huron, Michigan on southern Lake Huron to Toledo, Ohio on western Lake Erie.
In 2000, the Community Foundation polled metropolitan Detroit communities about obstacles to building greenways.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/great-lakes-moment-connecting-people-to-nature-through-the-great-lakes-way/
Activist group, Water Watchers, had reason to celebrate last month when water bottler BlueTriton announced it will cease operations in Puslinch, Ontario in January, 2025. The group’s website beamed “We Won” and said the exit was a “historic win for water justice.”
To get a better understanding of the issues surrounding bottled water in Ontario, Canada, Great Lakes Now contacted Arlene Slocombe, executive director of Water Watchers and McMaster University Professor, Dawn Martin-Hill and founder of the Indigenous Studies Program at McMaster University.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/12/spotlight-on-complexity-of-bottled-water-issues-as-bluetriton-exits-ontario/
Great Lakes Now recently sat down with Margot Fass of the non-profit group, A Frog House. Located in Pittsfield, New York on the banks of the Erie Canal and on the edge of the Lake Ontario sub-basin. A Frog House helps to encourage ecological education, local advocacy and collaboration around clean water and thriving wetlands.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/11/5-reasons-to-build-a-backyard-frog-pond/
Over 77% of voters in Minnesota approved an extension of the Environmental and Natural Resources Trust Fund (ENRTF), that will continue to pay for conservation efforts for another 25 years. Funding for this casts a wide net, from outdoor education and trail investments, to invasive species and PFAS removal. The ENRTF was approved as an amendment to the Minnesota Constitution of the State in 1988, and generates funding from the Minnesota State Lottery.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/11/pfas-roundup-minnesota-votes-to-continue-conservation-and-pfas-cleanup-indiana-ends-firefighter-foam-collection-program/
By Keith Schneider, Circle of Blue
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS, Michigan Public and The Narwhal 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/2024/11/amish-farmers-partnership-with-beef-giant-produces-manure-mess/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Isabella Figueroa, Great Lakes Echo
Student researchers from Michigan State University and the University of Wisconsin are among the winners of an Environmental Protection Agency contest for innovations in sustainability.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/11/students-at-michigan-state-and-wisconsin-win-epa-funding-for-environmental-health-innovations/
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 PBS.
In the era of climate change, many Detroit homes and churches face challenging stormwater fees.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/11/great-lakes-moment-sacred-grounds/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; Michigan Public, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; and The Narwhal 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/2024/10/mining-is-back-in-michigans-upper-peninsula-heres-how-it-works/
By Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco, WBEZ
This coverage is made possible through a partnership between WBEZ and Grist, a nonprofit, independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate solutions and a just future. Sign up for WBEZ newsletters to get local news you can trust.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/10/carp-catch-22-could-improvements-in-chicago-waterways-invite-unwelcome-guests/
By Brett Walton, Circle of Blue
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; Michigan Public, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; and The Narwhal 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/2024/10/election-state-and-local-voters-consider-tax-increases-for-water-protection/
Michigan Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow and Rep. Dan Kildee introduced The Veterans Exposed to Toxic PFAS Act in July of 2023. Recently, Vice President Kamala Harris announced her support for the bill as a part of her presidential campaign. If passed, this would make it easier for veterans who were exposed to perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) while serving to access medical benefits and disability.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/10/pfas-roundup-vice-president-harris-supports-michigan-led-plan-to-provide-medical-care-for-military-victims-of-pfas/
Long after the Halloween season has ended, some of the Great Lakes’ most infamous invasive species remain a scary sight: blood-sucking parasites with suction-cup mouths, thousands of rotting fish carcasses washed ashore and sharp mussel shells that puncture the feet of unsuspecting beachgoers.
At least 188 nonnative aquatic species have been introduced to the Great Lakes, and over a third have become invasive, meaning they can have negative health, ecological and socioeconomic impacts when introduced to new ecosystems.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/10/great-lakes-most-unwanted-top-10-invasive-species/
By Fatima Syed, The Narwhal
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS, Michigan Public and The Narwhal 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/2024/10/two-high-school-students-want-to-keep-trash-out-of-the-great-lakes-they-think-rivers-are-the-key/
By Izzy Ross, Interlochen Public Radio
This coverage is made possible through a partnership with IPR and Grist, a nonprofit independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate solutions and a just future.
Hurricane Milton made landfall last week in Florida, even as communities across the southeast are still reeling from Hurricane Helene.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/10/how-northern-michiganders-can-help-people-affected-by-hurricanes/
By Emma McIntosh, The Narwhal
Emma and photographer Christopher Katsarov Luna spent four days in northwestern Ontario, reporting from the shore of Lake Superior.
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS, Michigan Public and The Narwhal 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/2024/10/the-lonely-lake-superior-caribou-and-a-lesson-in-limits/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; Michigan Public, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; and The Narwhal 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/2024/10/a-decade-after-flint-feds-require-nationwide-lead-pipe-removal/
By Kristoffer Tigue, Inside Climate News
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. Sign up for their newsletter here.
MINNEAPOLIS—A record amount of federal aid will soon flow to states to help fix, replace or demolish their aging dams, many of which are under increasing pressure as climate change fuels more frequent and severe extreme weather events.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/10/midwest-dam-safety-projects-funding/
By Keith Schneider, Circle of Blue
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; Michigan Public, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; and The Narwhal 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/2024/10/michigans-new-rules-to-protect-water-from-manure-attacked-by-lawmakers/
By Nina Elkadi, Inside Climate News
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. Sign up for their newsletter here.
The aquifer from which Joliet, Illinois, sources its drinking water is likely going to run too dry to support the city by 2030—a problem more and more communities are facing as the climate changes and groundwater declines.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/10/joliet-illinois-lake-michigan-drinking-water/
