Love staring at a map and discovering something interesting? Then “Mapping the Great Lakes” is for you. It’s a monthly Great Lakes Now feature created by Alex B. Hill, a self-described “data nerd and anthropologist” who combines cartography, data, and analytics with storytelling and human experience.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/mapping-great-lakes-cities/
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/2022/06/pfas-news-roundup-epa-standards-firefighting-foam/
June 14, 2022
Fresh is a biweekly newsletter from Circle of Blue that unpacks the biggest international, state, and local policy news stories facing the Great Lakes region today. Sign up for Fresh: A Great Lakes Policy Briefing, straight to your inbox, every other Tuesday.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/fresh-research-highlights-gaps-in-federal-air-pollution-data/
By Todd Richmond, Associated Press
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin Republicans will allow regulations Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ administration developed to control pollution from a group of chemicals known as PFAS to take effect, a spokesman for the lawmaker who controls the Legislature’s rules committee said Monday.
The Legislature’s Republican-controlled Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Reviews has no objections to the regulations and will allow the Department of Natural Resources to implement them, said Mike Mikalsen, an aide to the committee’s co-chairman, Sen.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/ap-wisconsin-republicans-pfas-standards/
One of the latest updates in Enbridge’s ongoing Line 5 court cases is a report from Neil Earnest, president of an energy consultancy firm, filed by Enbridge.
In the report, Earnest estimates that in the event of a Line 5 shutdown, gas, jet fuel and diesel prices would increase by half a cent per gallon in Michigan and Wisconsin, and 5 cents per gallon in Ontario.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/line-5-shutdown-gas-prices-half-cent-increase/
By Scott Bauer, Associated Press
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A Wisconsin judge on Tuesday agreed to keep on hold his ruling from April that prevented state regulators from requiring businesses and others responsible for pollution by PFAS chemicals to investigate and clean up the contamination.
Waukesha County Circuit Judge Michael Bohren said because of the importance and impact of his ruling, it made sense to keep it on hold while the state Department of Natural Resources appeals.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/ap-wisconsin-judge-pfas-hold/
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:
Illinois:
In September, Illinois lawmakers passed a watershed clean energy law which established the state as a leader for its efforts to decarbonize.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/energy-news-roundup-impending-energy-crisis/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Caroline Miller, Great Lakes Echo
High water and ice scouring has shifted native wetlands inland and opened a door to invasive species along Wisconsin’s Lake Michigan coast.
A new study documents the first sighting of the invasive species, European frogbit, in Wisconsin and says that it could threaten native plants, fish and invertebrates.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/rising-water-lake-michigan-wetlands-invaders/
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Marshfield and Adams have joined the list of Wisconsin cities that have shut down municipal wells due to PFAS contamination.
Wisconsin Public Radio reported that the state Department of Natural Resources announced Thursday that sampling in the two cities has detected PFAS high enough to concern state health officials.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/ap-wisconsin-wells-pfas-pollution/
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/2022/05/pfas-news-roundup-new-york-clothes-ohio-lawsuit-wisconsin-standards/
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:
Illinois American Water is investing over $3 million to replace over 8,600 feet or 1.6 miles of water main throughout the Sterling Water System.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/05/drinking-water-news-roundup-illinois-water-system-coal-ash-indiana/
Lynn Broaddus has little patience for cities who focus on the reasons why they can’t replace lead service lines.
She understands that finances are a big part of the problem but says too often cities focus on the barriers, instead of what’s possible.
Broaddus is the recent past-president and now a trustee with the international group Water Environment Federation, a non-profit focused on increasing the awareness of the impact and value of water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/05/water-executive-creative-replacing-lead-service-lines/
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:
Illinois:
Electricity costs will soar beginning in June in central and southern Illinois, due to inadequate power supplies following coal-fired plant closures.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/05/energy-news-roundup-numerous-great-lakes-outages-rising-rates/
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:
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/05/drinking-water-news-roundup-first-nation-settlement-wisconsin-towns-chicago-water/
In 1972, the federal Clean Water Act proclaimed an ambitious goal – “fishable, swimmable” waters across the U.S. by 1983. Today, just over half of assessed river and stream miles across the U.S. remain too polluted for swimming and recreation, aquatic life, fish consumption, or as drinking water sources.
That assessment comes from a newly released report from the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP), a non-profit group founded in 2002 by former EPA enforcement attorneys.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/05/outdated-clean-water-act-polluted-rivers/
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway wants to spend $425,000 to design a system to filter PFAS chemicals out of a city well.
The Wisconsin State Journal reported Monday that the mayor said the system would be the first in Wisconsin designed to filter the so-called “forever chemicals” out of drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/05/madison-mayor-pfas-filtration-system/
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/2022/04/pfas-news-roundup-face-masks-fast-food-chains-sued/
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Gov. Tony Evers on Friday signed an executive order creating a new office of environmental justice, announcing the move on Earth Day.
Republicans last year removed the office from Evers’ proposed budget. But the Democrat up for reelection this November got around them by creating it through an executive order.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/04/ap-evers-office-environmental-justice/
Fresh is a biweekly newsletter from Circle of Blue that unpacks the biggest international, state, and local policy news stories facing the Great Lakes region today. Sign up for Fresh: A Great Lakes Policy Briefing, straight to your inbox, every other Tuesday.
— Laura Gersony, Fresh Editor
This Week’s Watersheds
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/04/wisconsin-judge-forever-chemicals-cleanup/
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:
Illinois:
On April 15, 2022, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Illinois EPA, IEPA, or Agency) approved a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit for Williamson Energy, LLC Pond Creek Mine No.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/04/energy-news-roundup-ontario-natural-gas-energy-department-cybersecurity/
An area like the Great Lakes that has rain and higher temperatures in the summer, followed by a cold, snowy winter, is best suited for maple production.
But the Great Lakes maple season is evolving as climate change increasingly impacts maple syrup production with shorter harvest seasons, less sugar production and unreliable sap flow.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/04/great-lakes-sugaring-season/
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The state Department of Natural Resources has restarted efforts to set standards for bacteria in groundwater after conservatives on the agency’s policy board killed the attempt in February.
The Wisconsin State Journal reported that the board on Wednesday authorized a public hearing and comment period on a new rule-making process to set groundwater standards for E.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/04/ap-dnr-effort-bacteria-standards-groundwater/
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:
On March 11, IDOC and the Illinois Department of Public Health released a joint press release announcing that Legionella bacteria had been detected in two prisons—Stateville Correctional Center and Joliet Treatment Center.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/04/drinking-water-news-roundup-epa-rocket-fuel-prison-water-contaminated/
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/2022/04/pfas-news-roundup-pennsylvania-regulations-climate-change-defend/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Yue Jiang, Great Lakes Echo
Global warming will produce more frequent high rainfall events in the Upper Great Lakes, according to a University of Guelph expert.
Rather than average water levels falling as previously assumed, it’s possible that the average will increase because of more precipitation, which will constrict the beach area, said emeritus professor Robin Davidson-Arnott of the Department of Geography, Environment & Geomatics.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/04/global-warming-impact-great-lakes-beaches/
In-person events are back as people slowly reintroduce themselves to dining in, large gatherings and a return to the office.
But even as indoors becomes less taboo, let’s not forget the great outdoors, which served us well over the past two years. And what better time to show your gratitude to the parks than Earth Day.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/04/earth-day-2022/
This article, first posted here, was republished with permission from Wisconsin Watch.
By Mario Koran, Wisconsin Watch
This story is part of a collaborative series, “At the Crossroads,” from the Institute for Nonprofit News, Indian Country Today, Wisconsin Watch and eight other news partners, examining the state of the economy in Indian Country.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/04/pandemic-shock-pushes-wisconsin-tribes-to-diversify-economy/
Kewaunee County, Wisconsin
CCO Meeting
Tuesday, April 19, 2022
For information on attending this meeting please send your name and local address to FKnight@dewberry.com and you will be provided with information on joining the meeting.
Open House: TBD
Great Lakes Coastal Flood Study
Great Lakes Coastal Flood Study
https://www.greatlakescoast.org/2022/04/05/lake-michigan-community-consultation-officers-meeting-and-open-house-for-kewaunee-county-wisconsin/
Geo Rutherford is an artist and an educator based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. But what a lot of people might recognize her from the most is the social media application TikTok, where Rutherford runs an account making pretty popular videos all about the Great Lakes.
Though originally from Colorado, Rutherford went to school at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and stuck around in Milwaukee after graduation.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/04/great-lakes-ice-popular-tiktok/
Geo Rutherford is an artist and an educator based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. But what a lot of people might recognize her from the most is the social media application TikTok, where Rutherford runs an account making pretty popular videos all about the Great Lakes.
Though originally from Colorado, Rutherford went to school at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and stuck around in Milwaukee after graduation.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/04/great-lakes-ice-popular-tiktok/
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/2022/03/pfas-advisory-lake-superior-rainbow-smelt/
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources announced March 25 it will issue a permit that will make it harder for a Kewaunee County factory farm accused of contaminating drinking water to expand.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that the permit caps the number of cows at the Kinnard Farms facility at about 8,000 head, the number of cows the farm currently houses.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/03/dnr-issues-expansion-permit-for-kewaunee-county-factory-farm/
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/2022/03/pfas-news-roundup-indiana-new-ohio-pfas-regulation-bill/
The largest known muskie is 67 pounds 8 ounces. Or it’s 69 pounds 11 ounces. Or it’s 70 pounds 10 ounces. Depending on the type of record, whom you ask or what organization you trust, it could be any of those answers.
After Great Lakes Now published a column on muskies that referenced record sizes, it kicked off a dispute among readers on what record was the most accurate, so Great Lakes Now decided to do a deeper dive.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/03/who-caught-worlds-largest-muskie/
Door County, Wisconsin
CCO Meeting – CCO Meeting Presentation [.pdf]
March 8, 2022
Open House:
Thursday, April 7 from 5-8pm CT
Monday, April 11, from 5-8pm CT
See Open House Flyer and Press Release for meeting details. [.pdf]
Great Lakes Coastal Flood Study
Great Lakes Coastal Flood Study
https://www.greatlakescoast.org/2022/03/22/lake-michigan-community-consultation-officers-meeting-and-open-house-for-door-county-wisconsin/
LA CROSSE, Wis. (AP) — The city council in La Crosse has decided to spend another $25,000 on bottled water for town of Campbell residents with PFAS-contaminated wells.
The La Crosse Tribune reported March 11 that the council voted March 10 to pull the money from the city’s contingency fund.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/03/ap-la-crosse-25k-bottled-water/
By Todd Richmond, Associated Press
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Democratic Gov. Tony Evers lashed out Thursday at conservative members of the Department of Natural Resources policy board for refusing to set limits on a group of chemicals known as PFAS in Wisconsin’s groundwater.
The board in February adopted limits for drinking water and surface water but rejected the Department of Natural Resources’ recommendations to impose a 20 parts per trillion limit for groundwater after conservative board members voiced concerns about the cost of replacing or remediating wells with contamination that exceeds that bench mark.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/03/evers-conservatives-pfas-standards/
By Todd Richmond, Associated Press
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin Supreme Court’s swing justice appeared skeptical Thursday about whether to remove a conservative Department of Natural Resources board member who refuses to step down even though his term ended almost a year ago.
Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul sued in August to oust Fred Prehn from the board.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/03/ap-key-justice-dnr-board-member/
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The comment period on a draft analysis of the environmental impact of rerouting an oil and gas pipeline around an American Indian reservation in northern Wisconsin will run for an additional month, state regulators announced Wednesday.
The Enbridge Line 5 pipeline carries oil and natural gas liquids from Superior to Sarnia.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/03/ap-dnr-extends-comment-period-enbridge-reroute/
Racine County, Wisconsin
CCO Meeting:
Tuesday, March 29, 2022
Open House:
Tuesday, March 29, 2022, from 4-7pm CT
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88052699805?pwd=cEp3bkI1d0ZGUGg5ZlZNRGMwRksyZz09
Great Lakes Coastal Flood Study
Great Lakes Coastal Flood Study
https://www.greatlakescoast.org/2022/03/04/lake-michigan-community-consultation-officers-meeting-and-open-house-for-racine-county-wisconsin/
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/2022/03/pfas-wisconsin-weakened-state-standards-trout-contaminated/
By Darlene Superville, Fatima Hussein and Chris Megerian, Associated Press
SUPERIOR, Wis. (AP) — President Joe Biden, struggling to regain his political footing as the midterm elections approach, visited the crucial state of Wisconsin on Wednesday to promote one of his top accomplishments, a bipartisan infrastructure measure that will distribute billions of dollars to fix roads, bridges and other public works.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/03/ap-biden-cabinet-domestic-agenda/
SUPERIOR, Wis. (AP) — President Joe Biden travels to Wisconsin next week, the day after delivering his State of the Union speech in Washington.
According to the White House, Biden and first lady Jill Biden will stop in Superior on Wednesday to discuss how the $1 trillion infrastructure law will improve the state’s roads and bridges, among other things, and create jobs.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/02/biden-state-union-address-wisconsin/
María Hernández, a University of Chicago graduate student studying microbial ecology, was both nervous and eager to traverse a frozen Green Bay. Being sure to walk slowly and carefully, she assisted fellow researchers in extracting samples of ice-cold freshwater.
“We’re out here because we usually sample in the spring and summer,” said Hernández, “So this is the first time we’re going to be sampling in the winter, and it just gives us another view into what the microbes are doing at different times of the year.”
Hernandez and her University of Chicago colleagues were joined by University of Minnesota Duluth researchers on Monday for the recently launched “Winter Grab,” a first of its kind, week-long collection event for regional researchers studying Great Lakes’ winter conditions.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/02/scratching-surface-regional-research-winter-conditions/
By Kari Lydersen
This story was first published on the Energy News Network and was republished here with permission.
A two-year-old economic development partnership is helping to draw attention — and investment dollars — to sustainability projects in the Great Lakes region.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/02/great-lakes-platform-green-projects/
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:
Illinois:
Aiming to increase diversity in wind and solar jobs, a proposed measure in the Illinois General Assembly would require more transparent reporting on the level of participation of minority-owned businesses in clean energy jobs.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/01/energy-news-roundup-nuclear-bill-natural-gas/
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/2022/01/pfas-news-lake-superior-fish-michigan-superfund-list/
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 increasingly warm air and heavy rain showers have caused a rise in toxic algae blooms, which has led to fish sickness, beach closures, and drinking water pollution.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/01/drinking-water-news-roundup-toxic-algae-blooms/
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/2021/12/pfas-news-roundup-water/
By Scott Bauer, Associated Press
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A state appeals court on Thursday refused to reinstate a permit for a proposed $75 million frac sand operation in western Wisconsin, a victory for environmentalists who have been fighting for years to protect the 16 acres (6.5 hectares) of pristine wetlands.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/12/ap-court-frac-sand-plant/
