An estimated 300 dead birds were found along beaches at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore located along the northwest coast of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231101-dead-birds
The latest phase of a $75-million plan to build a revamped and modern marina along the Mississauga shoreline in Ontario concluded on Oct. 31. Read the full story by Insauga.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231101-waterfront-transformation
$400 million will be given to municipalities across the state of Wisconsin to improve drinking water by replacing lead pipes in hopes of reducing and ultimately eliminating water contaminants. Read the full story by WTAQ – Green Bay, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231101-reduce-lead
A stormwater pond off the coast of Lake Michigan in Racine County, Wisconsin, is being redesigned to integrate a high-performing wetland mitigation bank that cleanses water before entering Lake Michigan. Read the full story by the Racine County Eye.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231101-stormwater-project
A Ph.D. student from UW-Madison in Wisconsin lost important research on Lake Michigan coastal erosion and could use your help in finding the lost vessel which collects and stores the data. Read or watch the full story by WDJT-TV – Milwaukee, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231101-missing-vessel
Great Lake scientists have shown that eDNA can be a more important tool for conservation science than anyone suspected 13 years ago. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231101-edna-conservation
You can be part of a renewed effort to stop invaders in the Great Lakes region. Check your car, kayak or a nearby rail car – it might be providing free transportation for an invasive pest or plant. Read the full story by Michigan Farm News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231101-fight-invasives
In Ohio, officials from the city of Conneaut and state of Ohio plus various contractors celebrated the completion of work on the Conneaut Creek Dredge Reclamation Facility with a ribbon-cutting ceremony this week. The facility helps to maintain the port of Conneaut on Lake Erie and reduce dumping of dredge material into the lake. Read the full story by the Star Beacon.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231101-dredge-facility
The journey to hold several officials accountable in court regarding the Flint water crisis in Michigan is over after a ruling by the Michigan Supreme Court. Read the full story by Midland Daily News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231101-flint-water-crisis
Pumped from the vast layers of bedrock beneath our feet, groundwater is the source of drinking water for two-thirds of people living in Wisconsin. According to geochemist Matt Ginder-Vogel, what’s in that water is largely influenced by what’s in the rock.
“Groundwater is not a lake underneath the ground. It’s water that’s in tiny pore spaces in the rock,” said Ginder-Vogel, an associate professor in the UW–Madison Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. “So, it really interacts with the rocks around it.”
Under the right conditions, this interaction can cause naturally occurring or “geogenic” contaminants—like radium, arsenic, uranium and manganese—to leach from bedrock into groundwater.
Just where geogenic contamination is occurring in the state and how are the questions Ginder-Vogel and his team of graduate students are hoping to answer in new research funded by the University of Wisconsin Water Resources Institute.
Savannah Finley and Juliet Ramey-Lariviere are both graduate students working on the project. They’re digging through drinking water quality data from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to identify municipal wells with high levels of contaminants. The goal is to provide a snapshot of geogenic contamination across the state so that folks know what’s in their water.
“We want to give a health progress report of our overall aquifer and say—here’s what we have. Here are the contaminants that we’re looking at,” said Finley.
She and Ramey-Lariviere are working on a map that will show contaminant hotspots and the underlying bedrock in those locations to determine if there is a relationship between the two.
“The hope is, once we have this data, to lay it all out on top of one another and look at the different bedrock formations and hopefully try to tie in the bedrock formation with the different contaminants that we’re seeing,” said Finley.
The team is focused on public wells in the Midwestern Cambrian Ordovician Aquifer System, a horseshoe-shaped region that roughly occupies the southern two-thirds of Wisconsin. Once wells are identified, they’ll collect both water and rock samples and begin experiments in the lab, which will reveal the amount of contamination leaching from the samples and how fast it’s occurring.
“We’ll be taking rock sections and grinding them up and looking to see what comes off the rocks,” said Ginder-Vogel. “You expose them to water and see what partitions into the water. Then you can manipulate the conditions of water to release other contaminants.”
The team will then use these findings to create a model that identifies hotspots around the state prone to geogenic contamination. Ginder-Vogel hopes the model will raise awareness of the problem even if water utilities aren’t currently experiencing issues. Concentrations of naturally occurring contaminants can change over time. Take, for example, the city of Waukesha.
“[Waukesha] didn’t always have troubles with radium. But when they started pumping more groundwater—and the Chicago suburbs were also pumping more groundwater and were changing the flow path of the water—[Waukesha] started to have more and more trouble with radium,” said Ginder-Vogel.
“Once you’ve seen that, you can’t help but ask, is it happening with other things, other naturally occurring contaminants like arsenic?”
Ginder-Vogel said increased water use is what’s driving the changing concentrations. Pumping more water pulls groundwater through the aquifer in different ways and allows water to interact with bedrock it hadn’t before, picking up new contaminants.
“People who think about groundwater often think about it being this unchanging pool beneath the ground, but with all the water that we use and the way we move water around right now, there’s the possibility for lots of change,” he said.
Unfortunately for water utilities dealing with high levels of geogenic contaminants, the solution isn’t an easy or cheap one. Geogenic contaminants don’t biodegrade or go away. “They’re metals,” said Ginder-Vogel. “You can’t destroy them and remediate them. You can only move them from one place to another.”
One solution is to install treatment systems that remove contaminants from drinking water. It’s an expensive option, however, and small municipalities may not have the resources to support such an endeavor. Water utilities may also choose to rebuild a well in such a way that it avoids rock formations with high amounts of contaminants.
Ginder-Vogel’s hope is that the team’s research helps municipalities develop a plan before geogenic contamination becomes a problem. While they can’t change the bedrock, they can be strategic about how they pump water.
Said Ginder-Vogel, “We’re trying to be smart about our water resources.”
The post Groundwater on the rocks: WRI-funded research will map naturally occurring contaminants in public wells across Wisconsin first appeared on WRI.News Release | WRI
https://www.wri.wisc.edu/news/groundwater-on-the-rocks-wri-funded-research-will-map-naturally-occurring-contaminants-in-public-wells-across-wisconsin/
Title: Communications Director
Reports to: Vice President of Development
Classification / Status: Full-time, Exempt
Level: Director
Location: Hybrid / Office – occasional meetings in Chicago, Great Lakes State or Washington, D.C.
The Communications Director will develop and execute communications and marketing strategies to grow the size of and deepen engagement with our constituent base and increase our brand awareness across the Great Lakes region. The Director manages owned and paid media to grow our volunteer, advocate and donor constituencies that support our program work. The Director ensures that all our supporters receive consistent and targeted information about the Alliance’s work so that we can retain and upgrade their engagement. The Director is the Alliance’s brand steward and serves as editor-in-chief for institutional communications. They are part of the development, communications, and volunteer management team. They work closely with the Media Director, providing owned and paid media to advance program and advocacy goals and campaigns, while leveraging media campaign materials to facilitate storytelling and engagement with our supporters.
The Director guides and manages the internal communications team. As a team leader, the Director energizes staff members by inspiring and motivating direct reports and by evolving constituent engagement strategies and tactics throughout the organization. The Director is also a capable public figure for the organization who can speak credibly to our constituents. The Director collaborates with other Alliance campaign and program leaders. They will interact with the Board of Directors and external partners in support of strategic communications planning and to aid fundraising efforts.
This role reports to the Vice President for Development.
Major priorities for the role include:
Structure: The Director reports to the Vice President of Development (VPD) and works closely with other senior program staff leaders, especially the Media Director. The Director of Communications supervises the following staff: Senior Communications Manager and Staff Writer, as well as occasional affiliates and contractors.
Compensation and Benefits: Salary range begins at $100,000, with starting salary determined commensurate with experience. Medical, dental, short- and long-term disability, life insurance, FSA, 11 paid holidays plus the business days between 12/26 and 12/30 (staff who must work on any holidays may take those holidays at another time subject to the employee handbook), 3 weeks vacation to start + PTO, Fidelity 401(k) with employer match of up to 6% of salary.
Work Environment: Fully remote with some travel required. If based in Chicago, an office is available downtown for use.
_________________________________________________________________________________
The Director will start work from a position of strength. Our staff and Board of Directors include some of the country’s leading Great Lakes advocates, experts and communicators. Our organization has a well-regarded record of recent and historic successes dating to 1970. The Alliance’s capacity stands tall among state and regional environmental advocacy organizations across the country, with more than $10 million in assets of which more than 70% is unrestricted. The Alliance is growing toward an operating budget of $5 million by the end of 2024.
Representative goals of this position include:
By the end of 2024:
Within five years:
A typical week for the Director might include:
Strategist: The Director ensures that every aspect of the organization’s public outreach – including issue and program work, volunteer and advocacy growth & leadership, and fundraising – furthers our mission and is aligned with our program goals. They will lead strategic communications and engagement planning, set long-range measurable goals and implement regularly updated work plans appropriate to achieving them. They will:
Communicator: The Director partners with the Media Director to cultivate opportunities for publicity, recognition, and constituency engagement. They will:
Motivator: The Director of Communications leads the Alliance’s communications team to ensure strong collaboration, performance and job satisfaction. They will:
Work Relationships
The Director of Communications works closely with a wide variety of Alliance for the Great Lakes staff members, particularly the Media Director and the communications and development staff
Supervisor Responsibilities
The Director of Communications supervises the following staff: Senior Communications Manager and Staff Writer, as well as occasional affiliates and contractors.
Physical Demands/Work Environment
Remote office work environment with occasional overnight travel required. Office space available if located in Chicago.
NICE TO HAVE:
Application Process:
Please email a cover letter, resume, references, and writing sample to hr@greatlakes.org.
Include job title in the subject line.
Applications will be accepted until the position is filled – we are looking to fill immediately. Materials should be compatible with Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat. Applicants will receive confirmation of receipt of their materials and further guidance and updates about the hiring process by email, with interviews provided for finalists. No phone inquiries, please.
The Alliance for the Great Lakes is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The search process will reinforce the Alliance’s belief that achieving diversity requires an enduring commitment to inclusion that must find full expression in our organizational culture, values, norms, and behaviors.
About the Alliance for the Great Lakes
The Alliance for the Great Lakes is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The search process will reinforce the Alliance’s belief that achieving diversity requires an enduring commitment to inclusion that must find full expression in our organizational culture, values, norms, and behaviors.
Our vision is a thriving Great Lakes and healthy water that all life can rely on, today and far into the future. We aspire to be a voice for the lakes and to support the voices of the communities that depend on the lakes and their waters.
The mission of the Alliance for the Great Lakes is to protect, conserve, and restore the Great Lakes ensuring healthy water in the lakes and in our communities for all generations of people and wildlife. We advance our mission as advocates for policies that support the lakes and communities by building the research, analysis, and partnerships that motivate action, and by educating and uniting people as a voice for the Great Lakes.
To achieve our vision and mission, everyone in our organization will live our values of Community, Relationships, Courage, Integrity and Optimism and weave the principles of Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion into all our work. Each value and principle is backed by measurable goals and expectations for our Board of Directors and staff.
The post Communications Director appeared first on Alliance for the Great Lakes.
News - Alliance for the Great Lakes
News - Alliance for the Great Lakes
https://greatlakes.org/2023/11/communications-director/
Note: This blog was co-written by President & CEO Joel Brammeier and Vice President of Policy and Strategic Engagement Crystal M.C. Davis.
For four days in Cleveland on the shores of Lake Erie last week, many of the Great Lakes region’s leading advocates and decision-makers gathered for discussions on the future of our waters. We were privileged to be part of those gatherings at the Healing Our Waters (HOW) – Great Lakes Coalition’s annual conference, followed by the biennial Summit of Great Lakes St. Lawrence Governors and Premiers.
Forums like these occasionally yield big breakthroughs. The 2015 Summit was where Ohio, Michigan and Ontario agreed to reduce nutrient pollution to Lake Erie by 40%. More often, they are a place for people like us to build consensus with our colleagues on the next major phases of our long-term work to protect the Great Lakes.
With the HOW Conference and the Governors and Premiers Summit held back-to-back in one place, there were great opportunities to confab among the hundreds of elected officials, senior agency staff, philanthropists, and private sector and nonprofit leaders from across the region.
Crystal was honored to join in a small roundtable discussion with Governor Whitmer led by the Cleveland NAACP, bringing her voice to elevate the Alliance’s water policy priorities. Additionally, we had the opportunity to speak directly with Ohio Governor Mike DeWine about his state’s H2Ohio water funding program, the Ohio Lake Erie Commission, and other pressing water policy matters.
Three things stood out to us among the countless speeches, panels, and meetings.
First, attendees learned that to be successful at protecting the Great Lakes, we must pay attention to how they intersect with so many other needs in our communities.
The HOW coalition asked Crystal to organize the opening plenary for the conference. The audience applauded a diverse panel from the financial, health, environmental and economic development sectors that outlined the complex relationship between water policy and needs for economic, racial, and educational justice in Cleveland and communities across our region. The Alliance also organized the ‘Green N Tha Ghetto’ field trip to the renowned Rid-All Farm in Cleveland. This trip highlighted a black-owned urban farm’s groundbreaking aquaponics and thriving crops, and a farm that stands as a testament to the rich intersection of Great Lakes water, cultivation of community, and economic development.
Second, the composition of some of the rooms is changing to better reflect all the voices of the region. Truly inclusive representation of Great Lakes communities is critical for these high-level gatherings to be worth their weight. We saw and heard many younger faces and voices that were new to us – always a positive sign. And the Great Lakes movement is catching up to the fact that leaders from Black, Indigenous, Latino and more communities of color have been pivotal in advocating for our water for many years. When organizations like HOW and the Alliance truly value and practice authentic engagement, this fosters long-lasting and sustainable relationships, paving the way for more Great Lakes success.
Finally, we saw attention not just to what needs to happen but how the work gets done. The governors and premiers summit was the launch pad for a new commitment to planting 250 million trees across the Great Lakes region over the next decade. A laudable goal for sure, and one that can play a part in meeting our climate and clean water challenges. What we found most illuminating about the launch were the reflections from leaders from the Cleveland Trees Coalition and National Indian Carbon Coalition. Trees can help heal urban heat islands in Cleveland or support wild rice habitat on tribal lands in Minnesota. Tree planting is good, but it can become great when it starts with and is sustained by community leadership to address community-identified needs.
The power of these gatherings hit home for Joel on Saturday at the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Governors and Premiers luncheon. A video testimonial from the two surviving founders of the organization, former Michigan Governor Jim Blanchard and former Ohio Governor Dick Celeste, described the economic conditions of the Great Lakes region in the early 1980s – severe recession, high unemployment, and deep uncertainty facing residents and leaders across the lakes. The governors chose this moment to convene for the first time to build on one asset that was recession-proof: our shared freshwater foundations. Their choice to come together in a time of uncertainty so many decades ago reminds us that protecting the Great Lakes takes time and that choices we make today can have incredible staying power.
We are proud to be part of bringing a greater diversity of voices to these critical Great Lakes conversations than ever before, ensuring the next generation of Great Lakes protection meets the needs of everyone who relies on the lakes every day.
The post Charting the Future of the Great Lakes: Insights from the HOW Conference and Governors’ Summit appeared first on Alliance for the Great Lakes.
News - Alliance for the Great Lakes
News - Alliance for the Great Lakes
https://greatlakes.org/2023/11/charting-the-future-of-the-great-lakes-insights-from-the-how-conference-and-governors-summit/
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/2023/11/no-convictions-for-flint-attorney-general-ends-water-crisis-prosecutions/
Keep up with PFAS-related developments in the Great Lakes area with Great Lakes Now’s biweekly headline roundup.
Click on the headline to read the full story:
Michigan
Michigan State University to host PFAS symposium: Educating farmers on forever chemicals — WWMT
Michigan State University is hosting an upcoming symposium to educate farmers on the impact of PFAS.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2023/11/pfas-news-roundup-push-to-find-forever-chemicals-replacements-in-manufacturing/
Public transportation is suffering from a lack of drivers in communities across Michigan.
Clark Harder, the executive director of the Michigan Public Transit Association, said it’s a statewide problem.
The post Michigan struggles to fill public bus driver positions first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2023/11/01/michigan-struggles-to-fill-public-bus-driver-positions/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1266676D3500.SpecialWeatherStatement.1266676D77CCWI.GRBSPSGRB.afc8e87e6c80db8a22a2ffbdb408f41d
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1266676D3500.SpecialWeatherStatement.1266676D77CCWI.GRBSPSGRB.176ff32f6d68e42ba8c58090bd33adbe
Points North is a biweekly podcast hosted by Daniel Wanschura and Morgan Springer about the land, water and inhabitants of the Upper Great Lakes.
This episode was shared here with permission from Interlochen Public Radio.
On September 21, 2020, twelve-year-old Lane Frame and his brothers were seeing the Great Lakes for the first time.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2023/10/points-north-pier-pressure/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1266676CFFE0.SpecialWeatherStatement.1266676D3564WI.GRBSPSGRB.670272ffdeab82d92d5ab990673d0435
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1266676CB2EC.SpecialWeatherStatement.1266676CFCC0WI.GRBSPSGRB.7b75ea175a37675f156358c49feb47ae
By Lily Cartier, University of Minnesota Duluth
Tony Dierckins shared his knowledge of the history of the industries surrounding the waterways of Duluth, Minnesota, and Superior, Wisconsin, for the October River Talk. He focused on businesses that have been lost or changed along the way.
Tony Dierckins. Image credit: Michael Anderson
Dierckins began his talk with the disclaimer that he is not a scientist or an environmentalist, but a writer. He is currently working on a book about the railways of Duluth and Superior.
The Ojibwe people in the area based their economy on fur trading with the French during the 16th and 17thcenturies. But by the mid-1800s, the fur trade died, and with it came the collapse of the Ojibwe economy.
The year 1856 marked the establishment of Duluth; a great vision for a shipping center and copper mines. This was followed closely by the economic panic of 1857, however. The search for copper was unsuccessful and most of the population moved away. It wasn’t until 1869 that the population began to boom again with the establishment of the first “lost” industry: the railway.
These railways, sponsored by Jay Cooke, brought a construction boom to the Duluth area that lasted almost thirty years. Even throughout the boom and busts that fluctuated throughout this century, the railways continued to thrive and connect this northern area. Railroads continued to spread and grow, becoming the peak industry bringing in money and a larger population to Duluth and Superior. This industry continued to thrive until the 1970s.
The railways created a commerce division in Duluth and Superior. Through the late 1980s, industries continued to pop up along the shore of Lake Superior. Leather tanneries, wholesalers and slaughterhouses are just a few of the many industries that moved the economy along.
These railroads were fueled by the coal industry, which was making great headway in this area throughout this century. It is from this industry that we are able to see today how the east and west divide of Duluth formed. Those who were poorer were forced to continue to live in the coal-polluted area where the factories were, while the rich moved east to escape the smoke and particulate matter in the air.
Individuals around the area were displaced due to the growing number of industries and a lack of space. The Ojibwe people took the hardest hit. Since European settlement, Dierckins said there has never been a larger percentage than two percent of Ojibwe people in the population.
The next lost industry was lumber milling, which came closely after the making of the railways. As trees were not a quickly renewed resource, industries in the east United States moved to Duluth to find lumber after cutting over their supplies. Duluth and Superior became the center of this industry until the early twentieth century, when the equipment was sent to the West Coast to continue the pursuit of big lumber. The legacy of this industry can be found in piles of waste wood lining the bottom of the St. Louis River, which has been the focus of several habitat restoration projects.
The next lost industry of Duluth and Superior that Dierckins discussed was the grain shipping industry. At its peak, Duluth was home to around 24 grain elevators and the first-ever concrete grain silo. Though there is not much pollution from grain production itself, the coal that was used to manufacture the products created immense emissions.
The grain shipping industry made way for the shipping of iron ore and taconite out of local harbors. Ore docks were built all around Lake Superior, each bigger than the last.
Shipping cannot be done without boats. The shipbuilding industry was a wartime creation, shipping boats and different metals to various places in the country to support WWI and WWII efforts. This created many jobs for the local economy but also created a plethora of pollutants such as carbon monoxide and the “icky stew” of slag runoff into the water.
Most of these industries were boom and bust, moving on with the depletion of natural resources. Today, Duluth and Superior’s economies have turned to environmentalism and tourism. Millions of dollars have been spent to clean up the river from the legacies of the past.
The next River Talk will be held on Nov. 8. Euan Reavie with the Natural Resources Research Institute will talk about harmful algal blooms in the estuary.
The post Lost Industries on the St. Louis River first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.Blog | Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/lost-industries-on-the-st-louis-river/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1266676C6FBC.SpecialWeatherStatement.1266676CBA58WI.GRBSPSGRB.7b75ea175a37675f156358c49feb47ae
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1266676C1454.SpecialWeatherStatement.1266676CFCC0WI.GRBSPSGRB.55b57b6e07717bb15458b89b4aacd12f
As cities continue to expand, the amount of unused rooftop space grows too.
Steven Peck, the founder and president of Green Roofs for Healthy Cities, said that flat roofs are wasted spaces. The organization is an association of the green roof and wall industry.
The post Green roofs are saving green dollars first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2023/10/31/green-roofs-are-saving-green-dollars/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1266676ADB70.SpecialWeatherStatement.1266676C1260WI.GRBSPSGRB.1079f636710c404b77bd880ef1c503b9
Waves of Change is a new online interview series highlighting the diverse faces and perspectives shaping the environmental justice movement throughout the Great Lakes region.
This month, we spoke with Monica Cady, a member of the Sault Tribe of Chippewa who is a forager and herbalist living in Hessel, Michigan — a place that is part of her tribe’s ancestral homelands in what is now known as Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2023/10/waves-of-change-meet-herbalist-and-forager-monica-cady/
Science Says What? is a monthly column written by Great Lakes now contributor Sharon Oosthoek exploring what science can tell us about what’s happening beneath and above the waves of our beloved Great Lakes and their watershed.
Thirteen years ago, a live bighead carp was caught within swimming distance of Lake Michigan.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2023/10/science-says-what-how-edna-research-is-evolving-to-create-a-new-era-in-conservation/
Thank you for sponsoring the Watershed Conference! This registration form is only for those who wish to pay by invoice. Please complete all information. Your sponsorship and registrations are pending until we receive payment.
The post Sponsor the 2024 Watershed Conference by invoice appeared first on Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance.
Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance
https://fwwa.org/2023/10/30/sponsor-conference-invoice/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=sponsor-conference-invoice
A deal was reached Sunday between Unifor and the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp to end a week-long strike that had shut down a major shipping artery in the Great Lakes, halting the flow of grain and other goods from the U.S. and Canada. Read the full story by The Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231030-strike-agreement
On October 11, 1923, the Cetus, a fully loaded bulk freighter, crashed into the Huronton, an empty bulk freighter, in Lake Superior about 20 miles northwest of Whitefish Point, Michigan. Over the summer, the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society found the wreck of the Huronton for the first time. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231030-shipwreck-found
Associate Professor Drew Gronewold at the University of Michigan’s School of Environment and Sustainability is leading a new research center designed to strengthen climate change resilience in communities that span international boundaries and jurisdictions. The project is funded by a $5 million grant from the National Science Foundation, with additional funding expected over the next five years. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231030-climate-research-center
In Midland, Michigan, the Midland Business Alliance’s Advisory Committee on Infrastructure is finishing its plans to utilize a $40 million state allocation for flood reduction infrastructure. Read the full story by Midland Daily News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231030-flood-planning
The S.S. Keewatin, one of the world’s largest remaining Edwardian steamships, has arrived at its new home at the Marine Museum of the Great Lakes in Kingston, Ontario, after sailing through the Great Lakes from Georgian Bay. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231030-steamship-relocation
A rare USCG Type TR Motor Lifeboat CG 36381, a 36-foot-long vessel, will soon be on display at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Museum in Whitefish Point, Michigan. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231030-lifeboat-display
In Sterling Heights, Michigan, the Sterling Heights Historical Commission unveiled the Holcombe Beach Historical Marker, which tells the story of the early Indigenous people in the Great Lakes region who made their home in the area surrounding the marker. Read the full story by the Macomb Daily.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231030-historic-marker-unveiled
The WATERshed Program of Southeast Wisconsin has received more than $30,000 in grants to help Racine students learn about the value of living in a coastal community with freshwater resources, and to explore career paths in freshwater science and coastal engineering during the 2023-24 school year. Read the full story by The Journal Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231030-education-funding
A judge in Suttons Bay, Michigan, ordered the owner of a barge best known for repeatedly sinking in Lake Michigan to either sell or relocate the barge out of Great Lakes waters by December 8th. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231030-barge-ruling
The Freshwater Summit in Traverse City, Michigan, was held for its 16th year last Friday to cast a wider net into freshwater research in northern Michigan. Many of the organizations taking part represent the continuing efforts on initiatives that impact the Great Lakes and Grand Traverse Bay regions. Read the full story by Up North Live.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231030-invasive-species-summit
The next River Talk will be at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 8, with “Making Sense of Algal Blooms in the St. Louis River Estuary,” an in-person presentation by Euan Reavie with the Natural Resources Research Institute. His talk will be held at the Lake Superior Estuarium (3 Marina Dr., Superior, Wis.). Refreshments will be provided.
Euan Reavie. Image credit: Natural Resources Research Institute
Reavie will present what’s known so far about the evolving situation with algae and algal blooms in the river and harbor. He’ll also describe plans for a collaborative monitoring strategy with the Lake Superior Reserve to address current and future problems.
For accessibility accommodations related to sound, language and translation, mobility or anything else to make engagement possible, please contact Luciana at 715-399-4085 or Luciana.Ranelli@wisc.edu, as soon as possible.
In an abbreviation of the season, other River Talks will be held in 2024 on March 13 and April 10. For more information, visit the River Talks page: go.wisc.edu/4uz720.
The River Talks are sponsored by the Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve and the Wisconsin Sea Grant Program.
The post Making Sense of Algal Blooms first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant
News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/making-sense-of-algal-blooms/
Michigan is set to receive $20.4 million from a federal grant to improve passenger and freight railroads around the state, including a bridge project in Wexford County.
The Manistee River Train Bridge replacement project is expected to begin in 2025 and be completed in 2027, according to MDOT.
The post Rail link upgrade expected to help northern Michigan businesses first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2023/10/30/rail-link-upgrade-expected-to-help-northern-michigan-businesses/
The species spotlighted this month is Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica)! Also known as Blue Cardinal Flower, Great Blue Lobelia is a perennial wildflower native to Wisconsin that grows well along streams, springs, swamps, meadows and other places with sufficient moisture. This species grows up to 4 feet tall, with a leafy stalk on which blue/purple tubular flowers bloom in July – October. Great Blue Lobelia requires moist to wet soil and partial to full sun, and is resistant to deer browsing. This plant has a wide distribution in North America, found in wet ground from Main to Colorado and into Canada, and south to North Carolina and Texas.
The seedlings of Great Blue Lobelia are very tiny at first, before growing into the clump forming wildflower. This plant usually blooms in its first year. Seeds in October – November and in optimal conditions, this plant may self-seed, but is not overly prolific. It is not very drought tolerant, and requires moist soil.
Great Blue Lobelia is a great plant for shoreline plantings. Along with other native species, its roots are great for capturing and slowing down stormwater runoff, and for holding on to soil which helps prevent erosion. In addition, Great Blue Lobelia attacks hummingbirds and native bee species!
Article written by Katie Reed, Winnebago Waterways Coordinator: katherine@fwwa.org
Featured Image Credit: SB Johnny; CC BY-SA 3.0 Unported
Additional Image Credit 1: Aaron Carlson, wisflora.herbarium.wisc.edu; CC BY-SA 3.0
Additional Image Credit 2: H.Zell, NC Extension Gardner Plant Toolbox; CC BY-SA 3.0
Sources:
Wisconsin Pollinators – Plant Details – Great Blue Lobelia
USDA Plants – Great Blue Lobelia
Wisconsin Herbarium – Great Blue Lobelia
North Carolina Extension Gardener – Plant Toolbox – Lobelia siphilitica
Winnebago Waterways is a Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance recovery initiative. Contact us at wwinfo@fwwa.org
The post Species Spotlight: Great Blue Lobelia appeared first on Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance.
Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance
https://fwwa.org/2023/10/27/species-spotlight-great-blue-lobelia/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=species-spotlight-great-blue-lobelia
By Steve Karnowski, Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A strike has shut down all shipping on the St. Lawrence Seaway, interrupting exports of grain and other goods from Canada and the United States via the Great Lakes to the rest of the world.
Around 360 workers in Ontario and Quebec with Unifor, Canada’s largest private-sector union, walked out early Sunday in a dispute over wages with the St.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2023/10/ap-strikers-shut-down-vital-great-lakes-shipping-artery-negotiations-looming/
A 4.5-mile stretch of Enbridge Energy’s Line 5 pipeline that runs under the Straits of Mackinac has sparked anger, lawsuits, and serious concerns about the threat it poses to the Great Lakes. Read the full story by WDIV – TV –Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231027-line5
On Wednesday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and local partners announced a new $100 million agreement to clean up nearly 875,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment under the Cuyahoga River, marking the first step toward removing the Gorge Metro Park dam in Ohio. Read the full story by the Akron Beacon Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231027-gorge-dam
An autonomous quiet research vessel called Saildrone just set a new milestone with its return to port after 60 days on the Great Lakes. The fleet of these surface vessels has traveled 1 million nautical miles at sea. Read the full story by WPBN -TV – Traverse City, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231027-saildrone
On Wednesday morning, Michigan legislators joined environmental advocates to break down the details of a newly introduced “polluter pay” package intended to bolster the state of Michigan’s environmental cleanup standards. Read the full story by Michigan Advance.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231027-pollution-bill
Research is being performed on sea lamprey in Marquette Township, Michigan, to find out where the population is moving and how it can be controlled. Read the full story by WLUC – TV – Marquette, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231027-lamprey
A cleanup project at a former industrial complex on the banks of the St. Louis River in Duluth, Minnesota, is almost finished. Read the full story by the Duluth News Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231027-duluth-cleanup
In June, the Brushwood Center in Lake County, Illinois, released a report that looks at the unequal effects of climate change on local communities of differing racial backgrounds. Read the full story by WTTW – TV – Chicago, IL.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231027-climate-justice
Monroe County, New York has made important improvements to their sewer system to combat some of the effects of climate change and protect local waterways. Read the full story by WROC – TV – Rochester, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20231027-climate-resiliency
