On:
In: Echo, water

By Clara Lincolnhol

The U.S. would need to invest nearly $3.4 trillion over the next 20 years to fix and update drinking water, wastewater and stormwater infrastructure, says researchers from The Value of Water Campaign. Much of that infrastructure was built 40 to 50 years ago and shows its age. Michigan’s is no exception. The American Society of Civil Engineers gave the state a D+ for its drinking water infrastructure, a D in storm water management and a C for its wastewater infrastructure. Funding is a major problem. Proposed data centers would put more stress on the infrastructure.

The post Michigan’s water infrastructure sees improvements, work still needs to be done first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.

Original Article

Great Lakes Echo

Great Lakes Echo

https://greatlakesecho.org/2025/12/11/michigans-water-infrastructure-sees-improvements-work-still-needs-to-be-done/

Clara Lincolnhol

On:
In: 2025, AIS, aquatic invasive species, auger, Bay of Green Bay, cold, conservation, curly-leaf pondweed, Eurasian watermilfoil, fishing, For Fun and Recreation, Fox-Wolf Basin, Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance, Green Bay, ice, ice fishing, icy, invasive species, Keepers of the Fox, Lake Butte des Morts, Lake Poygan, Lake Winnebago, Lake Winneconne, Lower Fox River, Outreach and Education, Projects and Programs, Recreation, shanty, spear, stary stonewort, Upper Fox River, watershed, WDNR, WI DNR, winter

Do you have your auger and shanty ready? The ice is firming up. It's calling anglers throughout Wisconsin. In fact, several folks are already getting out in our area! Be careful on that ice! Help protect our lakes and rivers this winter with a few easy steps to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive [...]

The post Ice Fishing? Even Icy Wisconsin Waters Host Aquatic Invasive Species appeared first on Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance.

Original Article

Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance

Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance

https://fwwa.org/2025/12/10/ice-fishing-even-icy-wisconsin-waters-host-aquatic-invasive-species/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ice-fishing-even-icy-wisconsin-waters-host-aquatic-invasive-species

Chris Acy

On:
In: 2025, AIS, aquatic invasive species, Event - Non-FWWA, Habitat and Wildlife, ice fishing, Outreach and Education, Recreation, webinar, winter water talks

December 18th, 12:00pm - 1:00pm: Winter Water Talk Webinar Looking for something to do during your lunch break and interested in ice fishing? Check out this free webinar co-hosted by the Water Action Volunteers Program and the Citizen Lake Monitoring Network Program. Webinar Description Bundle up, grab your favorite hot drink, and join us [...]

The post Fishing on Frozen Habitats Free Webinar: Enhance Your Time on the Ice! appeared first on Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance.

Original Article

Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance

Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance

https://fwwa.org/2025/12/10/fishing-on-frozen-habitats-free-webinar-enhance-your-time-on-the-ice/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=fishing-on-frozen-habitats-free-webinar-enhance-your-time-on-the-ice

Chris Acy

On:
In: Adopt-a-Beach

    Our amazing Adopt-a-Beach volunteers removed 541,750 pieces of litter – more than 23,000 pounds – from Great Lakes beaches, trails, parks, and marinas in 2025! Their work kept more than 11 tons of plastic waste and other litter out of the Great Lakes.

    And their work made ripples far beyond the shoreline.

    “Each cleanup makes a lasting impact,” says Olivia Reda, the Alliance’s Volunteer Engagement Manager. “The day of the cleanup, volunteers come together and do something positive for their community. After the cleanup is over, the data they collected helps our region for years to come.”

    Adopt-a-Beach volunteers tally up the litter they find, adding to a Great Lakes litter dataset the Alliance for the Great Lakes has maintained since 2003. In 2025, the data was used to help students, educators, and policy makers throughout the region.

    Adopt-a-Beach data is helping students learn

    High school and college students are using Adopt-a-Beach data to learn about plastic pollution and to hone their data analytics skills.

    • 7th-12th grade students at Harbor City International School in Duluth, Minnesota, have participated in 19 Adopt-a-Beach cleanups over the past 10 years. This year, science teacher Brian Scott invited the Alliance to share summary data from the school’s local cleanups and show students how their efforts have contributed to the regional dataset. “Our own trash pick-ups have been used in research projects with the Alliance! I thought that was very cool,” said one student. Another student noted that while cleanups are important, systemic solutions are also needed and we aren’t going to see real change “until we go to the source of the problem.”
    • At Harry S. Truman College in Chicago, student Sabrina Bernard used Adopt-a-Beach data to analyze litter trends on five Lake Michigan beaches from Chicago to Milwaukee. Her advisor, Professor of Chemistry Raymund Torralba, has led cleanups at Chicago’s Montrose Beach for many years. Sabrina presented a poster of her findings and recommendations at the Truman Symposium of Student Research and Creative Activity.
    • At University of Wisconsin Milwaukee’s Lubar College of Business, Professor Joan Shapiro Beigh and MBA candidate Grace Iyiola are using Adopt-a-Beach data to help business students hone their data analytics skills. Beigh and Iyiola’s seminar on Data Analytics & Innovation features a deep dive into Wisconsin’s 2024 shoreline litter data. “Students are examining Adopt-a-Beach data from several different perspectives,” says Beigh. “What would I want to know if I were a government agency? A researcher? A tourist bureau? They’re learning how to probe a large dataset, practice data visualization, and start telling stories with data. And, in the process, they’re learning a lot about the plastic littering Wisconsin’s shorelines.”

    Adopt-a-Beach data is changing policy

    Students aren’t the only ones learning from Adopt-a-Beach. Policymakers are also using the data to learn about plastic pollution, better understand it, and come up with solutions.

    “Every time plastics legislation is discussed in the Great Lakes Basin, Adopt-a-Beach data is utilized,” says Andrea Densham, Senior Policy Advisor to the Alliance. “Adopt-a-Beach data is being referenced from city councils to bi-national organizations as they consider robust and forward-thinking policies and strategies to combat plastic pollution.”

    Adopt-a-Beach data was cited this year in conversations about plastic pollution at the Great Lakes Legislative Caucus, the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators, and the International Joint Commission. One outcome is a growing movement to monitor the level of microplastics in the Great Lakes and our drinking water.

    In the Michigan state house, Adopt-a-Beach data was used in testimony supporting a bill to start monitoring microplastics in Michigan’s lakes and rivers. In Illinois, Adopt-a-Beach data was included in testimony supporting a bill to phase out plastic foam foodware. And in Erie, Pennsylvania, the Environmental Advisory Council’s single‑use plastics subcommittee is combining Adopt-a-Beach data with findings from a city litter study and local survey data for stakeholder conversations about single-use plastics.

    Data totals for 2025

    Thank you to all the Adopt-a-Beach Team Leaders and volunteers who cared for their shorelines this year! Here are their totals for 2025:

    541,750 pieces of litter.
    23,361 pounds of litter.
    10,515 volunteers.
    24,578 volunteer hours.
    Litter material. 81% plastic. 19% other materials.
    Litter type. 39% tiny trash. 24% food-related. 18% smoking-related. 19% other.
    A map showing pins at locations around U.S. Great Lakes shorelines.
    931 beach cleanups.

    A special thanks to this year’s top Adopt-a-Beach sponsors: Dr. Scholl Foundation, Freudenberg, HSBC, and Meijer.

    The post Adopt-a-Beach Volunteers Make Ripples Beyond the Shoreline appeared first on Alliance for the Great Lakes.

    Original Article

    News - Alliance for the Great Lakes

    News - Alliance for the Great Lakes

    https://greatlakes.org/2025/12/adopt-a-beach-volunteers-make-ripples-beyond-the-shoreline/

    Judy Freed

    On:
    In: Adopt-a-Beach

      Our amazing Adopt-a-Beach volunteers removed 541,750 pieces of litter – more than 23,000 pounds – from Great Lakes beaches, trails, parks, and marinas in 2025! Their work kept more than 11 tons of plastic waste and other litter out of the Great Lakes.

      And their work made ripples far beyond the shoreline.

      “Each cleanup makes a lasting impact,” says Olivia Reda, the Alliance’s Volunteer Engagement Manager. “The day of the cleanup, volunteers come together and do something positive for their community. After the cleanup is over, the data they collected helps our region for years to come.”

      Adopt-a-Beach volunteers tally up the litter they find, adding to a Great Lakes litter dataset the Alliance for the Great Lakes has maintained since 2003. In 2025, the data was used to help students, educators, and policy makers throughout the region.

      Adopt-a-Beach data is helping students learn

      High school and college students are using Adopt-a-Beach data to learn about plastic pollution and to hone their data analytics skills.

      • 7th-12th grade students at Harbor City International School in Duluth, Minnesota, have participated in 19 Adopt-a-Beach cleanups over the past 10 years. This year, science teacher Brian Scott invited the Alliance to share summary data from the school’s local cleanups and show students how their efforts have contributed to the regional dataset. “Our own trash pick-ups have been used in research projects with the Alliance! I thought that was very cool,” said one student. Another student noted that while cleanups are important, systemic solutions are also needed and we aren’t going to see real change “until we go to the source of the problem.”
      • At Harry S. Truman College in Chicago, student Sabrina Bernard used Adopt-a-Beach data to analyze litter trends on five Lake Michigan beaches from Chicago to Milwaukee. Her advisor, Professor of Chemistry Raymund Torralba, has led cleanups at Chicago’s Montrose Beach for many years. Sabrina presented a poster of her findings and recommendations at the Truman Symposium of Student Research and Creative Activity.
      • At University of Wisconsin Milwaukee’s Lubar College of Business, Professor Joan Shapiro Beigh and MBA candidate Grace Iyiola are using Adopt-a-Beach data to help business students hone their data analytics skills. Beigh and Iyiola’s seminar on Data Analytics & Innovation features a deep dive into Wisconsin’s 2024 shoreline litter data. “Students are examining Adopt-a-Beach data from several different perspectives,” says Beigh. “What would I want to know if I were a government agency? A researcher? A tourist bureau? They’re learning how to probe a large dataset, practice data visualization, and start telling stories with data. And, in the process, they’re learning a lot about the plastic littering Wisconsin’s shorelines.”

      Adopt-a-Beach data is changing policy

      Students aren’t the only ones learning from Adopt-a-Beach. Policymakers are also using the data to learn about plastic pollution, better understand it, and come up with solutions.

      “Every time plastics legislation is discussed in the Great Lakes Basin, Adopt-a-Beach data is utilized,” says Andrea Densham, Senior Policy Advisor to the Alliance. “Adopt-a-Beach data is being referenced from city councils to bi-national organizations as they consider robust and forward-thinking policies and strategies to combat plastic pollution.”

      Adopt-a-Beach data was cited this year in conversations about plastic pollution at the Great Lakes Legislative Caucus, the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators, and the International Joint Commission. One outcome is a growing movement to monitor the level of microplastics in the Great Lakes and our drinking water.

      In the Michigan state house, Adopt-a-Beach data was used in testimony supporting a bill to start monitoring microplastics in Michigan’s lakes and rivers. In Illinois, Adopt-a-Beach data was included in testimony supporting a bill to phase out plastic foam foodware. And in Erie, Pennsylvania, the Environmental Advisory Council’s single‑use plastics subcommittee is combining Adopt-a-Beach data with findings from a city litter study and local survey data for stakeholder conversations about single-use plastics.

      Data totals for 2025

      Thank you to all the Adopt-a-Beach Team Leaders and volunteers who cared for their shorelines this year! Here are their totals for 2025:

      541,750 pieces of litter.
      23,361 pounds of litter.
      10,515 volunteers.
      24,578 volunteer hours.
      Litter material. 81% plastic. 19% other materials.
      Litter type. 39% tiny trash. 24% food-related. 18% smoking-related. 19% other.
      A map showing pins at locations around U.S. Great Lakes shorelines.
      931 beach cleanups.

      A special thanks to this year’s top Adopt-a-Beach sponsors: Dr. Scholl Foundation, Freudenberg, HSBC, and Meijer.

      The post Adopt-a-Beach Volunteers Make Ripples Beyond the Shoreline appeared first on Alliance for the Great Lakes.

      Original Article

      News - Alliance for the Great Lakes

      News - Alliance for the Great Lakes

      https://greatlakes.org/2025/12/adopt-a-beach-volunteers-make-ripples-beyond-the-shoreline/

      Judy Freed

      On:
      In: Feature Homepage, Latest News, News
      How to check if your Michigan water system is replacing lead pipes

      By Nina Misuraca Ignaczak, Planet Detroit

      This article was republished with permission from Planet Detroit. Sign up for Planet Detroit’s weekly newsletter here.

      Lead exposure remains a serious health risk in Michigan, but many residents don’t know whether their water system complies with state rules or whether their service line contains lead.

      Read Now at Great Lakes Now.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Now

      Great Lakes Now

      https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/12/how-to-check-if-your-michigan-water-system-is-replacing-lead-pipes/

      Planet Detroit

      On:
      In: Daily News

      Three U.S. Geological Survey centers in Wisconsin would close under the Trump administration’s plans for changes to the Department of the Interior, ending decades of research on the Great Lakes, Mississippi River and wildlife health. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Commission

      Great Lakes Commission

      https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20251210-research-center-cuts

      Nichole Angell

      On:
      In: Daily News

      The Palisades Nuclear Plant, a facility that sits on the shore of Lake Michigan, was shut down just two years ago due to financial pressures. As a result of a $400 million federal investment, the plant is now poised to become the first U.S. commercial nuclear power reactor ever to be restarted. Read the full story by the Ottawa News Network.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Commission

      Great Lakes Commission

      https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20251210-nucelar-plant-restart

      Nichole Angell

      On:
      In: Daily News

      Wisconsin’s wetland development program is in serious trouble, just as similar programs are in other Great Lakes states. Legislation safeguarding surface waters is eroding and the importance of local, preventive action has never been greater. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Commission

      Great Lakes Commission

      https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20251210-wetland-protection

      Nichole Angell

      On:
      In: Daily News

      To combat the population loss of spectaclecase mussels, which are native to parts of the Great Lakes basin and some tributaries connected to the Great Lakes watershed, researchers with both the Minnesota and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources released over 177 mussels into the Chippewa River in Northwest Wisconsin. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Commission

      Great Lakes Commission

      https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20251210-mussel-reintroduction

      Nichole Angell

      On:
      In: Ben Peterson, mercury, methylmercury, Students Ask Scientists

      Making mercury toxic: Microbial transformations of a global pollutant

      An image of Ben Peterson.

      Ben Peterson. Submitted photo.

       

      Mercury is a dangerous neurotoxin that can be found in high concentrations in fish across the globe. Surprisingly, mercury levels in the environment are quite low compared to other forms of pollution. However, microorganisms in the environment can convert the mercury that is released into the environment into another form of mercury called methylmercury. This methylmercury form is capable of two processes called bioaccumulation and biomagnification that lead to high, often toxic, concentrations in fish.

      This research focuses on understanding these microorganisms: Who are they? Where do they live? What do they eat? Why do they make mercury more toxic? This research was conducted in a wide range of environments, from the Great Lakes down to test tubes in the laboratory.

      Join Ben Peterson, an assistant professor in the School of Freshwater Sciences at the University of Wisconsin−Milwaukee, for a look into his research that uses microbes as a window into understanding how contaminants impact aquatic ecosystems and human health.

      Learn more about Peterson and his work.

      • When: January 14, 2026 1-2 p.m. CT
      • Target audience: High school students and up and their educators, although all are welcome
      • Please pre-register for Zoom-based event

      Learn more about this event.

      Questions? Contact Anne Moser or Ginny Carlton.

      The post Join us for Students Ask Scientists on January 14 first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.

      Original Article

      News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant

      News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant

      https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/join-us-for-students-ask-scientists-on-january-14/

      Ginny Carlton

      On:
      In: Uncategorized

      We're Breaking Ground in Brothertown! streambank restoration work begins on Brothertown Creek Partners gathered along Brothertown Creek this week to mark the start of a major streambank restoration effort on one of the creek’s most eroded sections near Brothertown Harbor. Supported by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, this [...]

      The post We’re Breaking Ground in Brothertown! Brothertown Creek Streambank Restoration Begins appeared first on Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance.

      Original Article

      Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance

      Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance

      https://fwwa.org/2025/12/09/were-breaking-ground-in-brothertown-brothertown-creek-streambank-restoration-begins/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=were-breaking-ground-in-brothertown-brothertown-creek-streambank-restoration-begins

      Tim Burns

      On:
      In: Feature Homepage, Latest News, News
      The Next Deluge May Go Differently

      By Christian Thorsberg, 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.

      Read Now at Great Lakes Now.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Now

      Great Lakes Now

      https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/12/the-next-deluge-may-go-differently/

      Circle of Blue

      On:
      In: Echo, Wildlife

      By Ada Tussing

      To combat the population loss of spectaclecase mussels, researchers with both the Minnesota and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources released over 177 mussels into the Chippewa River in Northwest Wisconsin.

      The post Endangered spectaclecase mussels reintroduced into the Chippewa River first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Echo

      Great Lakes Echo

      https://greatlakesecho.org/2025/12/09/endangered-spectaclecase-mussels-reintroduced-into-the-chippewa-river/

      Ada Tussing

      On:
      In: Daily News

      This year’s harmful algae bloom in western Lake Erie was among the mildest in a decade, but the improvement may owe more to favorable weather conditions than fundamental reductions in regional nutrient pollution from agriculture. Read the full story by MLive.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Commission

      Great Lakes Commission

      https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20251208-erie-bloom

      Taaja Tucker-Silva

      On:
      In: Daily News

      Last winter, a small buoy off Muskegon, Michigan, broke free from its mooring. Tracking temperature and wave height, it collected data scientists have chased for years: real-time measurements of what happens in the open water far from shore. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Commission

      Great Lakes Commission

      https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20251208-runaway-buoy

      Taaja Tucker-Silva

      On:
      In: Daily News

      Officials from Ogdensburg, New York, are urging federal lawmakers to support a multi-year eradication program targeting invasive water chestnut in the St. Lawrence and Oswegatchie rivers. Read the full story by North Country Now.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Commission

      Great Lakes Commission

      https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20251208-water-chestnut

      Taaja Tucker-Silva

      On:
      In: Daily News

      Ohio state wildlife officials say thousands of juvenile lake sturgeon were released in four Ohio rivers this year, including the Cuyahoga, as part of an effort to rebuild the endangered species. Read the full story by WEWS-TV – Cleveland, OH.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Commission

      Great Lakes Commission

      https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20251208-sturgeon-release

      Taaja Tucker-Silva

      On:
      In: Daily News

      The Niagara Falls Storage Site received an additional $3 million from cost-recovery settlements to support ongoing cleanup of contaminated soil and groundwater around its radioactive waste containment structure. The current phase of cleanup is expected to finish in April. Read the full story by Niagara-Gazette.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Commission

      Great Lakes Commission

      https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20251208-niagara-cleanup

      Taaja Tucker-Silva

      On:
      In: Daily News

      The town of Ogden Dunes, Indiana, said it’s abandoning a project to build a stone barrier in Lake Michigan to protect homes from erosion. This comes after a nearly two-year legal battle with the environmental group Save the Dunes. Read the full story by Indiana Public Broadcasting.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Commission

      Great Lakes Commission

      https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20251208-erosion-barrier

      Taaja Tucker-Silva

      On:
      In: Daily News

      The ruins of a 19th-century Lake Michigan pier south of Kewaunee, Wisconsin, have joined the Wisconsin State Register of Historic Places. The remains of Sandy Bay Pier represent how commercial port complexes grew around rural economies along the lakeshore. Read the full story by the Green Bay Press Gazette.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Commission

      Great Lakes Commission

      https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20251208-historic-pier

      Taaja Tucker-Silva

      On:
      In: Daily News

      A North East, Pennsylvania resident created an art piece from litter found along the shores of Lake Erie. The 22-by-37-inch piece, titled “Lake Erie Leftovers,” was made from items like toys, golf balls, and lighters. Read the full story by the Erie Times-News.

      Original Article

      Great Lakes Commission

      Great Lakes Commission

      https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20251208-trash-art

      Taaja Tucker-Silva