Terrestrial and aquatic invasive species have a major effect on the Great Lakes and Michigan ecosystems, and scientists in Oakland County, Michigan, are working to map invasives and halt their spread. Read the full story by Downtown News Magazine.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200617-invasives
The Lake Erie Foundation supports Ohio’s decision to place strict conditions on the Icebreaker offshore wind power project in Lake Erie. Read the full story by the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200617-wind-farm
The board of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative unanimously voted Sheboygan, Wisconsin, Mayor Mike Vandersteen to serve as chairman of the group and lead the coalition of 85 mayors in the U.S. and Canada to collectively address Great Lakes challenges. Read the full story by the Sheboygan Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200611-glslci
Pelee Island in Lake Erie remains unusually quiet this summer as the U.S. and Canadian border remains closed during the coronavirus pandemic. The ferry that typically sails between Ohio and the Canadian island remains closed until at least June 21st. Read the full story by the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200610-dead-fish
The recently released State of the Great Lake report published by the US EPA and Environment and Climate Change Canada described the overall condition of the Great Lakes as “fair and unchanging”. Advocates for the Great Lakes note that regulatory rollbacks protections for wetlands and on water quality standards threaten to degrade the Great Lakes and erode progress. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200611-SOGL
The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Collaborative wants $2.2 billion from the Canadian federal government to fund clean-up and pollution prevent efforts along the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence region. Read the full story by the Blackburn News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200611-glsl-collaborative
The annual Bayview Port Huron to Mackinaw Island sailboat race on Lake Huron will be held next month, despite cancellations of other events due to the coronavirus pandemic. Read the full story by the Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200611-huron-mackinaw
The US Army Corps of Engineers predicted that Michigan-Huron will be 2 inches to 5 inches above record-high levels through August and near its record high in September, and will then recede to 7 inches to 9 inches below their record highs in October and November. Read the full story by The Voice News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200611-usace
Lake and river trash cleanup efforts in West Michigan are adapting in the wake of high-water levels and the coronavirus pandemic. The water levels affect the location of waterfront cleanups and threaten the safety of pick-up efforts, while the pandemic has forced organizers to reschedule cleanups and rework the trash pick-up process. Read the full story by Rapid Growth Media.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200611-clean-ups
In another blow to the Great Lakes tourism industry, Victory Cruise Lines announced that it will not sail cruise vessels throughout the Great Lakes region this year. Read the full story by WKFR – Radio – Battle Creek, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200611-cruise
Traverse City, Michigan, recently started its weekly testing of all the waters at the city’s beaches this week to monitor the safety of water for swimming. Read the full story by the Traverse City Record Eagle.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200611-traverse-testing
Lake Erie’s provides recreation for residents and tourists that supports thousands of jobs in the Erie, Pennsylvania area. To support revitalization efforts in the area that is sustainable and helps Lake Erie, decision-makers need to have more holistic conversations about projects that impact the Erie waterfront. Read the full story by the Record Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200611-erie-water-resource
For decades, toxic mining waste known as stamp sands was dumped into Lake Superior along the Keweenaw Peninsula in Michigan. Now, these sands are drifting along the shoreline, smothering critical habitat for fish and aquatic wildlife and threatening historical fishing waters for Lake Superior’s Ojibwe tribes. Read the full story by WXPR – Rhinelander, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200604-stamp-sands
In Door County, Wisconsin, beaches are open, but people are asked to practice social distancing amid COVID-19 safety measures. However, with less space on land due to high lake levels and beach erosion, and people crowding as a possible result, some people may avoid beaches altogether. Read the full story by the Green Bay Press-Gazette.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200604-door-co
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is stepping in to help the city of St. Joseph, Michigan, save their beaches. The Corps is spreading sediments dredged from St. Joseph Harbor along the beaches to offset losses from erosion. Read the full story by WSBT-TV – South Bend, IN.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200604-st-joseph-harbor
Scientists at NOAA are predicting less severe harmful algal blooms on Lake Erie this year, unless there is excessive rainfall in the coming months. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200604-habs-forecast
Scientists in Michigan are investigating how the recent flooding in Midland impacted dioxin levels from the Superfund site along the Tittabawassee River, and whether areas downstream of the site may have been contaminated. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200604-dow
A research at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio received $700,000 for projects that develop new methods for removing contaminants from livestock manure and attempt to remove excess nutrients from agricultural runoff. Read the full story by The Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200604-case-western
The Ohio Power Siting Board recently approved a proposal for a six-turbine wind farm in Lake Erie that could become the first offshore freshwater wind power site in the U.S. However, the board placed several conditions on the installations that could kill the project. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200604-erie-wind
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency will hold a hearing on a key water permit for Enbridge’s proposed Line 3 oil pipeline later this summer. Environmental groups and Minnesota tribes requested a hearing over concerns the pipeline could harm wetlands and streams. The move will further delay construction of the $2.8 billion oil pipeline. Read the full story by the Brainerd Dispatch.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200604-line3
A U.S. House of Representatives committee is investigating the state and federal government’s oversight of a Midland-area dam that failed last month, and demanding answers to detailed questions about their oversight of the Edenville Dam. Read the full story by Bridge Magazine.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200604-midland
The draining of lakes in Michigan following the Edenville Dam collapse raises questions regarding ownership of the newly exposed land. The answer depends on the type of lake and the lakefront property in question. Read the full story by the Midland Daily News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200604-bottomlands
As high lake levels continue to erode Indiana’s Lake Michigan shore, the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission is collecting information about the damage to help convince the state to declare a public emergency in the region and allocate funding to help with repairs. Read the full story by the Times of Northwest Indiana.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200522-nirpc
Scientists and activists fear that flooding from the dam collapse on the Tittabawassse River near Midland, Michigan, will have undone years of work to remove toxic chemicals and contamination from the nearby Superfund site. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200522-midland
Ohio regulators approved the siting of six wind turbines on Lake Erie with the condition that the turbines stop during the night between March and November to limit the risk to birds and bats. The company developing the wind farm says these conditions effectively kill the project. Read the full story by the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200522-wind-turbines
Once an existential threat to the Great Lakes ecosystem, sea lamprey populations have been effectively controlled through the Sea Lamprey Control Program run by the Great Lakes Fishery Commission. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200522-lamprey
The International Joint Commission has appointed a 16-member public advisory group of both US and Canadian stakeholders who live along Lake Ontario to help identify potential improvements to the regulation of Lake Ontario outflows. Read the full story by the Niagara Gazette.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200522-ijc
The EPA’s new rules remove protection for about 50 percent of wetlands and 65 percent of the streams in the Great Lakes states, threatening the lakes and people who rely on these waterbodies for clean water. Read the full story by The Hill.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200522-cwa
Researchers at the Rochester Institute of Technology estimate there are approximately 381 metric tons of plastic in Lake Erie and over 10,000 metric tons of plastic that enter the Great Lakes each year. Read the full story by the Rochester City Newspaper.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200522-plastic
Following heavy bouts of rain this month, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Lake Michigan, Huron and Erie set a new water level record for April 2020 and is on track to set a new record in May. Read the full story by Up North Live.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200522-levels
The Great Lakes shipping industry has been hit by high water levels that delayed shipping and fluctuating demands for shipments as the coronavirus shuts down the economy. While demand for shipping wheat and grain products have been strong, iron ore shipments for manufacturing have contracted, placing the industry in flux. Read the full story by WorkBoat.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200522-shipping
Officials at Presque Isle State Park on Lake Erie in Pennsylvania expect a swell of visitors during Memorial Day weekend but are encouraging visitors to follow coronavirus safety guidelines while enjoying the outdoors. Read the full story by GoErie.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200521-erosion
As auto plants shut down and consumer spending slows down to a near-standstill during the coronavirus pandemic, steel production in the Great Lakes region is now down 11% for the year. Read the full story by the Times of Northwest Indiana.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200506-steel-down
Endangered piping plovers are back for a 14th straight year at Sauble Beach along the southern Bruce Peninsula in Ontario. Reduced beach traffic due to the coronavirus has benefited plovers looking for safe nesting spots along the beach. Read the full story by The Sun Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200506-plovers
A community group formed in Oscoda, Michigan, called on the Air Force to stop the flow of PFAS contaminants from Wurtsmith Air Force base into Oscoda area surface waters by no later than 2023, and to immediately begin remediation of the PFAS plumes. Read the full story by the Iosco News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200506-pfas
The 96th sailing of the Bayview Mackinac race, a Michigan summer tradition on Lake Huron, remains scheduled, although the coronavirus pandemic continues to force the race to adapt. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200506-bayview-mackinac-race
Great Lakes Learning lessons and activities created by Great Lakes Now offer an opportunity to engage younger learners with the Great Lakes issues and science. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200506-freshwater-learners
The Community Foundation of St. Clair County is planning a construction project to shore up the Bluewater River Walk from high water. Read the full story by the Port Huron Times Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200506-blue-water-porth
Ohio governor Mike DeWine warned that large gatherings along Lake Erie’s beaches during the coronavirus pandemic may result in beach closures. Read the full story by TV – WJW – Cleveland, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200506-oh-beaches
While Lake Michigan beaches typically receive more attention, Lake Huron’s coastline also offers spectacular views. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200506-mi-thumb
Lake Michigan and Huron will see water levels rise 10 inches above average levels recorded at the same time last year and 2 inches higher than the highest monthly average on record for May. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200506-levels
National Park Service rangers issued citations Sunday to stop contractors working on repairs to seawalls along the Lake Michigan shoreline in Odgen Dunes, Indiana. The Park Service said the contracts had not received necessary permits for the construction. Read the full story by The Times of Northwest Indiana.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200506-nps-odgen
The combined effects of climate change and degraded water quality could make “Do Not Drink/Do Not Boil” warnings more frequent across the Great Lakes region. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200430-climate+change
Once a city in decline, the city of Duluth has rebounded as a tourism destination and a “climate haven”. However, changing weather patterns and higher lake levels are forcing citizens to adapt and prepare for future challenges. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200430-duluth
Judicial oversight is not a panacea to addressing Lake Erie pollution, but judges should exercise their authority to enforce the implementation of a Lake Erie clean-up plan required under the Clean Water Act. Read the full editorial by the Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200430-judges
The novel coronavirus pandemic has drawn attention to the consequences of insufficient water access, air pollution and the role of federal oversight in protecting the basic right to clean water. Read the full story by WDET – Radio – Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200430-water-is-a-human-right
As spring returns and birds migrate north, bird enthusiasts in Chicago are hoping a locally famous pair of piping plovers returns to Lake Michigan. As the coronavirus shuts down activity along Chicago’s beaches, bird enthusiasts hope that the new quiet help birds like the piping plover safely nest and hatch their eggs. Read the full story by the Chicago Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200430-plovers
Stay-out-home orders and restrictions on “non-essential” businesses have left Ohio’s fishing and tourism industry floundering. The halt in manufacturing across the region has also beached cargo shipping along the lakes. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200430-fish-n-freight
Coronavirus restrictions have scuttled boating in Chicago, leaving charter boat operators and sightseeing cruises with no source of income. Read the full story by the Chicago Sun Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200430-charter-boats
While less flooding is expected this year, Canadian mayors along Lake Ontario are continuing to implement coastal resiliency strategies to protect their communities from further flooding and erosion. Read the full story by the Belleville Intelligencer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20200430-mayors
