A delicacy for centuries and a key part of Native tradition, the lake whitefish has seen its population crash. Researchers know why, but stopping it is another matter. Read the full story by The Guardian.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260729-whitefish
After a long wait, the inevitable has occurred: Western Lake Erie’s 2026 algal bloom has formed. Toxins have been detected but are presently below the recreational contact threshold for humans. Read the full story by the Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260729-bloom
The Bad River tribe and environmental groups are again suing the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources over decisions allowing work to move forward on Enbridge’s Line 5 reroute at four waterway crossings. Read the full story by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260729-pipeline
Due to climate change, the Great Lakes region has emerged as a national hotspot for extreme precipitation. Milwaukee is fast-tracking infrastructure projects and removing homes from floodplains to increase resilience. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260729-milwaukee
The vast majority of Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs value environmental conservation but this support is not easily or often translated into successful, popular initiatives. One success story is the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Read the full story by The Conversation.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260729-glri
Michigan farmers and water specialists are proposing local “water districts” to collect groundwater and stream data, aiming to give regulators better information for irrigation permit decisions. Read the full story by the Cadillac News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260729-water-mi
In 2022, a pilot project called Smart Beach in Kincardine, Ontario was launched to make Great Lakes beaches safer. A network of sensors were deployed to monitor water levels, waves, currents, and pedestrian patterns. Read the full story by the CBC.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260729-beaches
The preservation journey of Michigan’s historic 85-year-old submarine reached another milestone last week. The 312-foot USS Silversides, a floating museum in Muskegon, Michigan, was recently dry-docked and is now being cleaned of zebra mussels and inspected to determine needed repairs. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260729-sub
Two of the Apostle Island nature preserve’s popular sea caves on Lake Superior have collapsed, likely due to increased boat traffic. The caves, in addition to a section of the arch, collapsed along the Red Cliff shoreline near Bayfield, Wisconsin. Read the full story by KARE-TV – Minneapolis, MN.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260729-apostles
The opening of the Gordie Howe bridge has been highly anticipated by people on both sides of the Detroit River. Some Canadians travelled hours to be among the first to cross the international span. Read the full story by the CBC.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260729-new-bridge
A pair of bills vital to Great Lakes and human health, two versions of the Water Resources Development Act of 2026, are advancing through Congress. The U.S. Senate and U.S. House versions of the bills differ slightly, but the two chambers agree to continue funding the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Read the full story by the Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260727-water-bills
The world’s newest international crossing, the Gordie Howe International Bridge over the Detroit River between the United States and Canada, is slated to open to public motorists at noon on Monday, July 27. Here’s what to expect and how the new bridge works. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260727-new-bridge
A pilot project to remove large mats of algae build-up from three locations on Lake St. Clair is set to begin this fall. The $800,000 field trial will allow two contracting groups to remove the mats with researchers studying what happens after. Read the full story by Michigan Public.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260727-algal-mats
Meteorites from a large fireball that was widely documented over northern Ontario skies last month have been recovered on Cockburn Island, a mostly uninhabited island located off the western end of Manitoulin Island in the North Channel of Lake Huron. Read the full story by the CBC.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260727-meteorites-found
Consumers Energy may cut flow to the Manistee River to inspect damage at the Hodenpyl Dam near Mesick, Michigan. State officials fear tens of thousands of fish could die if Consumers drains the river segment. Read the full story by Bridge Michigan.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260727-dam-damage
A harmful algal bloom has been detected in Michigan’s Center Lake, the Jackson County Health Department said on Friday afternoon. Read the full story by CBS Detroit.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260727-algal-bloom
Lake Michigan gives Wisconsin residents a place to cool down on a hot day or get out on a boat to go after some fish. What else do we know about it? Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260727-lake-michigan
Five beaches at New York State Parks are closed all due to high bacteria levels, according to the state Department of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Two beaches are also under advisory for high bacteria levels. Read the full story by Democrat & Chronicle.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260727-ny-beaches
A study found that using free satellite imagery can be used to help monitor and protect Ontario wetlands. Read the full story by The Pointer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260727-wetland-imagery
After bad weather caused the cancellation of a mile swim in Lake Erie last weekend, swimmers took to the water near Ashtabula, Ohio, Saturday morning to celebrate the life of a swim instructor who touched many of their lives personally. Read the full story by the Star Beacon.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260727-mile-swim
Michigan’s Department of Natural Resources Fisheries Division received one-time funding of $350,000 for whitefish recovery. The species has undergone a rapid population decline in recent years, and for the first time, recovery efforts have a specific line in the state budget. Read the full story by Michigan Public.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260720-whitefish-funding
Michigan is working to meet the new federal lead action level for drinking water by November 2027. The new rule will force all states to comply with a lead action level of 10 parts per billion. Read the full story by Michigan Public.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260720-lead-laws
After an incredibly rough start to the Bayview Mackinac sailing course across Lake Huron on Saturday, race officials today confirmed nearly half of the fleet has dropped out due to extreme weather that snapped masts and tore sails. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260720-bayview-mackinac
A new peninsula has appeared at one of Michigan’s busiest beaches, but don’t expect it stay for long. Crews are building an addition to Silver Beach in St. Joseph as part of an experiment to see how different methods of putting dredged sand on the beach can reduce how long fine particles cloud the water. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260720-dredging-experiment
Crews have cleared a clogged sewer pipe that may have contributed to recent flooding in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The debris created a 420-foot clog in the sewer, packed with roughly 20 truckloads of material, located roughly half a mile from the pipe’s discharge point into Lake Michigan. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260720-clogged-sewer
The Wisconsin Maritime Museum in Manitowoc will open the new Wisconsin Sailing and Maritime Hall of Fame in September. The permanent exhibit will honor individuals and businesses that have shaped Wisconsin’s maritime heritage. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260720-wisconsin-sailing
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is asking for tips to find the person who they say left a dead lake sturgeon on a road in Whitehall, Michigan. Damage to the fish’s left gill plate indicates it may have been snagged, which is an illegal fishing method in Michigan. Read the full story by The Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260720-sturgeon-poached
The Detroit River Scholars program is helping youth connect with the heritage of the river through hands-on experience on a schooner. The program aims to break down historic barriers for people of color. Read the full story by Bridge Detroit.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260720-detroit-schooner
Cuyahoga County’s Fresh Water Institute and the Student Conservation Association help pair students with local organizations that complete work related to Ohio’s waterways, giving the next generation of environmental scientists hands-on experience. Read the full story by Spectrum News 1.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260720-cleveland-internships
An additional route has been added to the passenger ferry, RANGER III, to bring Isle Royale campers back to the mainland as wildfire smoke hangs heavy over Michigan skies. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260720-isle-royale
Michigan fisheries officials say that rising costs and stagnant fishing license fees could lead to further staffing and fish-stocking cuts, with only limited one-time funding provided in the latest state budget. Some lawmakers oppose fee increases, saying the Department of Natural Resources is mismanaged and shouldn’t get more public funding. Read the full story by Michigan Public.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260713-michigan-fisheries
Water chestnut, an invasive plant species, is choking waterways along Lake Ontario, spreading faster than officials and boaters can remove it. Read the full story by WHEC-TV – Rochester, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260713-water-chestnut
The proposed plan to expand Billy Bishop airport for jets could degrade water quality in Toronto’s Inner Harbour on Lake Ontario and negate the benefits of multi-billion-dollar infrastructure upgrades intended to keep it clean, according to a new city report. Read the full story by the CBC.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260713-toronto-harbor
A group of marine archaeology enthusiasts will take to a southwestern Ontario beach this summer to learn more about the fatal shipwreck of the SS Erie Belle that happened more than a century ago. Read the full story by the CBC.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260713-erie-belle
Heavy rain this spring, combined with ample snowmelt runoff into some Great Lakes, have boosted the water levels from below normal to above normal. Only Lake Superior is still below the long-term average for July. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260713-water-levels
This episode of the podcast “On Hand” recounts the story of one man’s love for Lake St. Clair, the “heart-shaped” lake, and the song it inspired him to make. Read the full story by Michigan Public.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260713-lake-st-clair
A new book details how Downriver Detroit’s close connection to the Detroit River and shaped a region where industry and the natural environment were constantly intertwined. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260713-downriver
The hot weather last week has pretty well taken care of the colder-than-normal water coming out of the long winter. The exception is Lake Superior, which is still quite cold and colder than average. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260713-water-temps
Michigan’s Saginaw Bay-area Fire Departments participated in a “Open Water Rescue with Boat Operations” class on Lake Huron; training included identifying hazards, risk-benefit analysis, cold water survival and incident command. Read the full story by Huron Daily Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260713-water-training
Wolves that steal backpacks and enter tents have prompted officials at Isle Royale National Park to temporarily close one of the park’s 36 campgrounds. Read the full story by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260713-isle-royale-wolves
Water quality scientists predict Lake Erie’s harmful algal bloom will be moderate this summer, comparable to bloom levels seen in 2022 and 2024. Federal, Michigan, and Ohio university researchers presented the forecast Thursday at The Ohio State University’s Stone Lab in Put-In-Bay, Ohio. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260626-erie-bloom
Water quality scientists predict Lake Erie’s harmful algal bloom will be moderate this summer, comparable to bloom levels seen in 2022 and 2024. Federal, Michigan, and Ohio university researchers presented the forecast Thursday at The Ohio State University’s Stone Lab in Put-In-Bay, Ohio. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260626-erie-bloom
A new 2026 report from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency shows more than 2,000 lakes, rivers, streams, and ditches fail to meet water quality standards in Minnesota. About 6,518 impairments were found across 2,250 Minnesota waterways. Read the full story Northern News Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260626-mn-water
Researchers are testing whether Lake Michigan’s waves could someday help generate electricity for Beaver Island, offering a potential new source of power for the island community. Read the full story by WPBN-TV – Traverse City, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260626-beaver-island-waves
Some of the busiest ports in the U.S. are around the Great Lakes, and last weekend, a group of people who understand just how important Great Lakes shipping is gathered to pray for calm seas and safe voyages. Read the full story by Marketplace.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260626-cargo-ships
Since a toxic algal bloom left hundreds of thousands of Toledo-area residents without safe drinking water in 2014, scientists have been working to curb the yearly threat. And now, researchers have developed another tool to prevent the blooms: a system of algae-busting buoys. Read the full story by The Ohio Newsroom.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260626-bloom-buoys
A group of Ashland residents held a protest Wednesday against the use of municipal water for constructing the controversial reroute of Enbridge’s Line 5 oil pipeline across northern Wisconsin. Read the full story by the Wisconsin Examiner.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260626-line-5
A group of Ashland residents held a protest Wednesday against the use of municipal water for constructing the controversial reroute of Enbridge’s Line 5 oil pipeline across northern Wisconsin. Read the full story by the Wisconsin Examiner.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260626-line-5
Today’s sea lamprey control program relies primarily on lampricides and barriers that block adults from reaching spawning habitat. Researchers are now exploring a new approach focused on something far less visible: the chemical signals lamprey use to find each other. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260626-sea-lamprey
For more than a decade, conservation groups have fought to protect Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness from proposed copper-nickel mining projects. Now, following actions by the Trump administration to remove federal protections from the area, advocates’ fight for the region has entered a new phase. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20260626-boundary-waters
