State and federal agencies are seeking public input on 14 proposed projects along the Kalamazoo River between the city of Kalamazoo, Michigan, and Lake Michigan that would remove dams, improve riparian areas, and rehabilitate wildlife habitat harmed by PCB pollution. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210414-kalamazoo
Tribal leaders in Michigan rejected proposals for “peacemaking” talks with Enbridge over the Line 5 pipeline, and dismissed recent efforts by Enbridge to engage in Anishinaabek reconciliation traditions as a public relations ploy that amounts to cultural appropriation. Read the full story by Petoskey News-Review.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210414-enbridge
Scientists on the EPA’s Lake Guardian research vessel are studying how climate change is impacting the base of the food web in the lakes, as changing lake chemistry could impact the abundance of microorganisms that larger animals like fish rely on for food. Read the full story by Michigan Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210414-food-web
Every year, the EPA’s 180-foot research vessel known as the Lake Guardian sets out to sample water quality in all five of the Great Lakes. The data collected from these expeditions helps scientists understand the health and environmental trends of the Great Lakes. Read the full story by WBFO- Buffalo, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210414-lake-guardian
Throughout the past week, the Chippewa County Health Department in northern Michigan has worked with the Lake Carriers Association and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to provide COVID-19 vaccinations to crew members on the Great Lakes ships passing through the Soo Locks in Sault Ste. Marie. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210414-vaccines
A new study of insect data and bird surveys found that poor water quality harms the growth and development of insect population, depriving many birds species of a critical source of food, and is linked to declines in bird populations in the Great Lakes region. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210414-buggies
Until recently, boaters and property owners on Lake Ontario were concerned about high lake levels and flooding. Now, people are concerned about lake levels becoming too low. Read the full story by The Buffalo News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210414-low-water
Scientists from Ontario are seeking donations of smelt catches from anglers on Lake Superior to help support a new study that looks at the presence of PFAS chemicals in fish tissue. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210414-smelt
US Representatives Debbie Dingell (MI) and Fred Upton (MI) introduced a new bill to accelerate the cleanup of sites contaminated with PFAS. The bill would establish a national drinking water standard for select PFAS chemicals and would give the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency direction to act on cleaning up contaminated sites in Michigan and across the country. Read the full story by WKAR – East Lansing, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210414-pfas
Lake Ontario is eight inches lower than average for this time of year. That’s the lowest it’s been in early April since 2015. The chance of flooding on the lake and the St. Lawrence River this summer is relatively low. Read the full story by North Country Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210412-flooding
The city of Euclid and 12 Lake County communities recently incorporated Ohio’s first lakefront special improvement district to help property owners finance expensive and urgently needed erosion control projects along the Lake Erie shoreline. Ultimately, however, the district could become a vehicle to open new public trails along vast stretches of private lakefront land that limit access to one of Ohio’s greatest natural resources. Read the full story by Cleveland Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210412-lakefront
A 2020 study shows muskrats enhance plant diversity on the St. Lawrence River, and a greater understanding of their impact could help guide understanding of their dependence on Great Lakes water levels and their related ecosystem roles. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210412-muskrats
Wind turbines in Lake Erie should be given a chance to prove themselves as a safe and beneficial source of clean energy; the real threat to the Great Lakes is the continued use of coal, fracking gas and nuclear power. Read the full story by the Buffalo News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210412-wind
In Illinois, dozens of volunteers searched the sands on Montrose Beach for pollution in an effort to get the stretch of Lake Michigan’s shoreline ready for the homecoming of Monty and Rose — the piping plovers. Read the full story by WLS-TV – Chicago, IL.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210412-montrose
Due to a crash in perch population, the Great Lakes Fisheries Commission has this year slashed commercial harvest in Lake Erie’s Central basin by 70% and by 20% in the Eastern basin. The state of Ohio also cut sport angler limits by two-thirds from 30 fish to 10 between the Huron River and Fairport Harbor, leaving a lot of people angry. Read the full story by WKYC-TV – Cleveland, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210412-perch
Sturgeon were native to the Milwaukee River but were wiped out in the 1800s by pollution, habitat destruction and the building of dams that prohibited their movements upstream. The large, ancient fish have only recently started to show up in the Milwaukee River due to sturgeon reintroduction efforts in the watershed. Read the full story by Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210412-sturgeon
In Ontario, a ‘slightly panicked’ shoreline homeowner sought Tiny council’s help in approaching higher authorities to exercise their influence in lowering water levels in Georgian Bay. Read the full story by Orillia Matters.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210412-high-water
The voluntary way has been tried and found wanting. The health of Lake Erie requires a firm regulatory regime to deliver the necessary reduction in phosphorous loading — now rather than later. Read the full story by the Akron Beacon Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210412-voluntery
Green Bay is the largest freshwater estuary in the world, and now the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay is leading the search for a site between Marinette and Door County to become a National Estuarine Research Reserve. Read the full story by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210412-reserve
A fishing expedition for a highly invasive species of carp is underway in the waters of the Mississippi River near La Crosse, Wisconsin. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210409-scarecarp
A new study by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources shows that high-capacity wells have been reducing the level of three lakes in the Central Sands region, affecting ecosystems and recreation in the area. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210409-centralsands
Gary, Indiana, and other lakefront municipalities are one step closer to accessing a tool designed to encourage development along Lake Michigan. Read the full story by the Chicago Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210409-lakefronts
In Michigan, a spill of firefighting foam at the Kalamazoo-Battle Creek International Airport caused a spike of PFAS pollution at the Kalamazoo wastewater treatment plant, sending some into the Kalamazoo River. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210409-kalamazoo
The City of Hamilton, Ontario, will spend $40,000 on a biodiversity plan it says will help protect local habitats and species. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210409-hamilton
Visitors to New York’s Genesee River will notice something new this spring and summer — a series of mile markers and reflective signs to help guide kayakers on their adventures. Read the full story by the Daily Reporter.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210409-kayakers
In Alpena, Michigan, bereft of runoff from melting snow, Long Lake’s water level is the lowest in recent memory. Read the full story by The Alpena News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210409-longlake
The muskellunge, some of which can exceed 50 inches, make their way from Wisconsin’s Lake Monona each spring with hopes of leaping into Lake Wingra. Read the full story by the Wisconsin State Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210409-muskies
A new report finds that the Great Lakes basin’s large urban centers, including Metro Detroit, are now being confronted with significant climate challenges, but also stand to benefit from prudent investment in green infrastructure. Read the full story by Second Wave Media.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210408-climate-change
According to the study published in the Journal of Great Lakes Research, focus groups from both of Michigan’s peninsulas identified environmental threats for coastal communities and called for education on how to be better stewards of the Great Lakes. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210408-environmental-education
This past winter was drier than normal over the Great Lakes drainage basin. As a result, the Great Lakes water levels continue to decline faster than the typical late winter decline. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210408-water-levels
Operators of recreational boats less than 26 feet long on federally-regulated waters, including Lake Superior, are now required to have and to use an engine cut-off switch and associated engine cut-off lanyard under a new federal law passed by Congress and enforced by the U.S. Coast Guard. Read the full story by the Duluth News Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210408-boat-engine
Traverse City, Michigan’s multi-million dollar FishPass Project has seen ongoing arguments between the city and some residents who don’t want to see the project break ground. Now the Great Lakes Fishery Commission has filed a motion to become a formal party in the lawsuit. Read the full story by WPBN -TV – Traverse City, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210408-fishpass
An alarming spike in the number of drownings across several of the Great Lakes last year may have been linked to the COVID-19 pandemic, a new research study finds. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210408-drownings
Lake Michigan water levels are down a foot and homeowners along the lakeshore are happy. Read the full story by WOOD – TV – Grand Rapids, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210408-lakefront-homeowners
After a year in lockdown due to COVID-19, the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s largest research vessel left the harbor in Chicago, and was expected to reach the St. Clair River and Lake St. Clair by Wednesday afternoon, according to a news release from the EPA. Read the full story by the Macomb Daily.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210408-lake-guardian
Conservationists are celebrating the Chicago Park District’s announcement Wednesday of a 3.1-acre expansion of Illinois’ Montrose Dune Natural Area, a site that’s gained international attention in recent years as the nesting home for a pair of endangered Great Lake piping plovers, Monty and Rose. Read the full story by WTTW – TV – Chicago, IL.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210408-chicago-plovers
The Erie Canal is a more than 360-mile canal connecting the Hudson River to the Great Lakes and took only 8 years to build. Read the full story by History.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210408-erie-canal
Located near the western shore of Michigan, Muskegon Lake was declared an Area of Concern through the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement in 1987. After designing, planning and restoring areas of the Muskegon Lake shoreline, the Muskegon Lake Nature Preserve Fish and Wildlife Habitat Restoration Project is preparing for revegetation this spring. Read the full story by WZZM-TV – Grand Rapids, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210407-michigan-restoration
Located near the western shore of Michigan, Muskegon Lake was declared an Area of Concern through the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement in 1987. After designing, planning and restoring areas of the Muskegon Lake shoreline, the Muskegon Lake Nature Preserve Fish and Wildlife Habitat Restoration Project is preparing for revegetation this spring. Read the full story by WZZM-TV – Grand Rapids, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210407-michigan-restoration
Lake Michigan appears to have hit its seasonal low for 2021 and lake levels are expected to begin their seasonal rise. Lakes Michigan and Huron, treated as one body of water in the Army Corps’ measurements and analysis, are about 1 foot below their record-breaking level last year of 581.63 feet, and about 2 feet above average water level for the last century. Read the full story by The Holland Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210407-water-levels
Researchers with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory have used the only known long-term dataset of deep-lake temperatures to determine that Lake Michigan’s temperature is slowly increasing over the past 30 years, subtle changes that over a long timeframe could shorten big lakes’ winters, lengthen their summers and have a big impact on everything from fish populations and algae blooms to winter storms and erosion. Read the full story by Bridge Michigan.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210407-michigan-climate
Ohio voters could be asked to approve borrowing $1 billion in November 2022 to pay for improvements to Lake Erie and state waterways, including water treatment systems, wastewater management, watershed restoration, research and other items, under the banner of Gov. Mike DeWine’s H2Ohio program. Read the full story by The Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210407-ohio-waterways
Michigan researchers are asking for volunteers to transcribe paper fish observation records that date back more than a century as part of a project at the University of Michigan that aims to understand how climate change and other factors have impacted fish in Michigan lakes. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210407-fish-climate
The city of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, has been officially entered into consideration as the location for the federal government’s new Canada Water Agency, although a final decision on the location for the new agency won’t be made until 2022. Read the full story by The Sault Star.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210407-water-agency-canada
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has ordered Enbridge to shut down their Line 5 oil pipeline by May 12, but the company has so far refused to comply, leading to a showdown between the biggest mover of oil in the United States and one of the country’s emerging political leaders on climate, over land in her own state. Read the full story by Grist.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210407-line-5-michigan
The New York Department of Environmental Conservation announced two new pen-rearing projects for Atlantic salmon this spring, targeting Lake Champlain and Lake Ontario waterways. Read the full story by Sun Community News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210407-fish-new-york
Enbridge wants to show the Joe Biden administration that the tunnel the Canadian company is building for its oil pipeline under Lake Michigan is exactly what the U.S. president’s plan for better infrastructure is all about. Read the full story by Bloomberg News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210407-line-5
There’s no forecasting system in place, but recent research from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists, published in the journal Natural Hazards and based on the Ludington meteotsunami, might help forecast future waves. Read the full story by the Chicago Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210406-meteotsunamis
April showers bring May flowers. They can also flood basements, turn streets into rivers and cause sewer overruns into Lake Michigan. Homeowners can help us avoid that by what they plant around the house. Read the full story by WTMJ-TV- Milwaukee, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210406-rain-gardens
The Miller 3 wildfire in the Miller Woods section of the Indiana Dunes National Park was declared “controlled” on Monday, and trails in the area are expected to reopen this week. Read the full story by the Northwest Indiana Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210406-wildfire
