Muskegon County in northern Michigan is poised to request a $5 million grant from the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund to purchase a 162-acre property off the shores of Lakes Michigan. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210215-lake-michigan-park
Wisconsin prosecutors have charged three Fond du Lac County residents in a sweeping investigation into illegal bartering for sturgeon caviar around Lake Winnebago. Read the full story by The Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210215-sturgeon-caviar
Officials in Illinois and other states plan to rename Asian carps in an effort to make it more appealing to restaurants, chefs, and consumers as a seafood entrée. The invasive fish might decimate other fish species if they make it into Lake Michigan and other Great Lakes, threatening a $7 billion-a-year commercial fishing industry and a $16 billion tourism industry. Read the full story by the Chicago Sun Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210215-invasive-carp
The International Joint Commission will allow increased outflows from Lake Ontario until the lake reaches its spring peak, in a proactive move to try to prevent flooding. Read the full story by The Buffalo News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210215-increased-outflows
Estimates show Black Lake’s adult sturgeon population may have nearly doubled over the course of the last several decades, according to a fisheries biologist from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Read the full story by the Traverse City Record-Eagle.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210215-sturgeon-population
A dispute between the City and the Village of Waukesha over construction permits for the water pipes that would connect the City of Waukesha to Lake Michigan has had its first day in court. Read the full story by WUWM – Milwaukee, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210215-pipeline
The Great Lakes are warming. For the coldest and largest of the lakes, Lake Superior, that could mean a lot of changes. Researchers are still sorting out what the future might be, but a lot of it doesn’t look good. Read the full story by Michigan Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210215-climate-disruption
Eye-catching blue ice has many braving Northern Michigan’s wintery weather just to catch a glimpse. Read the full story by WZZM-TV – Grand Rapids, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210215-blue-ice
The Port of Milwaukee is one of the biggest ports in the Great Lakes and freighters like the Algoma Sault bring in salt about 200 times a year. Read the full story by the Wisconsin State Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210215-road-salt
Ice coverage across the Great Lakes rapidly expanded over the last week as frigid arctic air finally made its appearance, with Lake Erie nearly fully covered with ice. Read the full story by The Weather Channel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210212-ice-coverage
The rapid accumulation of ice in the St. Clair River has caused ice dams, flooding homes in East China Township in Michigan. The extent of ice cover has hindered U.S. and Canadian Coast Guard efforts to break up the ice. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210212-icejam
Managers in Owasco Lake in New York are deploying high-resolution water sensors to track fluctuations in water levels and monitor conditions across the Owasco watershed. Read the full story by The Citizen.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210212-owasco
Residents in Peshtigo, Wisconsin, are pushing candidates for an open Wisconsin State Assembly seat to take a supportive stance towards state regulation of PFAS chemicals. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210212-pfas-peshtigo
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy is urging water plants to check their security protocols following a breach in Florida where a hacker tried to poison municipal drinking water. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210212-water-plant-security
This weekend brings Michigan’s annual free fishing weekend. It’s an effort to promote Michigan’s world-class fishing opportunities, introduce new people to the sport, and invite those who may not have cast a line in years to return. Read the full story by WWMT-TV – Kalamazoo, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210212-fish-safe
Commercial fishing companies based along Great Lakes shorelines are facing increasing competition from real estate developers seeking to build along the waterfront. The trend threatens fishing companies that rely on access to the lakes for operations. Read the full story by North Country Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210212-fish-waterfront
The New York Department of Environmental Conservation released its two-year progress report on Great Lakes restoration efforts, noting significant progress on actions to improve water quality and shoreline restoration in Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. Read the full story by the Watertown Daily Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210212-nydec
Ice coverage on the Great Lakes has been low after a relatively mild winter, but with the arctic air that has moved into Michigan over the last few days, it has more than doubled on all of the Great Lakes. Read the full story by WXYZ -TV – Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210211-ice-coverage
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) reminds potential grant applicants that pre-proposals for the 2021 Sustain Our Great Lakes (SOGL) grants are due Feb. 16. Read the full story by The Chronicle Express.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210211-sustain-great-lakes
Ice volcanoes have formed along Lake Michigan after two winter storms in recent days brought frigid subzero temperatures to some areas. Read the full story by NBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210211-ice-volcanoes
Three projects by water and drainage agencies in Michigan’s Oakland and Wayne counties together expect to eliminate about 48 million gallons of stormwater mixed with sewage that otherwise makes it, untreated, into the Rouge River and beyond to Lake Erie. Read the full story by The Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210211-rouge-river
The Village of Waukesha, Wisconsin has filed a lawsuit against the city that aims to shut down construction of the water diversion project within its village limits. The hearing will take place on February 11 in Waukesha County Circuit Court. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Independent.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210211-waukesha
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy halted a portion of the demolition process due to concerns about dust coming from the demolition of a baghouse at the plant, EGLE officials said. Read the full story by The Mining Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210211-power-plant
The spiny water flea has been latching onto fishing equipment, traveling the Great Lakes for decades, but now they are being transported to some of the most pristine waters in the Upper Midwest. Read the full story by Outdoor Life Magazine.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210211-spiny-water-flea
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under President Joe Biden has yanked back the health assessment of a notable “forever chemical,” alleging the document was compromised by “political interference” in the final days of the Trump administration. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210211-pfas
Twenty-six people fishing on Lake Superior were rescued when an ice floe broke away from the Minnesota shoreline, stranding them in frigid weather. Read the full story by the Chicago Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210211-anglers-rescued
Indiana moved to protect seven remaining inland lakes with cisco; Illinois backs re-establishing them in southern Lake Michigan. Read the full story by the Chicago Sun Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210211-cisco
As issues with shoreline erosion on Lake Huron continue to plague Bluewater, Michigan residents along the lakeshore, councillors agreed to defer a decision on a policy to allow residents to install shoreline protections on municipal properties. Read the full story by the Shoreline Beacon.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210211-erosion-protection
The Edsel & Eleanor Ford House, Great Lakes Commission and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are embarking on a project that will restore disappearing wildlife habitats along a stretch of Lake St. Clair. Read the full story by Grosse Pointe News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210210-ford-cove
The first Europeans in Wisconsin documented how the Menominee people would use spears to catch sturgeon in Lake Winnebago. It’s a tradition that’s carried on today, not for sustenance, but for sport in the annual sturgeon spearing season. Read the full story by the Green Bay Press Gazette.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210210-sturgeon-menominee
With multiple days of below freezing temperatures, Lake Erie ice coverage has increased to nearly 50% since this weekend. With arctic air staying in the forecast, we will most likely see near 70% ice concentration on the lake by Valentine’s Day, helping shut off the lake effect snow machine. Read the full story by WOIO-TV – Cleveland, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210210-frozen
Workers in Sarnia, Ontario, are raising concerns about the job losses that could occur if a U.S. governor’s plan to shut down an Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline succeeds. Read the full story by The Canadian Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210210-line5
An ice bridge forming in Lake Huron is providing hope for southern St. Clair County communities impacted by flooding. Read the full story by the Port Huron Times Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210210-ice-bridge
Lightships served as an alternative to brick and mortar lighthouses and generally marked hazardous shallows, shoals, or sometimes dangers in deeper waters of the Great Lakes. One was off the coast of Milwaukee for decades. Read the full story by On Milwaukee.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210210-floating-lighthouse
Applications are now being accepted for a residency program in which artists can get paid $3,200 to live and work on Lake Superior’s Rabbit Island for three weeks. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210210-art-island
The health of aquatic ecosystems depends on the supply of key nutrients, especially phosphorus. In the world’s largest freshwater ecosystem, the North American Great Lakes, control of this nutrient may have been lost to an invasive species. Read the full story by the National Science Foundation.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210210-key-nutrient
Advocates are calling for an increase in protected areas at Chicago’s Montrose Beach to encourage more endangered piping plovers to nest. Read the full story by Chicago Magazine.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210210-montrose-beach
Saturday was the first day of sturgeon season on Black Lake in Michigan’s Cheboygan and Presque Isle Counties. High interest and a low quota meant the season didn’t even last until noon on opening day. Read the full story by WLNS-TV – Lansing, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210210-sturgeon
A project at Lake Superior State University received $250,000 from the United States Forest Service to install landscaping reducing the pollution flowing into the St. Marys River, as part of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Read and view the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210209-green-landscaping-water-quality
A mild December and January left the waters of Lake Michigan, near South Haven, mainly open and free of ice. But, over the last two weeks, temperatures fell and ice finally began to take shape along Southwest Michigan’s shoreline. Read the full story by MLive.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210209-shoreline-ice
Hamilton’s cold-water swimmers cavort among lake ice cubes in regular bathing suits — and to be fair, usually gloves and hats — and swim into the wintery swells for five to 15 minutes at a time. Fans of a prolonged winter dip argue the health benefits outweigh the extremity-numbing pain. Read the full story by the Hamilton Spectator.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210209-cold-water
A project at Lake Superior State University received $250,000 from the United States Forest Service to install landscaping reducing the pollution flowing into the St. Marys River, as part of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Read and view the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210209-green-landscaping-water-quality
At issue is Fisheries Order 243.21. Michigan Fish Producers Association sued the Michigan DNR in federal court this month alleging that the order will make commercial fishing unprofitable and asking for a preliminary injunction that would allow Michigan’s 13 commercial fishing operations back on the water under the rules that governed 2020. Read the full story by GreatLakesNow.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210209-commercial-fishing-michigan
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Minnesota Pollution Control Agency have signed a $16 million agreement to remediate contaminated sediment in two backwater ponds surrounded by shallow marsh wetlands in Duluth. The project will improve access to the Duluth-Superior Harbor, a vital site for Minnesota’s economy. Read the full story by BusinessNorth.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210209-area-of-concern-pollution
A federal appellate court judge has denied a motion to stop construction of Enbridge’s controversial Line 3 replacement, the second court ruling against pipeline opponents in the past week. Read the full story by Star Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210209-enbridge-line-3
Michigan is a microcosm of the country in terms of our partisan split and difficulty interacting with those who have different viewpoints. But, there is a great exception to this divisiveness, and that’s our unity around support for the Great Lakes and clean water. Can and should President Biden utilize his interest in rebuilding civility, democracy and bipartisanship to advance clean water, equity and Great Lakes protection? Read the full story by Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210209-rebuilding-water-great-lakes
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation recently released a report documenting efforts and investments along the Great Lakes. The two-year report highlighted partnerships and achievements, including resiliency improvements, source water protection and accelerating restoration initiatives in communities that have been historically and disproportionately impacted by environmental pollution. Read the full story by WWTI – TV – Watertown, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210209-restoration-plan
Illinois officials are working to improve the public image of invasive Asian carp, promoting the fish as a healthy, delicious, organic, and sustainable food source. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210208-carp-makeover
A binational bird conservation research effort is using their data to identify the most important coastal areas in the Great Lakes to protect and restore, including Chequamegon Bay, Green Bay, Saginaw Bay and Sandusky Bay. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210208-binational-bird-research
Freshwater is the most precious natural resource on Earth, according to a soil biophysicist researcher from Michigan State University who doesn’t believe current water regulatory policies in the United States, Canada, and around the world will solve humanity’s growing competition for it. Read the full story by The Mining Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20210208-conserving-freshwater
