Republican lawmakers in Wisconsin seek to restrict the ability of environmental regulators to regulate chemicals known as PFAS by rescinding parts of an emergency rule and limiting efforts to properly treat foam containing PFAS. Read the full story by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201219-state-pfas
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection announced over $252,000 in Coastal Zone Grants to help protect and restore the Lake Erie coastal zone in northwest Pennsylvania. Many coastal zones along Lake Erie are under increased pressure from development, erosion, biodiversity loss and pollution. Read the full story by Erie News Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-microplastic-pollution-plastic
Microplastic particles, typically studied as aquatic pollutants, are also common in coastal dunes on Great Lakes’ shorelines, according to a new study in the Journal of Great Lakes Research. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-microplastic-pollution-plastic
The International Joint Commission has responsibility over the Great Lakes and Seaway and has to deal with a combination of serious problems that includes a warmer Lake Superior, higher water levels in Lake Ontario and the Upper St. Lawrence River, and the appearance of toxic blue-green algae on Lake Superior and Lake Erie. Read the full story by The Maritime Executive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-st-lawrence-seaway-ijc
The Great Lakes continue to inch away from the record high water levels of the past few years. Lakes Michigan and Huron have been in the spotlight with the highest water levels recently compared to previous record high water levels. Read the full story by MLive.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-water-levels-erosion
The PFAS Action Plan was developed by the Wisconsin PFAS Action Council, a group of nearly 20 state agencies and the University of Wisconsin System. As part of the statewide initiative to ensure Wisconsinites have access to clean, safe drinking water, Gov. Tony Evers signed Executive Order #40 in August 2019 to address the issue of PFAS across the state. Read the full story by WSAW – TV – Wausau, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-wisconsin-pfas
A petition to keep the Edwardian-era SS Keewatin in its home of Port McNicoll, ON has now garnered close to 9,000 signatures. The man behind the petition is involved with an additional campaign designed to lobby all levels of government to consider the ship’s plight. View the full story by OrilliaMatters.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-ontario-keewatin-port
Cargo totals on the St. Lawrence Seaway hit nearly 32.3 million metric tons, down 6.6% from 2019. Compared to previous months, the improvement in total cargo figures in November is due in large part to grain shipments, which have been strong since the fall harvest began. Read the full story by WorkBoat.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-shipping
Chicago Piping Plover, a conservation group focused on protecting the endangered species, confirmed that Nish, a chick born on Montrose Beach earlier this year, successfully landed in Florida. The bird was spotted in Anclote Key State Park, just north of Tampa. Read the full story by Chicago Sun Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-chicago-piping-plover
An organization of 40 conservation groups say a new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule concerning ballast water discharges under the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act (VIDA) will not protect the Great Lakes from the spread and introduction of invasive species. Read the full story by Water Technology.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-vida-epa-ballast
As of Dec. 11, according to that Parks Foundation of Kalamazoo County, they’ve already raised 65% of their funding goal from private funds and public funding from the Michigan Department of Transportation to finish the last few miles of the 22-mile long trail. Part of a 140-mile regional trail network connecting Lake Michigan with Lake Huron. Read the full story by Second Wave.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-michigan-trail
The Lake Huron Centre for Coastal Conservation has expressed its opposition to a plan that the Town of South Bruce Peninsula, Ontario is proposing to remove a large section of the dunes at Sauble Beach. Read the full story by Blackburnnews.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-huron-dunes
On the surface of Lake Michigan, glistening water rushes over sandy beaches. But underneath the waves is a fragile ecosystem that interconnects a complex food web critical to the overall health of the Great Lakes. Read the full story by WXYZ-TV- Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-invasive-species
Sheets of ice formed over Lake Superior, on the shores of Ashland, Wisconsin, amid cold weather conditions in the region this week. A local photographer captured footage along the water showing ice on top of the water and the unique sound. Read the full story by Yahoo! News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-ice-superior
The risk of high-water impact, including shoreline erosion or flooding, remains, as Lake Superior declined only 3 cm this November, while it normally declines 5 cm. Read the full story by Soo Today.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-water-levels
In Ohio, efforts to keep Port Clinton’s beautifully scenic Lake Erie shoreline clean are also maintaining its strong sense of art and culture with the latest addition to Waterworks Park. Read the full story by the Port Clinton News Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-waterworks-park
Environmental and farm groups are joining forces to lobby the state for significant funding to support farms across Wisconsin and protect drinking water, but they stopped short of putting a price tag on their request. Read the full story by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-farmers
In Wisconsin, the city of Sheboygan’s Plan Commission approved a conditional use permit for Kohler Co. to move forward with development of its new golf course along Lake Michigan. Community concerns about the course are largely connected to environmental issues that could result, such as pesticide or other chemical runoff into Lake Michigan. Read the full story by Sheboygan Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-golf-course
An impounded section of the Kalamazoo River, which drains a portion of southwest Michigan, will become a lake again now that repairs are finished on a hydroelectric dam that allowed huge quantities of sediment to wash downstream after the reservoir was drained. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-morrow-lake
There are over 4,000 types of PFAS chemicals and most researchers study a handful of these chemicals at most. Carla Ng, a researcher at the University of Pittsburgh, is one of the few scientists trying to find an approach that works for all of them. Read the full story by Public Source.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-pfas
There are over 4,000 types of PFAS chemicals and most researchers study a handful of these chemicals at most. Carla Ng, a researcher at the University of Pittsburgh, is one of the few scientists trying to find an approach that works for all of them. Read the full story by Public Source.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-pfas
Human remains, which likely date back to prehistoric times, were found at Sleeping Bear Dunes, park officials confirmed Tuesday. The park service is now giving notice to the local Native American tribes and organizations as required by law and aims to turn the remains over to the appropriate tribe or tribes once the legal process is completed. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-prehistoric
Great Lakes steel production rose by 3,000 tons last week, but remains depressed by more than 18% this year with U.S. steel mills only operating at two-thirds of capacity, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute. Read the full story by the Northwest Indiana Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-steel-production
A Montreal-based company released a new dog food formula that includes Asian carp, an invasive species in both the United States and Canadian waterways. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-carp-kibble
Record high lake levels, flooded beaches, and endangered buildings along Lake Michigan are driving residents around the lake to take on projects big and small to try to hold back the water. Read and listen to the full story by Illinois Public Media.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-beaches
Legislation sponsored by Michigan Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow would help shoreline communities address rising water levels and erosion by setting up funding mechanism to carry out mitigation projects and reduce natural disaster risk associated with high lake levels. Read the full story by the Huron Daily Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-peters-bill
The International Joint Commission (IJC) has announced approval to deviate from the controversial Plan 2014, allowing for increased outflow from Lake Ontario’s waters through the Moses-Saunders dam on the St. Lawrence River to help avoid flooding on Lake Ontario shorelines. Read the full story by Rochester First.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-ijc
The Michigan DNR relocated a historic shelter building to keep it safe from eroding shoreline on Lake Michigan. The Orchard Beach State Park’s historic shelter building now sits a safe 230 feet back from the eroding Lake Michigan shoreline. Read the full story by Click-On Detroit.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-orchard-beach
With the aquifer that supplies drinking water to Joliet, Illinois, expected to dry up by 2030, the community is in talks with both the city of Chicago and the city of Hammond to provide water from Lake Michigan. Read the full story by CBS Chicago.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-joilet
Decades after they gave up the adventure of searching for shipwrecks, two underwater explorers with Alpena roots made a thrilling find in the waters of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary by discovering a Civil War-era shipwreck not seen in nearly 160 years. Read the full story by the Alpena News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-shipwreck
Dickinson County, Michigan adopted a resolution Monday in support of Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline, urging completion of a tunnel replacement project with no disruption of service. The resolution comes in response to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s recent demand the company shut down its oil pipeline that crosses the bottom of the waterway connecting Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. Read the full story by the Daily News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-dickinson
Threatened with a court injunction by a prominent Canadian environmental law organization, the town of South Bruce Peninsula in Ontario has postponed its dune excavation project at Sauble Beach. Read the full story by the Stratford Beacon Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-sauble
Another future U.S. Navy warship has completed acceptance trials on Lake Michigan. Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) 23, the future USS Cooperstown, passed several trials in advance of its commissioning to the US Navy in 2021. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-navy-ship
Crews have started emergency construction work on a portion of a central Michigan dam that collapsed last spring and contributed to flooding that destroyed homes and forced the evacuations of about 10,000 people. Read the full article by WDIV- TV – Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-dam-construction
In anticipation of high volumes of water entering Lake Ontario in 2021, the International Joint Commission has granted pre-emptive permission to deviate from its controversial Plan 2014 and increase outflows in an attempt to avoid flooding. Read the full story by the Watertown Daily Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-ijc-lake-ontario
A bipartisan task force that brought together environmentalists, the energy industry and others released its recommendations Wednesday for how Wisconsin might bolster its economy while addressing climate change. Read the full story by the Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-wisconsin-climate-task-force
The Great Lakes Commission has issued a grant to Ohio’s Ottawa Soil and Water Conservation District to address runoff concerns into Lake Erie through the Great Lakes Sediment and Nutrient Reduction Program. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-nutrient-trapping
A project aimed at reducing the number of invasive quagga mussels in Lake Michigan near Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore has proved successful, providing important takeaways for groups involved in the ongoing effort to combat Great Lakes invasive species. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-invasive-mussels
A new report outlining a common agenda for protecting the Lake Erie watershed in Pennsylvania was recently released by the conservation nonprofit organization PennFuture with the help of a dozen environmental and community groups and advisors. Read the full story by The Alleghany Front.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-pennsylvania-erie-watershed
The Southland Water Agency in South Holland, Illinois sent a letter Thursday to the mayor and City Council of Joliet, Illinois, contending that the city could reduce its water delivery costs by joining the system the agency is already developing to distribute Lake Michigan water to the south Chicago suburbs. Read the full story by The Herald-News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-joliet
The city of Muskegon, Michigan, is considering spending $13,600 on a new alert system to warn beachgoers of hazards. Read the full story by WOOD-TV – Grand Rapids, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-muskegon-hazard-lights
Indiana’s plans to clean up coal ash sites are insufficient, leaving toxins that could further poison drinking water and the environment, according to a new report by the Hoosier Environmental Council. Read the full story by The Post-Tribune of Northwest Indiana.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-indiana-cleanup
Some University of Minnesota students, faculty, and alumni have been fighting development of the Enbridge Energy Line 3 pipeline for years, citing concerns about the environmental impacts of oil spills and the health risks and effects on Indigenous communities. Read the full story by the Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-line-3
The International Joint Commission’s Triennial Assessment of Progress Report calls on the U.S. and Canada to study nutrient runoff entering Lake Superior and its role in the formation of blue-green algae blooms on the Lake. The chair of the IJC called Lake Superior a “canary in the coal mine” regarding climate change in the Great Lakes. Read the full story by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201211-superior-habs
Legislation that would have helped Michigan and other states force the U.S. Department of Defense to comply with stringent state laws governing military pollution cleanup has been stripped from an annual defense bill moving through Congress. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201211-pfas
Enbridge Energy’s attempts to get the permits it needs to build a new section of its controversial Line 5 oil and natural gas pipeline were stymied yesterday as an administrative law judge will now reconsider the scope of the permit application. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201211-line5
For decades, tourism-oriented development and high-end waterfront housing have slowly been supplanting working waterfront infrastructure, threatening local family businesses that rely on easy access to the Great Lakes. Read the full story by the Conversation.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201211-coastal-gentrification
A new report by the International Joint Commission found that public concern about climate change is escalating in the Great Lakes region. Chemicals of mutual concern and runoff were also among the top concerns for residents. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201211-ijc-public-opinion
The Northeast Ohio Regional Sewerage District agreed modify a $3 billion plan to reduce sewage in waterways following rainstorms. The plan saves costs for construction of tunnels around Cleveland that would remove polluted storm water and raw sewage and prevent untreated flows from entering Lake Erie and its tributaries. Read the full story by the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201211-neorsd
Several lawmakers from New York requested the IJC immediately authorize the Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Board to deviate from Plan 2014 water level management procedures through October of 2021 to mitigate risks of flooding and protect shoreline communities. Read the full story by the Oswego County Today.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201211-ijc-deviation
