Trump administration tariffs and diplomatic fallout may jeopardize joint conservation programs protecting North America’s largest freshwater system. Read the full story by The Badger Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250421-tariff-impacts
Millions of alewife died over the winter and are now washing ashore. Fear not, however, as the die-off can be seen as Mother Nature’s way of keeping checks. Read the full story by the Buffalo News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250421-erie-fish-kill
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Detroit District will soon start dredging the entrance to Holland Harbor in Michigan to remove shoaling across the federal channel. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250421-lake-michigan-dredging
The recent signing of an agreement between elected officials along the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River is a key step toward highlighting the importance of building community relationships across Canada and the U.S. Read the full story by kawarthaNOW.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250421-us-canada-partnership
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says Lake Michigan is down 41-inches from its highest April level that was hit in 2020 and is now down seven-inches from last year. Read the full story by WGHN – Grand Haven, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250421-low-lake-levels
Smoke plumes visible in Metro Detroit likely emanated from a marsh fire across Lake St. Clair on Squirrel Island in Ontario, Canada. Read the full story by the Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250421-smoke-plumes
Victory Cruise Lines is relaunching in April with Great Lakes and Canada cruises. Those include All 5 Great Lakes cruises, which visit Erie, Huron, Michigan, Ontario and Superior, sailing from either Chicago or Milwaukee to Toronto. Read the full story by The Sault News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250418-cruisinggreatlakes-victorycruiselines
The White House Executive Order issued April 9, called “Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance,” directs the Secretary of Commerce, in coordination with other cabinet members, to find opportunities to encourage investments in American “maritime prosperity zones”. Read the full story by the Morning Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250418-greatlakes-maritime-trump
Essential functions at the federal Great Lakes research lab that monitors toxic algae blooms and helps forecast Michigan weather have been “crippled” by the Trump administration’s wave of federal firings. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250418-lab-forecast-weather-michigan-trump
Firefighters rescued a northern Michigan man on April 12 after he sank up to his waist in sand on the shore of Lake Michigan near Leland while rock hunting with his girlfriend. Read the full story by the Lansing State Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250418-rock-hunter-michigan
A new designation, if approved, will provide “special protection in perpetuity” to Indiana’s Lake Michigan shipwrecks by designating them as “submerged land preserves.” Read the full story by Northwest Indiana Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250418-indiana-lake-michigan-shipwrecks
The Minnesota Department of Health has updated its advice on how much fish is safe to eat from certain lakes with so-called “forever chemicals.” The changes to the fish consumption guidelines affect about 44 water bodies in 10 counties, in both the Twin Cities and greater Minnesota. Read the full story by MPR News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250418-health-dept-minnesota
Fed by creeks and springs that gurgle from the dolomite bedrock underlying the peninsula, three hidden, undeveloped lakes – Dunes, Arbiter and Schwartz – lie in the silhouette of these shivering sands. Nestled within a mile of the cliffs, caves and forested dunes of Lake Michigan, the lakes were choked by phosphorus-rich blankets of algae – victims of fortified agricultural, sanitary and septic system runoff. Read the full story by Door County Pulse.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250418-algae-to-clarity
A long history of Great Lakes pollution has discouraged the Anishinaabe practice of fish consumption, but a mobile app is safely bringing the tradition back. Read the full story by The Mining Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250416-fish-consumption-app
Environmental Protection Agency Director Lee Zeldin issued guidance to limit federal protections for wetlands last week that environmental advocates say will lead to more pollution in the Great Lakes. Read the full story by WXPR – Rhinelander, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250416-wetland-protections
During the winter of 2023, scientists braved frigid temperatures and deep snow to document winter lightning along the easternmost shores of Lake Ontario as part of a National Science Foundation-funded study. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250416-winter-lightening
Climate, weather and water-related research in Wisconsin and the Great Lakes would take a hit under a proposal to slash funding for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Read the full story by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250416-noaa-cuts
141 vessels contributed over 900 hours of icebreaking assistance and preventive support within the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway this past winter. The season officially concluded on April 14, 2025. Read the full story by WDIV – Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250416-icebreaking-season-over
When Lake Erie remains frozen for long periods of time, it usually means good things for creatures that depend on the lake. Read the full story by The Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250416-icy-affects
The Great Lakes have abundant wind potential to supply Michigan with cost-efficient energy, but its unique challenges have stalled several promising projects. Read the full story by City Pulse.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250416-offshore-wind
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Thunder Bay Marine Sanctuary has created 3D models of nearly 30 shipwrecks within Lake Huron. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250416-3d-models
The 85-foot schooner Appledore IV serves not just as a workspace and home for two Great Lakes residents. It’s also a classroom and a link between people and the Great Lakes. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250416-great-lakes-educators
Commercial fishing on the Great Lakes was built on lake whitefish, but for the past two decades, that species has been on the decline. It’s now on the brink of collapse in parts of two of the Great Lakes with scientists searching for ways to save the species. Read the full story by National Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250414-lake-whitefish
There are concerns about how federal funding cuts might hamper environmental enforcement in the Great Lakes region, but state and local governments along with volunteer organizations in recent years have proven they are willing to step up on such issues. Read the full story by the Chicago Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250414-local-support-lake-michigan
The Great Lakes water levels have started their seasonal rise as the snow has melted and spring rains begin. While the water levels have increased in the past month, all Great Lakes are still several inches below their levels at the same time last year. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250414-water-levels
The Great Lakes Fishery Commission says it is hopeful that efforts to prevent invasive carp from migrating into the Great Lakes will continue as planned, given the recent discussion at the White House between Michigan’s Governor Gretchen Whitmer and President Donald Trump. Read the full story by CBS News Detroit.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250414-invasive-carp
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources crews operating the Root River Steelhead Facility in Racine this spring have processed a record number of steelhead, or rainbow trout. Fertilized eggs from the fish are taken to state hatcheries. Read the full story by Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250414-steelhead
A new Michigan pollution testing requirement for PFAS at dredging sites threatens to cause delays and drive up costs of dredging, road construction, and delivery. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250414-army-corps-dredging
Climate change is making it easier for Great Lakes waterbirds to get sick, according to a recent study that identified avian diseases in the Great Lakes, including botulism and avian influenza, that could be primed for outbreaks amid warming waters and shifting migration patterns. Read the full story by the Alpena News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250414-great-lakes-waterbirds
The Kenosha Sportfishing and Conservation Association received 40,000 chinook salmon fingerlings from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources at the Kenosha Salmon Rearing Pond. The nonprofit group is working to restore Lake Michigan’s ecosystem by stocking it with salmon annually. Read the full story by Spectrum News 1.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250414-salmon
The Lake Ontario Trout and Salmon Association partnered with the New York Department of Environmental Conservation to stock more than 150,000 fish into Lake Ontario. Read the full story by WGRZ-TV – Buffalo, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250414-stock-fishing
Two endangered Great Lakes piping plovers have been confirmed at Montrose Beach in Chicago. Piping plovers have been on the move earlier than normal. Read the full story by WTTW-TV – Chicago, IL.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250414-plovers
In accordance with the International Joint Commission Order of Approval governing its operation, preparations are now underway for the New York Power Authority to begin removal of the Lake Erie-Niagara River Ice Boom as ice conditions and safe working conditions allow. Read the full story by WBEN-TV – Buffalo, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250414-erie-niagara-ice-boom
In accordance with the International Joint Commission Order of Approval governing its operation, preparations are now underway for the New York Power Authority to begin removal of the Lake Erie-Niagara River Ice Boom as ice conditions and safe working conditions allow. Read the full story by WBEN-TV – Buffalo, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250414-erie-niagara-ice-boom
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, met with President Donald Trump on Wednesday to discuss the need to ensure barriers are put in place to keep invasive carp out of Lake Michigan. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250411-invasive-carp-barriers
U.S. Rep. Hillary Scholten of Grand Rapids, Michigan, says harbor dredging efforts along the Lake Michigan shoreline are uncertain right now with federal spending cuts, even as ports are increasingly busy. Scholten says Grand Haven could lose $88 million in business revenue if the dredging to clear the channel doesn’t happen. Read the full story by WGHN – Grand Haven, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250411-dredging-funding-cuts
Newly published research from the U.S. Geological Survey looked at more than 25 years of annual sea lamprey data to assess the effectiveness of lamprey control funding. The research showed that after 2020 and 2021, years when control activities stopped altogether or were scaled back to varying degrees on all five Great Lakes due to the COVID-19 pandemic, lamprey populations increased the most in the lakes with the largest reductions in control. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250411-lamprey-impacts
Anxieties are mounting that a water pollution laboratory buttressing Lake Superior’s North Shore is slated to be closed, potentially terminating work for dozens of scientists and shuttering an economic engine for northern Minnesota. Read the full story by The Minnesota Star Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250411-epa-lab-closure
Despite decades-long efforts to clean up toxic hot spots along Michigan’s Great Lakes shores, a recent study shows that the health of waterbirds in some areas continues to suffer. It found that infertility and weakened immune systems were more prevalent at the contaminated sites than in birds in more pristine areas along Lake Superior at the St. Marys River. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250411-waterbird-health
Macomb County Public Works Commissioner Candice Miller is asking the State of Michigan to take action following an alleged “sickening release” of 1.2 million gallons of raw sewage from neighboring Oakland County on April 3. Read the full story by MWYD-TV – Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250411-sewage-release
The H2Ohio program helps farmers grow crops more efficiently while also protecting the environment. A recently proposed 44 percent reduction to the program could have serious consequences, not just for farmers but for the general public as well. Read the full story by The Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250411-h2ohio-spending-cuts
The Wisconsin Supreme Court could hear a case in the coming years centered around Enbridge Energy’s reroute of the pipeline known as Line 5. About 12 miles of the pipeline cuts through the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa’s reservation, though the easements for the land the pipeline is on have expired. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250411-pipeline-reroute-case
As the executive director of the Western Lake Superior Sanitary District (WLSSD) prepares to leave her post, the WLSSD fired up a trio of generators that now convert biogas from the operation of its Duluth sewage-processing facility into power. The new equipment is expected to slash the plant’s annual electrical bill by more than $1 million. Read the full story by the Duluth News Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250411-biogas-power-generation
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service personnel will apply lampricides to Cattaraugus Creek in Cattaraugus and Erie counties, New York, between April 22-May 1 to kill sea lamprey larvae burrowed in the stream bottom. Read the full story by the Olean Times Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250411-lamprey-control
Experts weigh in on how U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Great Lakes office is a key part of the regional and binational science and collaboration that protects the Great Lakes, and how changes may jeopardize that protection and the relationship with Canada. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250409-epa-greatlakes-office
In Michigan, a new testing requirement for PFAS could delay dredging projects around the state ― a move that stakeholders warn could significantly increase shipping costs, close harbors and hurt port and other businesses.. Read the full story by the Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250409-pfas-testing-dredging
Like many Canadian border cities, Sarnia has seen a surge of patriotism in response to President Donald Trump’s aggressive behavior, but residents of the community on Lake Huron have focused on one threat in particular: local waters. Read the full story by Agence France-Presse.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250409-canada-water
Minnesota Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith sent a letter to the EPA administrator Lee Zeldin on reports of a possible reduction in staff at the EPA Great Lakes Toxicology and Ecology Division Lab in Duluth, Minnesota. Read the full story by Northern News Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250409-minnesota-epa-lab
Some researchers are proposing artificial reefs as naturally sourced solution to the issue of coastal erosion, which they say will keep sediment moving and cost less. Read the full story by Inside Climate News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250409-artificial-reefs-erosion
According to the U.S. Geological Survey Great Lakes Science Center, prey fish numbers in Lake Michigan look slightly better, though smelt biomass remains low throughout the lake. Read the full story by Chicago Sun-Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250409-lake-michigan-prey-fish
