During National Invasive Species Awareness Week, Michigan’s Invasive Species Program is joining efforts across all 50 states to encourage everyone to take action to prevent the introduction and spread of harmful plants, animals and diseases. Read the full story by Daily Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250226-invasive-species
The Michigan Maritime Museum in South Haven will host a presentation on women lighthouse keepers throughout Great Lakes history next month. Read the full story by WSJM-Benton Harbor, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250226-women-lighthouse-keepers
Two friends walked across a frozen Lake Erie to Long Point, Ontario, in February 1977. Two more men made a similar crossing that month. Three others made the trek in reverse, ending in North East, Pennsylvania, in March 1978. No one is known to have walked across the lake at Erie since — for good reason. Read the full story by Erie-Times News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250224-frozen-erie
Tiny Township, Ontario, is planning to enter into another year of calls for submissions for the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, with this year pertaining to framework around a shoreline alteration bylaw amendment for the township’s dynamic beaches. Read the full story by Midland Today.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250224-tinybeach-greatlakesinitiative
Like other parts of the country, the Great Lakes region is standing up and taking notice of the rapid-fire actions that the Trump Administration has been taking. The latest attention-grabber is President Trump’s decision to fast-track the controversial Line 5 pipeline. Read the full story by the Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250224-greatlakes-thingsmovingfast
Sea lamprey nearly destroyed fishing in the Great Lakes. The new 90-minute film, The Fish Thief: A Great Lakes Mystery, tells the story of those who tackled the mystery of why lake trout, one of the most prized fish in the Great Lakes, nearly vanished. Read the full story by The Daily News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250224-thefishthief-sealamprey-impacts-greatlakes-whitefish
Ice fishing has been good this season, but anglers on the ice targeting walleye or other fish may unexpectedly find themselves with a lake sturgeon on the line. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources reminds anglers that regulations on the targeting and harvest of lake sturgeon are in effect and that on most waters of the state, fishing for lake sturgeon is prohibited and any lake sturgeon caught must be released immediately. Read the full story by The Alpena News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250224-sturegon-protect-ice-fishing
The Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission has announced the opening of the bidding process for contractors to carry out a major restoration and maintenance project on the U.S. Brig Niagara. The historic vessel, housed in Erie, Pennsylvania, and best known for its pivotal role in the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812, is preparing for its second shipyard visit in recent years. Read the full story by WJET-TV – Erie, PA.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250224-phmc-brig-niagara-shipyard
The city of Lockport, Illinois, reiterated its commitment to staying on its well water system, even as neighboring Illinois cities Joliet, Romeoville and Crest Hill take steps towards a transition to Lake Michigan water. Read the full story by the Shaw Local.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250224-lockport-well-water-system
The Trump administration’s purge of federal workers at an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) office in Chicago included a half dozen attorneys who bring enforcement cases against polluters and staff who mobilize rapidly to respond to hazardous spills and environmental disasters. The cuts may inhibit the EPA’s ability to protect drinking water, safeguard air quality and clean up toxic sites in Michigan, part of a five-state region headquartered in Illinois. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250224-trump-epa-workers
With the weather outside frigid, a fishing enthusiast wouldn’t necessarily be thinking about the walleye run just yet unless you’re the proprietor of Maumee Tackle — Fishing, Kayak, and Shooting Outfitters in Maumee, Ohio. Read the full story by the Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250224-fishermen-ice-walleyerun-soon
The Winnebago, Wisconsin, sturgeon spearing season was closed with bang when two more fish were harvested weighing in at over 100 pounds each. Read the full story by WTMJ-TV – Milwaukee, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250224-sturgeonspearing-sunday
A Michigan appeals court has ruled that Enbridge Energy’s plans to build a tunnel around an aging pipeline that runs beneath a Great Lakes channel can continue. Read the full story by WILX – Lansing, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-michigan-court-line-5
Nearly five years after the final scoop of contaminated sediment was taken from the Lower Fox River in Wisconsin, the river is improving, but it’s still not safe for fishing. And it won’t be for quite some time. Read the full story by Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-fox-river-pcb
Companies across the Great Lakes region have vowed to find a use for the entirety of each fish they catch, from fertilizer to fish skin leather. Read the full story by Reasons to be Cheerful.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-fish-waste
Ice fishermen around Northeast Ohio rejoiced earlier this week as the wind chill plummeted and ice thickened on ponds and small lakes all around the area. While the safe ice will support a few days of hard water fishing, it may not last. Read the full story by the Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-ice-fishing
The data that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) produces contributes to Great Lakes recreation, shipping navigation, coastal management, and a variety of other research, all of which may be at risk with impending cuts to NOAA. Read the full story by the Wisconsin Examiner.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-noaa-funding
Massive staffing cuts and freezes made by the Trump administration could have serious consequences in the fight against invasive sea lamprey in the Great Lakes. Read the full story by Interlochen Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-lamprey-funding
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is reminding anglers that lake sturgeon are protected, cannot be targeted while ice fishing, and must be released as quickly as possible if caught by mistake. Read the full story by the Lansing State Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-sturgeon-protections
Nonprofit managers worry that a large federal grant to help Michigan farm and forest owners preserve their lands may fall victim to a vast Trump administration funding freeze that’s being litigated in federal court. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-forest-farm-funding
Scores of water mains throughout Chicago are too close to sewer lines, according to a new report that cautions the potential risks to public health could cost taxpayers millions of dollars to fix. Read the full story by the Chicago Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-chicago-water-pipes
An interview with the founder of the annual Chequamegon Kite Fest in Ashland, Wisconsin, sheds light on winter kite flying and its impact on the community. Read the full interview by Lake Superior Magazine.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-winter-kites
Two of the biggest threats to the Great Lakes region’s $7 billion fishery — invasive carp and sea lampreys — will get worse if the Trump Administration’s federal cuts and hiring freezes are not done more methodically, officials said Monday. Read the full story by The Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-funding-hiring-impacts
Travelling for international meetings or even joining a call with Canadian counterparts has become impossible for some U.S. government scientists, under new directives since U.S. President Donald Trump took office. Given that the Great Lakes — and their aquatic life — straddle both sides of the border, having American scientists suddenly barred from meetings has had deep impacts. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-binational-coordination
U.S. Senators Gary Peters and Elissa Slotkin introduced the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act of 2025 to reauthorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative through 2031 and increase the program’s annual authorized funding levels from $475 million to $500 million. Read the full story by Record & Clarion.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-great-lakes-bill
Rolling back clean water protection, gutting agencies and defunding science, research and monitoring is a non-starter for the Great Lakes region, said the director of the Healing Our Waters coalition in a recent interview. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-great-lakes-priorities
The patchwork of research that’s been done on microplastics in the Great Lakes has revealed gaps that need to be filled, a scientific panel reporting to the U.S. and Canadian governments stated in a recent webinar. Read the full story by The Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-microplastics-research
A $110,000 grant will go toward a training program in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District that helps prepare students for the maritime and aviation industries. The grant, approved by the Port of Cleveland, will be given to Argonaut, the nonprofit that provides the hands-on training at Davis Aerospace and Maritime High School. Read the full story by Spectrum News 1.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-maritime-training-grant
In 2024, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) issued permits to Canadian energy company Enbridge to reroute its Line 5 pipeline, prompting a lawsuit from the Bad River Band. The tribe is asking an Ashland County judge to stay the Wisconsin DNR’s environmental impact statement for the reroute proposal and reverse state construction permits. Read the full story by WDIO-TV – Duluth, MN.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-pipeline-litigation
After barely registering in satellite images during the 2024 winter season, ice coverage has returned almost to the seasonal average across the Great Lakes this year. Read the full story by WJBK-TV – Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-ice-coverage
Two new cruise lines joined Cruise the Great Lakes this season and will make stops in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Read the full story by WLUC-TV – Marquette, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-cruise-stops
Citizens for a Safe and Clean Lake Superior is rolling out a new program to protect wetlands in Marquette County, Michigan. The organization is offering $750 to four landowners in the county who are willing to enter into a conservation easement to protect wetlands on their property. Read the full story by WLUC-TV – Marquette, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-wetland-conservation-program
A project to keep invasive carp species from reaching the Great Lakes could be in jeopardy as the state of Illinois halted its work, seeking assurances from the Trump administration that federal funding for the more than $1.1 billion project will not be revoked. Read the full story by Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-carp-barrier-halted
The Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa has objected to permitting Enbridge’s proposed Line 5 reroute under the Clean Water Act, saying the project will violate the tribe’s water quality standards. Read the full story by the Superior Telegram.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-line5-tribal-opposition
Waves of Yemeni immigrants came to the United States in the 1950s and 1960s settled in Michigan to work in the Great Lakes shipping industry. Today, around 30,000 people of Yemeni heritage are believed to live in Michigan. Read the full story by Bridge Michigan.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-great-lakes-sailors
U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Toledo, Ohio, recently introduced a bill, with a frequent Republican ally, requiring the federal government to promote cultural and historic attractions in the Great Lakes. Read the full story by the Sandusky Register.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-great-lakes-bill
A team of 20 divers scoured 40,000 square meters of the Grand River in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan. In just two weeks, the team found, identified, marked, tagged, and relocated every native freshwater mussel within their search area. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-mussel-surveys
Iceboats, some a century old, are the speedsters and yachts of frozen lakes. Iceboating flourished in Madison, Wisconsin, partly because of the city’s lakes and a culture that embraced wintertime activities. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-iceboat-speed
The sea lamprey nearly destroyed fishing in the Great Lakes. The new 90-minute film “The Fish Thief: A Great Lakes Mystery,” tells the story of the people who tackled the mystery of why lake trout, one of the most prized fish in the Great Lakes, nearly vanished. Read the full story by the Watertown Daily Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-sea-lamprey-documentary
Michigan’s Great Lakes are 33.19% covered in ice, the highest coverage so far in 2025 with Lake Erie in the lead, the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration said. Altogether, the Great Lakes are seeing more ice this year compared to 2023 and 2024. Read the full story by Lansing State Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-ice-cover
This year’s National Invasive Species Awareness Week is February 24-28, 2025. Anyone who enjoys gardening or the outdoors needs to stay informed. Read the full story by the Utica Observer-Dispatch.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-spotted-lantern-fly
New York state lawmakers announced a group of five bills aimed to reduce PFAS exposure. The five bills would: ban the use of PFAS in consumer and household products, cosmetic products, and menstrual products; regulate PFAS as an air pollutant; and require the disclosure of PFAS levels in all permitted facilities discharging waste. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250214-new-york-pfas
In a sweeping proposal, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers announced Tuesday that his budget will include more than $145 million to address PFAS contamination. The bulk of the money would fund PFAS testing for municipal drinking water systems, but it would also help private well owners test for the chemicals. Read the full story by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250214-wisconsin-pfas
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources gets a good chunk of its budget from the sale of hunting and fishing licenses. But licenses aren’t selling like they used to, and some are wondering: even if fees go up, how long will this system work? Read the full story by Interlochen Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250214-dnr-funding
Last year, Vice President J.D. Vance, then an Ohio senator, was part of a bipartisan coalition calling to increase funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Advocates hope he hasn’t changed his mind. Read the full story by WBEZ Chicago.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250214-glri-funding
Aamjiwnaang First Nation and the Canadian federal government will work together on a pilot project to address environmental racism and contaminants in the air, water, and soil. The nation, located in Sarnia, Ontario, has spent decades fighting to stop pollution from a cluster of petrochemical plants known as Chemical Valley that surround it. Read the full story by The Narwhal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250214-aamjiwnaang-pollution
The Palisades nuclear plant, which sits on the Lake Michigan shore near South Haven, Michigan, stopped operations in 2022. The unprecedented proposal to bring the shuttered nuclear plant back online reached a new level Wednesday as a panel of federal administrative judges heard arguments over the regulatory process for the proposal. Read the full story by Michigan Public.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250214-palisades-restart
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy has proposed additional water quality protections in Oakland County, Michigan, amid a years-long dispute with neighboring Macomb County over accusations of sewage discharged into the Red Run Drain, contributing to beach closures and the growth of large masses of algae in Lake St. Clair downstream. Read the full story by Michigan Advance.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250214-county-sewage
Lake Erie is more than 90% covered with ice but that doesn’t mean it’s safe to be walking on the frozen water. Conditions are particularly hazardous for fishermen at least for the next few days, as winter weather is expected to bring shifting winds that will blow the ice around. Read the full story by The Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250214-erie-ice
Several Metro Detroit water systems exceeded the previous lead limit of 15 ppb in 2024, with more communities nearing the new 12 ppb standard, while Republican lawmakers in Congress aim to repeal Biden’s lead regulations via the Congressional Review Act, potentially barring federal mandates on lead service line replacement or stricter lead limits in water. Read the full story by Planet Detroit.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250214-michigan-lead
