The Tim S. Dool, a 225-metre-long lake freighter, became stranded in U.S. waters just east of Morrisburg, Ontario, on Saturday afternoon. Read the full story by CTV News Ottawa.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241125-cargoship-stlawrenceriver-morrisburg-ontario
Seven decades after overfishing and invasive species nearly wiped them off the map, Lake Superior’s lake trout population has finally recovered. The fish come from the Linesville Fish Hatchery in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, and are provided by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission to help keep a healthy amount of brown trout in the area. Read the full story by WJET-TV – Erie, PA.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241125-browntrout-lakeerie-winter
A bipartisan coalition of Congressional leaders want the U.S. Government to formally oppose a Canadian plan to bury 50,000 tons of high-level nuclear waste hundreds of feet underneath the Great Lakes basin. Read the full story by WCMU – Mount Pleasant, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241122-nuclear-waste
As climate change increasingly shapes the Great Lakes region’s ecology and economy, scientists plan to use underwater robots to gather previously inaccessible data they say will help communities adapt. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241122-underwater-robots
The Great Lakes Protection Fund recently announced the appointment of Tim Eder as Chair of its Board of Directors. Eder will help the Fund continue its mission to support innovative solutions for safeguarding the Great Lakes’ future, tackling challenges like climate resilience, invasive species and water quality. Read the full story by The Sun Times News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241122-new-chair
A new book by two Calvin University professors explores an ongoing effort to restore Plaster Creek, a tributary of Michigan’s Grand River, to a healthy stream worthy of its original name: “Water of the Walleye”. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241122-restoration-book
Michigan’s Upper Peninsula may be primed for a major hydroelectric future because of its underground mining past. Scientists at Michigan Technological University in Houghton, MI believe it may be possible for hundreds of abandoned mines to be transformed into pumped water storage facilities. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241122-mine-energy-storage
More than 70 townships and several counties are suing the Michigan Public Service Commission, challenging a law put in place that gives the state authority to approve big renewable energy projects without consultation with local government. Read the full story by Interlochen Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241122-law-challenge
The city of Buchanan, Michigan is working with the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative to redevelop the St. Joseph Riverfront to improve public access and restore the ecosystem by focusing on improving clean water, reducing runoff, and eradicating invasive species. Read the full story by WSJM – Benton Harbor, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241122-riverfront-restoration
The Great Lakes Water Authority has partnered with Focus Hope, Michigan Works, and the City of Detroit to look for apprentices to soak up valuable knowledge from their retiring workers to keep their water services running smoothly. Read the full story by WJBK – Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241122-apprenticeship-program
The Gales of November were in full force Thursday as large waves crashed into an iconic Lake Michigan pier. A ‘Gale Warning’ was in effect by the National Weather Service who advised of winds up to 50 mph with precipitation. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241122-massive-waves
Lake Superior’s top predator fish is at a sustainable population. The lake trout population has recovered to the point it no longer has to be stocked. Read the full story by Michigan Public.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241120-troutrestore
Tribal communities have played a pivotal, but often overlooked, role in lake sturgeon restoration efforts in the Great Lakes. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241120-sturgeon
Beavers are considered ecological architects, but certain conservationists are worried there can be too many in some areas of Michigan. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241120-beavers
A $10.4 million award from the U.S. Department of Transportation will go to the Put-in-Bay Township Port Authority for a new breakwater project and expand the ferry dock infrastructure on South Bass Island. Read the full story by the Port Clinton News Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241120-putinbay
Lake Michigan’s water levels have dropped below long-term averages for the first time in 10 years. Read the full story by the Chicago Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241120-levels
Northwestern Michigan College’s Great Lakes Maritime Academy is receiving a donated vessel, the Robinson Bay tugboat. The tugboat will give students more hands-on learning opportunities. Read the full story by WGTU-TV – Traverse City, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241120-tugboat
Before arriving in Two Harbors, Minnesota, a friendly snowy owl landed on the Great Lakes freighter James R. Barker on Monday, much to the crew’s delight. Read the full story by MPR News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241120-snowyowl
The 183-foot steamer Portsmouth ran aground off the shore of Michigan’s Middle Island during a storm on Nov. 15, 1867. It now rests in eight feet of crystal-clear Lake Huron water. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241120-wreck
A popular Michigan trail that runs from Lake Huron to Lake Michigan was recently given a new name — “Tip of the Mitt Trail” — following a community-wide contest. Read the full story by the Cheboygan Daily Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241120-contest
Canadian environmental officials hope a new funding program will entice farmers around London, Ontario, to do more to reduce the algal bloom-causing phosphorus that leaves their farmland. The new Thames River Phosphorus Reduction Program is backed by $17.4 million in federal funds. Read the full story by the CBC.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241118-london-nutrients
When former President Donald Trump last held office, he rolled back more than 100 environmental rules, and as he prepares to re-enter the White House, experts anticipate he’ll draw from the same playbook. That could have ripple effects in Wisconsin, which in recent years has received close to a billion dollars from a landmark climate law Trump seeks to unwind. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241118-trump-wisconsin
Some Great Lakes politicians believe that Trump will continue to back funding for Great Lakes cleanup efforts, even as he tries to make good on his campaign pledges to roll back U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rules and regulations intended to fight climate change. Read the full story by The Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241118-trump-lakes
Fisheries and Oceans Canada, along with partners in the U.S., keep a watchful eye for grass carp. Breeding populations of the invasive fish have been found on the American side of Lake Erie and could devastate the Great Lakes ecosystem. Read the full story by The Narwhal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241118-grass-carp
In a name-your-poison twist, a new study from the University of Illinois adds to the evidence that Chicago-area waterway pollution is slowing the relentless advance of the invasive silver carp. Read the full story by The Chicago Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241118-chicago-carp
Michigan and Ohio are both struggling to reduce the fertilizer runoff getting into Lake Erie which feeds harmful algal blooms. Both states are working toward a 40% reduction goal set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. So far, the efforts are not meeting the goals. Read the full story by Michigan Public.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241118-erie-nutrients
Three Michigan lawmakers led a letter to the authors of the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act, asking them to include an amendment opposing the permanent storage of nuclear waste in the Great Lakes basin in the final bill. Read the full story by Michigan Advance.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241118-nuclear-waste
It’s no surprise the Great Lakes are warmer than normal since our air temperatures have been warmer than normal for quite some time. Western Lake Erie has a pocket of water that is still 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241118-warm-water
After seven years of planning, a new marine sanctuary now protects a portion of Lake Ontario rich with history and shipwrecks. The community-driven designation aims to benefit the area through preservation, economic development, and conservation. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241118-marine-sanctuary
When passengers from Victory Cruise Lines voyages on the Great Lakes visit the National Museum of the Great Lakes next year, they’ll reach Toledo, Ohio, by bus, not boat. But Toledo-area leaders believe the Detroit-based shore excursions can be a stepping-off point toward bringing passenger cruises to the city. Read the full story by The Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241118-toledo-cruises
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) officials announced they have issued construction permits with more than 200 conditions for the Line 5 reroute around the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa’s reservation. The energy company still needs discharge permits from the DNR as well as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and must complete the project by November 14, 2027. Read the full story by The Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241115-line5-permit
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration declared an end to western Lake Erie’s 2024 algal bloom season Wednesday, calling it a “moderately severe” bloom that ranks as a 6.6 on the agency’s 10-point severity index. Read the full story by The Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241115-algal-bloom
Canadian and American scientists and regulators met Thursday in Harrison Township, Michigan, for the Lake St. Clair Conference. Twenty-five years after their first meeting, the muck, or thick mats of algae, is still a major issue facing the lake. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241115-binational-algae-issue
Terry Sheehan, Member of Parliament for Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, announced $747,000 in funding to several Indigenous-led organizations to support the study and preservation of species habitats and water conservation, and to improve the health of the Great Lakes and the St. Marys River. Read the full story by The Sault Star.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241115-environment-funding
According to a new study conducted by researchers with Wisconsin Sea Grant and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, ski hills in Wisconsin are relying more on snowmaking and other strategies to adapt to changing snow conditions due to climate change. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241115-snowmaking-study
Congressman Dan Kildee (MI-08), along with other Michigan Congressional representatives, sent a letter urging lawmakers to include his bipartisan amendment in the final bill opposing the Government of Canada’s plans to build a facility that would permanently store high-level nuclear waste in the Great Lakes basin. Read the full story by WEYI-TV – Saginaw, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241115-nuclear-storage-prevention
The possibility of Tawas Bay, Michigan, becoming a new cruise ship destination on Lake Huron is gaining momentum among local stakeholders. With renewed efforts, the Tawas community is hopeful that the initiative will boost local tourism and invigorate the economy. Read the full story by WISC-TV – Madison, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241115-cruise-tourism
With the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecasting “warmer-than-average” temperatures for parts of the Great Lakes, Michigan’s winter festivals from Metro Detroit to the Western Upper Peninsula are preparing to adapt. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241115-winter-adaptation
A Wisconsin-based author released the first novel from her mystery series, “Superior’s Secret: A Great Lake Mystery Novel.” The story follows a fictional University of Wisconsin-Superior student who teams up with a supernatural detective to investigate the mystery of Lake Superior. Read the full story by KBJR-TV – Superior, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241115-superior-book
It was a perfect fall day as two scuba divers descended on the James R. Bentley shipwreck in Lake Huron with the goal of finding sunken treasure. It wasn’t jewels or gold they were after, but rather the shipment of rye that had been on the ship when it sank in November 1878. Read the full story by WOOD-TV – Grand Rapids, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241113-sunkentreasure-greatlakes
The federal government of Canada announced on Tuesday it’s investing over $25 million toward four Ontario projects, funded under the Green Shipping Corridor Program, including a multi-million-dollar project at Sterling Fuels in Windsor. Read the full story by CTV News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241113-windsorsterlingfuels-greatlakes
Through a Department of Energy grant, faculty members at Central Michigan University will be researching three Michigan watersheds, modeling future risks of extreme precipitation. The research aims to enhance infrastructure preparedness and resilience to flooding for local communities. Read the full story by WZZM-TV – Grand Rapids, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241113-cmu-researchers-lakemichigan-rainfallrisks
The reopening of the Palisades nuclear plant comes as Michigan, and other states, push to meet “clean” energy goals and brace for increased energy demands coming from new infrastructure, like data centers. Read the full story by the Michigan Advance.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241113-palisades-nuclearplant-lakemichigan-2025-comeback
The late season walleye fishing around Lake Erie is in full swing and Fall Brawl anglers are reporting that large schools of trophy fish are moving toward the waters off Huron, Ohio, the prime pre-staging waters for the spring spawning season. Read the full story by The Beacon.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241113-lakeerie-cools-fallbrawl
Ludington State Park, situated near Ludington, Michigan, on 4,300 acres between Lake Michigan and Hamlin Lake, is closed for 10 months for construction. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241113-lakemichigan-statepark-upgrades
Every Great Lake besides Lake Superior is running near or above recent historically warm temperatures with data going back around 30 years to 1995. Read the full story by WROC-TV – Rochester, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241113-lakeontario-warm-lakeeffect
Whether it is regulations on walleye, northern pike or smallmouth bass, or on snagging salmon, there are strongly held convictions on multiple sides of fishing on southern Lake Michigan and the Chicago lakefront. Read the full story by the Chicago Sun-Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241113-dueling-fishing-opinions
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer unveiled a two-part initiative aimed at fighting harmful algal blooms that have plagued the Finger Lakes, endangering public health, regional tourism, and local agriculture. Schumer emphasized the urgent need for federal support after this year’s record-breaking algae blooms disrupted communities and businesses, particularly at the end of the summer. Read the full story by FingerLakes1.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241113-schumer-harmal-algalblooms-fingerlakes
Due to low water levels on the Mississippi River, shipping on the St. Lawrence Seaway utilizing the Great Lakes may provide a streamlined, direct supply chain for agricultural exporters. Read the full story by the Ohio County Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241113-riverchallenges-greatlakes
It was 49 years ago from Sunday, November 10, that the Edmund Fitzgerald was being loaded with 26,000 tons of iron ore, prepped for what would become its tragic final voyage. Once the largest ship on the Great Lakes, the 728-foot ship left Superior, Wisconsin, on November 9, 1975; a day later, the ship was gone, broken in two and laying on the bottom of Lake Superior in 530 feet of water. All 29 souls aboard were lost. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20241111-edmundfitzgerald-anniversary
