In a recent editorial, The Toledo Blade sparked controversy by implying the International Joint Commission (IJC) supported the lawsuit between Ohio municipalities and federal regulators regarding Lake Erie water pollution, though the IJC maintains neutrality. Read the full story by The Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240501-blade-editorial
The Michigan Climate Action Network says it will join challenges to a permit approved last December by the Michigan Public Service Commission for Enbridge’s Line 5 tunnel project beneath the Straits of Mackinac. Read the full story by Interlochen Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240429-line-5
The population of sea lampreys in the Great Lakes could increase significantly in the next year or two, and it’s currently unclear how quickly the population can be culled back. Read the full story by WGN-TV – Chicago, IL.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240429-sea-lamprey
As each wave crashes into the edge of Township Park in Geneva-on-the-Lake, Ohio, the land continues to disintegrate. Despite emergency measures taken four years ago, more permanent action needs to be taken soon. Read the full story by WEWS-TV – Cleveland, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240429-lake-erie-erosion
The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa will partner with a University of Wisconsin research reserve to preserve the western end of popular Wisconsin Point, the Lake Superior sandbar in Superior, Wisconsin, that for centuries has played an integral role for area Anishinaabe. Read the full story by the Star Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240429-sandbar
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is considering making new rules for walleye bag limits. Exactly what the new rules will look like remains unclear. Read the full story by the Duluth News Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240429-walleye-limit
Last week, a few satellite images snapped over the Great Lakes revealed an odd-looking spot in the middle of the southern half of Lake Michigan. The spot represents an eddy of warm water moving westward across the lake. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240429-satellite-spot
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources issued a first-of-its-kind order to protect a central Minnesota trout stream affected by farmers pumping groundwater to irrigate their crops. Read the full story by Minnesota Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240429-trout-stream
After hearing all about the 100% Fish Project that started in Iceland, the executive director of the Conference of Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Governors and Premiers started wondering if the project could help the struggling Great Lakes fishery. He took the idea home to find out. Read the full story by Interlochen Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240429-100-fishproject
In Ohio, a group of senior engineering students at the University of Toledo decided to tackle remediation of farm field fertilizer runoff for a final graduation project. Read the full story by The Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240429-ut-engineering
Environmental advocates in the Chicago area and northwest Indiana applauded a tough new slate of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rules for coal-fired power plants, including a sweeping regulation to sharply limit greenhouse gas pollution at coal-burning plants. Read the full story by WTTW-TV – Chicago, IL.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240426-coal-regulations
Through expansive cleaning efforts, Muskegon Lake in Muskegon, Michigan, has gone through every step required to remove its designation as an Area of Concern. However, residents of lower socioeconomic communities are raising concerns that the cleaned-up shoreline would be taken over by private interests. Read the full story by Bridge Michigan.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240426-cleanup-equity
Last winter, the ponds in the park where marbled crayfish – a Great Lakes invasive species – were first discovered in Ontario were drained in hopes that the crayfish would freeze to death. But that didn’t happen, likely thanks to the unseasonably warm weather and their burrowing ability. Now the Invading Species Awareness Program of the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters has launched a regional sweep from Ottawa to Windsor. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240426-invasive-crayfish
A 15-year-old piping plover, known by researchers as Of,gb:X,Y, or “Gabby,” was confirmed this week as having once again migrated from her wintering grounds in Cumberland Island, Georgia, to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Michigan for another summer breeding season. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240426-plover-breeding
A project that helps prevent plastic pollution from entering Lake Superior and Thunder Bay’s local waterways is receiving $45,000 in funding from Ontario. Cutting-edge catch basin filters called LittaTraps will be placed at city parks, waterfront areas and parking lots to capture microplastics before they enter marine ecosystems. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240426-plastic-cleanup
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency kicked off an $84 million dredging project in the lower Rouge River around Zug Island in southeast Michigan this month, aiming to remove the pollution that makes the Rouge one of the most toxic sites in the Great Lakes. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240426-dredging-project
A cutting-edge, high-efficiency cement carrier will make its way to the Great Lakes next year. According to Eureka Shipping, the state-of-the-art mechanical/pneumatic cement ship is designed to replace two older vessels while maintaining the same cargo capacity. Read the full story by the Welland Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240426-ship-replacement
The Kenosha Sportfishing and Conservation Association has received 40,000 chinook salmon from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to eventually be released into Lake Michigan. Before the chinook salmon arrived, the association made several changes to its salmon rearing pond in hopes of having more fish survive while in their care. Read the full story by Spectrum News 1.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240426-salmon-release
A new roving trash collector called BeBot will soon hit the shores of Belle Isle State Park in Michigan to not only keep beaches clean for residents, but also prevent harmful trash from ending up in the waterways in the Great Lakes region. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240426-trash-cleanup
The owners of Sunrise Farms in Palmyra Township, Michigan, are helping Michigan State University improve the water quality and reduce toxic algae in the area. The farm is implementing no-till and strip-till systems, cover crops, filter strips and water retention structures to keep nutrients on the farm. Read the full story by The Daily Telegram.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240426-farm-sustainability
Michigan is adding $290 million in infrastructure investments to the MI Clean Water Plan. Municipal and community water systems will be eligible to apply for low-interest loans to help public water suppliers ensure safe and clean drinking water. Read the full story by WXMI-TV – Grand Rapids, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240424-mi-clean-water
Twenty-two million pounds of plastic waste end up in the Great Lakes every year. About half of that waste ends up in Lake Michigan alone. Samira Hanessian, energy policy director with the Illinois Environmental Council, discusses why buying sustainable matters. Read the full story by WLS-TV – Chicago, IL.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240424-plastic-pollution
This past winter was one of the warmest on record. It led to record-low ice coverage on all five Great Lakes, a sign that the world’s largest freshwater system is not immune to climate change. Read the full story by WLS-TV – Chicago, IL.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240424-ice-coverage
The Ohio Department of Agriculture recently hosted a discussion around water conservation with agricultural leaders from Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan to focus on improving water quality in the Western Lake Erie Basin. Read the full story by Outdoor News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240424-ag-leaders-meet
Caribou are set to return to Ontario’s Michipicoten Island in Lake Superior, six years after they were airlifted to more remote islands to protect them from hungry wolves. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240424-caribou
Every spring, as temperatures rise, midges emerge in swarms around Milwaukee’s waterfronts. While they are harmless, residents find the sheer number of midges overwhelming. Read the full story by WISN-TV – Milwaukee, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240424-midge-flies
The owner of a barge best known for repeatedly sinking in Lake Michigan pleaded guilty to polluting Great Lakes waters in a settlement that gives him another year to move the beleaguered industrial vessel. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240424-barge-lawsuit
In Michigan, Muskegon County’s newest and largest park, Dune Harbor Park, opened to the public in June 2023. The property was previously used as a sand mining site, which created two inland lakes that can now be used for kayaking and fishing. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240424-lake-michigan-park
The city of Toledo, Ohio, and the Lucas County Board of Commissioners will join the Environmental Law & Policy Center in suing the U.S. EPA over what they believe is a “facially inadequate plan” to reduce phosphorus runoff in the Western Lake Erie Basin. Read the full story by The Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240424-lake-erie-lawsuit
The Biggest Week in American Birding draws a worldwide audience to glimpse dozens of species of migrating birds in northern Ohio, though officials say they’ve been seeing changes in recent years. Trends such as warmer winters, habitat loss, and low lake ice coverage may be impacting migrations. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240424-ohio-birding
Researchers at Central Michigan University are exploring the Great Lakes with the help of a brand-new submarine. CMU’s Institute for Great Lakes Research bought a two-person submersible with big plans for its future. Read the full story by WNEM-TV – Bay City, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240422-cmu-sub-greatlakes
It’s estimated that nearly two-thirds of aquatic invasive species currently in the Great Lakes hitched a ride in the ballast water of cargo ships crossing the ocean. However, the same isn’t true of lakers, or ships that move exclusively within the Great Lakes. While the ballast water of these ships isn’t introducing new species, there’s a good chance it’s spreading invasive species throughout the lakes. Read the full story by Interlochen Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240422-ballastwater-greatlakes
The National Museum of the Great Lakes located in Toledo, Ohio will break ground on a 5,000-square-foot expansion Monday afternoon to provide additional space for temporary and traveling exhibits, new permanent exhibit spaces, and a community education center. Read the full story by the Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240422-nationalmuseum-greatlakes-expansion
To study the impacts of ice coverage, scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s School of Freshwater Sciences have algae at the center of their research. Read the full story by Spectrum News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240422-uwmilwaukee-scientists-icecoverage-lakemichigan
When you walk along the beaches of Lake Erie, you’re going to see litter and a new report found that a lot of that trash is going to be plastic. On average, 86% of the litter collected in a given Adopt-a-Beach season is composed either partially or fully of plastic. Read the full story by Erie Times-News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240422-greatlakesbeaches-presqueisle-plasticpollution
If you spend a lot of time on the water, you might be interested in becoming a water quality monitor. The MiCorps Cooperative Lake Monitoring Program is to help citizen scientists across the state collect water quality information, and other information about their lake’s health, to help understand what’s going on in their lake. Read the full story by WPBN-TV – Traverse City, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240422-michiganswaterquality-micorp-lakemonitoring
H2Ohio’s agriculture incentive program is now being offered to producers throughout the state. H2Ohio’s agricultural program, which initially focused solely on farms located in northwest Ohio near Lake Erie, incentivizes farmers to implement science-based, proven best management practices to prevent nutrient runoff and improve water quality. Read the full story by Ohio Ag Net.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240422-statewideh2ohio
Lake sturgeon don’t need Endangered Species Act protections, federal wildlife officials announced Monday, saying that stocking programs have helped the prehistoric fish return to areas where they had vanished. Read the full story by WGHP-TV – Madison, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240422-prehistoric-lakesturgeon
Dozens of children of the water crisis — now teenagers and young adults — have turned their trauma into advocacy. They provide input on public health initiatives, participate in social issue campaigns, distribute filters and provide free water testing for homeowners. Read the full story by WHNT-TV – Flint, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240422-flint-environmental-advocacy
A robotic beach cleaning device has been procured to remove plastic waste along Lake Michigan beaches and inland lake beaches in Michigan. Currently, 26 beaches are slated to benefit from the robot’s services. Read the full story by the Petoskey News-Review.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240419-robot-cleaner
Invasive cattails dominate about 14% of all Great Lakes coastal wetlands. Researchers and land managers are developing creative ways to deal with invasive cattails in hopes of restoring and protecting the health of the wetlands, but it’s not an easy task. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240419-invasive-cattails
To fight back against threats to freshwater ecosystems, the University of Windsor (UWindsor) has joined a national research partnership, the Global Water Futures Observatories. An existing partnership of several Ontario universities has joined forces with it to go after increased funding. Read the full story by the Windsor Star.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240419-uwindsor-partnership
More than 200 miles of Michigan’s Lake Superior shoreline recently benefited from a group effort that removed more than 10 tons of debris from the shoreline through coastal cleanups, beach hikes, and diving events. Read the full story by The Newberry News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240419-superior-debris
The City Council in South Haven, Michigan, has prioritized bringing a new lifeguard program to its Lake Michigan beaches, along with other efforts to increase beach safety, highlighting the effort as one of its top priorities for the coming year. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240419-michigan-lifeguards
After more than a year of restoration efforts, the Tawas Lighthouse in Tawas, Michigan, will shine again on May 2. The effort to restore the lighthouse was made possible by a $455,500 grant through the American Rescue Plan Act. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240419-tawas-lighthouse
A new eco-friendly cement carrier for the Great Lakes is being built in the Netherlands to replace two older cement carriers. Delivery of the vessel is expected in 2025. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240419-cement-carrier
This new visitor center at the Eisenhower Lock in Massena, New York, highlights how ships move through the St. Lawrence Seaway. The ships carry billions of dollars’ worth of goods on the Seaway between the Atlantic Ocean and Great Lakes every year. Read the full story by North Country Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240419-visitor-center
Dredging needs to happen on Michigan’s St. Joseph River leading into Lake Michigan but is delayed due to the county’s application for a permit. Dredging cannot occur in May and June, due to the fish spawning season, causing a time crunch. Read the full story by WSBT-TV – South Bend, IN.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240419-stjoe-dredging
The Charlevoix Harbor channel between Lake Michigan and Lake Charlevoix in Charlevoix, Michigan, will be dredged this spring to maintain the channel at a depth of 18 feet. Work will be completed by May 15. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240419-channel-dredge
Scientists have created an interactive map that shows how parts of Illinois may be swallowed up by Lake Michigan as climate change bites. Read the full story by Newsweek.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240417-lake-level-rise
