Catch the latest updates on what’s happening with PFAS in the Great Lakes region. Check back for more PFAS news roundups every other week on our website.
A new bill introduced in the Minnesota Legislature by Republican Rep.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/latest-minnesota-pfas-bill-allegedly-shifts-power-sparks-controversy/
The emerald ash borer (EAB) has devastated ash trees across North America. But researchers in Ohio discovered something unexpected — some ash trees are surviving. These ‘lingering ash’ not only resist EAB but can even kill its larvae.
Scientists suspected genetic resistance and tested their theory by cloning and crossbreeding surviving trees.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/are-the-ash-trees-doomed/
Just-announced staff cuts and hiring freezes from the Trump administration will jeopardize the ongoing success of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (USFWS) decades-long battle against sea lamprey, according to officials. While states, provinces and U.S. and Canadian tribes are involved in the labor-intensive efforts, the USFWS performs most of the in-stream treatments in the U.S.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/lake-trout-recovery-in-superior-sign-of-lamprey-removal-success/
By Katie Thoresen, WXPR
This story was originally published by WXPR. WXPR is a community-licensed public radio station serving north central Wisconsin and adjacent areas of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Listen to their stories here.
Rhinelander has gotten about 37 inches of snow so far this year.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/where-is-the-heavy-wet-snow-this-winter/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Kayte Marshall, Great Lakes Echo
In a world dominated by smartphones and screen time, the Department of Natural Resources aims to reconnect kids with Michigan’s great outdoors.
The DNR is funding Nature Awaits, a program dedicated to hosting outdoor learning sessions for fourth grade classes at state parks.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/state-program-brings-fourth-graders-to-state-parks/
Carl Gawboy, a celebrated Minnesota artist and Ojibwe scholar of Finnish and Bois Forte Anishinaabe descent, has dedicated his life to preserving and sharing the stories of his people. In his book, Fur Trade Nation: An Ojibwe’s Graphic History, Gawboy combines his prolific artistic talent, family stories, and cultural research to shed light on a largely overlooked chapter of history.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/a-different-perspective-on-the-fur-trade/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS; Michigan Public, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; and The Narwhal who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/trump-firings-hit-great-lakes-sea-lamprey-program-michigan-forestry/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS; Michigan Public, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; and The Narwhal who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/trump-firings-hit-great-lakes-sea-lamprey-program-michigan-forestry/
By Izzy Ross and Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco
This coverage is made possible through a partnership between Grist, Interlochen Public Radio in Northern Michigan, and WBEZ, a public radio station serving the Chicago metropolitan region.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/will-jd-vance-save-the-great-lakes-from-trump/
By Carrie Klein, Inside Climate News
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. Sign up for their newsletter here.
Michigan’s Palisades Nuclear Generating Station is one step closer to becoming the first nuclear power plant in the United States to reopen.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/michigan-environmental-impact-statement-palisades-nuclear-plant-restart/
By Isabelle Tavares, Planet Detroit
This article was republished with permission from Planet Detroit. Sign up for Planet Detroit’s weekly newsletter here.
Manuel Nolasco stood in frigid air outside his flooded Southwest Detroit home early Tuesday, chipping away at thick ice chunks that had frozen his car wheels in place.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/southwest-detroit-homes-flooded-families-displaced-by-water-main-rupture/
Catch the latest energy news from around the Great Lakes region. Check back for these biweekly Energy News Roundups.
Chicago Democrat Michael Madigan — known for being the longest-serving legislative leader in United States history — was convicted last week of conspiracy, bribery and wire fraud.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/from-madigans-conviction-to-comeds-ev-rebate-program-how-illinois-is-shaping-its-energy-future/
By Adam Yahya Rayes and Sarah Cwiek, Michigan Public
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS, Michigan Public and The Narwhal who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/after-water-main-break-officials-say-homes-in-detroits-southwest-will-get-repairs-covered/
Rolling back clean water protection, gutting agencies and defunding science, research and monitoring is a non-starter for the Great Lakes region, says Ann Arbor environmental advocate Laura Rubin.
She was reacting to the new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Lee Zeldin’s recently released economy-oriented plan for the agency under President Donald Trump.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/veteran-great-lakes-advocate-cautions-prioritizing-economic-development-over-protecting-environment/
Erik Grams was 12 years old when he first went camping in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northern Minnesota. Ever since that trip, he’s been coming back again and again. It’s his favorite place in the world.
“I really feel – when I’m in the Boundary Waters – that I’m in my element,” said Erik.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/back-to-the-boundary-waters/
I Speak for the Fish is a monthly column written by Great Lakes Now Contributor Kathy Johnson, coming out the third Monday of each month. Publishing the author’s views and assertions does not represent endorsement by Great Lakes Now or Detroit Public Television.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/i-speak-for-the-fish-hornyhead-chubs-are-cooler-than-their-name-implies/
Biological collection specialists are divers who travel around the country relocating freshwater mussels and other vulnerable aquatic species before river restoration projects begin.
In September of 2024, 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.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/saving-mussels-one-dive-at-a-time/
President Donald Trump has made rethinking international trade policy a centerpiece of his second administration. While Congress generally has the authority to regulate international trade, it has also delegated some of this authority to the president. On Feb. 1, Trump announced he would be imposing 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico, with a 10% tariff on Canadian energy.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/what-the-recent-tariff-news-means-for-the-great-lakes/
By Emma McIntosh, The Narwhal
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS, Michigan Public and The Narwhal who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/tackling-environmental-racism-in-chemical-valley/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Clara Lincolnhol, Great Lakes Echo
Toledo, Ohio, has a rich Rust Belt history that influences its present-day culture. Local environmental groups and agencies are turning to public art to teach residents that the area’s natural history is just as important.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/toledos-community-art-highlights-importance-of-native-plants-for-safe-drinking-water/
By Izzy Ross, Interlochen Public Radio
This coverage is made possible through a partnership between Interlochen Public Radio and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization.
The elk hunting season got off to a tough start last year, and state officials say heat is at least partly to blame.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/the-early-elk-hunt-was-tough-last-year-hot-weather-is-likely-to-blame/
Catch the latest updates on what’s happening with PFAS in the Great Lakes region. Check back for more PFAS news roundups every other week on our website.
On February 5, New York state lawmakers announced a group of five bills aimed to reduce per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) exposure for New York residents.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/new-york-proposed-pfas-legislation-other-great-lakes-states-efforts-combat-forever-chemicals/
Abdullatif Ahmed was just 23 years old when he first stepped foot on the Medusa Challenger, a 1906-built Great Lakes bulk freighter.
“Before I came to America in 1990,” he said, “I had never even seen the sea.”
Born and raised in Juban, a rural district in southern Yemen, Ahmed was drawn to the Great Lakes by family history and opportunity.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/the-fascinating-history-of-the-great-lakes-yemeni-sailors/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS; Michigan Public, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; and The Narwhal who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/trump-tries-to-block-ev-charger-money-again-michigan-impact-clear-as-mud/
By Izzy Ross, Grist
This coverage is made possible through a partnership with Grist and Interlochen Public Radio in Northern Michigan.
The chaos surrounding the future of scientific research in the Trump administration’s first weeks has meant a bumpy beginning for a new program where ice fishing anglers and others on the frozen Great Lakes record ice thickness for research.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/iced-out-research-on-the-great-lakes-goes-ahead-amid-funding-chaos/
This article, first posted here, was republished with permission from Wisconsin Watch.
By Bennet Goldstein, Wisconsin Watch
A year and a half after Wisconsin lawmakers earmarked $125 million to clean up toxic “forever chemicals” known as PFAS, the funds have yet to flow to contaminated communities.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/wisconsin-is-still-sitting-on-125-million-for-pfas-cleanup/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Isabella Figueroa, Great Lakes Echo
New grants to Great Lakes states to measure harmful chemicals in marginalized communities are facing uncertainty under increased White House scrutiny on federal spending.
In September 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention awarded a first round of $5 million across six state biomonitoring programs that measure chemicals in people.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/cdc-awards-biomonitoring-grants-to-great-lakes-states-future-funding-unclear/
If you’ve been outside, you’ve probably run into branta canadesis — the Canada Goose.
From urban parks to rural fields, these birds seem to be everywhere. And their presence isn’t always welcome. Goose poop can contain e. coli bacteria, and the birds themselves can carry — and spread — avian flu.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/geese-are-a-problem-what-can-we-do/
By Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco, WBEZ
This coverage is made possible through a partnership between WBEZ and Grist, a nonprofit, independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate solutions and a just future. Sign up for WBEZ newsletters to get local news you can trust.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/illinois-gov-jb-pritzker-set-ambitious-climate-goals-for-the-state-its-far-from-meeting-them/
By Jill Hopke, DePaul University
is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.
The decision by Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, to end its fact-checking program and otherwise reduce content moderation raises the question of what content on those social media platforms will look like going forward.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/climate-misinformation-is-rife-on-social-media-and-poised-to-get-worse/
Catch the latest energy news from around the Great Lakes region. Check back for these biweekly Energy News Roundups.
This is a weird time for clean energy. Much of the federal funding supporting the energy transition has become embroiled in President Donald Trump’s executive orders and the court decisions blocking them.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/for-clean-energy-in-the-great-lakes-region-2025-is-off-to-an-uneasy-start/
By Enrique Saenz, Mirror Indy
Mirror Indy is a part of Free Press Indiana, a nonprofit news organization dedicated to ensuring all Hoosiers have access to the news and information they need.
When Ellen Morley Matthews bought her home on Knollton Road about 40 years ago, she was struck by the beauty of its surroundings.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/neighbors-worry-development-would-raze-urban-forest/
By Izzy Ross, Interlochen Public Radio
This coverage is made possible through a partnership with IPR and Grist, a nonprofit independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate solutions and a just future.
A business competition to tackle environmental and infrastructure issues in the Great Lakes kicked off last week.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/blue-tech-challenge-aims-at-gathering-business-solutions-to-great-lakes-problems/
“Nibi Chronicles,” a monthly Great Lakes Now feature, is written by Staci Lola Drouillard. A Grand Portage Ojibwe direct descendant, she lives in Grand Marais on Minnesota’s North Shore of Lake Superior. Her nonfiction books “Walking the Old Road: A People’s History of Chippewa City and the Grand Marais Anishinaabe” and “Seven Aunts” were published 2019 and 2022, and the children’s story “A Family Tree” in 2024.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/protecting-the-protectors/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Clara Lincolnhol, Great Lakes Echo
Chris Compton, owner of a company called Goose Busters, has spent nearly 30 years addressing human-goose conflicts. Over the years, the goose population has continued to grow, especially in more populated areas, he said.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/more-goose-poop-more-problems/
Great Lakes Moment is a monthly column written by Great Lakes Now Contributor John Hartig. Publishing the author’s views and assertions does not represent endorsement by Great Lakes Now or Detroit PBS.
In the 1960s, an oxbow was eliminated in the lower Rouge River when a concrete channel was built to move stormwater out of the watershed.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/great-lakes-moment-rouge-river-oxbow-enhances-education-the-henry-ford/
Waves of Change is an online interview series highlighting the diverse faces and perspectives shaping the environmental justice movement throughout the Great Lakes region.
This month, we spoke with Darren Riley, co-founder and CEO of JustAir, a Detroit-based organization whose mission is to use data, technology and analysis to protect the 20,000 breaths each person takes every day.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/waves-of-change-meet-justair-co-founder-and-ceo-darren-riley/
By Michael Livingston, Interlochen Public Radio
Points North is a biweekly podcast about the land, water and inhabitants of the Great Lakes.
This episode was shared here with permission from Interlochen Public Radio.
Microplastics are everywhere.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/points-north-a-sticky-solution-for-microplastics/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS; Michigan Public, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; and The Narwhal who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/gone-a-century-arctic-grayling-return-soon-to-michigan-can-they-survive/
Catch the latest updates on what’s happening with PFAS in the Great Lakes region. Check back for more PFAS news roundups every other week on our website.
On January 29, Lee Zeldin was sworn in as 17th Administrator of the U.S.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/zeldin-to-head-epa-sparking-debate-over-pfas-regulation-and-industry-influence/
In the Great Lakes region alone, Ducks Unlimited (DU) has been involved in hundreds of projects in the past decade that involve either the conservation of wetlands through acquisition, or the restoration and management of wetlands. These projects — always in concert with public and private partners, universities and other organizations — seek to establish or conserve the maximum amount of acreage possible with available funds.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/how-ducks-unlimited-became-heroes-of-the-conservation-movement/
By Peter Blanchard and Jenna Watson, Mirror Indy
Mirror Indy is a part of Free Press Indiana, a nonprofit news organization dedicated to ensuring all Hoosiers have access to the news and information they need.
Every week for the past 10 years, Aaron Thomas has brought his recycling to the city’s dropoff location in Garfield Park.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/why-indy-wont-have-curbside-recycling-until-at-least-2028/
By Jake Bittle and Zoya Teirstein
This story was originally published by Grist. Sign up for Grist’s weekly newsletter here.
When Joe Biden first became president, some found it hard to believe that he cared very much about climate change.
With a global pandemic raging, the former vice president and longtime senator pitched his 2020 campaign as a return to normalcy and a referendum on the erratic leadership of Donald Trump.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/joe-biden-was-americas-first-climate-president-did-it-matter/
Ryan Schwegman is a relocation specialist but don’t ask for his help if you’re moving, unless you are an endangered species.
Schwegman is COO of BioSurvey Group, LLC. in Oxford, Ohio. He manages a team of commercial and scientific divers who travel across the Eastern United States, relocating threatened and endangered species before river restoration projects begin.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/the-history-of-the-button-industrys-impact-on-freshwater-mussels/
By Rambo Talabong, Inside Climate News
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. Sign up for their newsletter here.
MANHEIM, Pa.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/millions-left-in-air-pollution-blind-spots-despite-stricter-epa-standards/
This article, first posted here, was republished with permission from Wisconsin Watch.
By Bennet Goldstein, Wisconsin Watch
Jay Dee Nichols stamped and packed stiff willow branches between maple wood posts, with muffled crunches.
At 63, the semi-retired handyman from the Wisconsin city of Black River Falls has trapped beavers before.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/an-ecosystem-engineers-vision-mock-beaver-dams-to-restore-wisconsin-wetlands/
By Danielle Kaeding, Wisconsin Public Radio
This article was republished here with permission from Wisconsin Public Radio.
A new study builds on previous research that shows winters on the Great Lakes are growing shorter due to climate change.
The Great Lakes have been losing an average of 14 days of winter conditions each decade since 1995 due to warming air temperatures, according to the study published in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Research Letters.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/study-finds-winter-days-on-the-great-lakes-growing-shorter-due-to-climate-change/
By Lester Graham, Michigan Public
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS, Michigan Public and The Narwhal who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/report-great-lakes-recreational-fishing-worth-billions-to-economy-but-not-as-much-as-often-cited/
Catch the latest energy news from around the Great Lakes region. Check back for these biweekly Energy News Roundups.
Uncertainty abounds in the energy sector as President Donald Trump returns to office. In his inaugural address on Monday, Trump promised to “revoke the electric vehicle mandate, saving our auto industry.” Trump has already begun the process of reversing Biden-era policies meant to encourage the uptake of electric vehicles and reduce emissions from gas cars.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/energy-sector-holds-its-breath-as-nuclear-power-inches-forward/
I Speak for the Fish is a monthly column written by Great Lakes Now Contributor Kathy Johnson, coming out the third Monday of each month. Publishing the author’s views and assertions does not represent endorsement by Great Lakes Now or Detroit Public Television.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/01/i-speak-for-the-fish-why-do-mudpuppies-matter/
