A seawall near a dock site in Detroit, Michigan, that collapsed two years ago gave way Friday, spilling an unknown amount of soil into the Detroit River, according to state environmental officials. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211201-seawall-collapse
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer abandoned a lawsuit Tuesday aimed at shutting down an oil pipeline that runs through part of the Great Lakes but said the state would continue pursuing a separate case with the same goal. Read the full story by WHEC-TV – Rochester, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211201-oil-pipeline
A towering sand dune at the Indiana Dunes National Park in Porter, Indiana, has kept up its inland creep, covering up an access road and threatening to bury a parking lot in the coming years. Read the full story by The Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211201-dune
In Michigan, the Saugatuck Dunes Coastal Alliance plans to provide updates on its three-pronged legal strategy to stop the proposed NorthShore of Saugatuck boat canal. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211201-boat-canal
Officials are seeking input from local boaters on changing water levels on the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario. The International Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Board has issued surveys for recreational boaters regarding fall water levels and end-of-season boat hauls. Read the full story by WWI-TV – Watertown, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211201-st.-lawrence-river
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Basil Seggos announced the completion of the restoration of the North Sandy Pond barrier bar, a $600,000 project awarded to the town of Sandy Creek as part of the state’s Resiliency and Economic Development Initiative. Read the full story by Oswego County Today.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211201-flood-resiliency
On Dec. 7, the Ohio Supreme Court will hear an appeal from two Bratenahl residents against the Ohio Power Siting Board that argue a state board should not have granted a certificate that will allow construction of the Icebreaker wind project on Lake Erie. Read the full story by The Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211201-wind
The Rouse Simmons sank on November 23, 1912, off the coast of Lake Michigan and is one of the 39 known ships in the proposed Lake Michigan National Marine Sanctuary. The Wisconsin Maritime Museum will host its annual Christmas Tree Ship Day this Saturday. Read the full story by the Herald Times Reporter.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211201-ship
Tracking Michigan’s environmental issues has been a long, rewarding and at times arduous undertaking for Dave Dempsey.
He was an environment adviser to former Michigan Gov. James Blanchard in the 1980s and now provides policy advice to the Traverse City non-profit For Love of Water. In between were stops at the Michigan Environmental Council and the International Joint Commission.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/12/great-lakes-veteran-activist-author/
Case History: In August 2021, a morbidity and mortality event involving both juvenile and adult Wild Turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) was reported in Wisconsin, USA.
Wisconsin
http://www.usgs.gov/centers/nwhc/news/pathology-case-month-wild-turkeys
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1261C9768634.SpecialWeatherStatement.1261C976F0D8WI.GRBSPSGRB.3b77a733acfe35fc01f412b80021d336
An Amherst, N.Y., man has received an 18-month prison sentence for trafficking exotic African cats, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Buffalo.
The post New York man imprisoned for trafficking African wild cats first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2021/12/01/new-york-man-imprisoned-for-trafficking-african-wild-cats/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1261C9751C18.SpecialWeatherStatement.1261C9765498WI.GRBSPSGRB.3b77a733acfe35fc01f412b80021d336
By Michael Phillis, Associated Press
ST. LOUIS (AP) — For years, testing of the tap water in an upscale Detroit suburb showed the city was in the clear. Then residents got a notice seemingly out of the blue: Their water could be contaminated with elevated levels of lead.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-lead-testing-method-higher-levels/
In 1966, when President Lyndon Johnson signed the National Sea Grant College Act, it’s because of Robert Ragotzkie that not just oceans and the salty coasts were included in the law. The Great Lakes were also provided with resources to conduct research on and offer education and outreach related to the world’s largest source of fresh water.
The roots of Sea Grant were in a 1963 speech delivered by a dean at the University of Minnesota, Athelstan Spilhaus, who proposed the establishment of a Sea Grant College system akin to the Land Grant College system that would develop the potential of oceans. Ragotzkie advocated the Great Lakes be included in the proposal. After all, he successfully reasoned, the lakes are inland oceans.
Ragotzkie completed undergraduate and graduate work at Rutgers University and earned a Ph.D. at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1953. He then ran the Marine Studies Institute on Sapelo Island, Georgia, for five years prior to returning to Madison where he began a teaching career with the Department of Meteorology. Lakes were the focus of his scholarship and in 1968 he became the first director of the Wisconsin Sea Grant College Program. He died on Nov. 4 at the age of 97.
“While the National Sea Grant program was in its infancy, Ragotzkie quickly managed to bring in a healthy amount of federal and state funding to make the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Program one of the largest and most successful research, outreach and educational programs in the nation,” said Anders Andren, the second director of Wisconsin Sea Grant.
Andren continued, “His understanding of Great Lakes scientific issues, foresight and capability to attract the best research talent in the state was just phenomenal—and way ahead of its time. The Great Lakes research community, state of Wisconsin and University of Wisconsin-Madison has lost a great scientific mind and leader.”
Ragotzkie retired from UW-Madison and spent his remaining years in the Madison area. He leaves behind his wife, Elizabeth, two daughters, a son, two grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
His recollections of the early days of Sea Grant, along with reflections on retirement pursuits, are captured in this 2018 blog post.
The post Advocate for Great Lakes science dies at 97 first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant
News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/advocate-for-great-lakes-science-dies-at-97/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=advocate-for-great-lakes-science-dies-at-97
By John Flesher, Associated Press
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — It’s a ghastly sight: ticks by tens of thousands burrowed into a moose’s broad body, sucking its lifeblood as the agonized host rubs against trees so vigorously that much of its fur wears away.
Winter tick infestation is common with moose across the northern U.S.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/ap-study-warmer-summers-worsen-tick-infestations-moose/
As with books at traditional libraries, seed libraries contain seeds that circulate among community members.
The post Michigan seed libraries grow food resilience first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2021/11/30/michigan-seed-libraries-grow-food-resilience/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1261C5396668.SpecialWeatherStatement.1261C539D7B0WI.GRBSPSGRB.8277e56207786573290cdaabd01b78b5
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan and Lester Graham, Michigan Radio
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; 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/2021/11/enbridge-line-5-wont-close/
An annual waterfowl harvest survey is open to duck hunter feedback now through December 31 for the Green Bay and Lake Michigan regions of Wisconsin.
Region 3: Great Lakes
http://www.usgs.gov/news/state-news-release/media-alert-hunter-survey-available-green-bay-and-lake-michigan
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1261C52D15AC.SpecialWeatherStatement.1261C5396E38WI.GRBSPSGRB.b9fb37100a2b34a604cfda48471db396
Green Bay, WI
https://www.weather.gov/crh/skywarnrecognition
The Great Lakes region wasn’t always the freshwater realm we know today: rewind to a couple centuries ago and it was actually covered in tropical seawater. That’s why many of the fossils found in the area today are portions of coral reefs and ancient sea creatures.
“When you think of Michigan or Illinois, you imagine cold and snow, but it wasn’t always that way.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/fossil-great-lakes-coral-remnants/
Hosted by the U.S. Geological Survey, the questionnaire will collect public feedback about waterfowl harvest and regulations for the Wisconsin Open Water Zone that will be effective for the 2021 through 2025 waterfowl hunting seasons. Input from hunters will help natural resource managers develop regulations for the Open Water Zone.
The new Open Water Zone will begin 500 feet offshore and extend to the Wisconsin/Michigan state boundary. Hunters can provide feedback about the season structure of the Open Water Zone, such as the opening date, if the zone should have a split when hunting is not allowed and the preferred number of days the split should last, if desired. The survey will also collect details on where and what species of waterfowl are harvested in these open water environments.
The survey is open for a short period annually through 2024.
The USGS, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and Wisconsin Waterfowl Association encourage hunters to complete the 2021 survey online.
For more information on waterfowl research in the Great Lakes region, please visit the USGS Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center website.
From 2021 through 2025, the Wisconsin waterfowl hunting zone will have a North, South, and Open Water Zone. The Open Water Zone will be specific to the offshore, open waters of Lake Michigan and Green Bay. The zone starts 500 feet offshore and extends to the Wisconsin/Michigan state boundary. (USGS, Wisconsin DNR)
USGS News: Wisconsin
https://www.usgs.gov/news/media-announcement-hunter-survey-available-green-bay-and-lake-michigan
Wisconsin Sea Grant’s videographer Bonnie Willison recently captured a video award through a regional competition coordinated by an organization called Madison Media Professionals.
The group presents WAVE Awards, which honor excellence in the video production industry as well as in web, audio, video and graphic design. The 2021 competition received over 90 entries, including materials created for international and national entities like Yamaha, BBC America, Google and PBS Kids.
The Wisconsin Sea Grant video Geo Rutherford: Voices of the Coast was awarded a WAVE merit award in the video editing category.
Artist Geo Rutherford draws inspiration for her work from the Great Lakes. Image credit: Bonnie Willison.
“It was fun to meet Geo, interview her in her home studio, and then go beachcombing with her in Milwaukee,” Willison said. “It was a rewarding challenge to edit hours of footage into a short, 5-minute documentary-style piece.”
The winning video is a light-hearted, buoyant profile that matches the spirit of Wisconsin artist Geo Rutherford, who creates prints, collage and sculpture that explore the hidden elements of the Great Lakes. Showcased in the video are Rutherford’s colorful installations, which highlight small synthetic or natural objects that are washed ashore by the waves. Rutherford also draws attention to microplastics like nurdles, which are a growing marine debris problem in Great Lakes ecosystems.
Rutherford’s work also focuses on aquatic invasive species. She hand-prints images of alewives, sea lamprey, and invasive mussels and collages the images into chaotic, mesmerizing works of art.
The video is part of the Voices of the Coast series, which tells the stories of individuals who live, work and recreate around the Great Lakes. Their experiences provide a lens for larger topics that touch on the lakes such as social justice, fisheries and conservation. The ever-expanding series can be found here.
The post Sea Grant recognized for video production first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant
News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/sea-grant-recognized-for-video-production/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=sea-grant-recognized-for-video-production
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/AI-at-NOAA
Above average surface temperatures in the Great Lakes are expected to produce a domino effect, leading to a shift in amount and seasonality for lake effect snow, arrival of ice, and more. Read and hear the full story by The Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211129-climate
A 17-month project to restore the natural habitat at the Muskegon Lake Nature Preserve in Muskegon, Michigan is on track to be completed by the end of November. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211129-muskegon-lake
While some may use the term gale loosely to describe strong wind gusts, it actually has a specific meteorological definition from the National Weather Service. Read the full story by WWMT-TV – Kalamazoo, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211129-wind-gales
The Cleveland Metroparks has been awarded a $985,000 grant to help design 79 acres of park area along the Lake Erie shoreline in Cleveland, Ohio. Read the full story by The Plains Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211129-cleveland-restoration
House Bill 5291 would establish a Port Facility Improvement Grant program for the expansion and creation of public and private ports within the state of Michigan. Read the full story by The Manistee News Advocate.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211129-maritime
Bipartisan Michigan lawmakers are pressing President Joe Biden to talk to the Canadian government about stopping the proposal for a permanent repository for radioactive waste near Lake Huron. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211129-huron-waste
New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced Tuesday that nearly $14 million has been awarded to protect clean water across the state, including a number of projects in the Finger Lakes region. Read the full story by the Finger Lakes Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211129-water-projects
Transport Canada confirmed it will begin “restricting access” to the popular Burlington, Ontario shipping canal piers to pedestrians in December head of winter conditions, but added future recreational use is still up for negotiation. Read the full story by the Hamilton Spectator.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211129-public-access
The International Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Board is looking for input from recreational boaters. Read the full story by the Watertown Daily News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211129-boater-survey
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1261C52C7FAC.SpecialWeatherStatement.1261C52CEB18WI.GRBSPSGRB.3b77a733acfe35fc01f412b80021d336
Firefighters and environmental advocates are teaming up to push for the discontinuation of PFAS-containing foam. Read the full story by Capital News Service.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211129-pfas
Six non-profits in the Northwest Indiana area have received grants from the Chi-Cal Rivers Fund to improve the health and accessibility of waterways in the Chicago and Calumet areas. Read the full story by The Northwest Indiana Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211129-indiana
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1261C52C0374.SpecialWeatherStatement.1261C52C7BC4WI.GRBSPSGRB.a815750bc295c809494fd85b06642880
By Sammy Schuck Most people may know that festivals attract people to Michigan communities. What most may not know is that festivals and events in the state are an annual $1 billion industry, according to Michigan Festivals and Events Association CEO Mike Szukhent. According to Szukhent, the lack of winter festivals last year “hit hard.” […]
The post Communities welcome return of winter festivals first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2021/11/29/communities-welcome-return-of-winter-festivals/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1261C52A71E4.SpecialWeatherStatement.1261C52BB298WI.GRBSPSGRB.3b77a733acfe35fc01f412b80021d336
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1261C51AE828.SpecialWeatherStatement.1261C51B7A40WI.GRBSPSGRB.c3da79325a2463a7a02d5f2192f4955c
Some lawmakers and environmental advocates want to ban chemicals in food packaging that they say threatens the health of Michiganders.
The post Advocates push ban of chemicals in food packaging first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2021/11/26/advocates-push-ban-of-chemicals-in-food-packaging/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1261C4EFB0E0.SpecialWeatherStatement.1261C4F0034CWI.GRBSPSGRB.54e5ef070b45e49081402cfe9ce09122
By Tara Lohan, The Revelator
This story originally appeared in The Revelator and is republished here as part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story.
Climate change is already shaking up the natural world, changing the timing of seasonal snow melts, flower blooms and animal migrations.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/11/goodbye-national-parks-road-trips/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1261C4EF43E4.SpecialWeatherStatement.1261C4EFAF50WI.GRBSPSGRB.f430456e50b148094bbc7586cf7a533a
Central Michigan University researchers have discovered unexpected populations of native mussels in the Detroit River, an area that hasn’t been searched for the mollusks since 1998.
The post Researchers investigate native mussels in Detroit River for first time since 1990s first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2021/11/25/researchers-investigate-native-mussels-in-detroit-river-for-first-time-since-1990s/
New York State has released cleanup plans for the former Bethlehem Steel site in Lackawanna. Construction to advance the cleanup plan is expected to begin in 2022, the state said it will address site-wide contamination and provide public access to Lake Erie for the first time in more than 100 years. Read the full story by WKBW-TV – Buffalo, NY.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211124-bethlehem
The Cleveland area has once again has been featured in the national (game show) spotlight. The Great Lakes Science Center was part of a question on Jeopardy! Tuesday. Read the full story by WEWS-TV- Cleveland, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211124-jeopardy
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is informing the public about the dredging it does at nine harbors along Ohio’s north coast by publishing aa newsletter that includes a map that identifies the location of each harbor in Lake Erie, the timing of the dredging sessions, and their contribution to the economy. Read the full story by The Plain Dealer.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20211124-dredging
