The Great Lakes continue to inch away from the record high water levels of the past few years. Lakes Michigan and Huron have been in the spotlight with the highest water levels recently compared to previous record high water levels. Read the full story by MLive.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-water-levels-erosion
The PFAS Action Plan was developed by the Wisconsin PFAS Action Council, a group of nearly 20 state agencies and the University of Wisconsin System. As part of the statewide initiative to ensure Wisconsinites have access to clean, safe drinking water, Gov. Tony Evers signed Executive Order #40 in August 2019 to address the issue of PFAS across the state. Read the full story by WSAW – TV – Wausau, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-wisconsin-pfas
A petition to keep the Edwardian-era SS Keewatin in its home of Port McNicoll, ON has now garnered close to 9,000 signatures. The man behind the petition is involved with an additional campaign designed to lobby all levels of government to consider the ship’s plight. View the full story by OrilliaMatters.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-ontario-keewatin-port
Cargo totals on the St. Lawrence Seaway hit nearly 32.3 million metric tons, down 6.6% from 2019. Compared to previous months, the improvement in total cargo figures in November is due in large part to grain shipments, which have been strong since the fall harvest began. Read the full story by WorkBoat.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-shipping
Chicago Piping Plover, a conservation group focused on protecting the endangered species, confirmed that Nish, a chick born on Montrose Beach earlier this year, successfully landed in Florida. The bird was spotted in Anclote Key State Park, just north of Tampa. Read the full story by Chicago Sun Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-chicago-piping-plover
An organization of 40 conservation groups say a new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule concerning ballast water discharges under the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act (VIDA) will not protect the Great Lakes from the spread and introduction of invasive species. Read the full story by Water Technology.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-vida-epa-ballast
As of Dec. 11, according to that Parks Foundation of Kalamazoo County, they’ve already raised 65% of their funding goal from private funds and public funding from the Michigan Department of Transportation to finish the last few miles of the 22-mile long trail. Part of a 140-mile regional trail network connecting Lake Michigan with Lake Huron. Read the full story by Second Wave.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-michigan-trail
The Lake Huron Centre for Coastal Conservation has expressed its opposition to a plan that the Town of South Bruce Peninsula, Ontario is proposing to remove a large section of the dunes at Sauble Beach. Read the full story by Blackburnnews.com.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201217-huron-dunes
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan, through the Institute for Nonprofit News network
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/2020/12/line-5-closure-upper-peninsula/
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/2020-north-atlantic-hurricane-season-shatters-records
Microplastic particles, typically studied as aquatic pollutants, are also common in coastal dunes on Great Lakes’ shorelines, according to a new study.
The post From lakes to shores, microplastics are spreading everywhere first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2020/12/17/from-lakes-to-shores-microplastics-are-spreading-everywhere/
When Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer took office in January 2019, she immediately put a spotlight on the Enbridge Line 5 oil pipeline and started the process that would eventually lead to her ordering it shut down.
In her 2018 campaign, Whitmer also pledged to remedy the inequities related to water withdrawal issues, specifically a Nestle Waters case being fought by grassroots advocates that originated in the administration of former Gov.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/12/pipelines-and-plastic-bottles-michigan-advocate-focuses-on-line-5-and-nestle-bottled-water-issue/
Want to give your loved ones a holiday gift that connects to that summer trip up north or the fall color tour you took together?
Or maybe you have a trip planned for after the COVID-19 vaccines have been distributed and want to give them something to remind them they have something to look forward to.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/12/great-lakes-gift-guide-2020-list/
On the surface of Lake Michigan, glistening water rushes over sandy beaches. But underneath the waves is a fragile ecosystem that interconnects a complex food web critical to the overall health of the Great Lakes. Read the full story by WXYZ-TV- Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-invasive-species
Sheets of ice formed over Lake Superior, on the shores of Ashland, Wisconsin, amid cold weather conditions in the region this week. A local photographer captured footage along the water showing ice on top of the water and the unique sound. Read the full story by Yahoo! News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-ice-superior
The risk of high-water impact, including shoreline erosion or flooding, remains, as Lake Superior declined only 3 cm this November, while it normally declines 5 cm. Read the full story by Soo Today.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-water-levels
In Ohio, efforts to keep Port Clinton’s beautifully scenic Lake Erie shoreline clean are also maintaining its strong sense of art and culture with the latest addition to Waterworks Park. Read the full story by the Port Clinton News Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-waterworks-park
Environmental and farm groups are joining forces to lobby the state for significant funding to support farms across Wisconsin and protect drinking water, but they stopped short of putting a price tag on their request. Read the full story by Wisconsin Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-farmers
In Wisconsin, the city of Sheboygan’s Plan Commission approved a conditional use permit for Kohler Co. to move forward with development of its new golf course along Lake Michigan. Community concerns about the course are largely connected to environmental issues that could result, such as pesticide or other chemical runoff into Lake Michigan. Read the full story by Sheboygan Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-golf-course
An impounded section of the Kalamazoo River, which drains a portion of southwest Michigan, will become a lake again now that repairs are finished on a hydroelectric dam that allowed huge quantities of sediment to wash downstream after the reservoir was drained. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-morrow-lake
There are over 4,000 types of PFAS chemicals and most researchers study a handful of these chemicals at most. Carla Ng, a researcher at the University of Pittsburgh, is one of the few scientists trying to find an approach that works for all of them. Read the full story by Public Source.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-pfas
There are over 4,000 types of PFAS chemicals and most researchers study a handful of these chemicals at most. Carla Ng, a researcher at the University of Pittsburgh, is one of the few scientists trying to find an approach that works for all of them. Read the full story by Public Source.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-pfas
Human remains, which likely date back to prehistoric times, were found at Sleeping Bear Dunes, park officials confirmed Tuesday. The park service is now giving notice to the local Native American tribes and organizations as required by law and aims to turn the remains over to the appropriate tribe or tribes once the legal process is completed. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-prehistoric
Great Lakes steel production rose by 3,000 tons last week, but remains depressed by more than 18% this year with U.S. steel mills only operating at two-thirds of capacity, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute. Read the full story by the Northwest Indiana Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201216-steel-production
Today, the Wisconsin PFAS Action Council (WisPAC) released a final report of statewide initiatives regarding per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) with Gov. Evers to the public. Representing the entire University of Wisconsin System, Christina Remucal, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is one member of the council composed of representatives from 17 state agencies. The council has been working on the PFAS Action Plan for over a year to identify priority actions in response to growing concerns about PFAS and the hazards this class of chemicals pose to human health. The council was put together in 2019 by the governor to ensure Wisconsinites have access to clean, safe drinking water.
Christina Remucal. Image credit: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Remucal brought her research experience with PFAS to the table, including her most recently funded Wisconsin Sea Grant project, where she is investigating the fate of PFAS in Green Bay and Lake Michigan sediments and water for two years.
“We often think of PFAS as a groundwater contaminant, but here we have an interesting scientific opportunity to learn about how these chemicals move in surface waters,” Remucal said. Her research team is looking in and around the city of Marinette, which has a known PFAS contamination site and also the bay of Green Bay. They plan to collect samples out on Lake Michigan next year.
Unlike other traditional environmental contaminants like PCBs, which tend to be found more in sediment, Remucal said PFAS dissolve easily in water and move about more freely. There are thousands of different kinds of PFAS. Their chemical structure determines where they’re more likely to travel in the environment. “The ones that are longer-chain compounds – the ones that are a little bigger – are more likely to be found in the sediment,” Remucal said.
One mystery her team is focusing on is why the amounts of PFAS measured in sediment in the field are different than what’s been observed in the laboratory. “In the lab we always try to mimic the environment, but I think these compounds, because of their chemical properties, don’t behave very well. That’s why it’s important to make those measurements in the field as well,” Remucal said.
Remucal recently met with Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources staff members to share what her team has found so far, which is that PFAS concentrations in sediment vary widely. “The Tyco facility drainage ditch sites have a lot of PFAS in them, which we knew. The amounts that are ending up in the sediment vary a lot. We’re finding more of the longer-chain compounds in the sediment than the shorter-chain compounds – more of the sulfinates and the carboxylates. It really depends on the chemistry,” Remucal said.
The researchers are analyzing the sediments themselves to see if their composition might explain why the PFAS amounts vary.
Remucal finds all the public interest in PFAS and her research refreshing and in keeping with Sea Grant expectations to engage stakeholders in research. “It’s challenging working with these chemicals and communicating about them because the chemistry is so complex, but it’s been rewarding to have people so interested in what we are doing.”
Christina Remucal works with PFAS samples in her lab. Image credit: Bonnie Willison, Wisconsin Sea Grant
The post Investigating the fate of PFAS in Green Bay and Lake Michigan first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.
News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant
News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/investigating-the-fate-of-pfas-in-green-bay-and-lake-michigan/
The same pandemic that restricts travel and manufacturing is having a measurable impact on decreasing air pollution in parts of the Great Lakes region, experts say.
The post Pandemic lockdown created clean air gains first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2020/12/16/pandemic-lockdown-created-clean-air-gains/
A Montreal-based company released a new dog food formula that includes Asian carp, an invasive species in both the United States and Canadian waterways. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-carp-kibble
Record high lake levels, flooded beaches, and endangered buildings along Lake Michigan are driving residents around the lake to take on projects big and small to try to hold back the water. Read and listen to the full story by Illinois Public Media.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-beaches
Legislation sponsored by Michigan Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow would help shoreline communities address rising water levels and erosion by setting up funding mechanism to carry out mitigation projects and reduce natural disaster risk associated with high lake levels. Read the full story by the Huron Daily Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-peters-bill
The International Joint Commission (IJC) has announced approval to deviate from the controversial Plan 2014, allowing for increased outflow from Lake Ontario’s waters through the Moses-Saunders dam on the St. Lawrence River to help avoid flooding on Lake Ontario shorelines. Read the full story by Rochester First.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-ijc
The Michigan DNR relocated a historic shelter building to keep it safe from eroding shoreline on Lake Michigan. The Orchard Beach State Park’s historic shelter building now sits a safe 230 feet back from the eroding Lake Michigan shoreline. Read the full story by Click-On Detroit.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-orchard-beach
With the aquifer that supplies drinking water to Joliet, Illinois, expected to dry up by 2030, the community is in talks with both the city of Chicago and the city of Hammond to provide water from Lake Michigan. Read the full story by CBS Chicago.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-joilet
Decades after they gave up the adventure of searching for shipwrecks, two underwater explorers with Alpena roots made a thrilling find in the waters of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary by discovering a Civil War-era shipwreck not seen in nearly 160 years. Read the full story by the Alpena News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-shipwreck
Dickinson County, Michigan adopted a resolution Monday in support of Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline, urging completion of a tunnel replacement project with no disruption of service. The resolution comes in response to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s recent demand the company shut down its oil pipeline that crosses the bottom of the waterway connecting Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. Read the full story by the Daily News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-dickinson
Threatened with a court injunction by a prominent Canadian environmental law organization, the town of South Bruce Peninsula in Ontario has postponed its dune excavation project at Sauble Beach. Read the full story by the Stratford Beacon Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-sauble
Another future U.S. Navy warship has completed acceptance trials on Lake Michigan. Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) 23, the future USS Cooperstown, passed several trials in advance of its commissioning to the US Navy in 2021. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201215-navy-ship
By Oliver Morrison, PublicSource, through the Institute for Nonprofit News network
A single PFAS chemical featured in the movie “Dark Waters” last year about contamination from a Teflon plant in Parkersburg, W.Va. resulted in a $670 million court settlement. A community study showed the chemical was linked to six diseases: kidney cancer, increased cholesterol, ulcerative colitis, thyroid disease, preeclampsia and testicular cancer.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/12/pfas-chemicals-pittsburgh-scientist/
To raise awareness about the importance of the Great Lakes to the region’s culture and economy, Wisconsin Sea Grant will confer the first-ever Great Lakes Champion Award. The deadline for nominations is fast approaching—midnight on Jan. 16, 2021.
“I am an East-Coast transplant, first arriving in Wisconsin more than 35 years ago,” said Sea Grant Director Jim Hurley. “I could not be more enamored of the Great Lakes bordering my adopted state. They are the focus of my research on mercury cycling and the object of my appreciation for the beauty, recreation and resources they offer. I know there are potential winners of this award in Wisconsin, and in the wider Great Lakes Basin, who share my passion. We hope to see their names added for consideration for the Wisconsin Sea Grant Great Lakes Champion Award.”
Full details are available online.
The post Deadline approaching: nominate a Great Lakes champion first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.
News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant
News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/deadline-approaching-nominate-a-great-lakes-champion/
Fish and Wildlife Service News
Fish and Wildlife Service News
http://www.fws.gov/news/ShowNews.cfm?ref=%0Au.s.-fish-and-wildlife-service-finds-endangered-species-act-listing-for-&_ID=36817
Wilder Harrier, a Canadian pet food company, is using another unlikely alternative protein source to have a low environmental impact, yet a nutritious meal for dogs.
The post Asian carp goes from water to dog dishes first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2020/12/15/asian-carp-goes-from-water-to-dog-dishes/
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/global-climate-202011
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news//news/global-climate-202011
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Eric Freedman, Great Lakes Echo
The U.S. Coast Guard wants to retire its oldest cutter on the Great Lakes, the 57-year-old cutter Buckthorn.
But don’t hold your breath waiting for the replacement of the Sault Ste.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/12/oldest-coast-guard-cutter-great-lakes/
Thank you to all who joined us for our 2020 Great Lakes Seminar Series on December 7-10. If you were not able to attend any of the sessions, please see below for links to recordings of the presentations and discussion.
Monday, December 7
Keynote Speaker: Mandela Barnes, Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin
Moderated by Brenda Coley, Milwaukee Water Commons
Time: 11:00-11:45am eastern
VIEW Mandela Barnes here
Tuesday, December 8
Panel Discussion: Cultivating Authentic Partnerships with Tribes and Tribal Leaders
Time: 1:00 – 2:30 PM Eastern
This webinar will walk through the Ottaway River Dam Removal Project, a River Reborn, in the eyes of the seven grandfather teachings and discuss ways to cultivate relationships through shared vision.
Speakers: Brett Fessell, Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians
Tina Frankenberger, Tribal Councilor, Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians
Kira Davis, Conservation Resource Alliance
VIEW Cultivating Authentic Partnerships here
VIEW video played during presentation: “History of The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians – Anishinaabek” here
Panel Discussion: Engagement and Organizing in Great Lakes Communities
Time: 3:00 – 4:30 Eastern
Join us for information and examples on how communities around the region can have a voice – whether it is through organizing around an issue, engagement around a project, or finding new ways to build power in a community.
Speakers: Paco Ollervides, Green Leadership Trust
Nicole Brown, Detroit Future City
Anna-Lisa Castle, Alliance for the Great Lakes
VIEW Engagement and Organizing here
Wednesday, December 9
Presentation: Great Lakes Restoration Initiative 101: Policy and Funding
Want to know more about the GLRI? How decisions get made? Join this session for a review the basics of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative works.
Time: 1:00-2:30pm eastern
Speaker: Chad Lord, Policy Director, Healing Our Waters—Great Lakes Coalition
VIEW GLRI 101: Policy and Funding here
Presentation: Equity and the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative
Time: 3:00-4:00pm eastern
The HOW Coalition is just wrapping up a study of the GLRI through an equity lens and will share the methodology and the recommended initial next steps to advance and further equitable and just outcomes.
Speakers: Anna Brunner, National Wildlife Federation
Crystal Davis, Alliance for the Great Lakes
VIEW Equity and the GLRI here
Thursday, December 10
Panel Discussion: State Revolving Funds: A State-Level Program View
Time: 1:00-2:30pm eastern
Join experts from around the region to learn more about water infrastructure funding and the State Revolving Funds, including how the funding mechanism works in different states, where funding is being directed, what avenues are available to seek funding, and what work is being done to improve the program.
Speakers: Cyndi Roper, Natural Resources Defense Council
Anthonia Ogudipe, Alliance for the Great Lakes
Pete Bucher, Ohio Environmental Council
VIEW State Revolving Funds here
The post 2020 Great Lakes Seminar Series: Recordings appeared first on Healing Our Waters Coalition.
Healing Our Waters Coalition
https://healthylakes.org/2020-great-lakes-seminar-series-recordings/
Crews have started emergency construction work on a portion of a central Michigan dam that collapsed last spring and contributed to flooding that destroyed homes and forced the evacuations of about 10,000 people. Read the full article by WDIV- TV – Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-dam-construction
In anticipation of high volumes of water entering Lake Ontario in 2021, the International Joint Commission has granted pre-emptive permission to deviate from its controversial Plan 2014 and increase outflows in an attempt to avoid flooding. Read the full story by the Watertown Daily Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-ijc-lake-ontario
A bipartisan task force that brought together environmentalists, the energy industry and others released its recommendations Wednesday for how Wisconsin might bolster its economy while addressing climate change. Read the full story by the Associated Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-wisconsin-climate-task-force
The Great Lakes Commission has issued a grant to Ohio’s Ottawa Soil and Water Conservation District to address runoff concerns into Lake Erie through the Great Lakes Sediment and Nutrient Reduction Program. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-nutrient-trapping
A project aimed at reducing the number of invasive quagga mussels in Lake Michigan near Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore has proved successful, providing important takeaways for groups involved in the ongoing effort to combat Great Lakes invasive species. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-invasive-mussels
A new report outlining a common agenda for protecting the Lake Erie watershed in Pennsylvania was recently released by the conservation nonprofit organization PennFuture with the help of a dozen environmental and community groups and advisors. Read the full story by The Alleghany Front.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20201214-pennsylvania-erie-watershed
