Budget Focuses on Bringing Science, Facilities, and Infrastructure into the 21st Century
Region 3: Great Lakes
http://www.usgs.gov/news/national-news-release/president-proposes-9712-million-fy-2021-budget-usgs
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/national-climate-202001
ANN ARBOR, MICH. (February 5, 2020)—In a major victory for clean water advocates, the U.S. House of Representatives today passed the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act of 2019. The bill reauthorizes the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative for 5 years, and increases the program’s funding from $300 million to $475 million per year by 2026.
Healing Our Waters – Great Lakes Coalition Director Laura Rubin said:
“This is excellent news for the 30 million Americans who rely on the Great Lakes for drinking water, jobs recreation and way of life. Over the past decade, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has been producing results for communities across the region, but serious threats remain. This reauthorization recognizes the work we have left to do to ensure that the basic need of clean drinking water is fulfilled for all who call this region home.
“We thank Reps. David Joyce (R-Ohio) and Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) for their leadership in passing this vital bill, and the dozens of Republicans and Democrats who are co-sponsoring the bill and working in a spirit of bi-partisan cooperation to make sure that Great Lakes restoration and protection remain a national priority.”
The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative invests in local projects in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin to clean up toxic pollution, fight invasive species, reduce runoff from cities and farms, and restore fish and wildlife habitat.
The post House Vote Paves Way for Boost to Great Lakes Funding appeared first on Healing Our Waters Coalition.
Healing Our Waters Coalition
https://healthylakes.org/house-vote-paves-way-for-boost-to-great-lakes-funding/
A dancer in regalia at the Gichi Manidoo Giizis Pow Wow. Image by Marie Zhuikov, Wisconsin Sea Grant.
More than 230 Ojibwe dancers filled the event center in the Black Bear Casino Resort in Carlton, Minnesota, dressed in their finest regalia. A colorful rainbow, the dancers slowly progressed in a clockwise circle, swaying to the beat of drums and singing, bells on their clothing jingling with each step.
Watching the Gichi Manidoo Giizis Pow Wow were 19 educators from Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan. A few even joined the dance when audience members were invited.
The pow wow was just part of a daylong workshop the teachers attended after they braved a January snowstorm to arrive in Carlton. As a reward for their travel through inclement weather, they learned more about Ojibwe culture, treaty rights and water ecology.
Named after the pow wow, the Gichi Manidoo Giizis Educator Workshop means, “Great spirit moon” or January in Ojibwe. The workshop was organized by the Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College, the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, and the Minnesota and Wisconsin Sea Grant programs.
Megan Hogfeldt. Image by Marie Zhuikov, Wisconsin Sea Grant.
Megan Hogfeldt, a water resource specialist for the city of Superior, was one of the workshop attendees. “What fascinated me was that this workshop is geared toward people who work in science and water quality education. A lot of what I do is communicating what my coworkers are working on or research that’s being done in the community. I try and explain to people and school groups the importance of water quality, recognizing that a lot of those people are also indigenous. It’s beneficial to me to have a framework for what I can include or language I can use for that audience.”
Hogfeldt and the other educators spent their morning learning about tribal history and treaty rights from Christina Dzwonkowski, a Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission game warden. Later, Kelsey Taylor, who works for the Fond du Lac Band, offered information about invasive species and traditional knowledge.
The educators had a chance to test their treaty rights knowledge by taking a Kahoot quiz on their phones. Kahoot is a game-based learning platform that makes it easy to quickly create games or trivia quizzes. A question arose during the quiz about how the tribes manage their fishery.
“If a limit on a certain lake is 300 fish, the tribes don’t fish 300 fish,” said Dzwonkowski. “They have a nice big buffer, so they might fish 220 fish out of that lake, just to take into consideration things change and so they don’t go over the limit. The tribes only visit that lake a single time to spear, and they only take a certain amount. Then they leave and don’t go back fishing there, unless it’s just plain hook and line like everyone else.”
After eating lunch, the teachers attended the pow wow, an experience that Hogfeldt appreciated. “I really like pow wows. I’ve had nothing but a positive experience and it’s very welcoming – very based on appreciation of community and nature,” she said.
Back at the workshop, the teachers divided into teams. They played the Watershed Game, a hands-on simulation developed by Minnesota Sea Grant and University of Minnesota Extension that helped them learn how land use impacts water quality and natural resources.
Cynthia Hagley, environmental quality extension educator with Minnesota Sea Grant, explained their seemingly impossible task. “We want you to reduce pollution as much as you can without your team going broke. And you have about 15 minutes to do it. Today, we’re focusing on sediment and why it’s a bad thing to have in the headwaters of a stream.”
In the evening, the teachers took their new knowledge and applied it to activities for a youth workshop held later that night, along with a traditional pow wow feast.
If you’re an educator and would like to get on a list for notifications about opportunities like this, please contact Anne Moser with Wisconsin Sea Grant by email at akmoser@aqua.wisc.edu or Marte Kitson with Minnesota Sea Grant at mkitson@d.umn.edu.
News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant
News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/educator-workshop-shares-ojibwe-culture-and-history/
The Great Lakes Environmental Law Center (“GLELC”) and the Natural Resources Defense Council (“NRDC”) filed a Request for Declaratory Ruling with the Michigan Department of Great Lakes, Energy, and the Environment (“EGLE”) seeking a ruling to declare certain Administrative Consent Orders (“ACOs”) unlawful and void because they violate the Michigan Lead and Copper Rule by allowing partial lead service replacements in violation of Michigan’s Lead and Copper Rule.
Prompted by the Flint Water Crisis, EGLE revised the Michigan Lead and Copper Rule to ban partial lead service line replacements, unless it is necessary due to an emergency repair. Partial lead service line replacements have been shown to cause increased concentrations of lead in drinking water. The adoption of the ban on partial lead service line replacements was celebrated by public health advocates for being an important measure to protect the public.
Since the adoption of this ban, EGLE has quietly entered into Administrative Consent Orders (“ACOs”) with at least three municipalities that unlawfully authorize the municipalities to conduct partial lead service replacements in circumstances other than in emergency repairs. At least two of these ACOs, one with the City of Dearborn and one with the City of Milan, are still in effect and remain so for an indefinite period of time. These ACOs were entered into without any public notice or input, and without satisfying key requirements in the Michigan and Federal Safe Drinking Water Act that exist to safeguard residents from lead in drinking water.
“The ban on partial lead service line replacements is a key public health provision in the revised Michigan Lead and Copper Rule, and we’re troubled and concerned to see that EGLE is not only declining to enforce the provision, but appears to be entering into agreements with water suppliers that completely re-write the standard behind closed doors,” said Nick Leonard, Executive Director of the Great Lakes Environmental Law Center. “We do not believe that EGLE has the authority to contract around the Michigan Lead and Copper Rule and we’re asking them to eliminate this practice and declare their prior Administrative Consent Orders as void.”
“After taking one step forward by promulgating the most protective Lead & Copper Rule in the nation, EGLE has not taken two steps back by allowing water suppliers to do these partial lead service line replacements –placing in jeopardy the health and wellbeing of residents in the very communities it sought to protect when it revised the Michigan Lead and Copper Rule,” said Jeremy Orr, Attorney for Natural Resources Defense Council. “Our Request for Declaratory Ruling from EGLE is a simple, yet fundamental ask: follow your own rules. These invalid Consent Orders should be ripped up, any existing partial lead service line replacement projects should cease, and there should be no future accommodations for water systems who are looking to use these types of Consent Orders as a vehicle to skirt the rules that are meant to ensure that all Michiganders have access to clean and affordable drinking water.”
EGLE has 60 days to take action on the Request for Declaratory Ruling. EGLE can either grant the request, deny the Request, ask for further clarification of the facts, or advise that EGLE requires additional time conduct a review.
News - Great Lakes Environmental Law Center
News - Great Lakes Environmental Law Center
https://www.glelc.org/our-blog/2020/2/6/glelc-and-nrdc-formally-a-request-declaratory-ruling-to-void-administrative-consent-orders-that-violate-the-partial-lead-service-line-replacement-ban-in-the-michigan-lead-and-copper-rule
The University of Wisconsin Sea Grant College Program today announced the award of more than $5.8 million in Great Lakes research, education and outreach dollars for 2020-22 as part of a federal-state partnership.
Sea Grant will fund 15 research, three education and 32 outreach projects on six University of Wisconsin campuses and at a private college. Other entities will participate in the projects, such as the Wisconsin Historical Society, which will conduct research on Great Lakes shipwrecks.
“For the coming two years, just as in our program’s preceding 52 years, our outreach and education activities and funded research will go forward on the basis of scientific integrity and relevance. The Great Lakes are a true treasure and we’re privileged to undertake this work to ensure their continued sustainability,” said Jim Hurley, Sea Grant director.
Researchers will look into the effects of high Great Lakes water levels on infrastructure, a series of chemical contaminants known as PFAS, fostering the growth of the sportfish walleye, and more.
Lakes Michigan and Superior will be the focus of research in the coming two years using Sea Grant federal-state dollars. Photo by Anne Moser.
In all, nearly 100 researchers, staff and students will be engaged in this work, Hurley said.
The campuses within the University of Wisconsin System are Green Bay and its campus in Manitowoc, Madison, Milwaukee, Stevens Point and Superior. The other campus is St. Norbert College.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce, provides funding for this work through the National Sea Grant College Program. The state of Wisconsin provides a match for the federal funds—50 cents on the dollar.
News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant
News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/wisconsin-sea-grant-to-provide-more-than-5-8-million-for-great-lakes-research-education-and-outreach-over-two-years/
Over 30 years ago I helped the Nature Conservancy of Wis with their acquisition of most of Point au Sable.
Then by pure luck and over one year of work, I put together the transaction for the Northeastern Wis Land Trust for their acquisition of the “Twin Silos” 11 acres + property along Nicolet Drive which gave the Land Trust access to an additional 60+ acres that they also purchased.
This took over a year of work and is one of my most favorite transactions I ever did in my 35 years in real estate. I live very close to this area and can even see Point au Sauble from my windows of our bay cottage.
There is more to this as hopefully more property will be added to make this the finest future nature park in NE Wisconsin!
A red-headed woodpecker pauses from foraging on a tree. Photo by Debbie Koenigs/USFWS.
Read the full article: https://fws.gov/midwest/news/wequiockcreek.html?fbclid=IwAR1R80l5-tWFkCw3P9sQWUThKuuEIeqNsheGhhc_zkmdRcXotLMJJKxfs70
The River Talk series continues at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 12, at the Lake Superior Estuarium (3 Marina Drive, Superior, Wisconsin). Nancy Schuldt, water protection coordinator with the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, will present, “Promoting Tribal Health by Protecting and Restoring Manoomin (Wild Rice) in the St. Louis River and Beyond.”
Nancy Schuldt. Image by Marie Zhukov, Wisconsin Sea Grant.
Manoomin and all the health benefits and wealth it creates are under threat from a variety of stressors. This native grain has declined substantially in its historic range on the St. Louis River and beyond. Due to the importance of manoomin to tribal health, the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and the state of Minnesota developed a health impact assessment to convey the importance of wild rice to Ojibwe people. Schuldt will speak on the assessment and share reflections from her career spent studying and protecting water.
The Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve and the Minnesota and Wisconsin Sea Grant programs offer this series of informal evening talks about the St. Louis River Estuary. Everyone is invited and refreshments are provided.
Other River Talks will be held on March 3, April 8 and May 13. The March 3 talk will be held in conjunction with the St. Louis River Summit.
For more information, visit go.wisc.edu/4uz720. If you miss a talk, visit Wisconsin Sea Grant’s blog for a summary
News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant
News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/promoting-tribal-health-by-protecting-and-restoring-manoomin-wild-rice-in-the-st-louis-river-and-beyond/
Wisconsin Water Library
https://waterlibrary.aqua.wisc.edu/when-libraries-water-and-art-collide/
On January 16, 2020, the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin adopted the following resolution to recognize the rights of the Menominee River:
MENOMINEE INDIAN TRIBE OF WISCONSIN RESOLUTION NO. 19-52
RECOGNITION OF THE RIGHTS OF THE MENOMINEE RIVER
WHEREAS, we, the Menominee people, are indigenous to what is now known as the State of Wisconsin, our place of origin was at the mouth of the Menominee River where the five clans of the Menominee were created and include the Awaehsaeh (Bear), Kenew (Eagle), Mahwaew (Wolf), Mos (Moose), and Otaeqciah (Crane), and we continue to live on our ancestral land that was granted by Maec-Awaetok (Great Spirit); and
WHEREAS, the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin (the "Tribe") is a federally recognized Indian Tribe as provided by the Menominee Restoration Act, Act Dec. 22, 1973, Pub. L. No. 93-197, 87 Stat. 770, which appears generally as 25 U.S.C. §§ 903 et seq.; and
WHEREAS, the Tribe, acting through its duly elected governing body, the Menominee Tribal Legislature (the "Legislature"), has powers to make and enforce laws, negotiate with Federal, State and Local governments and otherwise exercise its powers consistent with the limitations imposed by its Constitution and Bylaws; and
WHEREAS, at one time, the Tribe occupied a land base estimated at 10 million acres including lands now known as Wisconsin and Upper Michigan; and
WHEREAS, through a series of seven treaties entered into with the United States, the Tribe witnessed its land base erode to little more than 235,000 acres comprising its present day Reservation; and
WHEREAS, the Tribe's sacred place of origin exists within the 1836 treaty territory, at the mouth of the Menominee River, a mere 60 miles East of its present Reservation; and
WHEREAS, as a result of the Tribe's undeniable ties and long occupation of the Menominee River area, there are numerous Menominee sacred sites and burial mounds along the Menominee River; and
WHEREAS, the location of the Menominee River is historically and culturally significant to the Menominee people due to the existence of cultural properties by way of raised agricultural fields, funerary objects, multiple mounds, burial sites, and villages which constitute a cultural landscape of historic significance; and
WHEREAS, it is the Tribe's position that any disturbance or unanticipated discoveries stemming from such sites necessitates that all activity shall cease, the area be secured and protected, the Menominee Tribal Historic Preservation Officer be contacted, and the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin's concurrence be obtained; and
WHEREAS, the Tribe is committed to responsible stewardship to protect the Tribe's cultural resources, water, environment, wildlife, and animals that occupy lands within the Tribe's historical range; and
WHEREAS, the Tribe's understands and recognizes that water is essential to life, and that the Menominee River is, in fact, the very origin of life for the Menominee people; and
WHEREAS, the Menominee River also provides life to Michigan and Wisconsin residents and all natural wildlife within the Great Lakes ecosystem; and
WHEREAS, the Menominee River faces significant threats from climate change; pollution; the proposed open-pit mine known as the "Back Forty Project" which is poised to cause harmful impacts to water, humans, wildlife, animals, environment, and cultural properties as demonstrated with other mines of similar nature; and
WHEREAS, the Tribe recognizes that we live at a time of unprecedented species extinction , ecosystem collapse, and global warming; and
WHEREAS, the Tribe recognizes that environmental laws which regulate the use and exploitation of nature are incapable of protecting the Menominee River and Mother Earth; and
WHEREAS, the Tribe recognizes to protect the Menominee River, it must secure the highest protections for the river through the recognition of the river's inherent and legal rights;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that by this Tribal Resolution, the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin declares:
CERTIFICATION
We, the undersigned officers of the Menominee Tribal Legislature hereby certify that the foregoing resolution was duly adopted at a meeting held on January 16, 2020 with a quorum present by a vote of 7 for, 0 opposed, 0 abstentions and 0 absent.
For reference, the original document with signatures is available at https://www.greatlakeslaw.org/files/menominee_river.pdf.
Great Lakes Law
https://www.greatlakeslaw.org/blog/2020/01/menominee-indian-tribe-adopts-resolution-to-recognize-the-rights-of-the-menominee-river.html
Meeting attendees from across the country got a true taste of a northern Wisconsin winter at the inaugural meeting for a Sea Grant-funded effort to support the sustainable development of the land-based Atlantic salmon industry in the U.S.
As the gathering kicked off in Washburn in December, the mercury read a nippy 6 degrees Fahrenheit, with subzero wind chills. Yet energy levels inside the Harbor View Event Center were high as approximately 50 attendees began laying the groundwork for a robust collaboration that was dubbed RAS-N, for “Recirculating Aquaculture Salmon Network.”
The effort is being funded as part of a larger package of $16 million in federal aquaculture grants announced in September 2019 by the National Sea Grant Office.
Participants at the meeting included Sea Grant staff from Maryland, Maine and Wisconsin, as well as the National Sea Grant Office; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service staff; and representatives from private industry, including feed and salmon producers.
Maryland Sea Grant is leading the three-year project to identify and address challenges faced by the land-based Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) industry. The Wisconsin and Maine Sea Grant programs are partners in the multistate consortium. The project builds upon earlier Sea Grant investment in this area, including research based in Wisconsin.
The December event spanned two full days of presentations and discussion. It also featured a tour of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Northern Aquaculture Demonstration Facility (NADF) in nearby Bayfield. Attendees observed various NADF research projects with Atlantic salmon and other fish species.
Emma Wiermaa, an aquaculture outreach specialist with Wisconsin Sea Grant and NADF, and Greg Fischer, assistant director and research program manager at NADF, played major roles in organizing this productive event.
Said Fischer, “I was very impressed by the commitment of the group, who showed up in the middle of a good old-fashioned Wisconsin snowstorm. Even with record-setting low temperatures, many expressed how glad they were that they came, some from as far as Europe.”
As one of the conference speakers noted — Brian Peterson of the USDA’s National Cold Water Marine Aquaculture Center in Maine — seafood represents the United States’ largest trade deficit of any agricultural product. And, as David O’Brien, acting director of the NOAA Fisheries Office of Aquaculture, told the group, “Wild fisheries alone cannot meet the increasing demand for seafood.”
This sets the stage for sustainable U.S. aquaculture to help meet the world’s demand for seafood while growing a sector of the U.S. economy.
Emma Wiermaa, aquaculture outreach specialist with Wisconsin Sea Grant and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Northern Aquaculture Demonstration Facility. (Photo: Jim Gill)
As Wiermaa observed, “Land-based, water reuse systems for growing Atlantic salmon allow the fish to be raised close to market, with limited impacts on the surrounding environment. The result is fresh, local filets for consumers.”
Wisconsin-based Superior Fresh is already having success in this arena as the country’s first land-based Atlantic salmon producer and world’s largest aquaponic farm. Said Chief Science Officer Steve Summerfelt, 99.9% of the facility’s water flow is recycled, and there is zero discharge to surface water. Superior Fresh currently employs more than 70 staff and is expanding.
Representatives from Riverence, Whole Oceans and American Salmon — other private entities currently in this space or preparing to launch facilities — also presented.
Several speakers addressed the educational and workforce development aspects of the industry.
Scarlett Tudor of the University of Maine’s Aquaculture Research Institute described her campus’ approach to fostering the future aquaculture workforce. By placing paid interns in companies, the university helps students build their resumes while conducting research for industry that may not otherwise be possible. The university is also interested in reaching noncredit students. As Tudor noted, hands-on experience is key in the aquaculture world, and not everyone needs a degree for their particular career path.
Wiermaa noted that NADF hosts one or two student technicians at a time, and more than 90% of those techs find aquaculture positions after their stint in Bayfield is over. UW-Stevens Point is a leader in aquaculture education. It is the first accredited university in Wisconsin to offer an aquaculture minor (which is still uncommon in U.S. colleges) and the first in the country to offer full-semester aquaponics courses, a master class and professional certificate program.
Aquaculture manager Kyle Woolever handles young Atlantic salmon at Wisconsin-based Superior Fresh, an aquaponic farm raising leafy greens along with fish. (Photo: Sara Stathas)
Fish health, biosecurity, consumer perceptions and other topics were also addressed during the wide-ranging meeting. The aim of this gathering was to bring together a small, focused group of stakeholders to get the project off the ground.
Said Summerfelt, “I’m excited that Sea Grant has supported RAS-N, which has brought together land-based salmon stakeholders–producers, suppliers, trainers of the workforce, and academics—for the first time. With this kickoff meeting in Washburn, we have begun preparing a roadmap to address our needs and gaps in knowledge to reduce risk and increase production efficiencies, as well as consumer awareness. RAS-N is providing a terrific venue for collaboration.”
Future steps in 2020 will be a RAS-N session at the Aquaculture America conference in Honolulu in February, and a fall gathering at the Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology in Baltimore. Organizers expect to invite a larger group of stakeholders to the Maryland meeting as the collaboration continues to take shape.
News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant
News Releases – Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/salmon-aquaculture-project-kickoff/
NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory
NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory
https://noaaglerl.blog/2020/01/29/sinkhole-science-groundwater-in-the-great-lakes/
Today the U.S. Senate Great Lakes Task Force sent a letter to the Trump Administration, urging it to fund the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative at no less than $320 million. The administration will release its proposed budget on Monday, Feb. 10. Signatories to the letter include Great Lakes Task Force co-chairs U.S. Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), as well as Sens. Todd Young (R-Ind.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), and Bob Casey (D-Pa.).
Laura Rubin, director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition, said:
“We thank the bi-partisan group of senators—especially Task Force co-chairs Sens. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio)—who are working to keep Great Lakes restoration a national priority. Federal investments in the Great Lakes are producing results, but more work remains. President Trump can show his support for the Great Lakes and clean water by robustly funding the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and drinking water and wastewater infrastructure in his proposed budget. Further, the president can reconsider his recently announced roll-back of clean water protections for millions of people in Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Illinois, New York, and Minnesota. Strong funding and strong clean water protections are both essential.”
The post Coalition Thanks Bi-Partisan Group of Senators for Making Great Lakes a Priority appeared first on Healing Our Waters Coalition.
Healing Our Waters Coalition
https://healthylakes.org/coalition-thanks-bi-partisan-group-of-senators-for-making-great-lakes-a-priority/
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Blog – Freshwater Future
https://freshwaterfuture.org/uncategorized/freshwater-weekly-january-24th-2020/
The author and her cat canoe on Star Lake, Minnesota, July 1977. Image by Dorothy Pramann.
For National Dog Day, we offered several popular social media posts that featured the “dogs of Sea Grant.” Our Wisconsin Sea Grant staff members shared images of their pooches frolicking in water. Afterward, we tried a “cats of Sea Grant” social media push for National Cat Day, we didn’t get enough submissions from staff to make it work. Probably because most cats dislike water.
At the time, I didn’t think about Inky, the black cat I grew up with, because she is long deceased. But the other day, I walked past this photo of Inky and me in a canoe, and the memories all came back.
Inky was a stray a neighborhood boy brought to us because he knew we recently lost a cat. That previous cat was a calico we named Muffin. Alas, Muffin ran away when we were on a camping trip while she was under the care of a neighbor. Perhaps because of that, we took Inky along on all our camping trips.
She did not enjoy car rides – she would disappear under the driver’s seat and not emerge until we’d reached our destination – but she liked being outdoors in the campgrounds where we stayed. We’d leash her to a picnic table so we wouldn’t lose her.
Inky at home, circa 1975.
One place we liked to stay for extended periods was Star Lake, a Methodist Church Campground in northern Minnesota. Because we’d stayed there several times and we didn’t need to travel the next day, we’d let Inky off her leash to come and go as she pleased, like she did at home.
We owned an old Grumman aluminum canoe that I used to paddle around the lake. One day, I got the idea of bringing Inky along.
She seemed to like the canoe ride better than a car ride. She perched on the gunwale a few feet in front of me, leaning out over the water.
With each canoe outing, she’d lean farther and farther over the side. It seemed like she wanted to go into the water. One day, I tipped the canoe slightly, giving her some “help.”
Plop! Into the water she went.
We weren’t far from the shore of our campsite – only about 30 feet — and she swam in that direction. I can’t recall if she meowed as she swam, or if she swam silently. (My memory has fuzzed during the four decades since this occurred.) She made it to shore just fine and seemed no worse for wear.
The next time I took Inky out for a canoe, as we neared our site again, she jumped out of the canoe by herself!
Could it be, she liked to swim? I’d never heard of a cat who liked to swim, but apparently, I had one. By the end of our stay, her swims from the canoe to our campsite were a regular thing.
Inky the swimming black cat lived to a ripe old age, despite getting hit by a car once, breaking her leg. I’ve had other cats since then, but none who liked to swim like she did.
Although most cats would rather avoid water, some do like it. (Read stories here.)
My youngest son is allergic to cats, so I have since switched to dogs. But in my home, I keep this photo my mother took, and think of my swimming cat whenever I pass it.
Blog – Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/the-cat-who-liked-to-swim/
Great Lakes Coalition Opposes Trump Assault on Clean Water Protections
“With many of our towns and cities still living with unsafe drinking water, now is not the time to cut back on clean water enforcement.”
ANN ARBOR, MICH. (January 23, 2020) – The Trump Administration is expected to announce today that it will greatly reduce clean water protections for streams and wetlands across the country. These streams and wetlands connect to the drinking water supplies that millions of people in the Great Lakes states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin rely on.
“We strongly oppose this move from the Trump Administration to weaken clean water protections,” said Laura Rubin, director of the Healing Our Waters – Great Lakes Coalition. “Clean Water is a basic need. And with many of our towns and cities still living with unsafe drinking water, now is not the time to cut back on clean water enforcement. We need more – not less – protection for clean water.”
“With this assault on clean water protections, the administration is undermining efforts to restore the Great Lakes, threatening drinking water supplies, jeopardizing public health, and damaging the outdoor economy and quality of life of the Great Lakes region.”
The post Great Lakes Coalition Opposes Trump Assault on Clean Water Protections appeared first on Healing Our Waters Coalition.
Healing Our Waters Coalition
https://healthylakes.org/great-lakes-coalition-opposes-trump-assault-on-clean-water-protections/
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/december-2019-regional-climate-impacts-and-outlooks
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/ocean-heat-content-rises
By Elise Ertl, University of Wisconsin-Superior
Deborah DeLuca presented this month’s River Talk on Jan. 8 at the Lake Superior Estuarium. Her talk, “The Duluth Seaway Port Authority – A Career Journey,” offered insight to the Great Lakes’ largest port and how she came to be the first woman to hold the executive director position at Duluth Seaway Port Authority in the 60 years since its establishment.
Deb DeLuca. Image by Marie Zhuikov.
The Duluth Seaway Port Authority’s mission is to bring business to the port of Duluth-Superior, economic development to the region and to advocate for maritime and transportation industries. The port authority also owns one of 20 active terminals – the Clure Public Marine Terminal – which is the only general cargo terminal in the harbor.
DeLuca said one of the challenges about being located in Duluth is how far inland the port is. Ships must travel to the western tip of Lake Superior to reach it.
Some of the primary cargoes shipped from the harbor are iron ore, limestone and coal. Grain is the No. 1 export. However, DeLuca also talked about the increasing wind turbine imports to our area. The wind turbine imports the port is receiving are shipped all across the upper Midwest, including states as far as Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska. Wind turbine parts can be immense, with some blades over 200 feet long.
The talk of wind turbine imports added to what has always been a big part of DeLuca’s life, the environment and sustainability. In college, she earned her bachelor’s in molecular biology, and later a master’s in land resources at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She talked about her internship with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and her experience working with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and Braun Intertec, an environmental consulting and testing firm.
During her college career, she worked at a bike shop, adding to the list of DeLuca’s wide interests and capabilities. While there, she purchased a bike and learned from her coworkers how to ride competitively. She quickly progressed and eventually made the U.S. National Cycling Team.
She also worked for the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. Later, she started her own company, DeLuca Strategies LLC, where she provided services such as funding strategies, grant-writing, project management, public outreach, and government relations to public, private and nonprofit clients.
DeLuca first started working for the Duluth Seaway Port Authority as the government and environmental affairs director for four years and afterward, became executive director.
The River Talks audience was engaged and asked an abundance of questions. One audience member asked whether the port authority has looked into tourism and possible recreational benefits for people who may want to see the ships up close at the port. DeLuca said, “Kayaking and paddleboarding down by the port may be a fun idea, but it is also dangerous because the ships cannot see people down below, and they can’t maneuver quickly or stop.”
DeLuca was also asked questions about the environment and people who may be studying the topic. She offered this advice: “You can have all the passion in the world to make a difference, but without an understanding of economics and finance, it will be difficult to implement change.” She recommended gaining knowledge of finance and economics in addition to environmental sciences.
The next River Talk will be held on Feb. 12 at 7 p.m. at the Lake Superior Estuarium. Nancy Schuldt will be discussing the growth of wild rice in the estuary.
Blog – Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/deluca-shares-her-journey-to-becoming-executive-director-of-the-duluth-seaway-port-authority/
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Blog – Freshwater Future
https://freshwaterfuture.org/uncategorized/freshwater-weekly-january-17th-2020/
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/global-climate-201912
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/ams-2020
Jan. 10, 2020
By Moira Harrington
A group of second-graders expand their knowledge of Lake Superior through a canoe trip. A workshop is held about that same lake and its strong and dangerous currents. These different topics share a common thread. Both were subjects of audio podcasts last year. Those podcasts were just named award-winning by an international communications competition known as AVA Digital Awards.
“Connecting teachers and students to the Lake Superior watershed” won a gold medal. It’s about a Sea Grant-funded educational program called Rivers2Lake, which shows children from school districts in Bayfield, Ashland and the South Shore of Lake Superior how nature can be a classroom. The program is run by the Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve.
“It takes a family to deal with dangerous currents” won an honorable mention. Interviews are featured with participants and presenters at a workshop held in Ashland about this hidden but potentially lethal hazard.
Podcast Producer Marie Zhuikov said, “The people who I interview are what make these stories so interesting. Instead of the standard phone conversation, I was able to get out of my office and talk to these people in the field, which makes the stories livelier and more immediate.”
Conferred annually, the AVA Digital Awards attract an average of 2,500 entries from around the world. They come from the private sector, nonprofit organizations, public entities and academic institutions. The awards are administered and judged by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals, which consists of several thousand specialists in production, marketing, communication, advertising and public relations, plus freelance journalists.
Wisconsin Sea Grant offers a broad range of podcasts on topics such as lakes Michigan and Superior, groundwater, aquaculture and mercury in the environment. The recent award-winning stories are part of a series known as Wisconsin Water News, which has 20 episodes. The four-to-seven-minute podcasts bring Sea Grant and Water Resources stories alive by featuring the voices of scientists, resource managers, stakeholders and staff in audio presentations of news pieces that are also shared in print or online formats.
News Release – WRI
https://www.wri.wisc.edu/news/sea-grant-and-water-resources-win-awards-for-podcasts/
Seven U.S. Geological Survey scientists will share their research at the workshop. Topics will include satellite-based detection of harmful algal blooms, mercury in Hells Canyon reservoirs, and monitoring of selenium and mercury in the Kootenai River. A full schedule of USGS speakers and topics is available for download. For more information on the workshop, please visit https://www.deq.idaho.gov/water-quality-workshop.
USGS speakers at the 2020 Idaho Water Quality Workshop
(Public domain.)
USGS.gov
https://www.usgs.gov/center-news/usgs-scientists-presenting-30th-annual-idaho-water-quality-workshop
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Blog – Freshwater Future
https://freshwaterfuture.org/uncategorized/freshwater-weekly-january-9th-2020/
Wisconsin Sea Grant-funded researchers collect a sediment sample from the St. Louis River Estuary. (Photo: Marie Zhuikov)
When the calendar flipped to 2020, we entered a new year – specifically, an election year. The political news stories, tweets and advertising that made for a solid background thrum last year will ratchet up to full noise now.
One hallmark of a presidential election year is the plethora of polling. We’ll see candidate horse race polls and those probing the electorate’s stance on a range of issues. Polls will be sliced and diced, agonized over and celebrated.
Since we’re in the season of polls, I want to highlight not a primarily political one, but one by Gallup that measured public trust in various institutions. Conducted in June 2019, the poll asked U.S. citizens what they were proud of regarding their country. Out of eight choices, 91% of respondents said they were most proud of American scientific achievements—the top pick. The military (89%) and domestic arts and culture (85%) rounded out the top three choices.
The bottom-ranked choice was the American political system with only 32% expressing a positive feeling about how the parties and our government conduct themselves.
The remaining categories in the poll included pride in the country’s economic (75%) and sporting (73%) achievements; diversity in race, ethnic background and religion (72%); and the health and welfare system (37%).
Naturally, we do not know who will prevail at the ballot box this November. At least one true winner is clear, according to the recent Gallup poll anyway: science.
Blog – Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/the-polling-winner-science/
Jan. 9, 2020
By Jennifer A. Smith
Too much salt is never a good thing—whether on your dinner plate or on sidewalks, driveways and roads during a long Wisconsin winter.
When that salt dissolves on paved surfaces, it goes anywhere the water goes, making its way from storm drains into lakes and other waterbodies. That salt runoff increases the concentration of salt in our waters, affecting not only surface water but also groundwater (the source of drinking water for most Wisconsinites).
Thanks to a new video (two, actually), Wisconsinites can brush up on their salt smarts. The videos were backed by a group of partners that included the University of Wisconsin Water Resources Institute, UW-Madison, UW-Madison’s Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, Wisconsin Salt Wise and the Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District.
A five-minute video is aimed at general audiences, offering tips on how to apply de-icing products most effectively, depending on the air temperature, pavement temperature and type of product. The amount of salt needed to be effective may be less than you think! For example, just one coffee mug full of salt can treat a 20-foot driveway or 10 sidewalk squares.
A longer, ten-minute version of the video was designed for UW-Madison maintenance staff, who work tirelessly throughout the winter to keep the campus a safe place.
As the video notes, the Wisconsin Salt Wise website has a product application calculator that can help take the guesswork out of this task.
Abigail Ernst, who completed her master’s degree in water resources management at UW-Madison in December 2019, worked on the videos’ content and appears onscreen along with fellow water resources student Tristyn Forget. The videos were part of Ernst’s practicum for her degree. As she noted, this project grew out of stakeholder needs. While UW-Madison custodial staff strive to be mindful of salt use, they also knew it was an area for improvement and ongoing staff training.
Said Ernst, “One of the most rewarding parts of producing this video was the wide variety of people I got to collaborate with. I enjoyed working closely with the custodial department, specifically Kris Ackerbauer, Steve Heitz, Brad Marta and John Brixy. They are such a welcoming and accommodating group. I was so happy we could develop a training video that was primarily driven by their wants and needs.”
While translations of the longer video are still in progress, eventually it will be captioned in Tibetan, Hmong, Spanish and Nepali—which, along with English, are the most common languages spoken by UW maintenance staff.
Bonnie Willison, video producer for the Water Resources Institute and Wisconsin Sea Grant, worked with Ernst and other collaborators to bring the content to life in a concise and compelling way.
Both videos bring science and practical tips together to address what Hilary Dugan, a UW-Madison assistant professor of integrative biology interviewed in the videos, stresses is a solvable problem.
By brushing up on our winter knowledge, we can all do our part to promote public safety (after all, no one wants to wipe out on the sidewalk!) while protecting our freshwater resources.
News Release – WRI
https://www.wri.wisc.edu/news/new-videos-can-help-you-brush-up-on-your-salt-smarts/
The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality hosts its 30th Annual Idaho Water Quality Workshop, February 11-13, at Boise State University.
Upper Midwest Water Science Center
Upper Midwest Water Science Center
http://www.usgs.gov/news/usgs-scientists-presenting-30th-annual-idaho-water-quality-workshop
With the new year comes a rating of “outstanding” for the University of Wisconsin Water Resources Institute (WRI) based on a review conducted in 2019 by the program’s funders at the U.S. Geological Survey.
Earl A. Greene, director of the Water Resources Research Act Program, transmitted the review results to WRI’s Director Jim Hurley in a Jan. 2, 2020 letter that commended WRI for its strong program, “well focused on research to solve state water issues, student education and information transfer. This well balanced program is instrumental in achieving the goals of the Institute.”
The letter went on to call out the efforts of funded researchers who are publishing at a high rate in well-regarded publications, the program’s leadership and excellent information transfer efforts that are well integrated with research.
The federal review panel evaluated the activities of 54 water resources institutes and centers, based in each of the 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam. The years under review had been 2011 through 2015.
“Each day, I am gratified by the work that we are able to accomplish through the Water Resources Institute, whether it’s supporting Wisconsin’s researchers in finding ways to identify and reduce contaminants in our drinking water, understanding the effects of climate change on Wisconsin waters or supporting students in learning and in developing our workforce. Along with our mission to share research findings with you and other relevant audiences, we play an important role in addressing Wisconsin’s water challenges and opportunities,” said WRI’s Associate Director Jennifer Hauxwell.
“The findings of this U.S. Geological Survey review of our program are just another welcome validation for what we are able to do for our fellow citizens who rely on one of Wisconsin’s most valuable assets – water,” she concluded.
News Release – WRI
https://www.wri.wisc.edu/news/outstanding-results-for-wri-following-a-five-year-review/
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) compounds are man-made chemicals found in nonstick cookware, flame- and water-resistant clothing, food wrappers, plumber’s tape, stain prevention products, and even coatings on wires. Unfortunately, now we know PFAS are toxic, harmful to human health, and extremely persistent in the environment.
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) Drinking Water and Environmental Health Division are holding three public hearings on the proposed rules that would establish how much of seven PFAS compounds:
Meeting dates, times and locations:
Wednesday, January 8, 2020, from 5 pm-8 pm at Grand Valley State University, LV Eberhard Center, Room EC 215, 301 Fulton Street W., Grand Rapids, Michigan. This meeting also will be Livestream. Click here to sign-up for the Livestream option.
Tuesday, January 14, 2020, from 5 pm-8 pm at Washtenaw Community College, Morris Lawrence Building, ML Towsley Auditorium, 4800 E. Huron River Dr., Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Thursday, January 16, 2020 from 5pm-8pm at the Ralph A Macmullan Conference Center, Au Sable Room, 104 Conservation Dr., Roscommon, Michigan.
Don’t miss your chance to provide your comments about these important rules. You can attend one of the meetings above or submit your comments in writing by Friday, January 31, 2020, to EGLE-PFAS-RuleMaking@Michigan.gov.
To make it easier to submit comments, we’ve prepared a few items we are most concerned about in the proposed rules. Please recommend that Michigan EGLE do the following:
Take a class-based approach to regulate PFAS in drinking water.
Ensure that the health-based value used to set the PFAS-class drinking water standard protects those most vulnerable to harm.
Use the most recent science to set a health-based value PFAS-class drinking water standard.
To view a calendar of all the events and meetings regarding the PFAS Rules public meetings click here. Presentations from site-specific meetings may be found on MPART’s Public Presentations page.
Blog – Freshwater Future
https://freshwaterfuture.org/uncategorized/michigan-pfas-rules-public-meetings-how-to-submit-comments/
Environmental Leaders Urge Army Corps of Engineers to Include Great Lakes Projects in Work Plans
ANN ARBOR, MICH. (Jan 7, 2019) — Last month, a coalition of environmental organizations came together to urge Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works) R.D. James and Office of Management Budget Acting Director Russell Vought to include critical Great Lakes Restoration Projects in the FY2020 work plan for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
As threats to the health of the Great Lakes continue to intensify, the coalition urged the Office of Management Budget and the Secretary of the Army to ensure that vital funding for Great Lakes restoration projects remain a priority.
“We are grateful for the much-needed support the region has received with investments leading to on-the-ground results across Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin,” the coalition wrote, “However, the Great Lakes still face many urgent problems and we urge the Corps include projects of critical importance to the Great Lakes in the FY2020 Work Plan. The problems we face will only get worse and the price we pay will be much higher if the federal partnership with the region is delayed or scaled back.”
The post Environmental Leaders Urge Army Corps of Engineers to Include Great Lakes Projects in Work Plan appeared first on Healing Our Waters Coalition.
Healing Our Waters Coalition
https://healthylakes.org/environmental-leaders-urge-army-corps-of-engineers-to-include-great-lakes-projects-in-work-plan/
Wisconsin Water Library
https://waterlibrary.aqua.wisc.edu/meetlaurak/
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Blog – Freshwater Future
https://freshwaterfuture.org/uncategorized/freshwater-weekly-december-2nd-2019/
NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory
NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory
https://noaaglerl.blog/2020/01/02/great-lakes-ice-evaporation-and-water-levels/
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Blog – Freshwater Future
https://freshwaterfuture.org/uncategorized/freshwater-weekly-january-2nd-2020/
Berrien County, Michigan – CCO Meeting Presentation [.pdf]
Press Release [.pdf]
Tuesday, January 14, 2020
CCO Meeting 2-4 pm | Open House 4:30-6:30pm
Benton Harbor Public Library
213 E. Wall St.
Benton Harbor, MI 49022
Great Lakes Coastal Flood Study
Great Lakes Coastal Flood Study
https://www.greatlakescoast.org/2020/01/02/lake-michigan-community-consultation-officers-meeting-and-open-house-for-berrien-county-michigan/
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Blog – Freshwater Future
https://freshwaterfuture.org/uncategorized/freshwater-weekly-december-21st-2019/
This week, Congress passed and the President signed the FY2020 budget, funding critical Great Lakes and clean water programs. This budget is the culmination of a year of hard work and advocacy on the part of the Healing Our Waters – Great Lakes Coalition and our members and partners, who engaged with communities to identify environmental needs and met with elected officials in Washington, D.C., and in their home states to let their representatives know how important the Great Lakes are for our drinking water, our economy and our way of life.
Here are a few highlights in this year’s budget:
1) Increased Funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative
For the first time since 2011, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative saw a funding increase, from $300 million to $320 million.
For more than a decade, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has been the bedrock of restoration efforts across the Great Lakes. The initiative has funded thousands of restoration projects in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York, including projects to restore wildlife habitat, fight invasive species, clean up toxic pollution, and much more.
2) Equitable Investments in Clean Drinking Water Infrastructure
The 2020 budget includes investments in infrastructure, including, $25.4 million for grants to small and disadvantaged communities. These grants will work to upgrade the drinking water infrastructure in communities that have traditionally been disinvested in, including rural communities and communities of color.
The budget also includes $19.5 million in grants to reduce lead in drinking water, which has been a persistent and prevalent problem in low-income communities.
Additionally, the budget includes $28 million in new dedicated funding to combat sewage overflows and build infrastructure for stormwater re-use. Sewage overflows and stormwater runoff are a major factor in polluting the streams and rivers that flow into the Great Lakes, and mitigating these sources must come at the local level. This new funding gives municipalities and water districts the tools they need to start fixing outdated sewage and stormwater infrastructure.
These investments are in addition to federal funding for two national water infrastructure program—the Clean Water State Revolving Fund and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, programs that provide low-interest loans to communities to fix and modernize wastewater infrastructure and drinking water infrastructure, respectively. Those programs saw slight declines in the current budget. Congress allocated $1.64 billion for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (a $55 million decrease over fiscal year 2019) and $1.13 billion for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (a nearly $38 million decrease over fiscal year).
3) Combating Invasive Species
The 2020 budget includes an increase in funding for research and action to prevent invasive species, particularly Asian Carp, from entering the Great Lakes. An additional $14 million was allocated for activities to prevent Asian Carp from entering and establishing in the Great Lakes, bringing total funding up to $25 million, while an additional $3 million was allocated to fund further research into early detection practices and control technologies critical to slowing the expansion of Asian Carp.
Stopping the spread of Asian Carp and preventing their establishment in the Great Lakes is a major priority for the Healing Our Waters – Great Lakes Coalition and its partners, and this budget acknowledges the seriousness of the threat and the work we have left to do. The Healing Our Waters – Great Lakes Coalition supports the work that our partners are leading in making sure these harmful species do not enter the Great Lakes.
4) Researching and monitoring Harmful Algal Blooms
Toxic algal blooms threaten the drinking water and economy of Great Lakes communities, and the 2020 budget allocates $19 million to research and forecast these blooms.
Using these funds, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and other agencies will continue to work collaboratively with research partners, developing integrated approaches to understand the drivers, forecast, and help keep communities informed of the threat of toxic blooms. Research will also help to improve management strategies to reduce the frequency, severity and impacts of these blooms.
5) Funding critical science and research
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and the 2020 budget includes funding to continue the critical science, research, and education needed to help restore and protect the waters that communities across the Great Lakes rely on. This includes funding for: the Great Lakes Science Center and National Sea Grant College Program.
Funded at $11.8 million, including an additional $3 million in this year’s budget, the Great Lakes Science Center is a facility operated by the U.S. Geological Survey for essential ecosystem assessment and fisheries management research. These funds will be crucial in surveying the health of the Great Lakes ecosystem and providing information to respond to threats as they occur.
The National Sea Grant College Program is a federal-university partnership program that works to maintain a healthy coastal environment and economy. The 2020 budget acknowledged its importance by increasing funding by $6 million for a total of $74 million. By combining university expertise with public outreach experts, the Sea Grant program is a critical research program for ensuring that our Great Lakes remain healthy and vibrant.
All told, the final budget provides a solid foundation to keep federal restoration on track and sets the stage for progress in 2020. As Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition Director Laura Rubin said: “We look forward to working with Congress in the new year to ensure that the Great Lakes remains a bi-partisan priority.”
The post 2020 Budget a Win For the Great Lakes appeared first on Healing Our Waters Coalition.
Healing Our Waters Coalition
https://healthylakes.org/2020-budget-a-win-for-the-great-lakes/
Federal Budget Supports Great Lakes, Clean Water Funding
Congress increases funding to Great Lakes Restoration Initiative by $20 million
ANN ARBOR, MICH. (December 17, 2019) — Great Lakes restoration and clean water programs received support in the final federal budget, released last night by the U.S. House and Senate. The fiscal year 2020 budget increases funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative—the first increase for the program in ten years— as well as provides new investments in clean water and drinking water infrastructure programs.
Laura Rubin, director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition said:
“This budget is good news for the Great Lakes and the 30 million Americans who depend on them for their drinking water, jobs, and way of life. Federal investments are producing results, but serious threats remain, such as polluted runoff, invasive species, and toxic pollution. This budget acknowledges those threats and the work that we still need to do.
“We thank the Great Lakes congressional delegation – especially members on the House and Senate appropriations committee – for continuing to make the Great Lakes a national priority, and for ensuring that restoration efforts remain on track. We look forward to working with Congress in the new year to ensure that the Great Lakes remains a bi-partisan priority.”
The final fiscal year 2020 budget was passed by the House on Tuesday. The Senate is expected to pick it up later this week. The budget includes:
Reductions in traditional infrastructure programs were partially offset by increases to some existing programs as well as a host of newly funded grant programs to help communities deal with water infrastructure, among them:
The post Federal Budget Supports Great Lakes, Clean Water Funding appeared first on Healing Our Waters Coalition.
Healing Our Waters Coalition
https://healthylakes.org/federal-budget-supports-great-lakes-clean-water-funding/
Adam Bechle of Wisconsin Sea Grant presents coastal erosion information resources at the Lake Superior Water Levels Conference. Image by Marie Zhuikov.
On Dec. 11, more than 90 people gathered in Duluth, Minnesota, for a conference on western Lake Superior water levels. They heard and provided the latest intel on what’s going on with the lake and what’s predicted for the near future.
Wisconsin Sea Grant Coastal Engineer Adam Bechle was one of the presenters, along with Michelle Shrider, general manager of the Washburn Marina and chair of the Wisconsin Marine Association, a nonprofit organization that focuses on issues facing the recreational boating industry in Wisconsin.
Melissa Kropfreiter with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers provided an overview of water levels in Lake Superior and the other Great Lakes. The corps has tracked water level fluctuations for 100 years. She said natural processes such as rainfall and ice cover have a far greater impact on lake levels than do more direct manmade influences such as water flow controls.
“There is nothing man can do to control these lakes,” Kropfreiter said. “We can influence them by a matter of inches, but we can’t control them.”
The past five years (ending October 31, 2019) have been the wettest on record for the Great Lakes basin. Looking ahead, Kropfreiter said the outlook is for wetter than normal weather for the next three months. Water levels in Lake Superior are expected to remain high and new record highs could be set again in the coming year.
An audience member asked Kropfreiter if extremes in water levels are the new normal. She responded affirmatively, saying that her professional colleagues predict that higher highs and lower lows will occur more frequently.
Brandon Krumweide, the Great Lakes regional geospatial coordinator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office for Coastal Management in Duluth played with some water numbers. He noted that only about a meter separates Lake Superior’s record high and low water levels. The record low was recorded in 2007, and the record high was recorded in October this year (2019). Although a meter of water doesn’t sound like much, Krumweide calculated that the amount of water gained by the lake between 2007 and 2019 is enough to fill 62.4 million Olympic-size swimming pools!
He noted that wind is also increasing. Many of the worst recent gales have occurred during the month of October. These cause high waves and more erosion along the coast.
When asked if locals should change the stock “Gales of November” phrase to the “Gales of October,” Krumweide said he prefers the term “The Gales of Fall,” because many of the wind storms occur in that season.
During a panel presentation on local perspectives of water level impacts, Shrider said that ice and high-water levels in winter are causing dock damage in her marina and other marinas. She reminded the audience about the damage done to Saxon Harbor’s walls and breakwaters by recent storms. In Washburn, the top of the break wall broke off during a storm and needed to be repaired.
The recent windy and wet weather has heavily impacted tourism. “There’s a shrinking population of boaters who are willing to go out in less-favorable weather conditions as they age,” she said. “Our marinas are full, but the boats don’t leave their slips.” This also means that boaters are not inviting their friends to go out with them as much, which has led to declines in lodging income for her local communities. She said numbers were down 15-20% this year and 10% last year.
During his presentation, Bechle described several sources of information that Sea Grant offers to people who are dealing with water level issues. The first is “Living on the Coast,” a free 50-page booklet that describes the natural processes that cause erosion, how people can protect their coastal investments, and the economics of different protection actions.
Sea Grant also offers many fact sheets on related topics, which can be found online here.
The conference wrapped up with small group sessions where people moved around the room and identified critical resources that could help their communities address lake level impacts and improve resilience.
The Lake Superior highs and lows conference was organized by the Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, NOAA, Minnesota Sea Grant and the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program.
Blog – Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/the-gales-of-october-lake-superior-water-levels-conference-highlights-highs-and-lows/
Coalition Urges House to Vote on Great Lakes Restoration Re-authorization
Bi-Partisan bill would increase restoration funding from $300 million to $475 million per year.
ANN ARBOR, MICH. (December 4, 2019) – The Healing Our Waters – Great Lakes Coalition sent a letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi yesterday, urging the House of Representatives to bring H.R. 4031, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act of 2019, to the floor for consideration this year. The act re-authorizes the successful Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and increases the annual authorization over five years from $300 million to $475 million per year.
“Over the past decade the GLRI has improved lives across Great Lakes communities after decades of environmental damage threatened public health, the regional economy, and drinking water,” the letter reads. “The GLRI has allowed the 8-state region to undertake one of the world’s largest freshwater ecosystem restoration projects. Since its inception, the initiative has resulted in economic returns of more than 3 to 1 across the region and made tremendous progress.”
Laura Rubin, director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition, said:
“This funding re-authorization is excellent news for the 30 million Americans who rely on the Great Lakes for their drinking water, jobs, recreation, and way of life. Over the past decade, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has been producing results for communities across the region, but serious threats remain. This increased annual re-authorization acknowledges the work we have left to do. We thank Reps. David Joyce and Marcy Kaptur for their leadership, and we thank the region’s House delegation, who are working in a spirit of bi-partisan cooperation to make sure Great Lakes restoration and protection remain a national priority. We urge the House of Representatives to bring this bill to the floor without delay.”
The post Coalition Urges House to Vote on Great Lakes Restoration Re-authorization appeared first on Healing Our Waters Coalition.
Healing Our Waters Coalition
https://healthylakes.org/coalition-urges-house-to-vote-on-great-lakes-restoration-re-authorization/
Great Lakes Action Plan Offers Steady Path Forward
Last month, the EPA released its long-awaited Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Action Plan III, outlining the strategy guiding federal actions to restore and protect the Lakes being undertaken by federal agencies in partnership with the region.
The plan’s release comes at a time when both the U.S. House and Senate are seeking to increase funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative beyond $300 million per year. Over the last 10 years, Congress has invested over $3.1 billion in Great Lakes Restoration, and securing a strong action plan has long been a priority of the Healing Our Waters – Great Lakes Coalition.
The recently released plan for the Great Lakes hews closely to previously released action plans. It guides federal restoration efforts around four major priorities: cleaning up toxic hot-spots (so-called Areas of Concern), restoring fish and wildlife habitat, working to stop the spread of invasive species such as Asian Carp, and reducing agricultural runoff to fight toxic algal blooms in the Great Lakes.
Here’s our take on the EPA’s action plan:
1. These are the right priorities to focus on – taken together, they point to a solid plan for restoring and preserving the health of the Great Lakes.
2. It’s going to take robust funding and strong policy to make this plan a reality. In addition to robust funding for restoration projects, it will be essential to have strong policies in place that protect the Great Lakes and the waters that feed them. The Trump Administration and the EPA must reverse its decision to gut protections for streams, waterways and wetlands. With many cities and towns still living with unsafe drinking water, now is not the time to cut back on clean water enforcement. We need to strengthen clean water protections, not roll them back.
3. Robust investments in water infrastructure are also needed to ensure that restoration efforts last for the long term. Aging sewer and stormwater infrastructure threaten the health of the Great Lakes and the health of the millions of Americans who rely on the lakes for drinking water. The Great Lakes region faces at least $179 billion of needed improvements to its water infrastructure to provide local communities with drinking water and wastewater services. It’s imperative that Congress boost investments to fix our crumbling infrastructure.
4. The bipartisan support for Great Lakes restoration continues to pay dividends. Over the last decade, Republicans and Democrats have come together to make Great Lakes restoration a national priority and to provide much-needed funding for restoration efforts. That cooperation continues. Recently the U.S. Senate recommended increasing Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funding from $300 million to $310 million; and the U.S. House boosted restoration investments from $300 million to $320 million. The final budget is yet to be determined—yet it’s clear that bipartisan cooperation has been essential to success. The Great Lakes congressional delegation has shown great leadership to make that funding a reality.
5. Climate change will only exacerbate threats to the lakes—and needs to be taken into account as restoration efforts move forward. As climate change continues its course, the Great Lakes region is witnessing more intense storms, greater flooding, more shore erosion and more runoff pollution that fuels toxic algal outbreaks. These new challenges will require continued investment in the lakes, as well as solid plans to ensure that their worst effects can be mitigated.
6. Future plans must explicitly address equity and justice issues. Low-income communities and communities of color are bearing the brunt of environmental degradation caused by pollution and climate change. Yet, traditionally, these communities have been the least likely to have a seat at the table when solutions are being devised. Any plan to restore the Great Lakes must take these inequities into account and take the lead from these communities.
Moving forward, the Healing Our Waters – Great Lakes Coalition looks to work with Congress to finalize the restoration funding allocation and maintain funding for the long term. We also seek to secure funding to upgrade vital water infrastructure and to eliminate the rollbacks of clean water protections that threaten the health and vitality of our lakes.
The post Great Lakes Action Plan Offers Steady Path Forward appeared first on Healing Our Waters Coalition.
Healing Our Waters Coalition
https://healthylakes.org/great-lakes-action-plan-offers-steady-path-forward/
Guest post by Bridget Faust, 2018-19 Wisconsin Sea Grant Fellow
Bridget Faust
I arrived at the Hall of the States first thing in the morning on April 2, 2018. As I walked up to the building, I glimpsed the top of the Capitol dome and couldn’t help but smile. I thought to myself, “I live here now. I work here now.”
It was my first day at the Coastal States Organization (CSO), and I was nervous. I quickly signed myself into the building, made my way up to the sixth floor, took a deep breath and walked into the office where I’d be spending about half my time for the next 15 months. The space was small. Three offices and three cubicles fit snugly inside. The walls were aquarium blue.
Days later, I repeated this exercise when I went to NOAA’s Silver Spring office for the first time. The sound of waves breaking in the wave pool that stands outside of SSMC4 told me that I was in the right place.
And so it began. After five years of working towards this fellowship opportunity, I was in D.C. serving as a Wisconsin Sea Grant Fellow in a joint position with NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management (OCM) and CSO.
During my time in D.C., I worked on a variety of things that OCM and CSO work on together and helped them to improve their coordination. This included supporting implementation of the National Coastal Zone Management Program Strategic Plan by coordinating the Digital Coast Resource for Coastal Managers webinar series, helping to run CSO’s Coastal Nonpoint Work Group, supporting the administration of the Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program, and serving on the project team for an economic assessment scoping study of the National CZM Program.
Time passed more quickly than I could have imagined, and along the way, I learned some major lessons that I will carry with me for the rest of my career. I have summarized these lessons below for any recent graduate or graduate student who is considering applying to a fellowship program.
At the Restoring America’s Estuaries / Coastal States Organization summit in Long Beach, California.
Say yes to new and challenging opportunities.
During my time as a fellow, I was asked to take the lead on a number of tasks that pushed me outside of my comfort zone. For example, having never worked in the nonpoint source pollution realm, facilitating calls on the Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program seemed like a daunting task. After all, I wasn’t an expert. How could I help states that have so much more experience? Working with the work group ended up being one of the most rewarding experiences of my fellowship, and I am so glad I ended up saying yes to the opportunity. Fellowships provide recent graduates with a rare chance to try new things! I would encourage future fellows to say yes when they are asked to try something new to benefit fully from this experience.
Know what you want to get out of your fellowship before you start.
Before I even started my fellowship, I outlined learning objectives and experiences that I wanted to gain with my career goals in mind. While I didn’t end up accomplishing all of them, knowing what I wanted to get out of my fellowship before I started allowed me to tailor my experience so it not only benefited OCM and CSO, but also allowed me to gain the skills that I needed to build my resume.
Ask questions, even if they seem foolish.
Exploring D.C. with my fiance, Josh.
This probably goes without saying, but the old adage is true: there’s no such thing as a stupid question. Almost a year into my fellowship, I made the mistake of assuming that staff didn’t need to register for a meeting that we were helping to plan. That’s how it had been at my last job, so why wouldn’t it be the same here, right? Wrong. I did need to register and by the time I asked the question, the meeting was just weeks away. Everything worked out in the end, but the stress of the situation could have been avoided had I just asked instead of making an assumption.
I had a chance to see the Block Island Wind Farm up close during a site visit for CSO’s fall meeting in Providence, Rhode Island.
The Wisconsin Sea Grant Fellowship was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to gain practical experience applying the skills I’d learned as a graduate student at UW-Madison.
It also helped to prepare me for the job I currently have today. Since July 2019, I have been working for CSS, a private sector firm in the environmental services industry, as a coastal management specialist on contract to NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management. I live and work from the Twin Cities area, which is home for me.
Aside from being in a different location, my day-to-day tasks have not changed significantly since my fellowship ended. I am still supporting National CZM Strategic Plan implementation and Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program administration. I am part of the economic assessment project team, and I still work closely with my former colleagues at CSO. The only major difference is that I no longer formally wear a CSO “hat.”
In sum, I’d highly recommend one of Sea Grant’s many fellowship programs to current graduate or Ph.D. students who are looking for practical experience outside of academia!
Photo credits: All photos in story submitted by Bridget Faust.
Blog – Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/lessons-learned-as-a-sea-grant-fellow/
Matt TenEyck, climbing out of a ballast water tank on a ship. Image by Carol Wolosz.
Matt TenEyck with the University of Wisconsin-Superior Lake Superior Research Institute presented the November River Talk at the Lake Superior Estuarium. His talk, “Influencing Industry and Research: Ballast Water,” offered the latest news in ballast water research.
TenEyck’s institute recently took over management of the ballast water testing facility located on Montreal Pier in the harbor near Barker’s Island. Called the Great Water Research Collaborative, the project provides scientific services to the maritime industry to promote “green shipping.” TenEyck said its focus is to test technologies designed to prevent new ballast water introductions of invasive species in the Great Lakes.
Contrary to popular belief, this does not mean that such systems would kill everything in the discharged ballast water. “The standard these technologies need to meet is fewer than 10 animals alive in 1,000 liters of water.”
Many of the audience members were eating popcorn in liter cardboard containers, and TenEyck pointed out that the standard was the equivalent of 10 organisms alive in about 1,000 popcorn containers.
“This is actually a higher sterility standard than hospitals are held to,” TenEyck said. “It’s a matter of risk management.” Also, such systems need to remove viruses and cannot discharge toxic substances back into the harbor.
The research collaborative solicits ballast water treatment ideas from the public. The staff then tests the ideas to see if they work. This can happen in several different ways: bench-testing, which is done in a lab; land-testing, which is done at the Montreal Pier facility; and/or shipboard testing, which is done on working ships either in the Great Lakes or oceans.
Some of the recent bench-testing they’ve done includes technologies that use sound waves or electric currents.
Land testing makes use of four large white mock ballast tanks that are the major features of the Montreal Pier facility. TenEyck explained that two of the tanks are used for treatment testing and the other two function as scientific controls. They collect data during experiments every 15 seconds.
Shipboard testing involves using a proposed technology on a ship for six months in a variety of water quality conditions.
After testing, the collaborative shares the results with the inventors. TenEyck said that so far, they’ve tested 26 bench-scale systems, of which four had promise. They’ve also tested 15 land-based systems and three shipboard systems. They have used things like chlorine, lye, hydrogen peroxide, ultra-violet light, ultrasound and sonic energy.
Only one other ballast water research facility exists in the U.S.: the Golden Bear Research Center in California.
The search for a workable system continues. “Our job is to be knowledgeable and provide sound science for the process,” TenEyck said. “We have no stake in the outcome. We serve as a third party and provide credible data.”
The next River Talk will take place at 7 p.m. on Jan. 8, 2020, also at the Estuarium. Duluth Seaway Port Authority Director Deb DeLuca will discuss issues that the Duluth-Superior Harbor faces.
River Talks is an informal monthly series about the St. Louis River Estuary hosted by the Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve and the Minnesota and Wisconsin Sea Grant programs.
Blog – Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/river-talk-explored-ballast-water-research-at-uws/
Lake County, Indiana – Open House Presentation [.pdf] – CCO Meeting Presentation [.pdf]
Press Release [.pdf]
Wednesday, December 11, 2019
CCO Meeting 2-4 pm | Open House 5-7 pm
Hammond Port Authority – Clipper Room
701 Casino Center Drive
Hammond, Indiana 46320
Van Buren County, Michigan – Open House Presentation [.pdf] – CCO Meeting Presentation [.pdf]
Press Release [.pdf]
Thursday, December 12, 2019
CCO Meeting 2-4 pm | Open House 5-7 pm
South Haven City Hall – Council Chambers
539 Phoenix Street
South Haven, Michigan 49090
Great Lakes Coastal Flood Study
Great Lakes Coastal Flood Study
https://www.greatlakescoast.org/2019/11/18/lake-michigan-community-consultation-officers-meeting-and-open-house-for-lake-county-indiana-and-van-buren-county-michigan/
The Fox River Navigational System Authority board of directors approved conducting a suite of studies to provide more complete information to the DNR on the behavior of round gobies in an electric barrier environment. This series of studies would provide the following information:
Four of the studies would be conducted in a laboratory, the fifth study is optional and would be conducted in one of the closed locks. If all five studies are conducted, the cost would be about $165,000, paid from FRNSA’s capital budget.
This will be the first such scientific study on the behavior of the round goby from larval to adult stages. Consultants are confident the studies will answer all questions raised by the DNR and provide definitive information on the fish’s response to electric currents and water velocity, two components central to the electric barrier proposed for the Menasha lock. For more information, visit this link.
Blog – Fox Locks
http://foxlocks.org/2019/11/16/update-on-menasha-lock/
Enjoy some of the historic photos from our archives. If you can identify the location or the date for any of these photos, please send us an email on our contact page. Enjoy the walk back in time!
Blog – Fox Locks
http://foxlocks.org/2019/11/15/historic-photo-gallery/
This summer, scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey set up at the closed lock 2 in Kaukauna and conducted a series of studies designed to assess the effects of a carbon dioxide barrier. The team built a large carbon dioxide infusion system and operated it in the closed lock and pond, taking thousands of measurements and recording data. This winter, scientists will assess the data to determine the effectiveness of a CO2 barrier in deterring fish, and the potential effects on animals, the river, and the atmosphere. Listen to this short video for more information and watch for the results in 2020!
Blog – Fox Locks
http://foxlocks.org/2019/11/15/study-underway-on-co2-barriers/
A meeting of the Board of Directors will be held tomorrow morning via conference call. As this is a public meeting, interested parties will be able to dial into the meeting according to the attached information. The purpose of the call is to review and vote on emergency repairs to Appleton lock 4.
PUBLIC MEETING NOTICE 11.15.19
Blog – Fox Locks
http://foxlocks.org/2019/11/14/public-meeting-notice/
Muskegon County, Michigan – Open House Presentation [.pdf] – CCO Meeting Presentation [.pdf]
Press Release [.pdf]
Tuesday, December 3, 2019
CCO Meeting 2-4 pm | Open House 5-7 pm
Muskegon Community College – The University Room
221 Quarterline Road
Muskegon, Michigan 49442
Ottawa County, Michigan – Open House Presentation [.pdf] – CCO Meeting Presentation [.pdf]
Press Release [.pdf]
Wednesday, December 4, 2019
CCO Meeting 2-4 pm | Open House 5-7 pm
Ottawa County Emergency Management – Training Room
12220 Fillmore Street
West Olive, Michigan 49440
Allegan County, Michigan – Open House Presentation [.pdf] – CCO Meeting Presentation [.pdf]
Press Release [.pdf]
Thursday, December 5, 2019
CCO Meeting 2-4 pm | Open House 5-7 pm
Allegan District Library – Carnegie Room
331 Hubbard Street
Allegan, Michigan 49010
Great Lakes Coastal Flood Study
Great Lakes Coastal Flood Study
https://www.greatlakescoast.org/2019/11/05/lake-michigan-community-consultation-officers-meeting-and-open-house-for-muskegon-ottawa-and-allegan-counties-michigan/
