Extreme water levels and stronger storms are not only threatening homes and beaches along Lake Michigan — they could also send toxic waste into communities and the lake, according to a new report by the Environmental Law & Policy Center. Read the full story by Indiana Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220617-erosion
Lower lake levels offer a welcome change for communities and property owners who have been trying to keep up with erosion affecting their shorelines, but some experts are advising caution before folks get swept up in a wave of relief. Read the full story by the Record Eagle.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220617-lake-levels
FLINT, Mich. (AP) — Authorities focused on a chemical company Thursday as the likely source of a spill that has left a dark oily sheen for miles on the Flint River.
Lockhart Chemical in Flint was cooperating with state regulators and removing material from underground storage areas, said Jill Greenberg, spokeswoman at the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/ap-chemical-company-flint-river-spill/
On Wednesday, the Biden-Harris Administration announced a massive step forward in the fight to combat toxic PFAS pollution and protect clean drinking water.
First, the EPA is publishing four new drinking water lifetime health advisories for certain PFAS, using updated science to lower the accepted standard of PFAS concentration in water and further limiting the usage of PFAS in chemical and product manufacturing. Second, the EPA is making available $1 billion in grant funding through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) to help communities that are on the frontlines of PFAS contamination. This will be the first of $5 billion through the IIJA that can be used to reduce PFAS in drinking water in communities facing disproportionate impacts from the forever chemicals.
“Though many organizations have been advocating for stronger PFAS standards, this progress wouldn’t be happening without the leadership of PFAS affected communities,” said Laura Rubin, director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition. “We are glad to see that communities that have experienced the greatest harms from these toxic chemicals are being prioritized in terms of funding.”
In the Great Lakes region, local groups like Save Our H2O, the Great Lakes PFAS Action Network, the Huron River Watershed Council, and Need Our Water have been working tirelessly to protect their own communities from further PFAS contamination, and subsequently, brought regional and national attention to this issue. The Coalition thanks them for their continued leadership.
These efforts support the goals of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition’s legislative priorities.
The post Big Win for PFAS Reduction appeared first on Healing Our Waters Coalition.
Healing Our Waters Coalition
https://healthylakes.org/big-win-for-pfas-reduction/
In our newest TikTok, Echo reporter Genevieve Fox talks about this year's bird flu outbreak and gives a tutorial on how to clean your birdfeeder.
The post Clean your birdfeeder right now: TikTok edition first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2022/06/17/clean-your-birdfeeder-right-now-tiktok-edition/
June 14, 2022
Fresh is a biweekly newsletter from Circle of Blue that unpacks the biggest international, state, and local policy news stories facing the Great Lakes region today. Sign up for Fresh: A Great Lakes Policy Briefing, straight to your inbox, every other Tuesday.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/fresh-research-highlights-gaps-in-federal-air-pollution-data/
By Mylène Ratelle, University of Waterloo, and Jessie Yakeleya, Sahtu Renewable Resources Board, The Conversation
is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.
In Indigenous communities that have lacked access to safe water for years, getting access to a safe water supply is crucial.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/northern-indigenous-communities-drinking-water/
By Darby Hinkley, The Alpena News
This article is part of a collaboration between The Alpena News and Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television to bring audiences stories about the Great Lakes, especially Lake Huron and its watershed.
ALPENA — In her experience picking up litter along the Lake Huron shoreline, Meag Schwartz has seen a whole lot of cigarette butts.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/keeping-waters-clean/
By Steve Schulwitz, The Alpena News
This article is part of a collaboration between The Alpena News and Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television to bring audiences stories about the Great Lakes, especially Lake Huron and its watershed.
ALPENA – Aquatic invasive species continue to spread and threaten the ecosystem in the waterways near Alpena, local environmental professionals say.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/group-battles-invasive-species/
By Julie Riddle, The Alpena News
This article is part of a collaboration between The Alpena News and Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television to bring audiences stories about the Great Lakes, especially Lake Huron and its watershed.
ALPENA — Spring showers may bring spring flowers, but they can also carry pollutants into the lake that provides Alpena’s drinking water and many tourism dollars.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/keeping-pollutants-out/
Green Bay, WI
https://www.weather.gov/grb/061522_severe_event
FLINT, Mich. (AP) — Several thousands of gallons of an oil-based, dark black material with a petroleum smell spilled into the Flint River in Flint, authorities said Wednesday.
The spilled appeared to be 5 miles (8 kilometers) miles long, Jill Greenberg, a spokeswoman for Michigan’s environmental agency, told MLive.com.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/ap-oily-material-flint-river/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FAA3F974.SpecialWeatherStatement.1263FAA50120WI.GRBSPSGRB.3b77a733acfe35fc01f412b80021d336
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/archiving-ocean-biodiversity-information-system-usa-obis-usa
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FA969108.TornadoWarning.1263FA9693C4WI.GRBSVSGRB.e10b9e335b64aa3537ba334793817f8e
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FA969108.SevereWeatherStatement.1263FAA2B730WI.GRBSVSGRB.01688f088e0782352d7f59180c77d5f3
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FA968F78.SevereThunderstormWarning.1263FAA24200WI.GRBSVSGRB.2c83e3e342013ce0541890afab198912
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FA95F018.TornadoWatch.1263FAA2B730WI.WNSWOU1.5163ebe8e974244efdb802dfa6793d55
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FA95F018.TornadoWatch.1263FAA2B730WI.WNSWOU1.8fa2684dff64f2e61eb5f23ce2d11408
Michigan agencies are responding to a significant oil spill in the Flint River. Officials said the spill, estimated at several thousand gallons, was reported to a state hotline Wednesday morning. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220615-flintriver
A report by Chicago’s Environmental Law and Policy Center, focuses on toxic hazards in the four states bordering Lake Michigan but also notes that densely populated neighborhoods in Chicago could face potentially devastating flooding if weather patterns continue. Large parts of those areas may face more severe flooding, as much as a half-mile inland, and pose threat to lakefront superfund sites. Read the full story by Chicago Sun-Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220615-climate-impacts
Environmental advocates argue the gear oil spill last week in St. Marys River connecting Lakes Superior and Huron amounts to a small taste of the potential ecological catastrophe that could strike the heart of the Great Lakes should a controversial underwater petrochemical pipeline rupture. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220615-oil-spill
In six months, Detroit’s temporary ban on water shut-offs runs out, and residents with past-due bills will once again be at risk of losing access to water. More than 60,000 city households have delinquent water bills. Read the full story by Detroit Free Press and Bridge Detroit.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220615-water-shut-offs
Wisconsin Republicans will allow regulations Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ administration developed to control pollution from a group of chemicals known as PFAS to take effect. Regulations that are being finalized include a 70 parts per trillion standard for drinking water and an 8 ppt standard for most surface waters that can support fish, while leaving well water unregulated. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220615-pfas-standards
Mike Shoreman, a passionate advocate for mental health after suddenly losing his mobility in 2018, has crossed Lake Erie this summer and set his sights on crossing all five Great Lakes. Shoreman is set to finish his crossing of Lake Huron next and would become the first person with a disability to paddleboard across Lake Huron. Read the full story by The Toronto Star.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220615-great-lakes-crossing
A large alewife die-off washed up on the beach along the state of Michigan’s Lake Michigan shoreline. While it may be an unpleasant sight, die offs are a sign the Lake Michigan salmon fishery is in good shape and benefitting juvenile fish. Read the full story by Manistee News Advocate.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220615-alewives
The Nature Conservancy is wrapping up restoration of Erie Marsh Preserve set to be completed in 2023. The project, which began in 2011, reconnected the marsh to Lake Erie making roughly 250 acres of potential habitat available to fish for spawning and foraging. Read the full story by The Monroe Evening News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220615-erie-preserve
Staff at the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians Natural Resources Department have been working since 2013 to revitalize vulnerable fish species in the 1836 treaty territory. Read the full story by Michigan Advance.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220615-fish
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has started to release the findings of voluntary per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) testing of water utilities across the state, finding new contaminations. Read the full story by Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220615-pfas-locations
In a recent, unofficial outlook of the Great Lakes water levels, the Army Corps of Engineers Detroit District forecasts that the Great Lakes water levels may continue to be above their long-term average for the following year should weather and ice cover conditions be similar to this past winter. Read the full story by Thumbwind.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220615-lake-levels
From lead pipes to PFAS, drinking water contamination is a major issue plaguing cities and towns all around the Great Lakes. Cleaning up contaminants and providing safe water to everyone is an ongoing public health struggle.
Keep up with drinking water-related developments in the Great Lakes area.
Click on the headline to read the full story:
Illinois:
Illinois American Water is encouraging customers to view the company’s 2021 water quality reports to learn more about the source and quality of their drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/drinking-water-news-roundup-flooding-risk-epa-grants-ohio/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FA94BDD8.SpecialWeatherStatement.1263FA966CB4WI.GRBSPSGRB.dc11c86e207f66697d09da2f8601308a
In our newest TikTok, Echo reporter Danielle James discusses how the pandemic's impact on supply chains could help the recycling industry bring in new business.
The post Supply chain slowdown could boost demand for recycled materials: TikTok edition first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2022/06/15/supply-chain-slowdown-could-boost-demand-for-recycled-materials-tiktok-edition/
June 30th, 2022 UPDATE: The Appleton, Cedars, Little Chute and Combined locks will be open this weekend and will operate until 11:00PM on July 3rd and 4th!
Little Rapids and De Pere will be open until midnight on July 4th!
Original Post June 15th
Attention boaters–all four Appleton locks are closed to boat traffic as of 6.12.22. Repairs are needed to lock 3 to replace rotted boards on the giant lock gates. Our team is hard at work to get this done as quickly as possible and we hope to re-open by the weekend of the 4th of July.
We are fixing a sink hole in the levee at Little Chute, so that lock and Combined Locks are closed this weekend, June 18 & 19. Stay tuned to our website and Facebook page to find out when these locks will re-open.
If you have any questions, please contact our offices at 920-455-9174.
Blog – Fox Locks
http://foxlocks.org/2022/06/15/appleton-locks-closed-to-traffic/
Attention boaters–all four Appleton locks are closed to boat traffic as of 6.12.22. Repairs are needed to lock 3 to replace rotted boards on the giant lock gates. Our team is hard at work to get this done as quickly as possible and we hope to re-open by the Fourth of July. If you have any questions, please contact our offices at 920-455-9174.
Blog – Fox Locks
http://foxlocks.org/2022/06/15/appleton-locks-closed-to-traffic/
Green Bay, WI
https://www.weather.gov/grb/072222_severe
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FA86859C.AirQualityAlert.1263FA93F5D8WI.GRBAQAGRB.ec8586610c017e3b61503aff62a72b6b
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FA865E8C.HeatAdvisory.1263FA9326D0WI.GRBNPWGRB.106c48c492e73d19a5c7a30750a76a30
In February 2021, Detroit’s Michelle Martinez was excited like she hadn’t been in years about the potential of progress on core environmental and climate justice issues.
President Donald Trump, who took the U.S. out of the Paris Climate Accords and was rolling back Obama-era environmental protections, was out of office.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/michigan-gov-plan-action/
By Todd Richmond, Associated Press
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin Republicans will allow regulations Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ administration developed to control pollution from a group of chemicals known as PFAS to take effect, a spokesman for the lawmaker who controls the Legislature’s rules committee said Monday.
The Legislature’s Republican-controlled Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Reviews has no objections to the regulations and will allow the Department of Natural Resources to implement them, said Mike Mikalsen, an aide to the committee’s co-chairman, Sen.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/ap-wisconsin-republicans-pfas-standards/
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/global-climate-202205
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FA85341C.HeatAdvisory.1263FA9326D0WI.GRBNPWGRB.106c48c492e73d19a5c7a30750a76a30
A new study by Michigan State University shows an increase in doctor visits for shortness of breath among long-term sand and gravel mine workers in Michigan, compared to the rate for production workers in other industries. The state has more than 3,500 surface miners, 1,207 of whom voluntarily participated in the study.
The post Study raises health concerns for sand and gravel workers first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2022/06/14/study-raises-health-concerns-for-sand-and-gravel-workers/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FA840BA0.HeatAdvisory.1263FA9326D0WI.GRBNPWGRB.106c48c492e73d19a5c7a30750a76a30
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FA779370.HeatAdvisory.1263FA9326D0WI.GRBNPWGRB.106c48c492e73d19a5c7a30750a76a30
By Eleanore Catolico, Energy News Network
This story was first published on the Energy News Network and was republished here with permission.
This article is co-published by the Energy News Network and Planet Detroit with support from the Race and Justice Reporting Initiative at the Damon J.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/agencies-environmental-data-residents/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263FA77228C.HeatAdvisory.1263FA9326D0WI.GRBNPWGRB.106c48c492e73d19a5c7a30750a76a30
One of the last known (and most famous) blue pike was landed by hook and line in 1962. In 1983, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service declared the blue pike extinct. Yet, nearly 40 years later, the population remains robust and healthy – in the hearts and minds of countless anglers.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/06/lake-erie-blue-pike-never-forgotten/
Michigan is giving thousands of dollars in grant funding to 16 schools across the state to develop science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) projects that teach students about the importance of Michigan’s Great Lakes and freshwater resources. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220613-great-lakes-programs
