The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is reminding anglers that lake sturgeon are protected, cannot be targeted while ice fishing, and must be released as quickly as possible if caught by mistake. Read the full story by the Lansing State Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-sturgeon-protections
Nonprofit managers worry that a large federal grant to help Michigan farm and forest owners preserve their lands may fall victim to a vast Trump administration funding freeze that’s being litigated in federal court. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-forest-farm-funding
Scores of water mains throughout Chicago are too close to sewer lines, according to a new report that cautions the potential risks to public health could cost taxpayers millions of dollars to fix. Read the full story by the Chicago Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-chicago-water-pipes
An interview with the founder of the annual Chequamegon Kite Fest in Ashland, Wisconsin, sheds light on winter kite flying and its impact on the community. Read the full interview by Lake Superior Magazine.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250221-winter-kites
Carl Gawboy, a celebrated Minnesota artist and Ojibwe scholar of Finnish and Bois Forte Anishinaabe descent, has dedicated his life to preserving and sharing the stories of his people. In his book, Fur Trade Nation: An Ojibwe’s Graphic History, Gawboy combines his prolific artistic talent, family stories, and cultural research to shed light on a largely overlooked chapter of history.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/a-different-perspective-on-the-fur-trade/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS; Michigan Public, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; and The Narwhal who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/trump-firings-hit-great-lakes-sea-lamprey-program-michigan-forestry/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS; Michigan Public, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; and The Narwhal who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/trump-firings-hit-great-lakes-sea-lamprey-program-michigan-forestry/
By Izzy Ross and Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco
This coverage is made possible through a partnership between Grist, Interlochen Public Radio in Northern Michigan, and WBEZ, a public radio station serving the Chicago metropolitan region.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/will-jd-vance-save-the-great-lakes-from-trump/
It’s official: Emma Hauser, Wisconsin Sea Grant’s aquaculture outreach and extension specialist, is extraordinary.
Emma Hauser, aquaculture outreach extraordinaire, helps two kids with a fish dissection.
Hauser, who works at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Northern Aquaculture Demonstration Facility, was recently voted Extension/Outreach Extraordinaire by the Aquaculture Information Exchange community. The award celebrates aquaculture professionals who have gone above and beyond to serve those in the industry.
“I love my job, and I learn every day, so I’m very honored and proud to be in this position,” Hauser said at a virtual ceremony announcing the winners.
The award comes as no surprise to those who have worked with Hauser and witnessed her skill and enthusiasm for engaging preschoolers through adults about aquaculture.
“Emma has done an outstanding job with promoting and advancing aquaculture through outreach and extension in Wisconsin and the upper Midwest,” said Tyler Firkus, facilities operation manager at NADF, who nominated her for the honor.
In addition to leading tours of NADF and discussing best practices with fish farmers, Hauser runs a program bringing aquaculture to classrooms across Wisconsin. She also created a guidebook and companion video series about raising walleye for commercial production, worked on a first-of-its-kind aquaculture coloring and sticker book for kids, and is the lead organizer of the annual Wisconsin Aquaculture Conference.
“Her efforts play a large role in establishing a robust workforce development program in the region and ensures aquaculture is well represented in a wide variety of formats for all interested audiences,” said Firkus.
The Aquaculture Information Exchange hosted the awards to celebrate the first anniversary of the online community. Funded by NOAA and USDA and managed by Virginia Sea Grant, the Exchange is a social networking platform that supports communication and collaboration among aquaculture professionals and features discussion boards, training videos, event and job listings, and networking opportunities.
The post Aquaculture outreach extraordinaire wins award first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.
News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant
News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/aquaculture-outreach-extraordinaire-wins-award/
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.02375f5b9799cd0781990cd5ae5c8a8ba27032e9.002.1.cap
By Carrie Klein, Inside Climate News
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. Sign up for their newsletter here.
Michigan’s Palisades Nuclear Generating Station is one step closer to becoming the first nuclear power plant in the United States to reopen.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/michigan-environmental-impact-statement-palisades-nuclear-plant-restart/
By Isabelle Tavares, Planet Detroit
This article was republished with permission from Planet Detroit. Sign up for Planet Detroit’s weekly newsletter here.
Manuel Nolasco stood in frigid air outside his flooded Southwest Detroit home early Tuesday, chipping away at thick ice chunks that had frozen his car wheels in place.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/southwest-detroit-homes-flooded-families-displaced-by-water-main-rupture/
A UNITING EFFORT Improving water quality one relationship at a time Steve demonstrates how to monitor for invasive species at an Adopt-a-Launch site. They describe themselves as “three old guys who love to kayak,” but they’re on a mission to see the East River become a paddling destination that [...]
The post Watershed Moments: A Uniting Effort appeared first on Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance.
Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance
https://fwwa.org/2025/02/19/watershed-moments-uniting-effort/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=watershed-moments-uniting-effort
Two of the biggest threats to the Great Lakes region’s $7 billion fishery — invasive carp and sea lampreys — will get worse if the Trump Administration’s federal cuts and hiring freezes are not done more methodically, officials said Monday. Read the full story by The Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-funding-hiring-impacts
Travelling for international meetings or even joining a call with Canadian counterparts has become impossible for some U.S. government scientists, under new directives since U.S. President Donald Trump took office. Given that the Great Lakes — and their aquatic life — straddle both sides of the border, having American scientists suddenly barred from meetings has had deep impacts. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-binational-coordination
U.S. Senators Gary Peters and Elissa Slotkin introduced the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act of 2025 to reauthorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative through 2031 and increase the program’s annual authorized funding levels from $475 million to $500 million. Read the full story by Record & Clarion.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-great-lakes-bill
Rolling back clean water protection, gutting agencies and defunding science, research and monitoring is a non-starter for the Great Lakes region, said the director of the Healing Our Waters coalition in a recent interview. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-great-lakes-priorities
The patchwork of research that’s been done on microplastics in the Great Lakes has revealed gaps that need to be filled, a scientific panel reporting to the U.S. and Canadian governments stated in a recent webinar. Read the full story by The Toledo Blade.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-microplastics-research
A $110,000 grant will go toward a training program in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District that helps prepare students for the maritime and aviation industries. The grant, approved by the Port of Cleveland, will be given to Argonaut, the nonprofit that provides the hands-on training at Davis Aerospace and Maritime High School. Read the full story by Spectrum News 1.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-maritime-training-grant
In 2024, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) issued permits to Canadian energy company Enbridge to reroute its Line 5 pipeline, prompting a lawsuit from the Bad River Band. The tribe is asking an Ashland County judge to stay the Wisconsin DNR’s environmental impact statement for the reroute proposal and reverse state construction permits. Read the full story by WDIO-TV – Duluth, MN.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-pipeline-litigation
After barely registering in satellite images during the 2024 winter season, ice coverage has returned almost to the seasonal average across the Great Lakes this year. Read the full story by WJBK-TV – Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-ice-coverage
Two new cruise lines joined Cruise the Great Lakes this season and will make stops in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Read the full story by WLUC-TV – Marquette, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-cruise-stops
Citizens for a Safe and Clean Lake Superior is rolling out a new program to protect wetlands in Marquette County, Michigan. The organization is offering $750 to four landowners in the county who are willing to enter into a conservation easement to protect wetlands on their property. Read the full story by WLUC-TV – Marquette, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250219-wetland-conservation-program
Catch the latest energy news from around the Great Lakes region. Check back for these biweekly Energy News Roundups.
Chicago Democrat Michael Madigan — known for being the longest-serving legislative leader in United States history — was convicted last week of conspiracy, bribery and wire fraud.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/from-madigans-conviction-to-comeds-ev-rebate-program-how-illinois-is-shaping-its-energy-future/
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.2bbc922014d412f1b77ecf52f368b9e31169b068.001.1.cap
Ann Arbor, Michigan – The Great Lakes Commission (GLC) today issued a request for proposals (RFP) for projects that would help improve Great Lakes water quality by reducing nutrient loads from agricultural watersheds and eroding shorelines and streams. Indigenous Nations, nonfederal units of government, and incorporated nonprofit organizations are invited to apply for grants for up to $300,000 through the 2025 Great Lakes Sediment and Nutrient Reduction Program (GLSNRP) grant program.
For 34 years, grants provided by GLSNRP have enabled local partners to reduce nutrients and sediments entering the Great Lakes. 2025 applicants are invited to submit proposals for activities associated with one of the following project types: agricultural nonpoint, or stream/shoreline. Grants awarded through GLSNRP may support work over a period of up to four years.
A webinar for potential applicants will be held on March 13, 2025, at 2 p.m. Eastern. Applications are due by 5 p.m. Eastern on April 29, 2025 and will be reviewed by representatives from the eight Great Lakes states, as well as partners at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA). Final decisions on funded projects are anticipated in summer 2025, with work to begin no later than October 1, 2025.
The GLC has managed GLSNRP with funding support through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative since 2010. Funded projects support progress toward the achievement of GLRI Action Plan IV objectives and goals. This program is a partnership between NRCS, U.S. EPA, and the Great Lakes states. GLSNRP funding is subject to the availability of U.S. federal funding.
Please visit www.nutrientreduction.org for more information or contact Connor Roessler at croessler@glc.org.
The Great Lakes Commission, led by chair Mary Mertz, director of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, is a binational government agency established in 1955 to protect the Great Lakes and the economies and ecosystems they support. Its membership includes leaders from the eight U.S. states and two Canadian provinces in the Great Lakes basin. The GLC recommends policies and practices to balance the use, development, and conservation of the water resources of the Great Lakes and brings the region together to work on issues that no single community, state, province, or nation can tackle alone. Learn more at www.glc.org.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/news/glsnrp-rfp-021825
By Adam Yahya Rayes and Sarah Cwiek, Michigan Public
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit PBS, Michigan Public and The Narwhal who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/after-water-main-break-officials-say-homes-in-detroits-southwest-will-get-repairs-covered/
How trees are fighting back against the emerald ash borer and restoring a sacred lake.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/killer-trees-and-sacred-waters/
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.7f9b928c2c4785af0e71b5a68dc3138d35190f1c.001.1.cap
Rolling back clean water protection, gutting agencies and defunding science, research and monitoring is a non-starter for the Great Lakes region, says Ann Arbor environmental advocate Laura Rubin.
She was reacting to the new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Lee Zeldin’s recently released economy-oriented plan for the agency under President Donald Trump.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/veteran-great-lakes-advocate-cautions-prioritizing-economic-development-over-protecting-environment/
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.8f01510690c6998cf0427d94c7d06ed3f66df85c.002.1.cap
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.8fb9f60aa5bb4d743c4d536bba9ef6970d7c3a3e.002.1.cap
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.72e0b97c50b3075a6f1e17205150e7c694a8eadf.002.1.cap
Erik Grams was 12 years old when he first went camping in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northern Minnesota. Ever since that trip, he’s been coming back again and again. It’s his favorite place in the world.
“I really feel – when I’m in the Boundary Waters – that I’m in my element,” said Erik.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/back-to-the-boundary-waters/
I Speak for the Fish is a monthly column written by Great Lakes Now Contributor Kathy Johnson, coming out the third Monday of each month. Publishing the author’s views and assertions does not represent endorsement by Great Lakes Now or Detroit Public Television.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/i-speak-for-the-fish-hornyhead-chubs-are-cooler-than-their-name-implies/
A project to keep invasive carp species from reaching the Great Lakes could be in jeopardy as the state of Illinois halted its work, seeking assurances from the Trump administration that federal funding for the more than $1.1 billion project will not be revoked. Read the full story by Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-carp-barrier-halted
The Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa has objected to permitting Enbridge’s proposed Line 5 reroute under the Clean Water Act, saying the project will violate the tribe’s water quality standards. Read the full story by the Superior Telegram.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-line5-tribal-opposition
Waves of Yemeni immigrants came to the United States in the 1950s and 1960s settled in Michigan to work in the Great Lakes shipping industry. Today, around 30,000 people of Yemeni heritage are believed to live in Michigan. Read the full story by Bridge Michigan.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-great-lakes-sailors
U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Toledo, Ohio, recently introduced a bill, with a frequent Republican ally, requiring the federal government to promote cultural and historic attractions in the Great Lakes. Read the full story by the Sandusky Register.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-great-lakes-bill
A team of 20 divers scoured 40,000 square meters of the Grand River in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan. In just two weeks, the team found, identified, marked, tagged, and relocated every native freshwater mussel within their search area. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-mussel-surveys
Iceboats, some a century old, are the speedsters and yachts of frozen lakes. Iceboating flourished in Madison, Wisconsin, partly because of the city’s lakes and a culture that embraced wintertime activities. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-iceboat-speed
The sea lamprey nearly destroyed fishing in the Great Lakes. The new 90-minute film “The Fish Thief: A Great Lakes Mystery,” tells the story of the people who tackled the mystery of why lake trout, one of the most prized fish in the Great Lakes, nearly vanished. Read the full story by the Watertown Daily Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-sea-lamprey-documentary
Michigan’s Great Lakes are 33.19% covered in ice, the highest coverage so far in 2025 with Lake Erie in the lead, the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration said. Altogether, the Great Lakes are seeing more ice this year compared to 2023 and 2024. Read the full story by Lansing State Journal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-ice-cover
This year’s National Invasive Species Awareness Week is February 24-28, 2025. Anyone who enjoys gardening or the outdoors needs to stay informed. Read the full story by the Utica Observer-Dispatch.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20250217-spotted-lantern-fly
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has published the results and recommendations that came from a 2021-22 Waterway Benefits Study of the St. Louis River Estuary. The study was conducted to explore the estuary community’s deep connections to the St. Louis River, Lake Superior, and local streams to help increase access and guide decision-making.
During the study, 532 residents were surveyed about their experiences with Lake Superior, the Estuary, and local streams in the previous year. Follow-up interviews were conducted later with 42 survey participants about their relationships with water. This fact sheet offers an overview of the study’s findings.
Other project partners include the Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve and the University of Minnesota Duluth.
The post How people connect to the St. Louis River Estuary first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.Blog | Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/how-people-connect-to-the-st-louis-river-estuary/
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.56c0d37cb50168f8398029cda5bc91681883010f.001.1.cap
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.e223ebf6c881f9b61aa3ff15b52ad5419f00706d.001.1.cap
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.1e20ea2b12c9f4a6d69c35acc5c72c38258d27da.001.1.cap
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
https://api.weather.gov/alerts/urn:oid:2.49.0.1.840.0.1a6e7f8b6a72257ed280465e6a4a34e6ce134296.001.1.cap
Green Bay, WI
https://www.weather.gov/grb/021525_winterstorm
