The latest numbers from the Lake Superior Board of Control show that water supply conditions were slightly above average for the month of March. Read the full story by the SooLeader.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240405-watersupply-lakesuperior-waterlevel
State and federal partners announced that conservation practices will be implemented on over 1,700 acres of Indiana farmland through the Western Lake Erie Basin Regional Conservation Partnership. The primary goal of this project is to reduce phosphorus and sediment loading into Lake Erie. Read the full story by WBIW – Bedford, IN.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240405-soilconservation-fundsawarded-westernlakeeriebasin
Some community leaders say the original limestone steps at Promontory Point are functioning and don’t need to be replaced, just repaired. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has already replaced much of Chicago’s shoreline barriers with concrete revetments to repair damage and erosion from the crashing waves of Lake Michigan. Promontory Point is the only spot where the original limestone steps remain. Read the full story by WLS-TV – Chicago, IL.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240405-promontorypoint-chicago-lakefront
Lake Erie has always been a hot spot for anglers, especially when it comes to walleye fishing; but how successful were they last season? Read the full story by WJW-TV – Cleveland, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240405-anglers-lakeerie-success
The Biden administration recently announced a goal to protect 30 percent of lands and waters throughout the United States by 2030. This includes continued protection from mining impacts near wilderness areas such as the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) in northeastern Minnesota. Read the full story by the Quetico Superior Foundation.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240405-biden-cleanwater-efforts-historic
The Kirtland’s warbler has an expansive conservation program, draws tourists from across the globe and even has an annual festival in Roscommon, Michigan.
Yet what is perhaps Michigan’s most well-known endangered bird is slated to lose its name.
The post New names slated for birds, including Michigan’s Kirtland’s warbler first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2024/04/05/new-names-slated-for-birds-including-michigans-kirtlands-warbler/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; 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/2024/04/sault-tribe-challenges-michigan-fishing-deal-chides-preposterous-rules/
In Ohio and other states in the path of Monday’s total solar eclipse, tons of harried officials are busy dealing with concerns like traffic congestion and hotel capacity. At least a few are also conscious of the fact that demand for electricity is going to spike at the same time that the supply of solar power temporarily plummets.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/04/energy-news-roundup-even-the-solar-eclipse-is-an-energy-issue/
A Great Lakes commercial fisher cleans a fishing net. Photo credit: Wisconsin Sea Grant
A new publication from a team of Sea Grant researchers lays out a framework for training the future fleet of small-scale commercial fishers and processors in the Great Lakes.
The study, published in the March issue of the Fisheries magazine, proposes place-based, adaptable training content for the Great Lakes Future Fishers Initiative, an apprenticeship program aimed at recruiting and preparing young people for commercial fishing.
The initiative responds to the industry’s concerns about the lack of a future workforce.
“It’s an aging fleet. It’s definitely a hard business,” said Titus Seilheimer, fisheries outreach specialist with Wisconsin Sea Grant and coauthor of the study. “We talked to the industry folks and found out what they needed. And you know, what they need is people.”
Seilheimer, alongside Wisconsin Sea Grant’s Food–Fish Outreach Coordinator Sharon Moen and Michigan Sea Grant’s Lauren Jescovitch, surveyed and conducted focus groups with those involved in the Great Lakes commercial fishing industry, including Anishinaabe fishers, multigenerational fishing families and staff from regulatory agencies, to learn more about workforce challenges and what’s needed to be successful in the job.
“A message we heard was that everyone’s needs were different,” said Seilheimer. “Different businesses wanted different things.”
As a result, the Great Lakes Future Fishers Initiative framework is designed to be used more as a menu rather than a curriculum, meaning businesses can select training content that is relevant to their workforce. Content is categorized into three topic areas: fundamental skills (e.g., business planning and marketing), processing skills (e.g., food safety training and knife handling), and deckhand skills (e.g., gear repair and boat navigation).
Lake whitefish are the most valuable fishery in the Great Lakes commercial fishing industry in Wisconsin. Photo credit: Wisconsin Sea Grant
Another major takeaway from the survey was the importance of exposing people to industry at a young age. Of those that took the survey, 92% had some sort of interaction with commercial fishing and processing prior to doing it themselves.
“It wasn’t just a random job posting that they saw and applied to,” said Jescovitch. “Almost everybody that works in the industry had some previous exposure to [it.]”
Jescovitch said that’s where Sea Grant is well positioned to help.
“We can go into schools or even younger groups and [say], ‘hey, this is a possible career path,’ and make sure that people are just even aware that it exists.”
The Great Lakes commercial fishery is a multimillion-dollar industry in Wisconsin, with lake whitefish netting the highest value. Nearly 2 million pounds of lake whitefish were harvested from Lake Michigan and Lake Superior in 2020.
While the industry is small compared to that of the salty coasts, the research team emphasized just how embedded it is in the communities where it occurs. Losing fishing means losing part of the culture.
“This has been a part of our coastal communities for as long as people have lived on the shores of the Great Lakes,” said Seilheimer, pointing out that some communities, like Two Rivers, Wisconsin, have fishing imagery on their town logos and welcome signs.
For tribal fishing businesses, like the Red Cliff Fish Co., commercial fishing and processing is also a way to preserve Indigenous knowledge and traditions.
And much of the fish stays local. The study found that a little over 68% of processed fish—which refers to fish sold as filets or made into other products—stays within 100 km or 62 miles of where it’s caught.
Local harvest means local food security, and as Moen also pointed out, local pride. Commercial fishers and processors can enjoy knowing they put food on the plates of their neighbors. It’s a perk of the job.
“You’re providing good, healthy food for families in a community that you care about,” said Moen. “You can go home at the end of the day feeling like, ‘Wow, I made a difference in some family’s life.’”
The research team is currently applying for grant funding to get the program off the ground—and into coastal communities across the Great Lakes.
The post Training the next generation of Great Lakes commercial fishers first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant
News Releases | Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/news/training-the-next-generation-of-great-lakes-commercial-fishers/
Michigan’s corn farmers rejected a recent proposed assessment increase amid low prices, blocking additional funds for research and lobbying.
The proposal would have raised the assessment from 1 cent per bushel to 2 cents.
The post Corn farmers again reject assessment bump amid “bad timing” for industry first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2024/04/04/corn-farmers-again-reject-assessment-bump-amid-bad-timing-for-industry/
Green Bay, WI
https://www.weather.gov/grb/TheApril2-3DamagingWinterStorm
By Dustin Dwyer, Michigan Public
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; 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/2024/04/palisades-work-family-reunites-for-shot-at-reopening-a-michigan-nuclear-plant/
By Dustin Dwyer, Michigan Public
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; 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/2024/04/palisades-work-family-reunites-for-shot-at-reopening-a-michigan-nuclear-plant/
LANSING, MI (April 3, 2024) – Nutrient pollution is a severe threat to water quality across the Great Lakes region and is particularly important in the Western Basin of Lake Erie. Understanding, tracking, and predicting where this pollution comes from is difficult due to weather and cropping complexities and a lack of data. This makes it difficult to properly target where conservation funding should be spent.
Through a new $4.86 million grant from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) and a $600,000 grant from the Erb Family Foundation, the Alliance for the Great Lakes will work in partnership with MDARD to increase the agency’s ability track and monitor water quality in five of Michigan’s priority subwatersheds of the Western Basin of Lake Erie. Technical assistance will be provided by the Michigan State University Institute of Water Research and LimnoTech.
The partnership aims to increase monitoring capacity by deploying higher spatial density monitoring instrumentation with a particular focus on understanding phosphorus trends. The information gleaned from this effort will help MDARD better understand various drivers of nutrient transport and allow for better targeting of conservation efforts to combat nutrient pollution.
“Ultimately, understanding where nutrient pollution is coming from and how it travels through the watershed will allow agencies and practitioners to better target conservation and land management practices to improve water quality outcomes. We are excited to partner with MDARD on this effort and applaud the leadership of Director Boring who has continually emphasized the importance of expanding monitoring and data collection to help guide conservation decision making,” said Tom Zimnicki, Alliance for the Great Lakes’ Agriculture and Restoration Policy Director.
“Our department has recognized the need for improved water quality monitoring in WLEB. We know that more holistic farm management focusing on soil health and regenerative agriculture principles can be expected to improve nutrient losses. Through the State of Michigan’s Domestic Action Plan adaptive management approach of continuous assessment and improvement, the scientific outcomes of this work improve our ability to make meaningful progress toward water quality improvements,” said MDARD Director Tim Boring.
The project will run from 2024 to 2029 and cover five of Michigan’s priority sub watersheds – Lime Creek, Stony Creek (South Branch River Raisin), Headwaters of the Saline River, Nile Ditch, and the S.S. LaPointe Drain. Area hydrology, sediment transport, and phosphorus transport in the sub watersheds will be tracked by the program. Data collected will be publicly available.
###
Contact: Don Carr, Media Director, dcarr@greatlakes.org
The post New MDARD Partnership Will Improve Water Quality Monitoring appeared first on Alliance for the Great Lakes.
News - Alliance for the Great Lakes
News - Alliance for the Great Lakes
https://greatlakes.org/2024/04/new-mdard-partnership-will-improve-water-quality-monitoring/
A bill in the Michigan legislature aims to create the Office of the Tribal Legislative Liaison, which, if passed, would make Michigan the first state with a formal legislative connection with its tribal governments. Read the full story by Great Lakes Echo.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240403-tribal-liaison
The first oceangoing vessel of the 2024 shipping season, the Barbro G, sailed into the port of Duluth-Superior just before noon Monday morning, marking the traditional opening of the Great Lakes shipping season in the Twin Ports. Read the full story by Minnesota Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240403-shipping-season
Marine traffic in the St. Marys River was reopened after an empty bulk cargo ship, The American Mariner, struck a concrete navigation aid around 12:20 a.m. on March 28. Read the full story by CTV News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240403-marine-traffic
The U.S. Coast Guard has issued a Marine Safety Information Bulletin for Lake Erie boaters regarding the April 8 total solar eclipse. According to the Coast Guard boater bulletin, the eclipse may present challenges and potential distractions for those who navigate and operate commercial vessels on the Great Lakes. Read the full story by WJW-TV – Cleveland, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240403-eclipse-bulletin
Toronto’s Enwave Energy Corp. is digging deep to expand its giant deep lake water cooling system as part of a $100-million program to increase the system’s reach to even more Toronto buildings. Read the full story by The Globe and Mail.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240403-cooling-system
Twenty-five years ago, several lower Detroit River islands and marshes were threatened by development. As part of a strategy to save these ecosystems, local conservationists coined the term “Conservation Crescent” to raise awareness of the value and benefits of this crescent-shaped archipelago of islands and wetlands. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240403-conservation-crescent
In Holland, Michigan, local explorers from the Michigan Shipwreck Research Association announced that they had discovered the remarkably intact remains of the 1886 shipwreck of Muskegon-based steam barge, Milwaukee. Read the full story by WWMT-TV – Kalamazoo, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240403-shipwreck-discovery
Brook trout and Atlantic salmon are native to Lake Ontario, but in 1873, the Canadian federal government began stocking the lake with non-native salmonids. Now, most of these fish are from the wild, not hatchery-raised, and while these fish aren’t native to Lake Ontario, they’re now an important part of the ecosystem. Read the full story by The Narwhal.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240403-fish-stocking
The state of Michigan released new fishing regulations for the 2024 season, including combined possession limits for lake trout and splake in certain waters and a licensing requirement for charter boat captains and inland fishing guides. Read the full story by Bridge Michigan.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240403-fishing-regulations
U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell says she expects continued bipartisan government action on improving and protecting Great Lakes water quality, despite the fact that this is a bitterly partisan election year. Read the full story by Midland Daily News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240403-bipartisan-priorities
NCEI News Feed
https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/april-3-4-1974-super-outbreak
While the House and Senate have never had a direct, official connection to tribal governments throughout Michigan, new legislation could change that.
A bill would make Michigan the first state with a formal legislative connection with its tribal governments,
The post Liaison office would be first to connect tribes and Legislature first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2024/04/03/liaison-office-would-be-first-to-connect-tribes-and-legislature/
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
Current watches, warnings, and advisories for Brown County (WIC009) WI
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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:2.49.0.1.840.0.90555e5a205c9d0b3f5e91eac19ff84e68c11242.001.1.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.d48521c4c2a95ae5da735598a5c0b12f415412ec.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:2.49.0.1.840.0.6f13827074d16006c0544ade40e685b93a6c5dec.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.bd96409eae3ebcd166b4641faf0e926b1d8259dc.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.ce719945eea4d081d392ae14c9ea5836c513e739.002.1.cap
By Fatima Syed, The Narwhal
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; 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/2024/04/you-start-with-us-conservation-authority-head-has-parting-message-for-ontario-government/
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:2.49.0.1.840.0.777bd0241450d16b0b85f003ae9b7e7953553c93.002.1.cap
In early 2024, River Network, Midwest Environmental Advocates, Wisconsin Lakes, and River Alliance of Wisconsin joined forces to teach clean water advocates how to use the Clean Water Act to protect and restore local waters.
The workshops gave an overview of Clean Water Act programs, how they fit together and how to use River Network’s recently updated Clean Water Act Owner’s Manual. Local advocates shared real-world case studies on how they used the Clean Water Act to protect their waters and communities.
The webinars are now available on YouTube, courtesy of Wisconsin Lakes.
Speaker: Rob Lee, Staff Attorney, Midwest Environmental Advocates
Learn about the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ implementation of the Clean Water Act, Section 404 surface water pollution permitting program (including permitting basics like the length of permit terms, renewals, etc.), identification of regulated substances, development of effluent limits for specific discharges into specific bodies of water, schedules for compliance with and variances to water quality standards, and how the general public can participate in the permitting process.
Speakers: Adam Voskuil, Staff Attorney and Rob Lee, Staff Attorney, Midwest Environmental Advocates
MEA Staff Attorney Adam Voskuil will discuss large, industrial-agricultural operations called concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) and how the Department of Natural Resources regulates CAFOs and their discharges to surface water and groundwater. MEA Staff Attorney Rob Lee will discuss the regulation of wetlands fill in Wisconsin, including the permitting process, substantive permitting standards, and public participation opportunities. Attorney Lee will also discuss the interplay between federal and state wetland regulations and how a recent decision from the U.S. Supreme Court, Sackett v. EPA, impacts that interplay.
Speaker: Bill Davis, Senior Legal Analyst, River Alliance of Wisconsin
Get a general overview of the Clean Water Act before diving into learning about Total Maximum Daily Loads and Nine-Key Element Plans and how local groups and advocates can best use them to drive improvements in their local waters.
This message is made possible by generous donors who believe people have the power to protect and restore water. Support our work with your contribution today.
The post How to use the Clean Water Act to protect local waters appeared first on River Alliance of WI.
Blog - River Alliance of WI
https://wisconsinrivers.org/clean-water-act-workshops/
Brandon Krumwiede describes mapping projects during his River Talk. Image credit: Michael Anderson
By Lily Cartier, University of Minnesota Duluth
Knowledge of the oceans is more than a matter of curiosity, our very survival may hinge on it.
–President John F. Kennedy
While this inspiring quote is about the oceans, the same could be said about two waterbodies that we know and love locally: the St. Louis River and Lake Superior.
But how much do we really know about these waters? Brandon Krumwiede, a Great Lakes geospatial coordinator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), told listeners at the March River Talk held at the Lake Superior Estuarium in Superior that what lies at the bottom has largely been unknown and unmapped.
Krumwiede said that full-fledged mapping of the St. Louis River Estuary was not undertaken until 1943, driven by World War II and the importance of local ship-building and steel production.
“It was really important to map out the river and the estuary so that we had safe navigation, commerce could commence, and all the vessels that were being built in the Twin Ports could be shipped overseas,” Krumwiede said.
After that, estuary mapping efforts languished. Currently, there is not a comprehensive modern picture of the St. Louis River Estuary or the Great Lakes. It is difficult to know the health of the plants, animals and water in the area without knowing what lies below the surface.
Along with an assortment of government and local agencies, NOAA gained funding from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative in 2020 for a project called the Collaborative Benthic Habitat Mapping in the Nearshore Waters of the Great Lakes. The team uses benthic habitat mapping to measure the water levels in the Great Lakes. The goal is to map any part of the Great Lakes that has a depth of 80 meters or less. As of now, the project has mapped about 13% of the Great Lakes.
This underwater mapping is done through two different methods. The first is called “sonar,” a process that uses sound waves to map the area. This uses small survey boats that move up and down the area that is mapped. The second is called “lidar,” which stands for light detection and ranging. This mapping technique uses green lasers on vessels or drones to map the substrate.
“At night, with a bathymetric lidar survey, you[‘ll] see this plane spinning around a green laser all over the beach. It looks like a UFO,” Krumwiede said.
Both types of underwater mapping come with pros and cons – the main one being the reliance on good weather while the data is taken. As you can imagine, lake conditions in northern Minnesota and Wisconsin are not often optimal for boats and small vessels. This study has a short season of about May to early November, at the latest.
Krumwiede wished they would have prepared better for the warm weather we had this winter. “This season would have been amazing. We should have had survey boats here year-round because we were ice-free,” he said.
Why is mapping the river and Great Lakes vital?
“It’s really important to think about, how do we ensure that we get the data that’s needed to make sure we make the right decisions and manage these natural resources into the future. For our generation and future generations down the road,” Krumwiede said.
The final River Talk for the season will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 10, at the Lake Superior Estuarium. Keith Okeson with the Lake Superior Chapter of Muskies Inc., will present, “Muskies and the St. Louis River.”
The post Underwater mapping expands knowledge spanning from the St. Louis River to the Great Lakes first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.
Blog | Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/underwater-mapping-expands-knowledge-spanning-from-the-st-louis-river-to-the-great-lakes/
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:2.49.0.1.840.0.1cfc6166cb1a8de1db12d8c801f9c01c4178ea2b.001.2.cap
A tractor falls on you. A horse kicks you. A cow pins you against the side of a barn. Your hand gets caught in a corn shucker.
These are just some of the accidents Michigan State University researcher Laurel Morano documented in her recent study of agriculture-related injuries – and only among the most dramatic examples of the dangers farmers face every day on the job.
The post Study offers new insights into farming-related injuries first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2024/04/02/study-offers-new-insights-into-farming-related-injuries/
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.b92ee9e6878ddeabd6ea98aa3d519d494c9dfc59.001.1.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:2.49.0.1.840.0.81ee3b67e49357a1abfe02b4b3dbd58c0e379048.001.1.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:2.49.0.1.840.0.1d8bb59c97e5402dadc654ba3ae2fa6c9dde1b44.001.1.cap
Great Lakes Moment is a monthly column written by Great Lakes Now Contributor John Hartig. Publishing the author’s views and assertions does not represent endorsement by Great Lakes Now or Detroit Public Television.
Twenty-five years ago, several lower Detroit River islands and marshes were threatened by development.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/04/great-lakes-moment-saving-the-conservation-crescent/
By Daniel Wanschura, Interlochen Public Radio
Points North is a biweekly podcast about the land, water and inhabitants of the Great Lakes. This episode was shared here with permission from Interlochen Public Radio.
On November 11, 2023, Ben Karasch is up in his treestand, waiting for a deer.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/04/points-north-not-always-the-apex-predator/
A $73 million state-funded project aims to stabilize the last stretch of undeveloped Lake Michigan shoreline in Illinois and help protect native endangered species. To mitigate erosion of up to 100 feet per year, the project seeks to build 22 breakwater structures along 2.2 miles of shoreline in Lake County, Illinois. Read the full story by the Chicago Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240401-illinois-shoreline
Minnesota has just over 100 lakes and rivers considered prime for muskie fishing, and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources wants input on how to manage them. This week, the organization started a yearlong process to rewrite the statewide muskie management plan for the next 15 years. Read the full story by the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240401-muskie-plan
Advocates who hope to stop Wisconsin’s freshwater resources from being polluted by road salt are back to the drawing board after Governor Tony Evers vetoed a bill Friday creating a state-run program on safe salt use that would have shielded certificate-holders from lawsuits. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240401-salt-veto
Increasingly, scientists and regulators are concerned about the presence of pharmaceutical pollution in our waterways, including in the Great Lakes region. More research needs to be done to understand this issue, according to scientists who have studied pharmaceuticals and other contaminants. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240401-pharmaceutical-pollution
A Québec shipyard has won a first $19-million contract for the design of six new icebreakers as part of Canada’s National Shipbuilding Strategy. These vessels will replace the Canadian Coast Guard fleet, which serves the waterways of Atlantic Canada and the St. Lawrence River during the winter, as well as the Arctic during the summer. Read the full story by the Montreal Gazette.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240401-new-icebreakers
In Michigan, the $80 million Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Centennial Park on the western edge of downtown Detroit is actively under construction and will feature a water garden, basketball courts, fishing, a riverwalk, and more along the Detroit River. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240401-detroit-park
Record high water levels in Lake Erie in February and early March did not back down as the month ended with Lake Erie roughly 573 feet above sea level. That’s about two to three inches higher than the record set in 1986, and one foot higher than March of 2019. Read the full story by Cleveland Scene.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20240401-erie-water-levels
