The Michigan Department of Natural Resources has completed its annual Great Lakes survey season, conducted on all of our Great Lakes waters from April to November 2021. Read the full story by the Up North Voice.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220117-fish-survey
Lake Superior currently has less than 10% ice coverage. The National Weather Service says this isn’t unusual. Read the full story by WLUC-TV – Marquette, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220117-superior
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will host a virtual public hearing on Feb. 2 on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement that the department has prepared for the proposed relocation of the Enbridge Line 5 pipeline in Ashland, Bayfield and Iron Counties. Read the full story by The Dunn County News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220117-line-5
There is a kind of migration is starting to happen where residents, exhausted and weary from the risks of forest fires, floods and other hazards, elect to move to a different part of the country. Read the full story by Global News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220117-climate-migration
The 2021 shipping season in Thunder Bay, Ontario wrapped up with the departure of the MV Manitoulin carrying a shipment of wheat. Read the full story by Northern Ontario Business.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220117-shipping
Black Swamp Conservancy has acquired the conservation easement on 1,100 acres of marshland in Ottawa County, increasing the land it protects from development in northwest Ohio to more than 2,100 acres. Read the full story by the Review Times.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220117-black-swamp
Ohio DNR has awarded a $2.2 million grant to the Chagrin River Watershed Partners to restore wetlands and strengthen riverbanks five miles from Lake Erie, according to ODNR. Read the full story by The News-Herald.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220117-chagrin-river
The Beaver River Watershed Initiative (BRWI) is seeking funding to build a fish culvert at the mouth of the Little Beaver Creek in Thornbury, Ontario as part of a series of projects being undertaken to rehabilitate and promote a healthy ecosystem in the river. Read the full story by the Toronto Star.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220117-fish-culvert
The thin ice on Muskegon Lake crumpled as the 122-foot tugboat sliced its way from its dock in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Lake Michigan. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220117-ice-breaker
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/participating-2022-esip-winter-meeting
State officials are publishing data from 19 Michigan sewage treatment plants and more than 400 wastewater collection systems to create an early warning system for COVID-19 outbreaks.
The post COVID-19 in sewage is new gauge on state dashboard first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2022/01/17/covid-19-in-sewage-is-new-gauge-on-state-dashboard/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263DCD7B32C.SpecialWeatherStatement.1263DCD83860WI.GRBSPSGRB.fc8c6076cccd3f028608ae46eaa49482
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263DCD73CD0.SpecialWeatherStatement.1263DCD7C330WI.GRBSPSGRB.fc8c6076cccd3f028608ae46eaa49482
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263DCC63ED0.SpecialWeatherStatement.1263DCC6FA50WI.GRBSPSGRB.176ff32f6d68e42ba8c58090bd33adbe
THIS WEEK: You Are Invited: All About Water Symposium, Securing Federal Infrastructure Dollars + Personal and Organizational Wellness Online Series 2022 + Ontario government plans to build new highways through provincial Greenbelt + You May Be Eligible for Financial Assistance for Your Water Bill
Freshwater Future and All About Water invite you to join experts, peer groups and municipal officials to learn about federal dollars that will be coming to states for water infrastructure projects, and how your municipality can benefit. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to secure funding through State Revolving Funds that are provided by Congress to help replace lead lines, update water and wastewater treatment plants, utilize green infrastructure to prevent or reduce flooding and more. SAVE THE DATE! February 17th, 10:30 am – noon EST. Registration information will be in next week’s Weekly.
Water Watchers & Wellness is a FREE program designed to support individuals and organizations working to protect and restore water. This free online forum series is designed to help connect you to others doing similar work, provide you with expert and peer conversations about issues of importance to you, and offer one-on-one consulting assistance to help you speed past the bumps in the road we all experience in building, organizing and conducting our water work. Monthly forums are scheduled on the 4th Thursday of every month beginning January 27th, 2022, from 11:30am-1pm ET. Register today!
Planning for two new highways, Highway 413 and the Bradford Bypass, is underway. While the provincial government claims that the highways are needed to reduce commute times through the Greater Toronto Area, conservation organizations and many local communities (including Toronto, Markham, and Vaughan) are opposed to the proposed highways. The proposed routes are through the Greenbelt and will have potential impacts on fish and wildlife habitat, water quality and will increase greenhouse gas emissions. The provincial environmental assessment process has been streamlined, and there are concerns that environmental issues are not being adequately considered and addressed. Additionally, there have been concerns with the consultation process. The federal Impact Assessment Agency of Canada will be reviewing the process and deciding whether a full federal impact assessment is required.
Are you or someone you know struggling to pay their water bill? You may be eligible to receive financial assistance. Most states are providing assistance to prevent water shut offs during COVID-19. Water is a human right, and water utility bills have in some cases skyrocketed, so we want to be sure residents have easy access to the programs that may be able to help. Visit our list of assistance programs available in Great Lakes states and Cities.
Blog – Freshwater Future
https://freshwaterfuture.org/uncategorized/freshwater-future-weekly-january-14-2022/
PFAS, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of widespread man-made chemicals that don’t break down in the environment or the human body and have been flagged as a major contaminant in sources of water across the country.
Keep up with PFAS-related developments in the Great Lakes area.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/01/pfas-news-lake-superior-fish-michigan-superfund-list/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263DCB98F28.SpecialWeatherStatement.1263DCC63700WI.GRBSPSGRB.176ff32f6d68e42ba8c58090bd33adbe
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers researchers are working with the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians and other Native American tribes to help improve wild rice productivity in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Read the full story by Midland Daily News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220114-rice
The ice on Lake Erie, Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River is weak for this time of year, according to the U.S. Coast Guard, and the public is advised not to go onto the ice. Read the full story by WJET-TV – Erie, PA.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220114-ice
As part of the city’s $34 million Forward Looking Infrastructure Project, Port Clinton, Ohio, plans to spend at least $4 million to improve its Lake Erie shoreline. Read the full story by WTOL-TV – Toledo, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220114-port-clinton
On any winter day in Cleveland, hundreds and sometimes thousands of gulls can be spotted in the shipping channels. But what brings them all to the area? Dr. Andy Jones, the curator of ornithology at The Cleveland Museum of Natural History, says the gulls are there to eat. Read the full story by WEWS-TV – Cleveland, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220114-gulls
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:
Indiana:
The increasingly warm air and heavy rain showers have caused a rise in toxic algae blooms, which has led to fish sickness, beach closures, and drinking water pollution.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/01/drinking-water-news-roundup-toxic-algae-blooms/
Sand sculpture formations were spotted on Lake Michigan beaches this week near St. Joseph, Michigan. Cold, snow and wind combine to erode the semi-frozen sand, then preserve the strange shapes. Read the full story by WLS-TV – Chicago, IL.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220114-sand
On Friday, Enbridge Energy will continue to push for its controversial tunnel project to relocate Line 5 beneath the Straits of Mackinac before the Michigan Public Service Commission during a virtual hearing. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220114-enbridge
Every year, the Corps of Engineers uses the winter period to perform maintenance to keep the Soo Locks operating. This year, the Soo Locks will close to marine traffic beginning 11:59 p.m. Jan. 15 through 12:01 a.m. March 25. Read the full story by WLUC-TV – Negaunee, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220114-soo-locks
After big storms in Minnesota, Lake Superior can experience 15-foot waves. Last week, surfers flocked to the shore of Lake Superior in subzero windchills in search of large waves. Read the full story Minnesota Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220114-surfing-
The National Museum of the Great Lakes is hosting a virtual book club in 2022. The series will bring people together to read and discuss books about the Great Lakes region. Read the full story by WTVG-TV – Toledo, OH.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220114-book-club
My favorite project in 2021 was a workshop I organized at the invitation of the South Central Library System. This organization provides training and support to public libraries in seven southern Wisconsin counties. My colleagues in the workshop were youth services librarians gearing up for the 2022 national summer reading program, which has a theme of “Oceans of Possibilities.”
Anne Moser, senior special librarian and education coordinator
I modified the theme to “Oceans of Possibilities in Our Backyard” because the watersheds that surround us provide a wealth of opportunities to explore literacy and have fun. There is no need to go any farther.
At the workshop, I was honored to be joined by Hannah Arbuckle, outreach coordinator with the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission and member of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. We began with an overview of the Great Lakes and waters of Wisconsin, integrating traditional ecological knowledge into the presentation. We engaged attendees with hands-on learning to explore the terrific properties of water. We finished the morning traveling in a time machine to learn about Great Lakes shipwrecks. We spun the tragic tale of the Silver Lake, a scow schooner that went down in Lake Michigan in the late 1800s.
At the end of the morning, a skilled youth services librarian approached and told me she was thankful for the workshop. The summer reading program recycles themes every 10 or 15 years, and she had already dusted off old storytimes and activities in her files. She now planned to turn to the creek behind the library and use that as her watershed for the summer.
I can’t think of a better outcome!
The post Sea Grant project faves, Anne Moser first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.
Blog | Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/sea-grant-project-faves-anne-moser/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=sea-grant-project-faves-anne-moser
A new round of court proceedings commences in the long-running Enbridge Inc. Line 5 saga as Administrative Law Judge Dennis Mack oversees the cross-examination of a series of witnesses starting on Jan. 14.
The results of this cross-examination will play a role in the Michigan Public Service Commission’s decision on whether or not to grant Enbridge one of the key permits it needs to construct the Line 5 tunnel.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/01/enbridge-court-michigan-public-service-commission-line-5-permit/
With art ranging in size from giant mobiles to miniature paintings, artists from across the country are collaborating to face the climate crisis with a new exhibit in metro Detroit.
The post New Detroit art exhibit addresses climate crisis with hope first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2022/01/14/new-detroit-art-exhibit-addresses-climate-crisis-with-hope/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263DCB6DE7C.SpecialWeatherStatement.1263DCB748BCWI.GRBSPSGRB.54e5ef070b45e49081402cfe9ce09122
For Professor Nancy Langston, our intransigence in protecting struggling species like caribou and others is a puzzle. These species exist in our memories and culture, and we’ve invested in protecting them, so why do their populations continue to crash?
That’s the question at the core of Langston’s latest book, “Climate Ghosts: Migratory Species in the Anthropocene”.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/01/climate-ghosts-author/
NCEI News Feed
http://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/global-climate-202112
A steel dock post on a lake near Cotton, Minnesota, shows the same biocorrosion tubercles as those found in the Duluth Superior Harbor. Photo taken in 2020. Image credit: Marie Zhuikov, Wisconsin Sea Grant
The calendar has flipped to 2022. Our staff members are ready to tackle new projects in the coming 12 months, which also happens to mark Sea Grant’s 50th anniversary. Before they move more deeply into the new year, however, some staff members took a moment to retain the glow of their favorite 2021 project. Marie Zhuikov shared her thoughts. She’s our senior science communicator.
My favorite project happened right on the cusp of 2021. It all started the previous fall, when I found strange rusty bumps on the steel support legs of our cabin dock. The lumps looked familiar to me because I’d seen similar ones on steel pilings in the Duluth-Superior Harbor. But my dock was on an inland lake in northern Minnesota, far from the harbor. Could the same accelerated corrosion of steel that was happening in the harbor and in Lake Superior be happening in inland lakes?
I knew who to ask about this from interviews for stories that I did about this issue in the past. Some background: Research funded by both Wisconsin Sea Grant and Minnesota Sea Grant determined the cause of accelerated corrosion of steel infrastructure in the Duluth-Superior Port, which was first noticed in 1998. Corrosion of this nature is most often seen in saltwater environments, but Sea Grant work determined it was related to microbial action combined with winter ice scour. Coatings and jackets have been devised, with Wisconsin Sea Grant support, to protect port infrastructure. In 2018-19, the value of harbor assets protected was $5.4 million. An expert panel originally thought the corrosion microbes were only found in Lake Superior waters.
I conferred with Sea Grant researchers and corrosion experts, sending them pictures of my dock legs. The more I dug, the more intriguing and complex the story became. The researchers confirmed the corrosion was caused by the same factors at work in the Duluth-Superior Port. They told me that microbially influenced corrosion problems are not confined only to Lake Superior. Corrosion is impacting steel structures far up the St. Louis River, which empties into Lake Superior, and has been found in several inland lakes.
I wrote a story and produced a podcast about the findings, which led to stories in several local media outlets and magazines. This increased the public’s understanding of the corrosion issue, how to mitigate its effects, and ongoing research efforts to counteract it. My cabin neighbors now know how to keep their dock legs from buckling too soon.
Usually, I get story ideas from scientific journals or research proposals. This story originated because I was paying attention to what was happening out my own back door, so to speak. That’s why it’s my fave for 2021.
The post Sea Grant project faves, Marie Zhuikov first appeared on Wisconsin Sea Grant.
Blog | Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/sea-grant-project-faves-marie-zhuikov/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=sea-grant-project-faves-marie-zhuikov
By Lindsay Campbell with photography by Johnny C. Lam, The Narwhal
This story first ran on The Narwhal, a non-profit news organization that publishes in-depth stories about Canada’s natural world.
Those who choose a life in commercial fishing on the Great Lakes are granted a front row seat to the natural world.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/01/lake-ontario-lake-erie-families-fisheries/
By Lindsay Campbell with photography by Johnny C. Lam, The Narwhal
This story first ran on The Narwhal, a non-profit news organization that publishes in-depth stories about Canada’s natural world.
Those who choose a life in commercial fishing on the Great Lakes are granted a front row seat to the natural world.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/01/lake-ontario-lake-erie-families-fisheries/
Current Watches, Warnings and Advisories for Brown (WIC009) Wisconsin Issued by the National Weather Service
https://alerts.weather.gov/cap/wwacapget.php?x=WI1263DCA940F0.SpecialWeatherStatement.1263DCA9AE50WI.GRBSPSGRB.5c135440871af4859e390021f0991a62
Reports of wildlife crime have reached their highest levels on record while related arrests are trending downward, according to new data from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.
The post Illegal hunting complaints reach record numbers during pandemic, arrests down first appeared on Great Lakes Echo.Great Lakes Echo
http://greatlakesecho.org/2022/01/13/illegal-hunting-complaints-reach-record-numbers-during-pandemic-arrests-down/
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory’s most recent projection shows that only 12.3% of the lakes’ surfaces are likely to freeze before spring. Read and hear the full story by Michigan Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220112-ice-coverage
The North Shore Steelhead Association in co-operation with the City of Thunder Bay, Ontario is proposing the installation of fish counting devices and the making of minor changes to the internal structure of the fishway at Boulevard Lake. Read the full story by the Lake Superior News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220112-thunder-bay
Icebreaking operations are underway on the Great Lakes with two Canadian Coast Guard ships working in partnership with the United States coast guard. Read the full story by the Welland Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220112-icebreaker
Overall, ice coverage stands at 7.1% across all of Lake Michigan. In comparison, last year Lake Michigan was under 1% (0.7%) covered. Read the full story by WFRV-TV- Green Bay, WI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220112-ice
Dave Dempsey, a senior advisor for the Traverse City-based nonprofit For Love of Water (FLOW), argues that commodifying the water in the Lakes would amount to a massive failure of stewardship. Read the full story by WMUK- Kalamazoo, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220112-great-lakes
In a shoreline outlook statement issued on Monday, the Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority said strong winds out of the south or east could still cause result in flooding and shoreline damage along Lake Erie due to a lack of ice cover. Read the full story by CKXS- Wallaceburg, Ontario.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220112-flooding
EPA today took its first steps to ramp up oversight of toxic coal ash following a Trump-era rollback, a move that threatens early retirement for some coal plants in the Midwest. Read the full story by E&E News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220112-coal-ash
Early last year, the state of Wisconsin issued a fish consumption advisory that recommended eating no more than one meal a month of Lake Superior rainbow smelt, caught by tribes and local anglers during smelt runs in the spring. Read the full story by The Washington Post Magazine.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220112-pfas
Several ships will soon be making their way into Erie, Pennsylvania’s Presque Isle Bay for repairs. Read the full story by Erie Times-News
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220112-ships
Next month one of Michigan’s most anticipated fishing seasons is scheduled to return for four days — though it very well may wrap up in a matter of hours. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20220112-black-lake
By Matthew Daly, Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency is taking its first major action to address toxic wastewater from coal-burning power plants, ordering utilities to stop dumping waste into unlined storage ponds and speed up plans to close leaking or otherwise dangerous coal ash sites.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2022/01/ap-epa-dangerous-coal-ash/
The calendar has flipped to 2022. Our staff members are ready to tackle new projects in the coming 12 months, which also happens to mark Sea Grant’s 50th anniversary. Before they move more deeply into the new year, however, some staff members took a moment to retain the glow of their favorite 2021 project. Gavin Dehnert shared his thoughts. He’s our emerging contaminants scientist.
My favorite project of 2021 is one that looked at the impacts of aquatic herbicides, such as 2,4-D, on nontarget organisms. In particular, we wanted to learn more about the interplay of 2,4-D and early life stages of freshwater fish—while bridging the gaps between laboratory and field work. We have a video and a story about the project.
The best part about this research is that its main goal is to help management agencies like the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources make scientifically informed risk assessment decisions for aquatic invasive species that can protect nontarget organisms.
On top of the actionable science, this project allowed me to communicate with a variety of stakeholders, while meeting some wonderful people. I was able to team with Kerry Kaufman, who works at the Menominee Tribal School in Neopit, and Klint Hischke, a science teacher there who also instructs the students on aquaponics. We collaborated on aquatic science lessons and activities.
Students and instructors from the Menominee Tribal School in Neopit, Wisconsin. Image credit: Gavin Dehnert
Blog | Wisconsin Sea Grant
https://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/blog/sea-grant-project-faves-gavin-dehnert/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=sea-grant-project-faves-gavin-dehnert
