Major upgrades are underway in Macomb County, Michigan, to prevent sewage overflows from ending up in Lake St. Clair and prepare for heavy rain events in the future. Read the full story by WJBK-TV – Detroit, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230811-sewer-funding
Shipping on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway is continuing its long-term downturn, and changes in the region’s steel industry are largely responsible for the trend, according to a recent Congressional Research Service report. Read the full story by Bridge Michigan.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230811-shipping-trends
The latest twice-a-year check of Flint’s water pipes by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) shows lead levels in its water dropped slightly during the first six months of this year, which follows a steady pattern of improvement. Flint is close to reaching a goal of replacing all lead service lines, as 95% of Flint residences have had their lead lines replaced. Read the full story by WKAR – East Lansing, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230811-lead-levels
The U.S. Coast Guard announced on Thursday that original estimates of the amount of diesel fuel that spilled into Lake Michigan from the damaged Manitowoc were too high. The cause of the hull breach that led to the spill and the exact amount of spillage continues to be investigated. Read the full story by the Traverse City Record-Eagle.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230811-spill-investigation
The Great Lakes region is getting about $2.8 million from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office for Coastal management. The money can be used to assess a community’s vulnerabilities, buy land to be a coastal buffer, and preserve or restore wetlands. Read the full story by WUOM – Ann Arbor, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230811-resiliency-funding
All of the Great Lakes’ water levels are higher than their long-term average, but the forecast shows the lakes are getting ready to start lowering as we head into fall, fitting into the annual cycle of rising and falling water levels. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230811-water-levels
In Saginaw Bay, Michigan, the Saginaw Bay Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area is conducting an ongoing project to restore habitats that have been degraded by phragmites, an invasive species from Europe. It grows along shores and in places where water gathers or the ground is wet and can cause problems for native animals, other plants, and people. Read the full story by the Huron Daily Tribune.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230811-phragmites-project
Lake Superior is historically home to some of the largest shipping enterprises North America has ever seen. Michael Schumacher’s new book, “Too Much Sea For Their Decks,” is full of short sea-stories and shipwrecks along Minnesota’s North Shore and Island Royale. Read and listen to the full story by Minnesota Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230811-shipwreck-book
Scientists with the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa have, for 20 years, been traveling to the uninhabited High Island in northern Lake Michigan to monitor endangered piping plovers as they nest and fledge their chicks. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230811-plover-monitoring
Shipping on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway is continuing its long-term downturn, due to changes in the region’s steel industry, according to a recent Congressional Research Service report. Read the full story by Capital News Service.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230810-shipping-study
Shipping on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway is continuing its long-term downturn, due to changes in the region’s steel industry, according to a recent Congressional Research Service report. Read the full story by Capital News Service.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230810-shipping-study
Points North is a biweekly podcast hosted by Daniel Wanschura and Morgan Springer about the land, water and inhabitants of the Upper Great Lakes.
This episode was shared here with permission from Interlochen Public Radio.
Joyce Fetrow has hobbies to enjoy year-round.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2023/08/points-north-rock-rehab/
August 8, 2023
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/2023/08/fresh-chicago-broils-citizens-scientists-study-heat-island-effect/
Visitors to Marble Park in Winneconne, Winnebago County can soon stop by three native plant beds to enjoy beautiful native plants! Installation is scheduled to start on August 22, 2023. We anticipate needing volunteers to help the remainder of the week (Aug 22-23). If you are interested in volunteering to help install and plant these beds, please fill out the following form and select “Shoreline Planting/Work Crew”. We look forward to seeing you at the park!
Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance partnered with the Village of Winneconne to install the native plant beds. The goal of this project is to increase the adoption and installation of native shoreline plantings around the Winnebago System. We are excited to see the project come together and watch the plants grow!
Shoreline property owners are eligible to receive reimbursement of up to $1000 to install this type of best management practice through a Wisconsin DNR Healthy Lakes and Rivers grant by partnering with Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance.
Come check out what this shoreline best management practice looks like, what the requirements are for the Healthy Lakes and Rivers Grant, and what shoreline property owners can expect from the process of planning, installing, and maintaining the native plant beds.
Under a Healthy Lakes and Rivers grant, native plantings must:
A Healthy Lakes native planting project can augment an existing area of shoreline vegetation under certain circumstances.
The demonstration site at Marble Park will meet all of these requirements, and is intended to give shoreline property owners a good idea of what to expect from their native plantings, while also educating visitors about how native plantings can improve wildlife habitat, natural beauty, and decrease runoff into the Wolf River.
The Demonstration Site will showcase three different plant lists: a low-growing bed showcasing species that grow <5 ft tall, a shoreline edge bed with species that thrive close to the water and a pollinator bed which will showcase species specifically intended to attract pollinators.
If you have any questions or are interested in installing a Healthy Lakes native plant bed on your shoreline property, please contact Katie Reed at katherine@fwwa.org or 920-851-6472.
Funding for this project was provided by the Winnebago Waterways Program at Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance and the WI Department of Natural Resources. Project partners include the Winnebago Waterways Program at Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance and the Village of Winneconne.
Winnebago Waterways is a Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance recovery initiative. Contact us at wwinfo@fwwa.org
The post Volunteers Needed! Shoreline Buffer Demonstration Site Set To Be Installed at Marble Park, Winneconne appeared first on Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance.
Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance
https://fwwa.org/2023/08/09/marble-park-demo-site/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=marble-park-demo-site
Making a film about water came naturally for award-winning documentary filmmaker dream hampton, though water and the environment has not traditionally been her emphasis.
hampton made Freshwater after coming off a hectic schedule in 2018 and 2019 during which she made three films. It was, she decided, a time to shift her focus, a time to be still and reflect.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2023/08/filmmaker-looks-detroit-through-lens-water-life-events-justice/
construction by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers of a stone breakwater in the abandoned shipping slip adjacent to Wilkeson Pointe is scheduled to begin in the fall and should be completed by November. Read the full story by The Buffalo News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230809-shoreline-enhancement
Most major Ohio rivers meeting water quality standards despite algal blooms, EPA reports. Read the full story by The Columbus Dispatch.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230809-water-quality
A recently released report commissioned by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection calls the Erie Coke Site “…a potential threat to human health and the environment.” Read the full story by Erie News Now.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230809-pollution
In June, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers promoted what the agency hopes will be a new strategy to control European frog-bit, an invasive aquatic plant. The agency offered researchers a $200,000 grant to develop a biological control for European frog-bit and its relative, water soldier. Read the full story by Michigan Public Radio.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230809-frogbit
A date has been set for a Holland man to swim across Lake Michigan. Read the full story by WWMT -TV – Kalamazoo, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230809-lake-michigan
By Vladislava Sukhanovskaya, Circle of Blue
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; 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/2023/08/control-frog-bit-water-soldiers/
The Keweenaw Waterway Lower Entrance Lighthouse has been listed for sale on the coastline of Lake Superior in Chassell, Michigan. Read the full story by Smithsonian Magazine.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230809-lighthouse
Residents in Chicago, Illinois are fighting constant flooding and erosion along the shoreline. Read the full story by Grist.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230809-chicago-erosion
Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance is excited to host a Field Day event with Outagamie County at the Soil Health Education & Demo (SHED) Facility in the Town of Oneida. Farmers are invited to come learn about the equipment they can use to improve the soil health of their farms. Please direct any questions to Katie Woodrow, Lower Fox River Program Director: katie@fwwa.org, 920-915-5767.
The post Field Day at the SHED Facility appeared first on Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance.
Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance
https://fwwa.org/2023/08/09/field-day-at-the-shed-facility/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=field-day-at-the-shed-facility
PortsToronto has brought in WasteShark aquadrones to add to its trash trapping program on Lake Ontario this summer in Toronto, Ontario. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230809-garbage-cleanup
Saginaw Bay Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area (CISMA), in partnership with Arenac Conservation District, Michigan Natural Features Inventory, Michigan Technological University, and US Fish and Wildlife Service are conducting an ongoing project along the Saginaw Bay shoreline. Read the full story by WEYI -TV – Saginaw, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230809-saginaw-bay
The just-released results of a joint United States and Canadian research study shows that the Port of Oswego Authority in Oswego, New York, made a $513 million impact on the local and regional economy and supported 2,229 jobs by its maritime activity. Read the full story by Oswego County Today.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230809-port-economics
Imagine having to bring your own water to the beach.
Kevin Fermanich doesn’t have to imagine this, because he’s already seen it. He was at a state park one day when there was algae blooming along the beach. He didn’t know if it was toxic or not, but it was certainly a nuisance. He didn’t want to have his kids swimming in the water.
Then he noticed another family show up. A woman went back and forth several times from her car to the beach, carrying jugs of water.
“She carried several gallons of water from her car to the beach for her kids to play with,” Kevin said. “Along a Great Lakes beach. She had to bring her own water to the beach, just to build sand castles.”
Kevin Fermanich, retired environmental scientist
For some people, that would be the story that motivated them to engage with conservation for the first time. But for Kevin, this was not his first brush with polluted water.
“We live ¼ mile from the East River [in Green Bay],” he said, “but that’s not a place we’d go paddling. It’s chocolate-colored at times and has significant algae. It impacts our choices about where to be.”
Before he retired and became a kayaker, Kevin worked for UW-Green Bay researching soil and water quality. He discovered that Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance had connections to funding sources and centralized much of the conservation work across a variety of other companies and organizations.
“I’ve stayed with Fox-Wolf for so long because I am impressed with Fox-Wolf and what you have been doing. Working with Katie and the integrated water plan was important. Yours is as good of a partnership as any in the Great Lakes region.”
Kevin may have been an environmental scientist, connecting academics with water quality, but he also understands the importance of water from a personal perspective. He owns the farmland where he grew up. When he saw erosion damaging the land and carrying away valuable topsoil, he worked with his tenant farmer to put in contour strips.
That’s where Kevin sees the full complexity of our watershed. “What’s happening on my farm in the upper watershed is connected to what’s happening between Green Bay and Lake Michigan. I work at the scale of what’s happening in the soil… it impacts the rivers, all the way out to the Bay, to Lake Michigan, to the Atlantic Ocean. There’s a microscopic connection from my soil to the Great Lakes.”
Kevin takes his stewardship of the land seriously. He hopes to start additional conservation practices on his farm. But these things don’t happen overnight. “We need to change momentum and habits, and bring farmers along with us,” said Kevin. “It’s challenging but rewarding to come up with ways that are more sustainable.”
Why work so hard on the challenging tasks? “Some of it’s a hope; some is an imperative,” said Kevin. “Things will get worse if we don’t become more resilient and make our landscape more adaptable to our changing environment.”
What is Kevin’s hope? That we can have our landscape in balance with producing food, fiber, and resources while minimizing the impact on water resources.
And having drinkable, swimmable water. “That’s a good goal,” he said. “Everywhere, as many places as possible. That should be the goal. That’s my hope for the future.”
Watershed Moments is a new publication of Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance, sharing the stories of how your donations have impacted lives in our community. Read our latest project updates, make a secure online donation, or become a member at www.fwwa.org
The post Watershed Moments: Water for Sand Castles appeared first on Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance.
Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance
https://fwwa.org/2023/08/08/watershed-moments-sand-castles/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=watershed-moments-sand-castles
NCEI News Feed
https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/national-climate-202307
This lesson will explore the phenomenon of corrosion as students learn about sunken ships in the Great Lakes and the glass-bottomed tour boats that take people to explore them. In doing so, they’ll delve into such science topics related to exploring shipwrecks as gas laws and more.
View the entire lesson plan including teacher background information, worksheets and more below or download for free here.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2023/08/episode-2307-shipwrecks-lesson-plan/
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.
While watching civilization expand into the countryside in the 1800s, the great American author and naturalist Henry David Thoreau recommended every town have a forest of 500 to 1,000 acres for conservation instruction and outdoor recreation.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2023/08/great-lakes-moment-nature-right-outside-school-door/
By Ashley Zhou, Bridge Michigan
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; 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/2023/08/michigan-river-walker-program-warns-anglers-eating-contaminated-fish/
From fishing to enjoying a summer day at the beach, the Great Lakes provide enjoyment, comfort and a sense of home to the region. But these bodies of water were not always secure, as the lakes and connecting rivers were considered dangerous due to high pollution spots.
The Great Lakes region has seen some of the most historic river fires.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2023/08/amendment-to-clean-water-act-improves-great-lakes-through-critical-observation-collaboration/
The Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance set up an educational booth at the August 6th Levitt AMP concert series along the Fox River in Green Bay. On this Sunday evening, Fox-
Wolf’s Trash Free Waters program was on site providing program information to concert attendees and
engaging local residents with “Cleanup Bingo”, where volunteers were given a reusable cleanup bingo card, trash grabbers, gloves, and a trash bag, and they set off to clean up litter in the park–hoping to get a “bingo” on their cards. Once they found a trash item from any horizontal, diagonal, or vertical line on the card, the volunteers returned to the Fox-Wolf booth to collect a prize item for their efforts. We had volunteers of all ages cleaning up at Leicht Memorial Park who removed over 12 pounds of trash from this public site.
Throughout Sunday evening, Fox-Wolf staff talked with many local residents about our basin, volunteer opportunities, and current projects we’re working on to improve water quality–we also got to listen to some fantastic music! We love being able to work with local residents who volunteer to help keep our water trash free!
For more information, please contact:
Kelly Reyer
Trash Free Waters Program Coordinator
Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance
kelly@fwwa.org
920-915-1502
Support Trash Free Waters
Join the Trash Free Waters Email List
The post Volunteers Clean Up During Levitt AMP Music Series appeared first on Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance.
Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance
https://fwwa.org/2023/08/07/volunteers-play-cleanup-bingo-at-23-walleye-weekend-3/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=volunteers-play-cleanup-bingo-at-23-walleye-weekend-3
A sheen of diesel fuel spilled from the freighter Manitowoc has dissipated north of Manistee, Michigan after a storm. The Manitowoc is headed to Muskegon for repairs while the cause of the spill remains under investigation. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230807-spill-cleanup
Waukesha, Wisconsin, will begin using Lake Michigan water for public supply once construction crews finish building a pumping station and two reservoirs. To tap into Lake Michigan for water, Waukesha had to reach a special agreement with Milwaukee and get the okay from the Great Lakes States and Provinces under the Great Lakes Compact. Read the full story by Spectrum News 1.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230807-waukesha-water-supply
The North Shores of Saugatuck, Michigan, wants to build 50 homes and a marina basin along the Kalamazoo River, but the Saugatuck Dunes Coastal Alliance argues the development would remove 250,000 tons of sand from one of the state’s critical dune areas. The coming weeks could mark a crucial point in the 17-year long battle over this proposed development. Read the full story by WVGR – Grand Rapids, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230807-development-issue
The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee has raised $15 million of its $20 million goal to build the most technologically advanced freshwater research vessel in the United States. When built, the Maggi Sue, named by an anonymous donor, will further advance scientists’ understanding of the Great Lakes. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230807-research-vessel
According to a new study, Lake St. Clair and its coastal zones in Macomb County, Michigan, brings a $1.6 billion economic impact and more than 18,000 jobs to the county and region. In the next few months, the Macomb County Chamber is forming a task force to support the study and further boost the economy around the lake. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230807-economic-study
No cause has been determined yet for a massive fish kill stretching several kilometers up the Ausable River to the shores of Lake Huron, centered in Port Franks, Ontario. Everything from water temperature to run-off could be to blame. Read the full story by CTV News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230807-fish-kill
Marine Pollution Control (MPC), an oil spill removal organization based in Detroit, recently held a simulated oil spill exercise at a Lake Huron harbor in Rogers City, Michigan. MPC’s training exercises aim to use tactics in a manner that addresses the trajectory and fate of any oil release in the Great Lakes. Read the full story by WKAR – East Lansing, MI.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230807-oil-spill-preparation
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources continues to help enhance fish populations in Lakes Michigan and Superior. Stocking efforts will continue throughout the year, including stocking 50,000 brook trout, 44,468 brown trout and 258,228 coho salmon into the Great Lakes, to ensure the 2023 stocking quotas are fulfilled. Read the full story by the Lake Geneva News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230807-fish-stocking
According to the International Lake Superior Board of Control, Lake Superior’s average water level at the beginning of August is above the seasonal long-term average and the level of a year ago. Meanwhile, Lake Michigan-Huron is above the seasonal long-term average, yet below the level of a year ago. Read the full story by SooToday.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230807-lake-levels
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District announced the start of $1.25 million dredging operations at two Lake Michigan harbors in Ludington and Pentwater, Michigan, to keep the federal navigation system safe and open for commercial and recreational traffic. Read the full story by the Midland Daily News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230807-dredging-projects
This article was republished here with permission from Planet Detroit.
By Tom Perkins, Planet Detroit
For 43 years, state regulators and the Environmental Protection Agency have ordered chemical manufacturer BASF to stop discharging up to 72,000 gallons of toxic waste-contaminated groundwater daily from its Wyandotte plant into the Detroit River.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2023/08/regulators-fail-43-years-stop-basf-staggering-daily-toxic-waste-spill-detroit-river/
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is one step closer to creating a new wetland ecosystem in Buffalo’s Outer Harbor. Construction on a stone breakwater in the abandoned shipping slip adjacent to Wilkeson Pointe is scheduled to begin in the fall and should be completed by November, the Corps announced last week. The new wetland will help reverse nearly a century of environmental degradation. Read the full story by The Buffalo News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230804-buffalooutharbor-10years-revival
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Monday signed Michigan’s $57.4 billion general government budget for Fiscal Year 2024, which included funding for clean energy, conservation and environmental justice. Nearly $600 million is budgeted for Michigan’s water infrastructure, protecting access to drinking water, replacing lead service lines, rebuilding sewers, and more. Read the full story by the Michigan Advance.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230804-michigan-newbudget-greatlakes
Lake Superior is known for its cool, blue beauty, but the largest freshwater lake in the world (by surface area) has a new antagonist: blue-green algae. The most recent bloom confirmed in the Thunder Bay (Ontario) District was reported on Lake Superior at Shuniah’s Birch Beach on July 28. Blue-green algae blooms aren’t common on Lake Superior, but experts say warming temperatures may make them more frequent. Read the full story by CBC News.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230804-bluegreenalgae-lakesuperior-climatechange
By Lester Graham, Michigan Radio
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; 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/2023/08/preparing-for-a-great-lakes-oil-spill/
Roughly 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel is believed to have spilled into Lake Michigan through a hull breach on a stricken freighter. Absorbent boom was placed around the bulk freighter Manitowoc following the spill, which began about 2:50 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 2 while the ship was leaving Manistee. Read the full story by MLive.
Great Lakes Commission
https://www.glc.org/dailynews/20230804-hullbreach-disesalfuel-lakemichigan
