Great Lakes
Lake Huron e-news March 2010
Submitted by Geoff.Peach on March 1, 2010 - 1:00am
At Your Service ...
Continuing on the theme of biodiversity (in celebration of
the
International
Year of Biodiversity), this issue will explore some of the services
that ecosystems provide us, and why it's important to protect these
benefits.
To begin, an ecosystem is a community of animals and plants interacting
with one another and with their physical environment. Ecosystems include
physical and chemical components, such as soils, water, and nutrients
that support the organisms living within them. These organisms may range
from large animals and plants to microscopic bacteria. Ecosystems
include
the interactions among all organisms in a given habitat. People are part
of ecosystems. Our health and well-being depends upon the services
provided by our local ecosystems and everything that makes them up
organisms, soil, water, and nutrients. Along Lake Huron, some of
our coastal ecosystems include wetlands, bluffs, dune grasslands,
alvars,
and woodlands.… continue reading »
Manure production across Canada
Submitted by Ross Klopp on February 23, 2010 - 1:00amHere's a short but fascinating federal survey of manure use across Canada, with a chart showing which watersheds use how much manure (in tonnes per hectare).
Southern Ontario has six of the country's Top Ten manure-producing regions, including the top three, so we own the podium on that. The Penetangore, Saugeen and Maitland watersheds are all up there. The survey is from Stats Can, based on 2006 Census of Agriculture data, and published in December of 2008. Access is free, so it might be of interest to the whole Bruce Beach Cottagers' Association.
A geographical profile of livestock manure production in Canada, 2006
Tom Spears… continue reading »
U.S. to work on cleaning up Great Lakes
Submitted by Ross Klopp on February 21, 2010 - 2:25amFeds outline plan to nurse Great Lakes to health.
By JOHN FLESHER,
AP Environmental Writer John Flesher, Ap Environmental Writer
– Sun Feb 21, 8:25 am ET
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. – The Obama administration has developed a five-year blueprint for rescuing the Great Lakes, a sprawling ecosystem plagued by toxic contamination, shrinking wildlife habitat and invasive species.
The plan envisions spending more than $2.2 billion for long-awaited repairs after a century of damage to the lakes, which hold 20 percent of the world's fresh water. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the document, which Lisa Jackson, head of the Environmental Protection Agency, was releasing at a news conference Sunday in Washington.
Asian Carp
Submitted by Ross Klopp on February 19, 2010 - 8:40pmHere is a news item, just three hours old, about Michigan's legal efforts to keep asian carp out of the Great Lakes.
More information is available on the Internet if you use the Google search for "Asian Carp".
Our representative for the Ontario government is Minister Donna Cansfield; no federal Canadian representative has been mentioned in anything that I have read.
Please pass this news item along to anyone you think could help to keep the asian carp out of the Great Lakes. The time for action is now, and it may already be too late.
Bill Barnard (108 Bruce Beach)
Hamilton, ON
"Asian carp: Michigan report disputes cost of closing canal locks"
Lake Huron e-news February 2010
Submitted by Geoff.Peach on February 3, 2010 - 5:28pm
Stepping Back
In our last issue, we introduced the term
"biodiversity", the diversity of living things in our
environment. In this issue we'll discuss biodiversity from a broad
lake-wide perspective, and how plant life in particular contributes to
the health of our lake environment.
When we observe environmental problems showing up at the beach,
like excessive algae washing ashore, or posted beaches due to high
bacteria, often these problems originate beyond the local beach area.
Some of these issues are compounded by the state of our watersheds.
The Lake Huron watershed covers roughly 134,000 square kilometres.
Since European settlement of the Lake Huron region, the watershed has
undergone significant changes, particularly south of the Bruce
Peninsula,
and along southern Georgian Bay. Forest cover, for instance, has been
reduced from an estimated pre-settlement extent of 90% to around
18%, and as low as 6% in some of Huron's river systems.
Lake Huron e-news January 2010
Submitted by Geoff.Peach on January 1, 2010 - 7:37pm
It's a Wonderful Life
This new year celebrates the International Year of Biodiversity. Over the course of 2010, e-news will include topics that are linked to biodiversity - and more specifically, coastal biodiversity.… continue reading »
Lake Huron e-news - December 2009
Submitted by Geoff.Peach on December 2, 2009 - 3:25amGive like Santa, Save like David Suzuki
Having a hard time thinking of a unique gift for a family member or
friend? Why not give something that is not only special, but benefits
Lake Huron's environment? We've listed some ideas that anyone with a
passion for Lake Huron would love to receive. Just select an item from
the list, send a cheque with a note naming your selected gift, the name
and address of the recipient, and we will send them a gift card from you
with the item you bought for them.
… continue reading »
Lake Huron e-news - November 2009
Submitted by Geoff.Peach on November 18, 2009 - 5:28pmCopenhagen Summit
In advance of the United Nations Climate Change Conference being held
December 7-18, 2009 in Copenhagen Denmark, we thought it would be
worthwhile revisiting the climate change issue and its effects on the
Great Lakes region.
Climate change projections for Lake Huron suggest that we will see
changes in water levels, temperature and precipitation in the coming
decades, making our work or leisure experience something different than
what we've been used to.
Studies
by federal and provincial agencies indicate that municipalities, business
and property owners will have to make adaptations to cope with these
changes. Some of the key findings are listed below.
… continue reading »
International Upper Great Lakes Study - public meetings
Submitted by Ross Klopp on July 2, 2009 - 5:56pmWater Levels Study to Hold Three Additional Public Meetings
The International Upper Great Lakes Study (IUGLS) has announced that, using web-conferencing technology, three additional public meetings will be held on July 7 and 8 in Fish Creek, WI, Collingwood, ON, and Mequon, WI, to solicit comments and answer questions on the draft report, Impacts on Upper Great Lakes Water Levels: St. Clair River. The Study has already held fourteen public meetings in communities around the Great Lakes basin.… continue reading »
Great Lakes Report
Submitted by Ross Klopp on May 6, 2009 - 10:32amby Dianne Colgan
Good news for the Great Lakes coming out of Toronto yesterday.
Goderich Mayor Deb Shewfelt says the inaugural Provincial-Municipal Great Lakes Summit saw great co-operation from the Ontario government on how to keep the lakes healthy and clean.
Shewfelt says Minister of the Environment John Garretson committed to an economic study of the Great Lakes region. …continue reading »
