Water
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 »
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.
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 - 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 »
Proposed Bruce Beach Road Drainage System
Submitted by Ross Klopp on September 27, 2009 - 1:27pmMitch Twolan:
We have serious concerns about the direction this project is taking. There is a short term road-flooding problem in a few defined areas and the project as described seems to be beyond what is needed and may not be environmentally and fiscally responsible.
Short-circuiting the natural drainage process with its slow but effective filtration through the sandy soil between the road and the lake can only introduce more pollutants and debris into the lake water. Small filters in the drainage pipeline cannot hope to duplicate the effectivness of slow seepage through the ground, and will require on-going maintenance. At the very least, a full environmental assessment should be made, although it is always difficult to predict the full impact of interrupting natural processes: the larger the change, the greater the potential problems.
The last estimated cost we heard for this project was $300,000 (and this was before the addition of the filters). As huge as this number seems, it is unlikely that a project of this magnitude could be brought in for this amount. Also, the on-going cost for maintaining the pipe and filters cannot be ignored.
Installing the pipeline under the gravel will require prolonged and major inconvenience on a road that is so narrow that it is difficult for two cars to pass under normal conditions. ( As an aside, it is difficult to envision how the drains will allow the flood water to get from the top of the road to the pipe without bringing in significant amounts of gravel.) Digging the pipe trench could disrupt roots and kill roadside trees along the way. This could also mean digging on private property where it directly meets the road in some areas. … continue reading »
Canada's Sickest Lake
Submitted by Ross Klopp on August 31, 2009 - 8:35pm
Lake WinnipegLiving, toxic goo is killing lakes the world over. It may be too late for Lake Winnipeg.
by Nancy Macdonald
Canada’s sickest lakeCisco! Walleye! Whitefish! From the foredeck of the MV Namao, a scientific research vessel on Lake Winnipeg, student-scientists in rubber boots and banana-yellow hard hats are calling out the catch. They’ve also landed troutperch and emerald shiners, whose weight, stomach contents, skin tissues and isotopic concentrations will help gauge the health of the huge prairie lake. The trawl net—which looks like a bright blue tube sock with a nine-metre hole—was hauled aboard by a yellow crane just before the skies went suddenly dark, unleashing a heavy wall of rain like only the prairies can. Walloped by wind and rain, even the Namao—at 34 m, the biggest ship on the lake—is rocking and rolling on Lake Winnipeg’s dangerous, ocean-sized waves.
Algae Staying Away, Hogweed Creeping In
Submitted by Ross Klopp on July 25, 2009 - 9:50pmHuron Kinloss
by James Morgan
It's nothing out of National Geographic or a documentary film, but Mother Nature is doing interesting things in Huron-Kinloss.
Mayor Mitch Twolan says algae is in shallow areas of Lake Huron but it hasn't washed up on shore like it usually does during the summer.
He attributes that to the cooler than usual weather and water temperatures this summer, and adds while that's good for keeping algae away, it's not the best for swimmers wanting warmer water.
While the algae is staying away, Giant Hogweed is creeping in. …continue reading…
Stewardship funding available throught Ontario Drinking Water Stewardship Program
Submitted by beachcomber on July 10, 2009 - 10:34pmThere is stewardship funding available for residents of Bruce and Grey Counties that live within certain areas of wellhead protection areas and intake protection zones.
I would like to encourage visitors of your website to visit our site or call the office to find out if they are eligible for projects relating to septic, well, runoff/erosion or pollution prevention.
Visit www.waterprotection.ca to view maps showing areas eligible for stewardship funding or call 877-470-3001 with roll number.
Thank you for your time.
Karen
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 »
Livestock main source of E. coli: study
Submitted by Ross Klopp on May 5, 2009 - 8:41pmDNA fingerprinting shows human sewage only a tiny fraction of the problem
By Tom Spears, The Ottawa Citizen May 5, 2009
Manure from cattle and pigs far outweighs human sewage as the source of E. coli pollution in Lake Huron, says a new Canadian study that helps show why the bacteria pollution problem is growing.
After years of arguments over where the disease-carrying bacteria come from -- humans, livestock or wildlife -- DNA "fingerprinting" says human sewage is only a tiny fraction of the problem.
In samples from Lake Huron and the creeks and rivers feeding it, cattle and pig manure accounted for 59 to 62 per cent of the E. coli.…continue reading »
