Cruise ship season in the Great Lakes is in full swing, and Alpena, Michigan, has seen its fair share of cruise ships anchoring in its waters. Each year since 2022, the number of stops in Alpena has increased because of positive feedback. Read the full story by the Huron Daily Tribune.
Chemicals like perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) were likely spilled after the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. A low-pressure storm system moved these chemicals across the Great Lakes region affecting all of the Great Lakes except Lake Superior. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Pennsylvania Sea Grant announced a new online platform to help citizens learn more about commonly found aquatic invasive species (AIS) in waters near them and offers tools to help accurately identify them. Read the full story by WJET – Erie, PA.
Studies show that indoor air can be more polluted than the outdoor air in the biggest, most industrial cities in the Great Lakes region. Therefore seeking refuge indoors may actually be posing greater health risks. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now.
Genetics is being pointed to as a major factor in the downturn in mallard numbers in the Atlantic Flyway and the Great Lakes region. Read the full story by Outdoor News.
Newly hatched Great Lakes piping plovers are all feet and fluff. A captive rearing program in northern Michigan is working to help their population increase. Read the full story by MLive.
Since 2006, the number of new invasive species entering the Great Lakes has declined by 85%, but with climate change warming the lakes, the number of freshwater species that can ultimately survive in the interconnected body of water is only increasing. Read the full story by the Daily Herald.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) released its seasonal outlook for Lake Erie’s algal levels this summer. The annual bloom, commonly known as blue-green algae, is expected to become visible by early July and last into September. Read the full story by KDFW – Dallas, TX.
Volunteers and invasive species partners will be at boat launches all over the state of Wisconsin this weekend, working to educate boaters on how to follow clean, drain, dry protocols to prevent the spread of invasive species. Read the full story by WCLO – Janesville, WI.
The plastic pollution problem is widespread in the Great Lakes region. At a beach cleanup at Chicago’s North Avenue beach in May of 2024 participants picked up litter including lots of bits of plastic. Read the full story by Environment Illinois.
The Superior Watershed Program’s Lake Superior Volunteer Corps teamed up with the Great Lakes Climate Corps and community volunteers to clean up the new city pier in Marquette, Michigan. Volunteers pulled weeds and invasive plants from the area while planting native flowers and seeds. Read the full story by the WLUC – Marquette, MI.
This year’s Lake Erie algal bloom — which NOAA announced yesterday is expected to be a moderate one — broke from tradition and started growing near the Monroe, Michigan, shoreline days ago. Most of the past outbreaks began in the Maumee Bay near Toledo. Read the full story by the Blade.