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Daily Environmental News

Great Lakes Protection Fund Redesigned Website

Aug 19: The Great Lakes Protection Fund (GLPF) announced that it has redesigned its website and invites interested parties to explore the site and provide comments. The site is designed to help generate dynamic content. GLPF indicates it is "determined to deliver more information about the results of Fund-supported projects, the content of our current project portfolio, and guidelines" used to evaluate funding opportunities.

    The Governors of the Great Lakes states created the Great Lakes Protection Fund in 1989 to help them protect and restore their shared Great Lakes resources. The Fund is the first private, permanent endowment created to benefit a specific ecosystem. The Governors established the Fund to ensure the continuous development of new technologies, innovative methods, and practical tools to improve the natural and economic vitality of the Great Lakes. Since inception, the Fund has committed over $59 million to 236 projects to meet those objectives. The Fund has also returned over $42 million to its member states so that they can pursue their Great Lakes priorities.
    
    Access an announcement on the redesigned website (click here). Access the GLPF website (click here).

NY Law Will Comply With Compact On Water Withdrawal

Aug 15: New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced he will sign a new law to protect New York's waters and the Great Lakes by requiring a state permit for the withdrawal of large volumes of water from the state's rivers, lakes, streams and groundwater. Significantly, the law will enable the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to comply with commitments under the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact (Compact) by regulating all significant water withdrawals occurring in the New York portion of the Great Lakes Basin. The law also directs DEC to establish an effective water conservation and efficiency program, which is another key responsibility of states under the Compact. The legislation (A5318-2011 S3455-2011) also increases penalties to deter violations that threaten the quality and quantity of the State's water resources.  

    The new law is designed to foster responsible conservation practices and economic growth while protecting water bodies and wildlife habitats. The permitting process will ensure a continued water supply to existing municipal, agricultural and industrial users, and will help identify areas that could support new water-dependent businesses. The law requires approval before operating or proposing a system with the capacity to withdraw 100,000 gallons or more per day of surface and groundwater.

    Access a release from the Governor (click here). Access additional information (click here).

Lake Erie Watersnake Removed From Endangered & Threatened List

Aug 15: Department of Interior (DOI) Secretary Ken Salazar announced that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS or the Service) removed the Lake Erie watersnake, a harmless species found on offshore islands in western Lake Erie in Ohio and Ontario, from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. The snake becomes the 23rd species to be delisted due to recovery. DOI indicated in a release that under the Endangered Species Act, the Service has worked to successfully stabilize our nation's most imperiled species in part by fostering partnerships, employing scientific excellence, and developing a workforce of conservation leaders who promote conservation programs that help species recovery.

    Salazar said, "Today the Lake Erie watersnake joins species such as the bald eagle, the American alligator, and the peregrine falcon that have rebounded from the threat of extinction and no longer require the protection of the Endangered Species Act. These species — and the hundreds of others whose extinction has been prevented by the Act -- are living testimonies to its ability to bring species back from the brink by protecting them and conserving and restoring their habitat." The final rule will publish in the Federal Register on August 16, 2011, and become effective on September 15, 2011.

    The Service listed the Lake Erie watersnake as a threatened species in 1999. Threats to the species included intentional killing and loss of its shoreline habitat on Lake Erie to development. In 2003, the Service finalized a recovery plan that called for protecting habitat and providing outreach to reduce threats to the species. In cooperation with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife (ODNR) and other partners, biologists worked to minimize and reduce the threats to the snake by sustaining and protecting summer and hibernation habitat and ensuring the permanent protection of shoreline habitat.

    Recovery criteria include a combined population of at least 5,555 snakes on the U.S. islands, sustained for six years, and protection of key habitat. Through continued habitat protection and public education, the Lake Erie watersnake population grew to about 11,980 in 2009, and has exceeded the minimum recovery level since 2002. About 300 acres of inland habitat and 11 miles of shoreline have been protected for the snake since it was listed. The Act requires that a species be monitored for a minimum of 5 years after delisting to ensure that the species remains stable after its protections are removed. The Service and the ODNR have developed a post-delisting monitoring plan to verify that the species remains secure from risk of extinction after the protections of the Act no longer apply. Lake Erie watersnakes remain listed as endangered by the state of Ohio so killing them is still illegal under state law.

    Access a release from DOI and link to a fact sheet, a prepublication copy of the final rule and other information about the Lake Erie watersnake and the ESA (click here).

Asian Carp eDNA Found Northeast Of Minnesota Twin Cities

Aug 11: The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MnDNR) indicates that water samples from the St. Croix River have tested positive for genetic material from silver carp (i.e. environmental DNA or eDNA), suggesting the invasive, leaping Asian species may be present in the river as far north as the dam at St. Croix Falls. According to a release, to date, no silver carp have been caught in the St. Croix River, either by anglers or commercial fishing operators. Only two bighead carp, a different Asian species, have been caught in the river – one in 1996 and another on April 18 of this year.

    MnDNR Commissioner Tom Landwehr said, "Our immediate goal is to mobilize as much effort as possible to confirm the presence of live silver carp in the St. Croix. The results raise the profile and the level of urgency around the Asian carp issue not just for the MnDNR, but for all agencies, conservation groups, municipalities and river users who have a stake in the health of the St. Croix and the Mississippi." The MnDNR will soon contract with commercial fishing operators to begin using nets on the St. Croix to try to capture live silver carp in the same areas where eDNA tests were positive. MnDNR staff will also use nets and boats outfitted with electric shocking capabilities to search for fish. MnDNR operations could start next week; commercial netting operations are expected to start by the end of August.

    MnDNR officials said they will proceed with development of a bubble or sonic barrier at the mouth of the St. Croix River at Prescott, WI, pending results of the additional carp sampling. Scientists believe such a barrier would not be a 100-percent deterrent to Asian carp, but if the populations are low, the barrier could help keep additional carp out of the river while other population control methods are developed. MnDNR is considering a variety of funding sources, including requesting assistance from the Minnesota Legislature, for the barrier. A recent estimate put the barrier's construction cost (for materials alone) at $7 million.

    U.S. Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) indicated in a media report, "The likely presence of Asian carp in the St. Croix River is very troubling and could have a disastrous impact on Minnesota's rivers. The fishing and boating industries contribute billions of dollars to Minnesota's economy and depend on the health of the state's waterways. I will continue to fight to prevent the spread of Asian carp into the Great Lakes, and I'll do everything I can to help protect the ecosystem and fisheries of Minnesota from this invasive fish."

    Access a release from MnDNR and link to the complete study (click here). Access a summary of Minnesota actions to stop the spread of Asian Carp (click here). Access a FAQ document on Asian Carp in Minnesota waters (click here). Access a media report from HometownSource.com (click here). Access a Great Lakes Basin map for indication of possible connective, interbasin migration routes (click here). Access a Google map near St. Croix Falls, WI (click here).

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No Asian Carp Found After Intensive Monitoring Around Lake Calumet

Aug 9: The Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (ACRCC) detailed the results of intensive monitoring efforts in and around Lake Calumet within the Chicago Area Waterway System (CAWS) and announced no Asian carp were seen or captured during a four-day response. The ACRCC began a Level 1 monitoring response under its Monitoring and Rapid Response Plan on August 1, after three consecutive rounds of Environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling yielded positive results for Asian carp DNA in and around Lake Calumet [See WIMS 8/1/11]. 

 

    At present, eDNA evidence cannot verify whether live Asian carp are present, whether the DNA may have come from a dead fish, or whether water containing Asian carp DNA may have been transported from other sources, such as bilge water. While the Lake Calumet area is regularly monitored for the presence of Asian carp, a level 1 response intensified efforts over a four-day period of time with commercial fishing crews, electrofishing boats, larger sweeping nets called seines, and additional sampling gear such as tandem trap nets and hydro acoustic surveys to determine whether live Asian carp were present in the area.

    John Goss, Asian Carp Director for the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) said, "Our rapid response plan did what it was designed to do -- use aggressive monitoring and the best available technology to confirm there is no establishing population of Asian carp above the electric barrier. We will continue to follow our comprehensive Asian carp control strategy to aggressively monitor the Chicago Area Waterway System, ensure the security of the electric barrier, and use and develop the most advanced technologies to protect the Great Lakes from Asian carp." 

    The Lake Calumet response action concluded on August 4, 2011 after more than 1,066 person-hours on the water using a crew of 38 state and Federal agency biologists and commercial fishermen aboard 11 vessels.  A variety of nets and methods were used during the operation, including gill/trammel netting, electrofishing, tandem-trap netting, and hydro acoustic surveys.  In total, crews fished more than 11 miles of gill/trammel nets, eight fyke nets, and completed 22.5 hours of electrofishing.  In all, 8,668 fish were collected, including large numbers of buffalo and gizzard shad , indicating that fish that share Asian carp habitat preferences were being trapped and identified.

    Access a lengthy release from ACRCC with additional details and links to more information (click here).

New Blog To Engage & Monitor GLWQA Renegotiations

Aug 9: Agreement Watch is a new blog hosted by Great Lakes United (GLU) to help citizens engage in the renegotiation of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA). GLU will provide periodic updates on the site as new information becomes available and post short articles and opinion pieces on various issues related to the Agreement. Concise and constructive comments are welcome.

 

    GLU reports that negotiating teams for the United States and Canada are actively engaged in drafting the first major changes to the Agreement since 1987. The window for official public input is expected to close by September 20, 2011. On August 4, the U.S. and Canadian governments announced the following as the final opportunities for public input into the GLWQA renegotiations:

• Late August: the governments will post a consultation presentation on binational.net
• A binational public forum will be held in Toronto on the afternoon of September 8.
• A binational public forum will be held in Chicago on the morning of September 13.
• A basin-wide webinar will be held on the afternoon of September 13.
• Written comment period for the public ends September 20.

    GLU indicates that one of the major requests from many groups over the past couple of years is that the public be given the opportunity to see the specific language of a draft revised GLWQA before the final round of public meetings. The governments have refused to do so. In a letter sent to Great Lakes United on July 29, 2011, the U.S. State Department and Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade responded: "While the restraints of international negotiations prevent us from sharing a draft of the agreement for public comment, we will be providing descriptive written materials to be shared ahead of the public forums." GLU notes there is no indication yet as to how specific the "descriptive written materials" will be.

    Access the Agreement Watch blog for extensive information and (click here). Access the Binational.net website for additional information from the governments (click here). Access the GLU website for more information (click here).

ANS White Paper & Conference Call August 10

Aug 9: The US Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) in collaboration with study partners have published the Aquatic Nuisance Species (ANS) White Paper: Non-Native Species of Concern and Dispersal Risk for the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study. The purpose of the ANS White Paper is to catalog potential non-native species within the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins and identify which high-risk species will be an initial focus in the Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS).

 

    According to an announcement, forty (40) aquatic nuisance species are identified in the ANS White Paper as high-risk species for GLMRIS Focus Area I -- the Chicago Area Waterway System (CAWS):10 are high-risk to the Great Lakes Basin and 30 are high-risk to the Mississippi River Basin. ACOE has prepared a table and information on the 40 Focus Area I high-risk species. The purpose of the ANS White Paper is to catalog potential non-native species within the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins and identify which high-risk species will be an initial focus in GLMRIS. ACOE will host a conference call tomorrow, August 10, 2011, at 11:00 AM (central) for interested parties to ask questions of the technical team that developed the Aquatic Nuisance Species White Paper.

 

    Access the ACOE ANS website for the table more information (click here). Access the ANS White Paper (click here). Access more information on the White Paper release and details form the conference call (click here). Access the GLMRIS website for complete background information (click here).

 

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Community-Based Climate Adaption Plans In The Great Lakes

Aug 4: The Superior Watershed Partnership (SWP) in cooperation with Climate Solutions University (CSU) announced a funding opportunity for developing community-based climate adaption plans in the Great Lakes. The Model Forest Policy Program has developed a Climate Adaptation program called Climate Solutions University: Forest and Water Strategies (CSU) and is seeking applications from Great Lakes rural forested communities to participate in 2012. Applications to participate in 2012 are now available at with a deadline of September 19, 2011.

 

    According to an announcement the CSU program works to empower local, rural communities in the U.S. to become resilient in the face of a changing climate by protecting their forest and water resources and their resource-dependent livelihoods. The program invests in a multi-year engagement with communities to assess their climate risks and develop a climate readiness plan to be implemented over the next several years. The CSU training and coaching process begins with a 10-month rigorous curriculum of distance learning with a monthly webinar, a monthly conference call, plus individual coaching and assistance. This will be complemented by extensive work by the local Great Lakes project leader and their local organization's planning team. CSU offers a direct $10,000 scholarship to support local staff time plus an estimated $50,000 in the value of the CSU educational and coaching process. The local community leader is expected to provide a $10,000 in-kind match so as to assure at least a half-time person dedicated to leading the project with the help of their local stakeholder team. 

 

   By the end of 2011, 14 communities will have completed the CSU process with excellent results in the climate adaptation plans they have developed and some beginning to implement in 2011. Their goals are location specific, driven by local decision makers, and aimed at benefiting the social, environmental and economic needs of the community.

 

    Access a posted announcement with links to more information (click here). Access a registration form to obtain program guidelines and a complete application (click here). Access the SWP website for more information (click here).

 

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Indiana DNR State Of Lake Michigan Conference

Aug 8: The Indiana Department of Natural Resources announced the 7th biennial State of Lake Michigan (SOLM) and the 11th annual Great Lakes Beach Association Conference. The joint conference will be held at the Stardust Event Center, located a few blocks from the southern shores of Lake Michigan in Michigan City, Indiana, on September 26-28. The conference brings together elected officials, scientists, resource managers, planners, students, and citizens working to improve Great Lakes beaches and Lake Michigan, as outlined in the Lakewide Management Plan. Activities and events include field trips, workshops, and a reception with speakers from local, state, and federal government and John Goss, President Obama's Carp Czar. 

 

    Access complete conference details and agenda and link to online registration (click here).

Chemicals & Chemical Byproducts In The Great Lakes

Aug 4: A study released by the Alliance for the Great Lakes takes a hard look at the existing data on chemicals and chemical byproducts in the Great Lakes, and at what science tells us that could mean for our health. According to a release, the discovery of pharmaceutical byproducts in Lake Michigan and more recently, Lake Erie, is raising concerns about the potential health risk to the more than 40 million who rely on the Great Lakes for drinking water -- as well as concerns about what else might be circulating in the water. 

    The Alliance indicates that more troubling is that "these pharmaceuticals represent just a fraction of the chemical contaminants that make up what some researchers look upon as a vast chemical soup stretching from Minnesota to New York." The study reports that many emerging contaminants are found in the Great Lakes today, among them flame retardants, modern pesticides, pharmaceuticals, the antibacterial and antifungal agent Triclosan, and the insect-repellent DEET. The now-notorious bisphenol A (BPA), commonly used in a wide variety of plastics such as baby bottles and food packaging, was found in more than half the water samples analyzed in all the studies to date.

    The report, Emerging Contaminant Threats and the Great Lakes: Existing science, estimating relative risk, and determining policies, says there's too little data from the lakes and not enough understanding of the effects of these emerging contaminants. "What is known, it concludes, is worth worrying about." Dr. Rebecca Klaper, Shaw Associate Professor at the Great Lakes WATER Institute in Milwaukee and lead author of the report said, "Exposure to some of these chemicals . . .  is cause for consternation for people and concern over fish and wildlife impacts." 

    The Alliance is calling for legislation to reform the federal Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the 1976 law from which EPA derives its authority to require reporting, record-keeping and testing of chemical substances. Among the needed reforms they are calling for: Grant the EPA administrator the ability to act immediately on chemicals we know are dangerous, such as persistent and bioaccumulating toxics, asbestos and formaldehyde; Require chemical manufacturers to provide basic information on the health and environmental hazards associated with their chemicals, and grant the public full access to information about a chemical's safety; and Ensure chemicals meet a standard of safety for all people -- including children, pregnant women and workers.

 

    There are currently nine co-sponsors to a bill introduced by U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) which they said "calls for a comprehensive approach to managing chemicals." The Safe Chemicals Act of 2011 (S.847) would increase chemical safety, curb emerging contaminants from entering the environment in the first place, and address chemicals that are persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic. The following five Great Lakes senators are co-sponsoring the legislation: Dick Durbin (D-IL), Al Franken (D-MN), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Amy Klobuchar, (D-MN), and Chuck Schumer (D-NY).

 

    Access a release from the Alliance and link to the complete report, executive summary and fact sheet and (click here).

New App Provides Beach Water Quality & Information

Aug 4: The Great Lakes Commission (GLC), in partnership with LimnoTech and the Great Lakes states, has developed a smartphone application that provides more options and opportunities for public access to beach advisories and other environmental information. Funded by the U.S. EPA-led Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), the myBeachCast application (app) provides the public with real-time information on beach water quality advisories, weather and water conditions in a form that is location-aware and easy to access. The app allows users to discover local beaches based on the user's location, save favorite beaches, and quickly locate other nearby beaches in the case of a water quality advisory at their favorite beach.

    Currently in the beta testing phase, the app retrieves advisory and closure data from the states of Michigan, Indiana and Ohio, all of which utilize BeachGuard, a centralized reporting database for monitoring data collected by health departments across each state. Data from the other Great Lakes states will be incorporated in time for the app's full launch in May 2012. The app was designed for the Android platform by LimnoTech, a water resources and engineering company based in Ann Arbor, MI, in partnership with GLC and the states. A mobile-enhanced website available on the Great Lakes Information Network will offer complementary information for other mobile devices. Funding is being sought to develop a corresponding native app for the iPhone.
   

    Access a posted release on the app with contact information (click here). Access the myBeachCast app (click here). Access the BeachGuard for more information (click here).

Great Lakes Coalition Announces $115,000 In Grants

Aug 3: The Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition (HOW) announced $115,000 in grants that will be awarded to nine organizations poised to jump-start restoration projects on four of the five Great Lakes. The coalition grants will help conservation organizations participate in the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, a federal program to clean up toxic pollution, confront aquatic invasive species and restore habitat and wetlands.

 

    According to a release, one organization funded by the coalition last year -- the Alliance for the Great Lakes -- leveraged a $15,000 grant into a recently announced $150,000 Great Lakes Restoration Initiative award to improve 28 acres of habitat along Lake Michigan in northeastern Illinois. Jeff Skelding, campaign director for HOW said, "We're excited to be working with local groups to continue progress on Great Lakes restoration. Restoration projects produce results -- but there is more work to do. These grants will address a variety of issues that are important to the health of the Great Lakes and economy."

 

    The coalition awards grants of up to $15,000 to groups in five geographic priority areas: The St. Louis River and St. Louis Bay in Lake Superior; the waters of Lake Michigan in the Chicagoland area; Lake Huron's Saginaw Bay; western Lake Erie and eastern Lake Ontario. This year, the coalition awarded grants to three Michigan groups; two Minnesota organizations; two New York groups; and two Ohio organizations.

 

The 2011 implementation grants will support efforts to: Reduce phosphorus pollution and Control the invasive reed Phragmites in western Lake Erie; Reduce noxious algae and improve water quality in Lake Ontario's Sodus Bay; Restore the lower Salmon Creek watershed in New York; Restore the Rifle River in Michigan and remove a dam in the Shiawassee River that limits upstream fish passage from Lake Huron's Saginaw Bay; Replace invasive Phragmites in Saginaw Bay with native wild rice; and Restore streams that flow into Lake Superior's Duluth Harbor and increase public awareness of restoration projects underway in the St. Louis River.

 

    Access a lengthy release from HOW with details on each of the grants and links to the organizations (click here). Access the HOW website for more information (click here). 

Autumn Leaves (Litterfall) Mercury Pathway Equals Precipitation

Aug 2: Recent U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) research indicates that fallen autumn leaves transfer as much, if not more, hazardous mercury from the atmosphere to the environment as does precipitation each year. USGS indicates mercury is an environmental contaminant that accumulates in fish and food webs and poses a health risk to humans and wildlife. Precipitation is a major avenue by which mercury is transferred from the atmosphere into the environment, but new studies by the USGS and partners show that litterfall -- the leaves and needles that drop to the forest floor each year -- delivers at least as much mercury to eastern U.S. ecosystems as precipitation, and precipitation has been increasing in the Great Lakes region.

    USGS research hydrologist Martin Risch said, "Before these studies, we didn't know the extent of litterfall as a mercury pathway in different types of forests across the eastern U.S. Our research found that annual amounts of mercury deposited in autumn litterfall from deciduous forests were equal to or exceeded the annual amounts deposited in precipitation." Most of the mercury that eventually ends up in fish and food webs comes from the air, and much of the mercury in the air comes from human sources such as coal-fired power plants, industrial boilers, cement manufacturing, and incinerators. Forest canopies naturally remove mercury from the air and incorporate the mercury into and onto the leaves and needles of trees.

    USGS scientists researched mercury levels in litterfall from forests over a three-year period in 15 eastern U.S. states. When they compared the results to those from a separate study of mercury in precipitation within the Great Lakes region, they found similar geographic patterns for mercury in litterfall and mercury in precipitation: Both types of mercury deposition were generally high in the same areas and low in the same areas. Risch said, "The similar geographic patterns indicate that the same mercury emissions sources affecting mercury levels in precipitation in an area also may affect mercury levels in forests and litterfall in that same area."

    Furthermore, USGS said the precipitation study found no improvement in the amount of atmospheric mercury deposited by precipitation in the Great Lakes region over a 7-year period, and found that the amount of precipitation in the region had increased during this time. This precipitation study covers a time period that precedes new regulations by U.S. EPA to reduce mercury emissions in the U.S.

    Access a release from USGS and links to the two studies' abstracts and full text online for purchase in the journal Environmental Pollution (click here).

ACRCC Steps Up Monitoring With More Positive eDNA Results

Jul 29: The Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (ACRCC) announced intensive monitoring action will begin in Lake Calumet and surrounding areas today (August 1), after three consecutive rounds of Environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling yielded positive results for Asian carp DNA. The ACCRC's 2011 Monitoring and Rapid Response Plan calls for a Level 1 response to three consecutive rounds of positive eDNA results in one area. While Lake Calumet is regularly monitored for the presence of Asian carp, a level 1 response adds commercial fishing crews as well as additional electrofishing boats, larger sweeping nets, called seines, and additional sampling gear to the area during an intensive four day fishing period.

    At present, eDNA evidence cannot verify whether live Asian carp are present, whether the DNA may have come from a dead fish, or whether water containing Asian carp DNA may have been transported from other sources, such as bilge water. The monitoring response is designed to intensify resources and use the best available technology to search for live Asian carp in the Lake Calumet area. Eight previous monitoring trips to Lake Calumet since March 2011 have identified 4,500 fish and indicated no Asian carp presence.

    John Goss, Director of the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) said, "Finding three or more consecutive sets of positive eDNA samples in the same area triggers us to use significant resources to try to find a physical specimen. Through the ACRCC's comprehensive Asian carp  control strategy, we remain vigilant both in monitoring to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes, and also in investigating all possible sources of Asian carp DNA to minimize the human transfer element such as people unknowingly using Asian carp as bait or other activities that could transfer them to the Great Lakes."

    Biologists from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources will be on the water with commercial fishermen and biologists from Southern Illinois University and the Illinois Natural History Survey beginning Monday August 1st through Thursday August 4th. The crews will lay various net types throughout the Lake Calumet area, including half-mile long seine nets to sweep large portions of the area.  Electrofishing boats will sample fish in shoreline areas and will be used to drive fish towards the nets.  Commercial and private vessel traffic will be able to proceed with minimal interference from the monitoring activity. Three separate eDNA samples sets were taken at Lake Calumet between June 15 and July 19 and revealed 11 positives (all Silver carp DNA) out of 328 samples taken. 

    Access a release from ACRCC with some eDNA sampling details (click here). Access full eDNA sampling details can be found on the ACOE website (click here). Access background and more information on the ACRCC website (click here).

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