Monday, November 30, 2015

NOAA graphics show how a Mackinac straits oil spill might look

<> NOAA graphics show how a Mackinac straits oil spill might look - Water currents model used during Enbridge exercise.

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

EDITORIAL: Lake Erie dumping of Cuyahoga River dredge? No! No! No!

<> EDITORIAL: Lake Erie dumping of Cuyahoga River dredge? No! No! No! - The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is again seeking authorization from Ohio to dump some Cuyahoga River sediments directly into Lake Erie.

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Activists ask environment minister to halt nuclear waste burial

<> Activists ask environment minister to halt nuclear waste burial - Groups opposed to Ontario Power Generation's proposal to bury nuclear waste near Lake Huron north of Kincardine are petitioning the federal Environment and Climate Change minister.

Monday, November 23, 2015

MI U.S. Senators Stabenow, Peters Urge Funding for Great Lakes Heavy Icebreaker

<> MI U.S. Senators Stabenow, Peters Urge Funding for Great Lakes Heavy Icebreaker - Heavy ice cover seen in recent winters has seriously impaired commercial shipping and economic activity in the Great Lakes -- last winter, cargo shipping decreased by 3.2 million tons, costing $355 million in lost revenue and nearly 2,000 jobs. 

Friday, November 20, 2015

Bill to ban microbeads advances in Congress

<> Bill to ban microbeads advances in Congress - The Microbead-Free Waters Act of 2015, (H.R. 1321) co-sponsored by U.S. Rep. Fred Upton( R-MI) and Rep. Frank Pallone ( D-NJ), passed the U.S. House of Representatives energy and commerce committee on Wednesday, Nov. 18 -- the bill now goes to the full House for debate.

Thursday, November 19, 2015

To prevent Great Lakes oil spills, map the risks and strengthen rules

<> To prevent Great Lakes oil spills, map the risks and strengthen rules - [Commentary By Michigan U.S. Sens. Gary Peters (D-Bloomfield Twp) & Debbie Stabenow (D-Lansing)] The Senators say: "We are deeply concerned about the potential for future spills in Michigan — particularly from Line 5, a pair of 60-year old oil and gas pipelines that lie exposed in the water at the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac."

Wednesday, November 18, 2015

LEEDCo lands a third DOE grant to develop Lake Erie wind project

<> LEEDCo lands a third DOE grant to develop Lake Erie wind project - The U.S. Department of Energy has not given up on Lake Erie-based wind turbines, the first freshwater-based turbines in the nation -- Lake Erie Energy Development Corp. (LEEDCo) is in line for a $3.7 million research and development grant in March of 2016

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Controversy over oil pipeline in Lake Michigan

<> Controversy over oil pipeline in Lake Michigan - Video: The oil pipeline running under the Straits of Mackinac in Michigan is causing concerns for drinking water in communities around Lake Michigan and Lake Huron.

Monday, November 16, 2015

What is happening to the salmon?

<> What is happening to the salmon? - In a four-year span between 2004 and 2008, Lake Huron went through a dramatic change in its ecosystem that greatly affected the salmon population. Similar trends are starting to show in Lake Michigan.

Tuesday, November 10, 2015

NOAA seeks public input on WI/Lake Michigan national marine sanctuary proposal

<> NOAA seeks public input on WI/Lake Michigan national marine sanctuary proposal - NOAA is asking for the public's input on a proposed national marine sanctuary to protect historic shipwrecks in a section of Lake Michigan along the Wisconsin coast. The area was proposed to NOAA with broad community support -- meetings: Nov. 17, 18, 19; public comment period closes on Jan. 15, 2016.

Monday, November 9, 2015

Asian carp recommendations could take 4 more years

<> Asian carp recommendations could take 4 more years - Nearly two years after the release of a landmark report on alternatives for keeping Asian carp out of the Great Lakes, federal officials told members of Congress on Wednesday it could be another four years before recommendations for stopping the invasive species at a key chokepoint outside Chicago, Ill., are ready.

Thursday, November 5, 2015

New saltie on Great Lakes is first with onboard ballast treatment

<> New saltie on Great Lakes is first with onboard ballast treatment - Fednav, Canada's largest Great Lakes shipping fleet, took delivery this week of the first Great Lakes-bound saltie with a permanent, on-board ballast water treatment system.

Wednesday, November 4, 2015

A scientific panel weighs in on fish farming

<> A scientific panel weighs in on fish farming - A report on fish farming in the Great Lakes suggests Michigan should move carefully if it allows the industry to start up -- Canadians raise millions of trout in Lake Huron every year and some people want Michigan to do the same -- fish farms are proposed for the Bay de Noch near Escanaba, and in Lake Huron near Roger's City -- the main concern scientists have about pollution from these farms is phosphorus, a nutrient plants need 

Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Great Lakes Commission supports action to protect the region from new invasive species

<> Great Lakes Commission supports action to protect the region from new invasive species - The Great Lakes Commission supports action proposed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to take preventive measures to protect the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River region from damaging invasive species and to list ten fish and one crayfish species under a federal law that prohibits the importation and transport of harmful, non-native wildlife. 

Monday, November 2, 2015

Final Report on the Lake Huron Restoration Regional Meetings

<> Final Report on the Lake Huron Restoration Regional Meetings - Keystone Policy Center report on meetings held this past spring in Bay City, Port Huron, Alpena, and Sault Ste. Marie