A Self-Scaling Market Mechanism to Reduce Indirect Electricity Pollution

<> A Self-Scaling Market Mechanism to Reduce Indirect Electricity Pollution - The Great Lakes Protection Fund announced a $602,000 grant to a team led by WattTime that will reduce mercury and other air pollutants into the Great Lakes through software-guided reductions in energy use at times when electricity is being generated by high polluting sources.

Chicago Area Waterways Advisory Committee letter to President Obama and Congress

<>  Chicago Area Waterways Advisory Committee letter to President Obama and Congress - The CAWS Advisory Committee has considered options in the Great Lakes Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS) developed by USACE, along with additional information provided by technical consultants, and has identified further information needed to design and select a long-term solution -- the letter details the needs and further states that the requested "Chief's Report and accompanying information should be in sufficient detail for decisionmakers at the local, state, and federal levels to determine how to move forward with a long-term solution."

Great Lakes Commission Semiannual Meeting and Great Lakes Day

<> Great Lakes Commission Semiannual Meeting and Great Lakes Day - The Great Lakes Commission Semiannual Meeting and Great Lakes Day in Washington, D.C., will take place Feb 23-25, 2016 -- events will feature dialogue on Great Lakes priorities by regional leaders and members of Congress who play a critical role in shaping Great Lakes policies.

2016 Great Lakes ice cover passes 10 percent

<> 2016 Great Lakes ice cover passes 10 percent - Ice cover on the Great Lakes passed 10 percent this week, but researchers say there's little chance the historic ice cover and thickness the region experienced over the last two winters is likely to make a three-peat.

Group Says IJC Diversion Report "Game-Changing"

<> Group Says IJC Diversion Report "Game-Changing" - [see previous WIMS report] Michigan water and environmental lawyer Jim Olson, President of FLOW (For Love of Water), a Traverse City-based Great Lakes water policy center, said, "The IJC report and the in-depth consultants' report not only document the success of the Agreement and Compact among the provinces and states to ban diversions and control consumptive uses to protect and conserve the waters and ecosystem in the Basin, it also spotlights the importance for governments to consider implementing a new game-changing, public trust principle as a 'backdrop' to safeguard the Great Lakes and citizens -- it will prevent the Agreement and Compact from being undermined by possible political, economic, or uncertain or unexpected natural forces." FLOW's Public Trust Report on the Great Lakes to IJC

IJC Hails Progress by Governments in Protecting Great Lakes from Diversions

<> IJC Hails Progress by Governments in Protecting Great Lakes from Diversions - The International Joint Commission (IJC) commended federal, state and provincial governments in the Great Lakes Basin for making enormous strides toward protecting the Great Lakes from water diversions and managing consumptive uses.  Protection of the Waters of the Great Lakes - IJC 2015 Review of the Recommendations from the February 2000 Report – a Report to the Governments of Canada and the United States

Mild winter keeps Great Lakes' water levels up

<> Mild winter keeps Great Lakes' water levels up - Michigan's mild start to winter has Great Lakes levels doing strange things. December saw record amounts of precipitation in many parts of the Great Lakes basin, but in the form of rain and water levels that typically decline stayed constant, or even rose.