MONDAY MASHUP: Wood2Energy

Wood2Energy_Wisconsin

Click map to see facilities that use wood as a fuel source in Wisconsin.

By Rachael Gleason
Feb. 8, 2010

The Great Lakes region receives 4 percent of its energy needs from biomass resources, according to a regional biomass energy program. But some estimates put the potential for biomass at 15 to 20 percent.

Biomass resources include wood and other organic materials. People switch to wood energy to replace fossil fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The University of Tennessee mapped industrial facilities using biomass power. For the Great Lakes region, see: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York. And in Canada, see Ontario.

Read more…


Creative environment: Art, science and ice produce powerful palette

By Alice Rossignol
Feb. 7, 2010

The IDEA Shanty uses Innovation, Design, Energy and Art to mix art and science. Photo: Joseph Rand

The IDEA Shanty uses Innovation, Design, Energy and Art to mix art and science. Photo: Joseph Rand

Each year as Medicine Lake thickens with ice, artists from across the nation flock here for a four-weekend celebration of art, science and the winter season.

Inspired by traditional ice-fishing houses, selected artists build unique temporary shanties on this Minnesota lake for a festival called the Art Shanty Projects. The shanties themselves are art, but they also house interactive art and science activities and performances for weekend visitors.  This year’s exhibition ends today.

“We’re trying to raise the thought of who can be an artist and what art can be,” said Caitlin Hargarten, this year’s director.
Read more…

Great Lakes governors attend White House carp summit

By Brandon Howell
Feb. 7, 2010
LANSING, Mich. – Michigan environmental agencies hope Monday’s White House Asian carp summit will prompt the closing of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship canal to the invaders.
Read more…

More Headlines

New U.P. sulfide mining proposal sparks criticism

By Laura Fosmire
Feb. 6, 2010

LANSING, Mich. — The state has already approved one controversial mine in the Upper Peninsula, and now other companies are poised to start a similar lengthy permit application process.  Read more…

Fish food: Hungry and abundant salmon could be too much for Lake Ontario alewives

New research shows there may be too many Chinook salmon in Lake Ontario for alewives - their prefered food - to overcome. Photo: GLERL

Too many Lake Ontario Chinook salmon threaten the survival of the alewives they eat. Photo: GLERL

By Jeff Gillies
Feb. 5, 2010

(UPDATE: Michael Connerton, co-author of the research written about here, responded by email Monday to points he thought were omitted or exaggerated. Specific criticisms have been added in italics below. See more discussion of this article at Lake Ontario United.)

A biological balancing act between the premier Great Lakes sportfish and its prey could be at a tipping point in Lake Ontario.

Chinook salmon are the foundation of the Lake Ontario recreational fishery, which is worth $76 million to New York alone. But new research shows that the popular predators could be so abundant in the lake that there may not be enough alewives – the Chinook’s main prey fish – to go around.

Read more…

Lake litter crackdown: States battle trash, human waste left by ice anglers

2010-litter-1

Resource managers are cracking down on anglers who leave trash on the ice. Photo: Minnesota DNR

By Rachael Gleason
Feb. 04, 2010

Resource officials in northern Great Lakes states are warning litterbug ice anglers to clean up their act.

Enforcement officers finding trash near favorite ice fishing spots are not pleased.

“It’s illegal to leave any garbage or litter on public lands or waters,” said Ken Soring, northeast regional manager at the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. “It’s a total lack of concern for the environment.” Read more…

Freshwater surfers are Great Lakes activists

By Haley Walker
Feb. 3, 2010

SurfphotoGrand Haven Pier

Surfer at Lake Michigan's Grand Haven Pier. Photo: Ingrid Lindfors.

As a father and as a resident of Grand Haven, Mich., Vince Deur said it’s natural for him to care about the future of the Great Lakes.

But that’s not what brought him in front of Congress last year to talk about water quality.

Deur is a surfer and founder of the Lake Michigan Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, a nonprofit group linking surfers to environmental causes.

The organization has 90 chapters and 50,000 members worldwide. Deur’s chapter represents those who surf miles from any ocean.

Last February, Deur was asked by the Healing Our Waters Coalition, a group working to restore the Great Lakes, to lobby in Washington, D.C. on Great Lakes Day. He was the only surfer among 100 business leaders, lobbyists and activists discussing the restoration and protection of the lakes on Capitol Hill. (See surfing video below) Read more…

Climate change may spur northward advance of Great Lakes invaders

By Josh Garvey
Feb. 2, 2010

LANSING – Amid concern and confusion over Asian carp possibly finding their way into the Great Lakes, many experts involved in the controversy agree that other invasive species are likely to show up too. Read more…

MONDAY MASHUP: Great Lakes Superfund sites

PA_Superfund

Click map to see Pennsylvania's Superfund sites.

By Rachael Gleason
Feb. 1, 2010

Hazardous waste sites in Great Lakes states make up a third of the nation’s total, according to an investigation by the Center for Public Integrity.

The Washington-based watchdog journalism group compiled a series of mashups to illustrate the spatial extent of Superfund sites.

Here are links to each state’s mashup: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York. Read more…

Robot week: Rover carries heavy instruments through Great Lakes surf

By Sarah Coefield
Jan. 30, 2010

The underwater rover will be able to collect data in areas too shallow for boats and too dangerous for people.  Photo: Tom Consi

This rover collects data in areas too shallow for boats and too dangerous for people. Photo: Tom Consi

Editor’s note: This is the fifth in a series of stories on how new technology is giving researchers a glimpse of the critical nearshore area of the Great Lakes

When the water is too shallow for a boat and too dangerous for a person, it’s time to send in a robot researcher.

At least, that’s what Tom Consi hopes will be the mindset when he launches the remote operated vehicle he’s worked on for the past year.

“People need fundamental data in the surf zone, and our robot’s designed to go out and get it,” he said. Read more…

Read more stories on the Great Lakes Echo.

Great Links

Chicago schools pile up lunch waste

(IL) Chicago Tribune – Every day, kids in the Chicago Public Schools district throw out nearly a quarter of a million lunch and breakfast trays made of polystyrene foam. That’s more than 1 million a week, about 5 million a month.

EPA gives details on major pollutants at Buick City site, how to clean it up

(MI) The Flint Journal - Here are the major contaminants the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says are polluting the south part of Buick City complex (south of Leith Street, east to the Flint River and south to Harriet Street).

Biologists say Great Lakes still at risk despite ballast flushing

(WI) Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel - The Canadian and U.S. operators of the St. Lawrence Seaway have begun requiring freighters to flush their ship-steadying ballast tanks with ocean saltwater to kill or expel any unwanted organisms before they arrive in the Great Lakes.

Carp talks may miss bigger lake challenge

(WI) Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - The focus of Monday’s White House Asian carp summit is to stop the giant, ecosystem-ravaging fish from slipping in the Great Lakes’ back door – the Chicago canal system that links the Great Lakes and the Gulf of Mexico.

Asian carp discussion moves to Washington

(IL) Chicago Tribune – A critical week in the battle against Asian carp kicks off Monday when Gov. Pat Quinn plans to meet with governors from Michigan and Wisconsin at the White House to hash out a plan to keep the invasive species out of the Great Lakes.

Asian carp represents ecological disaster for Great Lakes

(WI) Green Bay Post-Gazette - As Midwestern governors prepare an “Asian carp summit” today at the White House, Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox continues to sound the alarm. His voice must be heeded to avert what could be an ecological disaster across the world’s largest freshwater lakes system.

Sail aboard a tall ship

(MN) Duluth News Tribune - Visitors to this summer’s tall ship festival in Duluth will have the opportunity to not only tour replica ships at dock but also to sail aboard them.

Cleveland Cavaliers pull water fountains from The Q

(OH) Cleveland Plain Dealer - The Cleveland Cavaliers have removed all water fountains from The Q. To get a drink of water at the arena, you must stand in line at a concession stand, where you can get a small courtesy cup of water for free or pay $4 for bottled water.

High-profile panel sought for Coon Rapids Dam plan

(MN) Minneapolis Star-Tribune - Three Rivers Park District want an all-star cast of federal, state and local leaders to determine the future of the aging and money-draining Coon Rapids Dam.

Coyotes invade Metro Detroit suburbs

(MI) The Detroit News - It was around 11 p.m. and Kathy Rinaldi had just let her Havanese, Lola, out for the last time that night. The dog let out a howl so violent it was more like a scream, Rinaldi said. She ran to the door and locked eyes with a coyote that had just attacked her 13-pound dog standing near the side door of her home on Belle Meade.

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