Comparing water rates is a messy business. Here’s some of the methodology I used for Echo’s two-day series on water rates this week.

Most of the research was conducted in early February.  I surveyed 32 cities in the eight states bordering the Great Lakes. I chose four cities in each state with similar population sizes. Populations ranged from less than 10,000 residents, between 15,000-46,000, between 65,000-85,000 residents and the cities with the most residents in each state.
The states had inconsistent city populations. I’d find some states with about 20,000 residents, but …

Many Great Lakes cities are discouraging water use by setting conservation water rates.
But utility providers can lose money if rates aren’t set correctly.

To contribute to the discussion about the nutrients section of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, post your thoughts below. If you want the U.S. and Canadian governments to consider your input, send it to the official website.
In Lake Erie, the re-occurrence of wide spread algae blooms has been observed in recent years. In Lakes Michigan, Huron and Ontario the algae problem is limited to the nearshore zones. Algae are not generally a problem in Lake Superior. Algae blooms are linked to excess nutrient loadings to the …

Many Great Lakes cities are setting water rate structures that discourage consumption. But these rates can be bad for business if set poorly.

JUNE 10:
Survey shows Great Lakes trend of water rates that encourage conservation
Utility providers set high consumption charges to discourage water use.

JUNE 11:
Conservation rates: Bad for business?
Utility providers can lose money if rates aren’t set correctly.

METHODOLOGY:
Reporter’s Notebook: Water Wages

A Great Lakes Echo analysis shows many cities are hiking the per-gallon costs of water to encourage water conservation, especially in large metropolitan areas.

On Wednesdays through July, Great Lakes Echo will run a video segment expected to become a building block of a finished documentary on the greening of Flint, Mich.

You can help by suggesting interviews, questions and angles to pursue.

This week: The city mows down a resident’s gardens.

The Great Lakes region is key to developing an innovation-driven green economy, according to a recent report from the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank.
The report outlines the benefits of creating a region-wide network of energy research centers.
“…a series of roughly six of these high-powered, market-focused energy centers would create a critical mass of innovation through their number, size, variety, linkages and orientation to pre-existing research institutions and industry clusters,” according to the report.
Accounting for nearly a third of all academic and industry research development in the country, the Midwest …

Compact fluorescent light bulbs use less energy.

They also contain mercury, and that has some doctors concerned about their ultimate disposal.

Granted, offhshore oil drilling of the kind that created the Gulf mess is prohibited in the Great Lakes.  But if such an accident had occurred on the sweetwater seas, just how large an area would it cover?
Check out this site to see the extent of the spill superimposed on your hometown. When you’re through gasping, stick the name of any of the Great Lakes into the slot for location and hit the “Move the Spill” button.  If you mentally flip the spill outline and shift it a bit to the …

Great Lakes residents looking to lend a helping hand have a new resource at their fingertips.

An international coalition dedicated to restoring the region’s ecosystem has developed a mashup that allows users to post cleanup opportunities.