Editor’s note: Great Lakes SmackDown! Terrestrial Terror is an ongoing Great Lakes Echo series. Brackets can be filled out until Friday, March 18. Find more information here.
By Alice Rossignol and Rachael Gleason
Now, the avian competitors take to the ring to fight for the title of most destructive in the Great Lakes region!
MUTE SWAN vs. BROWN-HEADED COWBIRD
Flying out of the left corner is the Mute Swan, known on the ponds as “The Silent Foul.” It is an aggressive waterfowl that bullies other birds and even people.. This beautiful but menacing creature …

The terrestrial invasives (and some aquatic wildcards) step up to the plate in the Great Lakes SmackDown! Terrestrial Terror. The bouts begin with a battle of the birds.

Proponents say lower operating costs helps government free up money to help build new businesses.

Rooftop solar panels and an underground geothermal network are among the energy-saving efforts made by Farmington Hills.

Michigan lawmakers want a Nevada disposal site to start accepting nuclear waste.

The state’s waste from nuclear power plants is now stored on-site, although ratepayers have paid $760 million toward a proposed national repository.

To enter a submission to Great Lakes Echo Photo Friday, send your photo, a caption and your name to greatlakesecho@gmail.com.

Farmers are upbeat about a federal decision to permit the continued use of the Roundup Ready sugar beets, a genetically engineered crop.

GE crops are associated with lower production costs and higher yields. Critics say that they could cause environmental and health risks.

Optimistic plans for biomass plants in the state are largely on hold, leaving the expansion of a highly publicized renewable energy source up in the air.

Proposals to add to the existing seven commercial biomass plants have faced problems ranging from public backlash to funding to concerns about fuel supplies.

Commentary: Canada levies major fines on carp importers. But the glacial pace of U.S. action on carp control is like convincing federal authorities to build stronger levees before Hurricane Katrina hit. And if hearings instead of action really are required, how about holding one in the region with most at stake?

As the U.S. Forest Service considers banning snowmobiling and firearm hunting in 70,000 acres of the Huron-Manistee National Forest, one study found they produce considerable economic impact.

Legislation to formally recognize a long-standing farm environmental improvement program is well on its way to Gov. Rick Snyder’s desk for approval.