Great Lakes Echo (https://greatlakesecho.org/author/great-lakes-echo/page/53/)
Oct. 24, 2009
Listen to Echo contributor Steven Davy interview Matt Dunstone, the maker of Kalamazoo River: US, which explores that troubled west Michigan river. Davy hosts the Nonchalant Café. A film trailer appears below the interview. The movie’s Web site has showtimes and locations.
By Shawntina Phillips
phill465@msu.edu
Oct. 13, 2009
State and federal officials are considering a fish poison as a way of pushing back a front of hungry carp that are advancing toward the Great Lakes. Recent DNA testing indicates that Asian carp are now within a mile of an electric barrier designed to keep fish out of Lake Michigan. They already have reached the Des Plaines River, a body of water that runs parallel to the barrier. That’s worrisome said John Rogner, the assistant director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
By Elisabeth Pernicone
pernico1@gmail.com
Great Lakes Echo
Oct. 9, 2009
Fish with characteristics of both genders are more prevalent than previously thought in U.S. rivers, according to a recent U.S. Geological Survey study. While this study did not analyze fish in the Great Lakes, it may raise new concerns as to whether previously noted hermaphrodite fish in this region are becoming more prevalent as well. “Until we take current sampling it is hard to know,” said Chris Metcalf, director of the Institute for Watershed Science at Trent University in Ontario. “However, all studies are symptomatic of more estrogens being discharged into streams.”
Fish with reproductive characteristics of both sexes are known as intersex, a condition linked to exposure to estrogenic compounds.
By Brian Laskowski
laskow26@gmail.com
Great Lakes Echo
Oct. 8, 2009
Editors note: This is part of a series about issues relevant to the biennial meeting of the International Joint Commission. Over the summer of 2008 environmental groups and Great Lakes shippers were on the edge of their seats. Congress was working on water quality standards to prevent invasive species from entering the lakes from the dumping of untreated ballast water on freighters. Then…nothing happened.
A binational group of Great Lakes scientists and policy experts advising the U.S. and Canadian governments about the Great Lakes met in Windsor in early October. This special report encompasses some of the issues they discussed
Oct. 8, 2009
The U.S. Coast Guard considers new rules to regulate ballast to slow the spread of invasive species in the Great Lakes. Oct. 7, 2009
Global warming could spur algae growth in Lake Superior.
By Troy Hale & Geri Alumit Zeldes
Great Lakes Echo
Sept. 9, 2009
Each week about 50 high school and college students feed the hens, tend the greenhouse and sift the new compost at Harvesting Earth Educational Farm located in Beecher, a community outside of Flint. To break up the tasks, farm owners Master Jacky and Dora King, black belts in karate, teach these young workers self-defense moves using rakes, hoes and shovels. For many of these young people, this is their first job. For the Kings, the farm is sowing the seeds of sustainable agriculture that may save Flint.
By Andy McGlashen
amcglashen@gmail.com
Great Lakes Echo
Sept. 8, 2009
DETROIT – The two-story brick building on Chene Street has a dirt floor and no roof, but it does have four walls — more than you can say about many of the structures still standing in this section of Detroit. They keep the weeds out and give the place a cloistered air. Passing clouds form an elegant ceiling, and this part of the city is nearly silent. It’s a perfect spot for a garden.
By Mary Hansen
mehansen4@gmail.com
Great Lakes Echo
Aug. 6, 2009
Muskegon County’s Wastewater Treatment Plant in Michigan was established more than 35 years ago because of an overburdened system that polluted waterways. Sandy soil filters and treats wastewater. The system encompasses 11,000 acres and a natural bird sanctuary – one of the largest inland nesting areas for seagulls. The operation produces hydropower and is considering windpower.
Editors note: Congress is considering a $475 million appropriation for Great Lakes cleanup. This story is part of an occasional look at proposals for spending it. Weigh in on this and other ideas on Echo’s Great Lakes Restoration Initiative forum. Other stories. By Andrew McGlashen
amcglashen@gmail.com
Great Lakes Echo
July 31, 2009
A plan to spend $147 million to restore Great Lakes toxic hotspots is inspiring cautious optimism among those involved in a long and often frustrating cleanup process.