Great Lakes Echo (https://greatlakesecho.org/author/rachaelgleason/page/9/)
Rachael Gleason is a graduate of the Michigan State University and Knight Center for Environmental Journalism master's program. Rachael edited EJ Magazine and reported for Great Lakes Echo for two years. She currently focuses on water privatization issues. Rachael was quiz editor, SmackDown! editor and had a standing feature called Monday Mashup, where she reviewed interactive maps of the Great Lakes region. Rachael is originally from Texas, where she worked as a reporter, photographer and desk editor for several years. In addition to working for the daily newspaper of Huntsville, Rachael also worked as a business reporter for The Houston Chronicle, the newspaper of her hometown. Office: (517) 432-5155 Twitter: @rachaelgleason
If a picture is worth a thousand words, then what value does a map hold? As a journalist, I often turn to my background in geography for story ideas and elements to supplement complicated stories. Most data can be a big yawn. But display it on map with colored icons, and watch it come to life. Most of my colleagues are aware of my love affair with mashups, or interactive maps like those found on Google.
Officials at the University of Minnesota Duluth have found a solution to campus soil erosion. Permeable pavement allows for natural water filtration but prevents erosion at common footpath shortcuts.
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.
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.
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. Each state page also has information on proposed, existing and remediated Superfund sites.
By Rachael Gleason
Officials at the University of Minnesota Duluth have found a solution to campus soil erosion caused by students cutting sidewalk corners. Permeable pavement allows for natural water filtration but prevents erosion at common footpath shortcuts. Builders are using this method in several Minneapolis locations, according to links on a mashup detailing low-impact developments. The mashup was developed for the National Nonpoint Education for Municipal Officials Network, a nexus of sustainable land use educators. It highlights building projects by the network’s 32 member programs. Minnesota is the only state in the Great Lakes with projects mapped out so far.
By Rachael Gleason and Thomas Morrisey
Jan. 22, 2010
One component of the green future that state officials want for Michigan is a partnership between Michigan State University and the Michigan Brewing Co. The Webberville craft brewery helps teach farmers, factory workers and entrepreneurs how to turn waste oils into useful fuel.
By Rachael Gleason
The Edmund Fitzgerald, one of the largest Great Lakesships in its time, met the bottom of Lake Superior more than 30 years ago. What if the famous freighter had kept sinking? A mashup called Earth Sandwich shows the ship would have surfaced on the other side of the world – more than a 1,000 miles off the coast of the Western Australia. Click the image and you can see exactly where. The makers of Earth Sandwich encourage users to make sandwiches out of the planet by uploading slices of bread on opposite sides of the earth.
Public pools in any community are recreational havens. They can also be health hazards. While the most common safety risk associated with swimming is usually drowning, few think of water quality. Jan. 14, 2010
What’s in the water: How the quality of the water in your pool affects your health.
By Rachael Gleason
Jan. 11, 2010
The United States Environmental Protection Agency has mapped out its enforcement record for the first time. A mashup of civil actions and criminal cases shows which polluters the agency cracked down on last year. Users can search for any combination of air, water, land and criminal actions. In the Great Lakes region, activity focused around Lake Michigan and Lake Huron.