Water

Ont. must update rules to stop pollution of Great Lakes

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(ON) Winnepeg Free Press – Environmentalists are calling on the Ontario government to update its regulations in order to stop the pollution of the Great Lakes. Ecojustice, Great Lakes United and Environmental Defence are asking the Environment Ministry to review and amend nine regulations that they claim have become stagnant and ineffective. The groups say some 140 major industries that were supposed to be regulated are still dumping wastewater into municipal sewers, and allowing toxic pollution to enter Ontario’s sewage treatment facilities. More

Water

Lake Erie and Ohio River are designated waterways

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(OH) Cleveland Plain Dealer – The Ohio River and Lake Erie have been designated Marine Highway Corridors to promote the use of waterways to move people and freight and ease congestion on roads and rail lines. “Ohio has 716 navigable miles of waterways, and they are utilized at 30 percent of the capacity,” ODOT spokesman Scott Varner said. “There is so much room for growth. Ohio is really a maritime state despite what people think.” More

Water

Data show fewer, larger salmon

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(MI) Traverse City Record-Eagle – Michigan fisheries officials are seeing signs that a move to reduce the number of Chinook salmon released into Lake Michigan is improving the balance between the popular game fish and its prey. Preliminary data suggest there are fewer — but larger — Chinook in the lake than in previous years. That trend would provide further evidence that stocking cuts in 2006 are having the desired effect. More

Water

Aging sewage systems breed record bacteria in our waters

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(MI) Detroit Free Press – Metro Detroit’s outdated sewage systems regularly violate the law by dumping raw and partially treated human waste into rivers, streams and lakes that provide recreation and drinking water to more than 3 million people, a Free Press analysis of state records found. In the last two years, sewer systems in more than three dozen communities dumped a combined 80 billion gallons of raw and partially treated human waste into waterways. More

Water

Mercury limits disregarded

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(OH) Columbus Dispatch – Since 2004, the state has allowed 42 treatment facilities, power plants and factories to ignore federal limits on dumping mercury into lakes, rivers and streams.

This year, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency is considering more than 30 new requests for variances from companies that argue that the cost of keeping mercury out of the water far exceeds any benefits to wildlife and human health. More

Water

Concern over canal mud as dredge plan nears

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(IN) The Post-Tribune – Mud in the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal is so contaminated with a cancer-causing industrial pollutant that it could rank among the most contaminated sites in the nation, researchers say. The Army Corps of Engineers plans to dredge the canal starting in late 2011 to facilitate ship traffic. But researchers aren’t sure whether dredging will be good because it will remove the potentially harmful pollutants, or bad because it will stir them up. The Army Corps says there is little health risk. More

Water

Oregon, Toledo councilmen to offer dredging alternative

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(OH) The Toledo Blade – A joint proposal to end the federal government’s controversial practice of dumping dredged material into Lake Erie is to be unveiled in downtown Toledo at 6 p.m. Thursday.  

The alternative is being offered by Sandy Bihn and Lindsey Webb, Oregon and Toledo council members, respectively, who have been working on the issue with a coalition of fishermen, boaters, and environmentalists. More

Water

10 Lake County suburbs look to tap Lake Michigan water

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(IL) Chicago Tribune – In what could be the state’s largest collective gulp of Lake Michigan water in nearly two decades, 10 suburbs are seeking approval to tap the vast but closely guarded natural resource. With groundwater supplies drying up and vulnerable to contamination, the Lake County communities that now rely on wells are casting envious eyes on that tantalizingly close supply — the sixth-largest freshwater lake in the world. They propose spending $250 million to lay about 57 miles of pipe and take other steps that would bring Lake Michigan water to the western part of Lake County. More

Water

Tips for Healthy Swimming

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The CDC recommends the following practices to protect swimmers from water-related illnesses:

Don’t swim when you have diarrhea. Shower with soap before swimming and wash your hands after using the toilet or changing diapers. Don’t swallow pool water and avoid getting water in your mouth. If the pool has a strong chlorine smell, it is usually an indication that the water is unhealthy. The smell comes when the chlorine is combined with bodily fluids such as saliva, urine, feces, sweat or body oils.

Water

Common Recreational Water Illnesses

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Cryptosporidium (Crypto)

Crypto is a diarrheal disease caused by a parasite. Infection occurs from ingesting or swimming in contaminated water. Common symptoms include diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, fever and stomach cramps.  The parasite is protected by an outer shell that allows it to survive for long periods and makes it very resistant to chlorine. Shigella
Shigella is a group of bacteria that cause fever, diarrhea and stomach cramps usually a day or two after exposure. The diarrhea is usually bloody but goes away in five to seven days.  Infection occurs from contact with infected water or stool.