Echo

Current State: Michigan’s groundwater at risk

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The Great Lakes’ record-low water levels are rightly receiving all of the attention now, but evidence is growing that Michigan’s fragile groundwater resources are quietly becoming a concern for the future. Robert Glennon, professor of law and public policy at the University of Arizona and author of “Unquenchable: America’s Water Crisis and What to do About It,” knows Michigan well and shares his insights. Echo has reported on the consequences of drought on Great Lakes groundwater – which can also be seen on this map – and the challenge of measuring its effects. The need for better groundwater conservation continues to be a widely overlooked issue facing the Basin.  

Echo

Urban flooding a regional dilemma

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Residents of Great Lakes cities are increasingly victims of urban flooding.

Getting a handle on the problem is difficult as property owners often don’t want to talk about sewage spilling into their homes.

Echo

Fiscal cliff could dump sewage into Great Lakes

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A program for fixing sewers is at risk because of the federal budget crisis. It comes as climate change is expected to bring more heavy rains that cause sewers to overflow. Advocates say the program helps struggling cities, the environment, the economy.

Water

Coast Guardsman writes children’s books about Great Lakes adventures

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A U.S. Coast Guardsman stationed in Buffalo wrote a children’s book about his adventures on the Straits of Mackinacas seen through the eyes of an adopted dog, Onyx. Petty Officer 1st Class Tyler Benson began writing the book from his original home in St. Ignace, Mich. because his three daughters would often ask why he would be gone for days, according to this story from WGRZ news in Buffalo. His family now lives in Buffalo where the book has been published.

Echo

Vote for best named Great Lakes brew

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We culled through your nominations for the best name of a beer brewed in the Great Lakes watershed and put some of them on this poll. Our selection is arbitrary and of course misses many beers and breweries that were not nominated. And yeah, we get it about those of you who disdain creative names as something that fails to impress true beer aficionados. But sheesh…lighten up. Our bias is toward names that are particularly relevant to the Great Lakes environment or places.