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Strategic plan targets invasive species
The Superior Daily Telegram (11/17)
Douglas County’s Land Conservation Committee is forwarding a plan to the county board that takes aim at invasive species.
Mich. Clean Marina Program: Public-private partners work together to improve water quality
Grand Rapids Environmental News Examiner (11/9)
Partners from the public and private sector in Michigan are working together in a voluntary program to improve the quality of the Great Lakes.
Researchers seek funding for wind test site in Lake Michigan
Grand Rapids Environmental News Examiner (11/7)
In a recent article in The Muskegon Chronicle, it was reported that researchers at Grand Valley State University’s Michigan Alternative and Renewable Energy Center (MAREC) cited a lack of year-around data (on wind platform testing) needed by prospective development companies.
COMMENTARY: Senate needs to pass clean energy act to help Michigan
The Grand Rapids Press (10/26)
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid was absolutely correct with his recent proclamation about the current condition of the Great Lakes State: "The State of Michigan," Reid declared from the Senate Floor, with a copy Time Magazine in his hand, "is in trouble."
First Nation women 'walk the environmental talk'
WeNews (10/23)
Tomorrow's global day of climate activism aims for media and political attention. First Nation women have another way. Since 2003, they've walked the shoreline of a Great Lake or major river, meditating on the needs of an unborn generation.
City making big push for water school
The Business Journal (10/23)
The push is on to convince the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee that the best location for its new School of Freshwater Sciences is near the university’s existing Great Lakes Water Institute on East Greenfield Avenue.
What's going on in your neighborhood this month? Meet other people and learn together at recreational and educational events! Our new dynamic calendar is updated daily with current educational events.
3 | The changing lake levels
Why have the lake levels been so low during the past couple of years?
The Great Lakes are in a very unusual situation right now. Lake Superior's water levels are the lowest they've been since 1925; lakes Michigan and Huron are the lowest they've been since 1965.
The main cause for the current low lake levels is lack of snow precipitation, mainly in the northern part of the basin. The region has also experienced warmer temperatures than it usually does. Temperatures in the Great Lakes basin two years ago were the warmest ever recorded. When the temperatures are high, plants require more water; so plants are using more precipitation and groundwater than usual, decreasing the amount that reaches the lakes.
Evaporation: Why the Great Lakes are unique (49 seconds)
Also, there has been less ice on the lakes during the winter because of the warm temperatures, which leads to more evaporation. In smaller lakes, the highest evaporation rates occur in the summer. But the Great Lakes hold large amounts of heat because of their size; therefore, the highest evaporation rates occur in the fall and early winter on the Great Lakes. When the cold and dry Canadian air comes over the lakes, that air is heated, and heated air absorbs more moisture. So as air comes over the Great Lakes, the air literally sucks up the water. Much of that water is dumped back on the land once it cools off, which is known as lake-effect snows.
It's interesting to hear people's reactions to the recent low lake levels. Up until a couple of years ago, the basin had seen about 30 years of high lake levels. Many people don't remember or weren't around for the last low lake level period, which was during the 1960's. Right now, people are seeing docks that lead to nowhere because the shoreline has retreated and they're seeing large beaches and rocky lake bottoms. It's an interesting time for residents and researchers alike to be studying the lakes.
Also see TEACH's module, Water Levels on the Great Lakes.
Graphic: Low lake levels on Lake Michigan.
