In 1961, Michigan’s bald eagle population dipped to 52 breeding pairs. Bans on DDT and other harmful chemicals fed a recovery. But the national bird still faces threats from lead bullets and sprawling development.
Great Lakes News Collaborative
Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television, The Narwhal and Michigan Public work together to report on the most pressing threats to the Great Lakes region’s water. This independent journalism is supported by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.
Water’s True Cost
As the nation prepares to pour hundreds of billions of federal dollars into rescuing water systems, the Great Lakes News Collaborative investigates the true cost of water in Michigan. Read the series.
Ready or Not
The Great Lakes region is frequently touted as one of the most climate-resilient places in the U.S., in part because of its enviable water resources. But climate change also threatens our water. The Great Lakes News Collaborative explores what it will take to prepare. Read the series.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Harmful algal blooms appearing on Lake Erie earlier than usual
NOAA satellite images and a research vessel sampling Lake Erie water both found evidence of harmful algal blooms on July 5, a much earlier date than typical.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Nearly $1.2 billion spent at one site to deter invasive carp from Great Lakes; other entry sites still possible
Nearly $1.2 billion is to be spent at one site to prevent invasive carp from entering the Great Lakes. There are a dozen more places where the carp could get in.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Will Michigan’s largest water provider target tiny city for next shutoffs?
Residents of Highland Park face $24 million in delinquent water bills.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Nessel: $10B PFAS settlement with 3M doesn’t resolve Michigan’s claims
Some Michigan water suppliers may be eligible for payouts from the settlement over the chemical that was used in thousands of everyday products and has been linked to cancer and other health woes.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Can climate migrants offset Michigan’s population woes? Maybe, experts say
As Michigan economic development officials fret over population loss that threatens the state’s future, some see a potential solution in so-called “climigrants” fleeing drought, wildfires, hurricanes, rising seas and heat.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
With lawsuits stalled in Michigan, Nessel seeks Line 5 shutdown in Wisconsin
The attorney general on Wednesday filed a brief in Wisconsin federal court supporting a Native American tribe’s effort to shut down the Line 5 pipeline over fears of a rupture into a river that runs through tribal land.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
More fallout from Midland dam failures: blood-sucking parasites in rivers
The Edenville and Sanford dams once blocked invasive lampreys from entering upstream rivers. But the 2020 dam failures provided an opening, and lamprey now threaten native fish. Regulators say they have a plan.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Anishinaabe tribes work to save Michigan whitefish
Great Lakes whitefish are in decline, in part because dams block their passage to rivers where they once spawned. Tribal scientists are looking to save a fish of economic and cultural importance.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Once beset by industrial pollution, Rouge River on a slow path to recovery
Thanks to the Clean Water Act, the Rouge is no longer a dumping ground for industrial waste. But its gains are fragile and incomplete, with contaminants still soiling the river bottom and the fish that returned to its waters.