The Great Lakes Maritime Academy in Traverse City is hopeful a push from President Donald Trump to revive the American maritime industry can help fill entry-level positions on tugboats and barges in the Great Lakes.
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
As mussels ravage Great Lakes whitefish, Lake Superior survives — for now
Chemistry, cold water and isolation make it hard for invasive mussels to get a foothold in the Big Lake. But a spate of recent outbreaks from Isle Royale to Canada’s Nipigon Bay have scientists unnerved.
Posted inOutdoors Life
By the numbers: Michigan added 18.9M fish to waterways so far this year
Michigan anglers are getting an extra boost through a major fish stocking operation intended to support a $3.9 billion fishing economy.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Great Lakes mussel research starved of funds as whitefish vanish
Quagga mussels deplete food and nutrients from waters, threatening to drive whitefish extinct. But scientists looking for a solution are working on a shoestring budgets, as much more money is devoted to other invasive species.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Can Michigan save beloved whitefish? Fate hinges on uphill bid to kill mussels
Decades into the mussel invasion, whitefish are on brink of collapse. Scientists are working on a Hail Mary bid to save the fish, using tarps, paint scrapers and a 1,200-pound steel plate.
Posted inOutdoors Life
50 years after Edmund Fitzgerald sank, swimmers to complete ‘final voyage’
The Edmund Fitzgerald was carrying Iron Ore to Detroit when it sank in 1975, killing all crew members. Now, 68 swimmers — Led by Jim “The Shark” Dreyer — will complete the mission.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
A record year for Great Lakes piping plovers
The Great Lakes piping plover recovery effort has been ongoing since the mid-1980s when the population got as low as a dozen nesting pairs. This year, the number reached 85 nesting pairs for the first time.
Posted inOutdoors Life
Video: Freighter's near sinking shows risk still exists on the Great Lakes
It’s been 50 years since a freighter sank on the Great Lakes, but the the Michipicoten’s close call shows the risk still exists.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Michigan fishing regulators to discuss Great Lakes whitefish crisis
The Michigan Natural Resources Commission on Thursday will hear a presentation on the looming collapse of whitefish in lakes Michigan and Huron. Bridge Michigan is spending the summer exploring the ramifications.
Posted inMichigan Environment Watch
Life goes on, even at uninhabited Lake Huron island, sometimes surprisingly
In nature, a lot can change on a largely uninhabited Great Lakes island over the course of a century. And a lot can stay the same.