Tag: IJC
This summer, Echo ran a five-part series on a controversial study of a possibly human-driven drop in Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. The $3.6 million, International Joint Commission-funded study started in 2004 and a final report of the results came in Dec., 2009.
The study looked at erosion in the St. Clair River, which runs between Lake Huron and Lake Erie. The researchers found that the “head difference” between the two lakes – that’s a measure of how high the Lake Huron surface is above the Lake Erie surface – has …
By Shawntina Phillips
phill465@msu.edu
Oct. 13, 2009
State and federal officials are considering a fish poison as a way of pushing back a front of hungry carp that are advancing toward the Great Lakes.
Recent DNA testing indicates that Asian carp are now within a mile of an electric barrier designed to keep fish out of Lake Michigan. They already have reached the Des Plaines River, a body of water that runs parallel to the barrier.
That’s worrisome said John Rogner, the assistant director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
“The big concern right now …
By Haley Walker
Walkerh4@msu.edu
Great Lakes Echo
Oct. 12, 2009
Researchers are studying whether Great Lakes fish contaminated by mercury are threatened more by low oxygen in the water than healthy fish.
The International Joint Commission recently recognized runaway plant growth, a cause of low oxygen, as a major Great Lakes problem. The U.S./Canadian commission advises those governments on Great Lakes issues.
Low oxygen is called hypoxia, a condition the U.S. Geological Survey says is caused by an increase in nutrients. Nutrients and other contaminants often enter lakes and streams by way of surface runoff. Fertilizer, …
By Elisabeth Pernicone
pernico1@gmail.com
Great Lakes Echo
Oct. 9, 2009
Fish with characteristics of both genders are more prevalent than previously thought in U.S. rivers, according to a recent U.S. Geological Survey study.
While this study did not analyze fish in the Great Lakes, it may raise new concerns as to whether previously noted hermaphrodite fish in this region are becoming more prevalent as well.
“Until we take current sampling it is hard to know,” said Chris Metcalf, director of the Institute for Watershed Science at Trent University in Ontario. “However, all studies are symptomatic of …
By Brian Laskowski
laskow26@gmail.com
Great Lakes Echo
Oct. 8, 2009
Editors note: This is part of a series about issues relevant to the biennial meeting of the International Joint Commission.
Over the summer of 2008 environmental groups and Great Lakes shippers were on the edge of their seats. Congress was working on water quality standards to prevent invasive species from entering the lakes from the dumping of untreated ballast water on freighters.
Then…nothing happened.
The bill passed the U.S. House of Representatives and died in the Senate, 20 years after the zebra mussel was found to have …
By Emma Ogutu
ogutu@msu.edu
Great Lakes Echo
Oct. 7, 2009
Editors note: This is part of a series relevant to the International Joint commission’s biennial meeting in Windsor today and Thursday.
One of the reports a U.S. and Canadian advisory commission will consider today in Windsor will look at runaway plant growth in the Great Lakes.
Members of the International Joint Commission, which advises the governments on environmental issues, will likely hear that there is no cause for alarm about excessive growth of algae in Lake Superior.
But global warming is catching up with the Great Lakes, …
By Rachael Gleason
rachaelkaygleason@gmail.com
Great Lakes Echo
Oct. 6, 2009
Editors note: This is part of a series relevant to the International Joint commission’s biennial meeting in Windsor on Wednesday and Thursday.
More than 20,000 beaches closed last year when water samples tested positive for harmful bacteria.
But inconsistent sampling methods have Great Lakes officials questioning those results.
The International Joint Commission, a binational organization that advises the U.S. and Canada on Great Lakes issues, examined problems with beach testing methods and advisory systems in a report released last month.
It is among the issues to be discussed …
By Alice Rossignol
rossign1@msu.edu
Great Lakes Echo
Oct. 5, 2009
Editors note: This is part of a series relevant to the International Joint commission’s biennial meeting in Windsor on Wednesday and Thursday.
An international commission that advises policymakers on Great Lakes environmental issues is questioning why the U.S. is making a fire retardant that Canada has banned.
The use of the substance is part of a report that will be discussed at the International Joint Commission’s biennial meeting in Windsor, Ontario on Wednesday. The commission is responsible for upholding the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement between …
