Great Lakes news stories on Newser

Yum? Great Lakes Provide Lampreys for Queen's Pie

Dustin Lushing — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 17:38:22 CDT

The slimy eel-like creature known as a sea lamprey happens to be the special ingredient in a traditional English pie that will be cooked up for Queen Elizabeth II to celebrate the 60th anniversary of her reign in June, reports the Detroit Free Press . But the animals are endangered and...

Prozac Killing Great Lakes' Bacteria

Matt Cantor — Thu, 26 May 2011 15:57:05 CDT

E. coli and other microbes in the Great Lakes are dying off thanks to traces of Prozac in the water, scientists find—and that’s not necessarily good news. “Your immediate thought is, 'Well, that's good, because they're not supposed to be there anyways,” a scientist tells National Geographic . “But what...

Wacky Winter Seen As Sign of Climate Change

Harry Kimball — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 16:22:00 CST

The severe winter weather affecting the United States is just another symptom of climate change and global warming, says a new report. The National Wildlife Federation study surmises that the unusual volume of precipitation this year is the result of more atmospheric moisture because the Great Lakes are “less likely...

Crazy Carp Spark Great Lakes Brouhaha

Polly Davis Doig — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:47:07 CST

Michigan sued neighboring Illinois last week , a most un-neighborly move aimed at blocking the invasive Asian carp from the Great Lakes—and re-reversing the flow of the Chicago River. The case is likely to end up in the Supreme Court, notes the Washington Post , and resurrects another from 1922 over...

Gray Wolf Back on Endangered List

Matt Cantor — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 11:45:12 CDT

A federal court restored gray wolves to the endangered species list in Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin yesterday, again making it not OK to kill wolves that attack livestock or pets, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. In answer to a lawsuit by environmental groups, a judge said the wolves couldn’t be...

Great Lakes Study Mired in Politics: Author

Katherine Thompson — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 07:52:00 CST

A report suggesting industrial contamination in the Great Lakes poses health threats to residents is being suppressed by the feds, says study author Chris De Rosa, who also claims he was demoted because of his findings. The study found 230,000 "vulnerable" people are living in polluted areas, but the...

Blizzard Death Toll Hits 22

Peter Fearon — Mon, 24 Dec 2007 15:38:35 CST

The death toll from a winter storm that pummeled the upper Midwest rose to 22 today, the AP reports. The worst of the storm is over for the region, but it left behind icy highways and downed power lines, especially in Wisconsin, Illinois, and upper Michigan. Remnants of the storm...

Great Lake Getting Less Superior

Caroline Zimmerman — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 16:45:38 CDT

Water levels in Lake Superior are down a whole foot this year, and scientists say man is to blame. The world's largest body of fresh water by surface area has suffered an on-and-off drought for four years, but levels may reach an all-time low this summer. Climate change is partially...

Polluted Fish Swamp Great Lakes

Dustin Lushing — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 16:23:41 CDT

Industrial chemicals contaminate many species of fish that populate the Great Lakes, making them too hazardous for safe human consumption, says a Canadian conservation group. "The lakes continue to be polluted to such an extent that human health is threatened," says a report released yesterday that lists industrial pollutants such...