Great Lakes Daily News

According to a recent study, the presence of algal blooms or E. coli in Ohio’s waterways can drive away visitors and the tourism dollars they bring with them. Researchers studied the economic impact of beach closures in Lake Erie in 2019 when Lake Erie beaches saw a 20% reduction in visitors, costing the area around $22 million in tourism dollars. Read the full story by WOUB-TV – Athens, OH.

Two marine historians in Wisconsin discovered sinkholes in Lake Michigan that are 500 feet underwater and 600 feet wide. Theories on the formation of the sinkholes range from glaciers to ages of intense pressure. Read the full story by WTMJ-TV – Milwaukee, WI.

Steelhead experts in Erie, Pennsylvania, believe anglers should expect to see large, heavy fish this fall and winter as the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) works on a plan to get back to stocking 1 million fish each year. This year, the PFBC reduced its annual stocking by about 20% as it works on a plan to raise more fish solely in the Lake Erie water basin. Read the full story by the Erie Times-News.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District’s New Lock at the Soo project awarded a $222.7 million contract for the next construction phase to Kokosing Alberici Traylor, LLC of Westerville, Ohio. The contract award will allow for construction to proceed to have a fully functional lock with a completion date in 2030. Read the full story by WPBN-TV – Traverse City, MI.

Offshore from Evanston, Illinois, Northwestern University set up a yellow turbidity curtain – which may be mistaken for an oil spill contamination boom – in Lake Michigan. The curtain will prevent silt and sediment from flowing out of a construction zone and protect the shoreline from erosion. Read the full story by Evanston Now.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers awarded a $1.5 million contract to Michigan-based Ryba Marine Construction Co. to dredge the federal navigation channel in Barcelona Harbor on Lake Erie near Westfield, New York. Dredging will focus on the mouth of the harbor and address shoals currently impacting navigation. Read the full story by WRFA – Jamestown, NY.

The Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians and the Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council are hosting the annual Nmé Celebration on Saturday in Wolverine, Michigan. The event will include a farewell to “Gimiwan,” the Watershed Discovery Center’s resident sturgeon, which will be released into the Sturgeon River along with hundreds of juvenile sturgeon. Read the full story by the Cheboygan Daily Tribune.

Erieau, Ontario, residents are worried erosion will erase Rondeau Bay’s so-called “barrier beach” because the pier at Erieau prevents sand from naturally moving east to build up the barrier. Residents are calling on upper levels of government for help because a quarter of the beach falls under the Canadian federal government’s domain. Read the full story by The Chatham Voice.

Lake Ontario from Cape Vincent to Pultneyville, New York, has been declared a National Marine Sanctuary. The federal designation by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is the 16th so-called “underwater park” in the country and the first in New York waters. It protects more than 1,700 square miles of lakebed while still allowing for shipping, boating, fishing, and other recreational activities. Read the full story by WSLG – Gouverneur, NY.

At Kettle Moraine Springs Hatchery in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin, hundreds of thousands of salmon and trout are raised each year, playing a critical role in sustaining the fish population in Lake Michigan. The hatchery raises 340,000 steelhead for Lake Michigan, stocking 25 different tributaries to the lake. Read the full story by WISN-TV – Milwaukee, WI.