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Great Lakes Daily News is a collection of news articles of interest to the Great Lakes community, curated by Great Lakes Commission staff. This valuable service provides a selection of recent coverage of Great Lakes issues from professional media outlets in the United States and Canada. Subscribers receive a email digest, making it easy and convenient to keep up with important regional news. Sign up now to get Great Lakes Daily News in your inbox!
All views and opinions presented are solely those of the author or attributed source, and do not necessarily reflect those of the Great Lakes Commission or its party states and provinces.
Latest Daily News
U.S. EPA announces action on microplastics, but Michigan critics say it’s not enough
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin announced new initiatives to tackle microplastics in the human body and drinking water on Thursday. Zeldin said the EPA will add microplastics and pharmaceuticals to its list of concerning chemicals in drinking water. Read the full story by Michigan Public.
US Supreme Court refuses Michigan’s immunity claim in Line 5 case
The U.S. Supreme Court has left standing a decision that allows Enbridge Energy to sue the state of Michigan over its efforts to shut down the Line 5 oil-and-gas pipeline in the Straits of Mackinac. Read the full story by Michigan Public.
Thousands of Flint water crisis victims receiving settlement checks
A federal judge has ordered partial payments be disbursed to more than 12,000 adult claimants injured in the Flint water crisis. A secondary payment from the $626 million settlement fund will go out after several appeals related to the agreement have been resolved. Read the full story by The Detroit News.
Removal of Lake Erie-Niagara River Ice Boom planned to begin April 6
The International Niagara Board of Control said that while removal of the Lake Erie-Niagara River ice boom is typically completed by April 1, a significant amount of ice remaining in the lower Niagara River pushed the removal to April 6. Read the full story by WKBW-TV – Buffalo, NY.
Coast Guard: Spring ice-breaking continues on upper Great Lakes
The U.S. and Canadian Coast Guards continuing its spring ice-breaking work on the upper Great Lakes, having assisted 13 upbound and 10 downbound commercial vessels to transit the St. Marys River since the Soo Locks opened for the 2026 season on March 25. Read the full story by The Sault Ste. Marie Evening News.
Walleye, yellow perch quotas set for sections of Lake Erie
The Ohio Division of Wildlife on Thursday announced the daily catch limits for Lake Erie’s two primary sport fish—walleye and yellow perch—will remain unchanged for Ohio waters for the year beginning May 1 and ending April 30, 2027. Read the full story by The Plain Dealer.
Why there are dead, fuzzy fish everywhere on Michigan’s shores
According to a Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) newsletter, “winterkill,” or the process by which fish suffocate under sealed ice and float up during spring thaw, is normal and usually doesn’t wreck fish populations in the long term. Read the full story by WITL – Lansing, MI.
Michigan DNR introduces new fishing regulations for 2026 season
For the start of the 2026 fishing season, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources updated possession limits, size requirements and gear definitions for various species to manage state fisheries. The changes impact popular fishing spots including Lake Superior, the Menominee River and specific lakes in the Upper Peninsula. Read the full story by WWTV-TV – Cadillac, MI.
Lake Michigan’s ‘living dunes’ have a history of burying beach bathrooms, cottages and entire towns
Years of sand migration on the 120-foot Mount Baldy within Indiana Dunes National Park have prompted a sand management and relocation program. This spring, crews are onsite to move about 40,000 cubic yards of sand through mid-June. Read the full story by MLive.
Up North beach town leans into cultural tourism with $180K storytelling initiative
The northern Michigan beach town of Ludington is leaning into cultural tourism by highlighting its more than 150 years of history – including museums, lighthouses and lumber baron homes – through a new storytelling initiative. Read the full story by MLive.