The Great Lakes Air Deposition (GLAD) program, which concluded in 2013, was coordinated  by the Great Lakes Commission to address the deposition of toxic pollutants to the waters of the Great Lakes region, to promote efforts to reduce toxic pollutant depositions,  and to reduce the resulting adverse impacts on human and wildlife  health.

For more than two decades the program supported scientific research,  and engaged scientific leaders throughout the region to better understand the sources of toxic pollutants, their transport in the environment, their deposition to the Great Lakes basin, and the resulting impacts on human health and the Great Lakes ecosystem.

Reducing input of toxic substances to the lakes and the mitigation of impacts from these substances on human health and wildlife are major priorities for restoration efforts in  the Great Lakes basin. Of  greatest concern are those chemicals that are persistent in the environment, bioaccumulate as they move up the food chain, and are toxic to humans or wildlife (referred to as  persistent bioaccumulative toxics or PBTs).

Many such chemicals enter Great Lakes waters in substantial  amounts through deposition from the atmosphere. Despite much progress, further scientific assessment and technological developments are needed to enable effective management of the  problems posed by deposition of toxic substances to the region’s waters.

Toward this end, the GLAD Program supported scientific projects to identify and quantify the sources, environmental transport  processes, deposition   rates, fate and impacts of these chemicals. The program operated with the goal  of assisting the Great  Lakes states and their partners in forming scientifically  sound policies regarding this issue, including regulatory and non-regulatory pollution control and prevention programs.

Atmospheric Toxics Webinar Series

The Great Lakes Commission, under funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and in cooperation with the eight Great Lakes states, awarded research grants dealing with atmospheric toxic pollutants affecting the Great Lakes and their tributary watersheds. Thirty-five research grants were awarded addressing a diverse array of research concerning atmospheric pollutants and their movement within the basin, and the associated impacts of numerous persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) chemicals on wildlife and human health. A substantial amount of new scientific knowledge has been attained through these research activities.

The GLAD Atmospheric Toxics Webinar Series was intended to provide a forum for GLAD Principal Investigators (PIs) to disseminate information on their respective research activities, including specific findings, recommended follow-up actions, and potential public policy actions to foster elimination of PBT threats to the region.

Topics:

• Mercury research synthesis
• Human and wildlife contaminant exposure & effects
• Contaminant fate, transport, and loadings to the Great Lakes
• Emissions from outdoor wood fired boilers & agricultural plastic incineration
• Emerging contaminants

Webinars:

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