What Will Canada’s Yet-to-be-Named Restoration Program Mean for Great Lakes Project Funding?
In the last blog, we covered the U.S. political challenges involved with Great Lakes restoration funding, especially in these extremely partisan times. But we saw hope for the undercurrents of bipartisanship for Great Lakes funding, too. In this last entry, we’ll look at the challenges and optimism associated with Canada’s recent funding announcement. Since the […]
Will Politics Stand in the Way of Continued Project Funding for Great Lakes Restoration?
Last time, we explained why the timing is ideal right now for Great Lakes restoration work. We also reviewed the steps involved with applying for Great Lakes restoration funding. This time, we turn our attention to what could be in store for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. Specifically, will politics make it harder for you […]
Great Lakes Restoration Funding: Know and Share Your Goals to Get Results
In Part 2 of this series, we looked at when Great Lakes restoration funding began to get serious. This started in 2009 when President Barack Obama proposed, and a bipartisan Congress funded, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI). Now let’s discuss how to access the funding now available through the GLRI. The time has never […]
How Toxic Hotspots Were Identified, Money Arrived, and a Network Was Born
In my first post about Great Lakes Restoration, I shared a brief history about the first moves by the U.S. and Canada to commit to saving the Great Lakes ecosystem. That history concluded with the important recognition of an ecosystem approach to Great Lakes management but that federal funding didn’t keep pace with federal restoration […]
The Protection of the Great Lakes Began More Than 50 Years Ago – That History Matters Today for Funding Important Projects. But Why?
In an era when climate change is touching almost every aspect of our lives, it’s becoming clearer by the day that if we want our ecosystems to take care of us, we need to take care of them. The same is true for the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River, comprising about 20 percent of […]
From an “Open Sewer” to our Greatest Asset: How Milwaukee Overcame a Legacy of Industrial Water Pollution
It’s a gorgeous sunny evening in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin. On the Milwaukee River, two friends call out to each other as they paddle their kayaks under the Water Street bridge. Milwaukeeans enjoy the riverwalk in the Third Ward neighborhood. Photo courtesy of Visit Milwaukee. A couple enjoying a drink on the patio of their riverfront condo raise […]
Breaking Down the Problem of Microplastics in the Great Lakes
A big challenge to the health of the Great Lakes takes a tiny form: microplastics, pieces of plastic no larger than 5 mm in size, or about the size of a pencil eraser. They have been documented throughout the lakes, in oceans, and even in tap and bottled water, sea salt, and other products we […]
Why Protected Areas Must Consider What’s Beneath the Surface
New research published in the journal Nature Sustainability finds that 85% of protected areas with groundwater-dependent ecosystems have groundwatersheds that may be under-protected. The Gist Protected areas are one of the most well-known conservation strategies, with many current global initiatives focused on expanding and strengthening the management of these areas. Protected area management often focuses […]
Businesses Becoming Great Lakes WISE
Anyone who pays attention to water knows the vital importance of the Great Lakes. It’s one of the world’s largest freshwater systems, holding 21 percent of the world’s surface freshwater and 84 percent of North America’s freshwater. This water is critical to life but also to commerce. Milwaukee’s access to Lake Michigan and the businesses […]
An Urgent Need for Water Stewardship in Food & Beverage Processing
Changing mindsets to reduce water waste. Without water, there is no food. This truth is often applied to agriculture, but it is valid at all stages of the food and beverage production process. In fact, a 2021 Barclays analysis finds that the consumer staples sector—which includes food, ingredients, agribusiness, meat, beverages, tobacco and household and […]