Great Lakes

In today’s episode, a look into Michigan’s birth control access project taking place this month. Then, a discussion on the stockpiling of Plan B. Also, a mother of eight talks about her new cookbook. Lastly, how a tornado impacted a local election, and more information about cyanobacteria in the lakes.

The Great Lakes system system is no stranger to invasive species, but grass carp could upend the Great Lakes' ecology, as well as the operations of some of the world’s most significant freshwater commercial fisheries. So far, the Great Lakes have successfully held grass carp at bay. Those involved in managing the grass carp — not to mention the fishermen who rely on the abundance of native fish — can only hope that success is sustainable.

What lies beneath the Great Lakes' waves is unknown, but there's a push to learn more about thousands of shipwrecks, underwater infrastructure and the impacts of climate change on the bottom.

Many mental health professionals are reporting how climate change is beyond their scope of practice. The rapidly changing climate is a growing concern in therapy sessions.

Today, a conversation with a man who has made it his life mission to keep the Great Lakes’ Indigenous language alive.

The need for such research is urgent. Bacteria draining into recreational waters from overflowing wastewater treatment plants, livestock and poultry farms, and city streets and parking lots results in hundreds of beach closings annually across the five Great Lakes. Phosphorus running off farm fields and from big dairy, hog, and poultry operations causes harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie and other lakes across the region.

Last summer, contaminated sludge from a fire at a chemical plant reached Lake Ontario. The spill report raises questions about what the government told the public.

Hot summers do not end water shutoffs in some Great Lakes cities. When struggling people need water the most, it might not be available.

At protests in Lansing and other cities, activists were less focused on the events of 14 years ago than on the current fight over the future of Enbridge’s Line 5.

An EPA report says climate change-driven weather patterns are having a growing impact on all aspects of life across most of the U.S., and Michigan is no exception.