Toxic Pollution

IJC meeting to focus on sewage overflows and other water quality problems affecting the Great Lakes

Fish on pharmaceuticals, alien invaders and poo in the Great Lakes will be on the agenda  Wednesday and Thursday (Oct. 7-8) when the International Joint Commission hold its  biennial meeting in Windsor, Ontario.

The commission, which mediates Great Lakes and other border issues between the U.S.  and Canada, will discuss several weighty issues facing the lakes, including: Invasive  species, chemicals of emerging concern (fish on Prozac and other drugs), sewage  overflows and water quality.

The commission’s meeting will focus largely on its 14th Biennial report on Great Lakes Water Quality.

It was fitting that a photo of a sewage treatment plant graced the Read More » »

Spring Cleaning?

It has been almost a year since we talked about the Areas of Concern that dot our Great Lakes with toxic sediments. It’s been half-a-year since the US House approved triple funding for the Great Lakes Legacy Act the federal program that helps states and localities clean up these dangerous pollutants. And it has been about the same amount of time since one Senator from Oklahoma shot down the increased funding and put us right back where we started. But the US House has just passed another water bill that would triple the authorization for this clean up Read More » »

Caution: Great Lakes may be Hazardous to Your Health

With her dying breath, Nancy Nichols sister asked her to write a book telling the world that her rare ovarian cancer was the result of years of living near, swimming in and eating fish from Waukegan Harbor on Lake Michigan.

Not only did Nancy write Lake Effect: Two Sisters and a Town’s Toxic Legacy but she also learned she had pancreatic cancer while researching for the book. Ms. Nichols recently discussed her story with National Public Radio host Diane Rehm–you can listen to the interview here. There is no prior history of Read More » »

Love Canal Move Over: U.S. Government Hides “Alarming” Report on Health Risks In Great Lakes Region

Where is Erin Brokovich when you need her? Thank goodness the fourth estate still exists and has exposed a government issued report that reveals higher infant mortality and cancer rates in areas located around the Great Lakes.

The Center for Public Integrity, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit, is reporting that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention buried the 400-page report for the last seven months because of its findings, which are eye-opening: More than 9 million people who live near polluted harbors and waterways–so-called “areas of concern”–including residents of Chicago, Read More » »

Toxic Pollution

There are 43 “Areas of Concern” in the Great Lakes region where these persistent, toxic, and bioaccumulative chemicals have built up at the bottom of rivers and harbors, creating lasting toxic hotspots. Most of these sites are the result of past contamination. But some areas continue to be polluted by discharges from chemical plants, refineries, steel mills, and other heavy industry. These toxic hotspots leach pollution into the lakes, contributing to the ongoing contamination of Great Lakes fish. They also make it more difficult and expensive to dredge and deepen Great Lakes harbors and shipping channels, costing ports, shippers, and Read More » »

Water Quality

Despite much progress since the Clean Water Act was passed more than thirty years ago, the Great Lakes still suffer from water pollution. The Great Lakes are virtually a closed system, with less than one percent of the water in the lakes renewed each year. This means that what we put in the lakes generally stays in the lakes and certain types of pollutants have been building up in the Great Lakes ecosystem for many years. Major water quality problems in the lakes include toxic pollution, polluted runoff, and sewage overflows and beach closings.