Great Lakes Communities Struggle Against Proposed Nuclear Waste Facility

The fate of a proposed nuclear waste facility near the Canadian shores of Lake Huron is left to the democratic process.

Katie Rucke
By Katie Rucke
Rescuing Wetlands

For the past 15 years, Ontario Power Generation -- one of the largest producers of electricity in North America -- has been working to obtain approval from the Canadian government to build an underground repository near the Great Lakes to store its nuclear waste. As the approval process for the Deep Geologic Repository, or DGR, nears an end,

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The Great Lakes: ‘Liquid Pipeline’ For World’s Dirtiest Fuels?

‘If governments continue to allow projects like this, what are our lakes going to look like in 20 or 50 years?’

Lauren McCauley
By Lauren McCauley

One of the most precious sources of freshwater on the planet, the Great Lakes, is at risk of becoming a "liquid pipeline" for the dirtiest forms of oil and gas available, according to a report published Monday by water champion Maude Barlow. The report, Liquid Pipeline: Extreme Energy’s Threat to the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway

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Sunken Great Lakes Oil Pipeline Raises Spill Fears

A growing chorus of activists and members of Congress is demanding closer scrutiny as stepped-up production in North Dakota’s Bakken region and Canada’s Alberta tar sands boosts the amount of oil coursing through pipelines crossing the nation’s heartland.

Associated Press
By Associated Press
Straits of Mackinac

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — A freshwater channel that separates Michigan's upper and lower peninsulas is a premier Midwestern tourist attraction and a photographer's delight, offering spectacular vistas of two Great Lakes, several islands and one of the world's longest suspension bridges. But nowadays the Straits of Mackinac is drawing attention

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The Great Lakes Go Dry: How One-Fifth Of The World’s Fresh Water Is Dwindling Away

“Over the course of just one year, water temperatures went up by 2.5 degrees Celsius. That’s huge. And the cycle is reinforcing; one really warm year led to more than a decade of dropping lake levels.”

Joanna M. Foster for Think Progress
By Joanna M. Foster for Think Progress

The frozen opalescent lake and thin, gray sky fade together into white light where the horizon should be. Tall, skeletal grasses shiver on the beach in a wind that makes any sliver of exposed skin burn. The Arni J. Richter, an icebreaking ferry, is about to pull away from Northport Pier for its second and final trip of the day to Washington Island.

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Report Doesn’t Resolve Debate Over Great Lakes

Environmental groups, federal government debate options in fight against invasive species.

Associated Press
By Associated Press

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — The debate over how to protect the Great Lakes from voracious Asian carp appeared no closer to settlement Tuesday following release of a federal report with options that could cost billions and require extensive re-engineering of Chicago's busy waterway network. Wrapping up a study that began in 2009, the U.S. Army

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