The State of Michigan’s 2023 State of the Great Lakes report issued by the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy is a long list of concerns and proposed solutions for some of those concerns.
The more than 40-page report takes an expansive view of the Great Lakes, including streams, wetlands, and groundwater issues.
First the lakes
Lake Michigan was the subject of study in preparation for better understanding why the whitefish population has collapsed, understanding the changing food web, looking at nutrient pollution from the watershed, and monitoring chemical trends, sediment, and other fish in the lake. There’s also concerns about invasive carp in the Mississippi River system getting through existing barriers and establishing a population in Lake Michigan. A new $1.2 billion barrier is planned in a connecting river near Joliet, Illinois.
Lake Superior was studied by a work group. Threats include climate change, invasive species, cyanobacterial blooms, and restoring fish and wildlife habitat.
Lake Huron has a problem with nutrient pollution, particularly in Saginaw Bay. Federal, state, tribal, and local groups are starting to look at water quality where streams and rivers flow into the lake.
Lake Erie is struggling with nutrient pollution that’s feeding huge cyanobacterial blooms each year. Michigan is unsure when it will be able to meet the goal of a 40 percent reduction in nutrient pollution. Another problem from Lake Erie up to Lake St. Clair is that 90 percent of Michigan’s shoreline is hardened, meaning the shore is concrete, rock, or steel. On the Canadian side, less than 53 percent is hardened shoreline. Softening Great Lakes shores has been a priority for a while. The increasingly rapid cycle of high water levels and low water levels is believed to be caused by climate change. Softening shorelines means the shores are more resilient when lake water levels change.
Broader issues
Michigan’s toxic hotspots, known as Areas of Concern (AOCs), continue to make progress, but a couple of them (Saginaw Bay and Rouge River) are going to take longer to clean up. The report says with additional federal money, they have a “moonshot goal” of cleaning the remaining AOCs in Michigan by 2030.
Michigan also plans to assess its groundwater sources. Many cities and villages depend on wells. So do farmers for irrigation in parts of the state. But, state regulators don’t have a good handle on groundwater supplies.
Wetlands restoration remains a priority, especially since federal protections have been lifted for some wetlands because of a U.S. Supreme Court decision this year. Among the Great Lakes states, Michigan has some of the better protections in place (see this story). Still, more restoration needs to take place for the sake of fish and wildlife.
Some of the good news included the recovery of walleye in Saginaw Bay and the best walleye fishing in Lake Erie in 50 years.
Lake trout populations are self-sustaining in Lake Superior and doing better in Lake Huron.
Dam removals have opened 150 miles of cold water tributaries to the St. Joseph River and Lake Michigan.
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