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Report: Not enough being done to clean up toxins in the Great Lakes

Toxic hotspots, or "Areas of Concern" around Michigan's shoreline.
Great Lakes Commission
Toxic hotspots, or "Areas of Concern" around Michigan's shoreline.
Toxic hotspots, or "Areas of Concern" around Michigan's shoreline.
Credit Great Lakes Commission
Toxic hotspots, or "Areas of Concern" around Michigan's shoreline.

"Lake Erie is dead" and "the Cuyahoga River is on fire."

Those were actual headlines in the late 1960s spotlighting the deteriorating conditions of the Great Lakes in an age when rampant pollution was the norm.

Stories like these led to the passing of the Clean Water Act of 1972, which helped restore the Great Lakes.

Last year’s algal and bacterial blooms in Lake Erie, and the resulting shutdown of Toledo's drinking water supply, shows there's still much to be done.

A report released Monday says not enough is being done to clean up chemicals and toxins in the Great Lakes.

Fe de Leon,  a researcher with the Canadian Environmental Law Association, the group that released the report, joined us today from Toronto.

Listen to our conversation with Fe de Leon, a researcher with the Canadian Environmental Law Association.

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