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GREAT LAKES MAN-MADE
AREAS OF CONCERN PeoplecandegradetheGreat Lakes’ environment. In 1987, theInternational Joint Commission, anagency that upholds theU.S. andCanadaWater Quality Agreement, identified43areas strugglingwithlow water andbeachquality, a declineof aquaticplant and animal lifeandsoil contamination.Thecommissionsets forthpolicies toaidthecleanupof areas of concern. Only four of thesites havebeendelisted.
ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS COASTAL EROSION CAUSES: Great Lakes coastal erosionis natural; it happens whenwindandwaves wear awaysediments. But humans canaggravateerosionbybuildingstructures anddestroyingplants. Buildingweakens sediments andmakes theshorelinemorevulnerabletotheelements. Whenplants areremovedthroughdevelopment or recreation, it is easier for windandwaves tocarry away thesand.
AREAS INU.S. AREAS INCANADA DELISTEDINU.S. DELISTEDINCANADA
HARDTRADEOFFS
Seawalls reducewaveimpact but can alsonarrowbeaches. Jetties prevent sediment buildupin channels anderosiononsomebeaches, but they canalsointensify erosion farther downthecoast.
SOFT SOLUTIONS Soft engineeringprojects, suchas replacing beachmaterials andplanting vegetation toholdsediments inplace, arebecominga morepopular way toprevent erosion.
DEADZONES Fertilizers usedingardens andlarge-scaleagriculturemay improvesoil quality. But Great Lakes water quality suffers when raincarries fertilizer fromlandintothelakes. That’s becauseof a process calledeutrophication.
PULL IT OUT, HANGIT UP
1. Carefully removestaples fromthespread.
2. Hangit ona wall.
Levels of lowoxygen, a conditionknownas hypoxia, is especially a problemintheLakeErieandLakeMichigan. Theconditionwill continuetoworsenandthreatenthelakes’ fisheries withclimatechange.
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Phosphorusand nitrogen fertilizealgae
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Thebacteriathat feedondeadalgae consumeoxygen
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Creates low-oxygenareas called“deadzones” that kill aquatic animals
ILLINOIS OIL SPILL
MICHIGANOIL SPILL
WHAT: Apipelineleaked6,100barrels of crude oil intoa retentionpondnear Illinois Route53. WHO: EnbridgeEnergy Partners LLPowns leaky pipeline. TheU.S. Environmental Protection Agency overseas cleaningupinlandspills. Other responders includedtheU.S. Coast Guard, several environmental agencies andlocal police andemergency management forces. WHEN: Sept. 9, 2010. WHERE: Theincident occurredinRomeoville, Ill. WHY: Asectionof Enbridge’sLine6Apipeline sprungaleak.
WHAT: A30-inchpipelinerupturedandreleased819,000 gallons of oil. WHO: EnbridgeEnergy Partners LLP,anaffiliateof Calgary, Canada-basedEnbridgeInc., owns andoperates several pipelines that runthroughMinnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, NewYork, OntarioandQuebec. WHEN: July 26, 2010 WHERE: Thespill originatedinTalmadgeCreek and flowedintotheKalamazooRiver, whichempties intoLake Michigan. WHY:TheNationalTransportationSafetyBroadisinvestigating theruptureandhopestodetermineacauseby2011.
INVASIVE SPECIES Nearly150speciesof exoticplants, fish, algaeandmollusks haveinvadedtheGreat Lakesinthepast 200years. Often aresult of humanactivitieslikeshipping, their presence hasuntoldecological andeconomicconsequences. Many invasivecrittershitcharideintheballast water of vessels; 1800 othersscurrytheir waythroughman-madechannels liketheSt LawrenceSeaway, whichopenedin1959. Thetimelineshowswhenandhowsomeof themost destructiveinvaderscametotheGreat Lakes.
Curly-Leaf Pondweed Mid-1800s, accidental introduction
1850 Sea Lamprey 1830sbywayof the LakeOntariocanals andlocks
SOURCES: REPORTBYTHENATIONALOCEANICATMOSPHERICADMINISTRATION,THEU.S. GEOLOGICALSOCIETY,THEENVIRONMENTALPROTECTIONAGENCYANDTHEU.S. DEPARTMENTOF AGRICULTURE, ENBRIDGEENERGY,INLANDSEASEDUCATIONASSOCIATION, GREATLAKESINFORMATIONNETWORK, GREATLAKESECHO.ORG,ENVIRONMENTCANADA
fall 2010
Common Carp 1879, unintentional release
EurasianWatermilfoil 1940s, aquariumtrade
1900 Alewife 1873inLakeOntario(althoughsome scientistsclaimthefishisnativeinthis lake), 1931inErie, man-madecanals
SpinyWater Flea 1984inLakeHuron, ballast water
RoundGoby 1990near theSt. Clair River, ballast water
Zebra Mussel 1988inLakeSt. Clair, ballast water
Quagga Mussel September 1989near Port Colborne, Lake Erie, ballast water
1950 White Perch 1950inCrossLake, New York, man-madecanals
2000
BYJOHNKALMAR ejmagazine.com
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