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Northeast-Midwest Institute
Weekly Update
 
November 4, 2013
In This Issue
Invasive Grass Carp Reproducing in the Great Lakes Basin
Great Lakes Advisory Board Meeting
USGS: Nitrite Levels Go Down in the Illinois River; Still on the Rise in the Upper Mississippi River
NEMWI's Great Lakes Hill Happenings
Invasive Grass Carp Reproducing
in the Great Lakes Basin  

Grass carp, one of the four species of Asian carp, have successfully reproduced in the Sandusky River, according to new work done by the U.S. Geological Survey, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, and Bowling Green State University. Commercial fishermen captured four juvenile carp in October 2012, and scientists determined the fish inhabited the Sandusky River, a tributary of western Lake Erie, their entire lives. Current laws allow sterile grass carp to be used in fish farms to control plant growth in ponds, but the study showed that the captured fish had the capacity to become spawning adults, continuing the reproductive cycle. Successful reproduction by grass carp indicates that other Asian carp species, like the infamous jumping silver carp, might be able to reproduce in the Great Lakes. Recent efforts to prevent incursion of Asian carp have focused on silver and bighead carp, which eat phytoplankton and algae at the bottom of the food chain. Ducks Unlimited expressed serious concerns about the impacts of grass carp on submerged vegetation, a critical food source for millions of migrating waterfowl.

 

The NEMWI coordinated Hill briefings earlier in 2013 on activities in the Great Lakes to combat Asian carp, including the use of environmental DNA to detect carp and the coordinated activities within the Asian Carp Control Framework.

 

For more information, please contact Danielle CheskyDirector of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.
 
Great Lakes Advisory Board Meeting  

The Great Lakes Advisory Board (GLAB) has rescheduled its public teleconference for Wednesday, November 13, 2013 from 9 am to 12 pm Central Time (10 am - 1 pm Eastern). The meeting, originally scheduled for October 1, was postponed due to the partial government shutdown. The government reopened on October 17, 2013. The purpose of the teleconference is to continue discussions informing the development of a draft Great Lakes Restoration Initiative FY 2015 - 2019 Action Plan. The GLAB developed an Advisory Report in September 2013, prior to the partial government shutdown. Members of the public seeking further information regarding this teleconference may contact Taylor Fiscus, Acting Designated Federal Officer (DFO), GLAB, by telephone (312-886-3000) or email (fiscus.taylor@epa.gov). EPA announced the formation of the GLAB, in March 2013.  The GLAB's purpose is to  provide advice and recommendations to the EPA Administrator and the larger Interagency Task Force on the GLRI. Chaired by David Ullrich, Executive Director of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, the GLAB includes academics, industry representatives, foundations, non-governmental organizations, and Tribal and local representatives.

 

What: Great Lakes Advisory Board public teleconference

Date: Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Time: 9 am to 12 pm Central (10 am to 1 pm Eastern)

Call-in Number: (877) 744-6030

Participant Code: 91845630.  

 

For more information, please contact Danielle CheskyDirector of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.

 
USGS: Nitrate Levels Go Down in
the Illinois River; Still on the Rise in the
Upper Mississippi River

On October 30, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported that Illinois River nitrate levels decreased by 21 percent between 2000 and 2010, based on long-term River water quality observations at Valley City, Illinois.  Those results marked the first time that substantial, multi-year decreases in nitrate were observed in the Mississippi River Basin since 1980, according to a new National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program study. NAWQA evaluated nitrate concentrations and flux from 1980 through 2010 at eight sites in the Mississippi River Basin as part of the study. Nitrate decreases were also noted in the Iowa River during the same time period, although the decline was not as large (10 percent).  Unfortunately, study results between 2000 and 2010 also showed consistent increases in nitrate concentrations in the upper Mississippi River (29 percent) and the Missouri River (43 percent), while nitrate concentrations at the Mississippi River outlet with the Gulf of Mexico increased by 12 percent. Excessive nitrate and other nutrients from the Mississippi River are major factors contributing to the extent of the hypoxic zone (or "dead zone") that forms in the northern Gulf of Mexico every summer. Additional details and a link to the report can be found at this USGS study web site: " Nitrate in the Mississippi River and Its Tributaries, 1980-2010: An Update."

 

For more information, please contact Mark Gorman, Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.   

 

NEMWI's Great Lakes Hill Happenings:
October 2013 Edition Now Available  
The October 2013 edition of the Great Lakes Hill Happenings is now available. The edition includes: 
  • A comparison of the House- and Senate-passed versions of the  Water Resources (Reform) and Development Act
  • Links to updates on the current Farm Bill conference, including conferees, recent press releases and statements, and impacts on the NEMW region
  • The House Great Lakes Delegation request for FY2014 funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative at $300 million, including Great Lakes Task Force Co-Chairs Reps. John Dingell (MI-12) and Louise Slaughter (NY-25) and Task Force member Rep. Sandy Levin (MI-09)
  • Appointment of the Administration's Climate Change Task Force, including Council of Great Lakes Governors Co-Chair Gov. Pat Quinn (Illinois); Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Cities and Towns Initiative Member, Mayor George Heartwell (Grand Rapids, Michigan); and Chairwoman of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Karen Diver (Minnesota).

For more information, please contact Danielle CheskyDirector of the Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.

 

   

The Northeast-Midwest Institute: Taking the Rust out of the Rust Belt!

   

 

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