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Though the environmental damage from an estimated 600 gallons of dielectric fluid spilled in the Straits of Mackinac this week was likely minimal, one expert says it should serve as a warning of what could be a much more catastrophic spill. Read the full story from M-Live. View the full article

Taiwan-based Foxconn has submitted plans to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for its 32 million-square foot facility, about 80 percent of which will become impervious surface. The plans call for 5 wet detention basins, totaling 62.5 acres, to handle runoff and their combined size would be among the top 30 percent of largest named lakes in the state. Read the full story from the Milwaukee Business News. View the full article

According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Lake Michigan’s water level will be six inches higher than it was last spring when construction on the Grand Haven, Michigan pier is planned to begin, potentially delaying the improvements. Read and view the full story from WZZM-TV – Grand Rapids, Michigan. View the full article

Aaron Payment PhD, chairperson of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, has called upon Governor Snyder to immediately revoke the easement that allows Enbridge to pump a million gallons of crude oil per hour through the Straits of Mackinac. Read the full story from The Sault News. View the full article

The lifting of the ice boom calls for a party, and so Boom Days was conceived 20 years ago as a unique celebration of spring. Read the full story by the Buffalo News. View the full article

In a survey of 22 states, Wisconsin was the fourth-heaviest user of road salt. All that salt has to go somewhere, and even the salinity of Lake Michigan has begun to creep up. While the impact on the big lake will probably remain low for years to come, local governments are on the hunt for a kinder, gentler replacement for road salt. Read the full story by the Milwaukee Magazine. View the full article

In Michigan, hundreds of volunteers are being sought to take shifts standing guard while sturgeon head upstream on their annual spawning run. The goal is to keep the threatened species from being taken illegally by poachers as the fish make their way from Black Lake to their spawning grounds in the Black River. Read the full story by MLive. View the full article

The Canadian federal government will give Ontario’s Sea Lamprey Control Centre $8.7 million over five years, with an annual increase of $2.5 million to the Great Lakes Fisheries Commission (GLFC) for its sea lamprey control assessment and research. Read the full story by SooToday.com. View the full article

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has called on the International Joint Commission to maintain or increase outflows from Lake Ontario to protect shoreline residents and businesses. Read the full story by the Adirondack Daily Enterprise. View the full article

A Michigan Department of Natural Resources Fisheries biologist provided information on proposed regulations changes for 2019 and accepted feedback from an audience of anglers and other interested stakeholders. Read the full story by The Sault News. View the full article

The U.S. Forest Service says it expects to award about $3.7 million in grants for tree planting and restoring native vegetation in the Great Lakes region. Read the full story by the Associated Press. View the full article

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday issued guidelines for eating fish from Lake St. Clair and the Flint River due to elevated levels of perfluorooctane sulfonates, polychlorinated biphenyls and mercury. Read the full story by the Times Herald. View the full article

The coolant fluid spill in Michigan’s Straits of Mackinac has prompted the creation of a multi-agency command post in Mackinaw City. Read the full story by Great Lakes Now. View the full article

Michigan tourism officials are applauding a recent federal spending bill that provides $300 million to improve the Great Lakes, which includes efforts to keep Asian carp at bay. Read the full story by WZZM-TV – Grand Rapids, MI. View the full article

The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality recently approved Nestle Waters North America Inc.’s request to increase the amount of water they can draw from Osceola Township by almost double. Read the full story by the Times Herald. View the full article

Environmental groups have concerns over the recent appointment of Cathy Stepp as the U.S. EPA Region 5 Administrator, but top Minnesota natural resources and pollution control officials don’t share those concerns. Read the full story by Minnesota Public Radio. View the full article

Nearly $2 million was spent expanding the Flower Creek Dunes Nature Preserve along Lake Michigan’s dunes in Muskegon County, Michigan, opening an additional 17 acres for public use. Read the full story by The Associated Press. View the full article

A $10 million competition to fund the fight against harmful algal blooms is underway and expects to turn out a winner by 2020. The winning researcher or team will be able to move forward with a cost-effective solution for removing phosphorus from natural bodies of water. Read the full story by the Sandusky Register. View the full article

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is predicting another season of high water levels on Lake Michigan. This means easier navigation for commercial ships on the lake, but could mean trouble for coastal communities. Read the full story by the Green Bay Press Gazette. View the full article

In Ohio, the arrival of the M.V. Federal Rideau at the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority’s docks marked the first “salty” shipment of 2018. Read the first story by The Toledo Blade. View the full article

Officials say hundreds of gallons of potentially toxic coolant fluid have leaked from two electric power cables in the waterway that links Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. Read the full story by the Detroit Free Press. View the full article

A new report shows that the algal blooms in the Great Lakes are not only harmful to human health and ecosystems, but are also a significant source of methane gas in the atmosphere. Read the full story by Mother Jones. View the full article

Congress recently restored $76.5 million in Sea Grant funding nationwide after the Trump administration had proposed eliminating the program, and the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute is awarding $2.8 million to Great Lakes research and education projects. Read the full story by the Superior Telegram. View the full article

The Great Lakes Fishery Commission expects a $7 million increase in federal funding to its annual budget that would help pay for the construction of a proposed barrier on the Grand River aimed at controlling sea lamprey access into western Michigan. Read the full story by the Associated Press. View the full article

The General Assembly of the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments at its recent general assembly meeting adopted a Water Resources Plan for Southeast Michigan that includes three categories of priorities: blue economy, natural resources and infrastructure. Read the full story by The Times Herald. View the full article