The toxic algal bloom in Lake Erie, and its related water quality problems for the Toledo, Ohio and southeastern Michigan areas, underscores the importance of local, state and Federal efforts (through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service, and other programs) to abate nutrient run-off into the Great Lakes. A nagging barrier to realization of progress, however, is the need for empirical information on the actual effectiveness of best management practices (BMPs) for agricultural operations at the watershed scale. Understandably, farmers and governmental agencies are reluctant to aggressively pursue implementation of sometimes costly measures with unknown benefit. NEMWI, in partnership with USGS, set out to break the information logjam by evaluating the water quality data necessary to determine whether BMPs are having an impact on water quality at a scale that will reduce algal blooms in Lake Erie and identifying whether or not those data are currently available in the Lake Erie drainage basin. The summary report for this project will present monitoring strategies that will help identify effective practices for reducing agricultural nonpoint nutrient loadings that trigger toxic algal blooms in Lake Erie.

For more information, contact Elin Betanzo, Senior Policy Analyst at the Northeast-Midwest Institute. 

Fifteen senators, led by Great Lakes Delegation Member Sen. Joe Donnelly (IN) and Great Lakes Task Force Co-Chair Sen. Mark Kirk (IL), sent a letter to the Administration's Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee (ACRCC) Chair John Goss (Council on Environmental Quality), requesting recommendations on short- and medium-term actions to prevent Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes system. In January 2014, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released the Great Lakes-Mississippi River Interbasin Study Report, which detailed potential options (see NEMWI short summary) and their impacts, but no recommendations. The letter recognized the ongoing work of the Chicago Area Waterway System Advisory Committee, an informal forum for states, industry, environmental groups, and local agencies to discuss to discuss and plan for short, medium, and long-term solutions to the Asian carp and invasive species problem. Federal agencies, including those on the ACRCC, participate in the Committee only to provide background on agencies' roles, limitations, and current actions. The letter calls for actual recommendations on "short- and medium-term technologically feasible actions that maintain commercial navigation and recreational boating, preserve the integrity of existing flood control systems, protect water quality, and enjoy broad support."

For more information, contact Danielle Chesky, Director Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute. 

The July 2014 edition of the Great Lakes Hill Happenings is now available. This edition includes:

• Appropriations updates, including work by Great Lakes Delegation members to secure additional funding for harbor operations and maintenance work for FY2015;
• Recap of a Senate hearing, during which Senators and Administration officials showed support for three Great Lakes bills; and
• Link to and summary of a request from Great Lakes Senators for recommendations on short- and medium-term solutions to movement of invasive species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River, especially Asian carp.

For more information, contact Danielle Chesky, Director Great Lakes Washington Program at the Northeast-Midwest Institute.