Study Finds Cities Vary in Air Quality Improvement

According to a new report from the Environmental Protection Agency, Buffalo’s air quality has improved greatly over the last decade, but other Great Lakes cities have not met the same success. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Mike McKay has more:

Commercial Lamprey Harvest May Soon End

A program to control the invasion of exotic species has got the lamprey eel under control throughout the Great Lakes…everywhere except the St. Mary’s River. But now, the lamprey are the target of a new time-release chemical that should reduce the lamprey population by 85-percent. But as the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Mike Simonson reports, bringing the species under control will mean the end to a recent money-making experiment:

Lamprey Eel Control

A new strategy to fight the lamprey eel should mean higher fish populations in Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Mike Simonson reports on this break-through:

Commentary – Completing the Cycle

Just a generation ago, Americans threw their household waste in one big trash can and sent it off to landfills. Today, recycling is part of the fabric of daily life. We sort and save; carefully putting our bottles curbside or carting them off to the nearest collection site. But what does it mean? Great Lakes Radio Consortium commentator, Julia King, wonders if we’ve really learned the lesson, or if we’re just mouthing the words:

Public Transportation Loses Constituency

Residents of large cities have relied on public transportation for decades. And in recent years, cities like New York, Los Angeles and Washington D.C. have all seen ridership on their transit systems grow. But Chicago is an exception. And while many cities have succeeded in making public transit a priority, Chicago is still looking for the answer to its transit woes. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Steve Frenkel reports:

Supreme Court Debates Forest Management

Management of the Wayne National Forest in Southeast Ohio is the subject of a U-S Supreme Court Case. The arguments are scheduled this week (Wednesday) in Washington. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Julie Grant Cooper reports on how the decision is expected to set a precedent on how our National Forests are managed:

The Dare-Devil Sport of Luge

Wintertime in the Great Lakes offers exceptional recreational activities – everything
from ice fishing, to skiing, to snowshoeing. But if the dare-devil sport of luge
captured your imagination during the recent Winter Olympics, you’ll be glad to
know that you, yourself, can take a run. While there are only four luge facilities in
the entire country, the Great Lakes region is home to three of them. The Great
Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson visited one, and has this report:

Tuberculosis Spreading Through Deer Populations

Despite efforts by Michigan officials to curb the spread of Tuberculosis-infected white-tail deer, the disease is spreading. Farmers fear the TB-infected deer may threaten their livestock and are asking officials to take stronger measures to control the disease. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Michelle Corum reports:

Bright Future for Wind Power

As concern over climate change grows, so does interest in clean energy sources like wind power. Currently, windmills generate less than one percent of America’s electricity. But that’s slowly beginning to change. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Steve Frenkel reports:

Illinois Pressured to Rejoin Regional Funder

Five years ago, Illinois discontinued payments to the Great Lakes Protection Fund. The Fund is a regional endowment which supports environmental projects. The state’s failure to pay has meant that no Illinois groups have received any of the five million dollars in annual grants. Now, a group of state lawmakers is asking Governor Jim Edgar to resume payments. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Bill Wheelhouse reports: