Lake Superior is home to hundreds of shipwrecks. They’ve been preserved
there for well over a century. And they’re the destination of many
divers, hoping to explore their remains and learn their history.
Now, some of these sunken vessels can be explored without ever getting
wet. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Todd Witter reports:
Tag: preservation
Dunes in Danger
The Great Lakes have the highest concentration of fresh water sand
dunes anywhere in the world. They were created thousands of years ago,
when the glaciers that formed the lakes receded. Wind patterns shaped
the dunes, which often tower hundreds of feet above the lakes. But over
the years, some sand dunes have disappeared. And others are slowly
being chipped away. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson
Reports:
Chicago Wilderness
A coalition in the Chicago area is putting together a unique plan to
make the most of the remnants of the forests, prairies, sand dune
beaches, and other natural areas. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s
Lester Graham reports that other large cities are watching to see if
Chicago is successful in bringing back native plants and animals to a
largely urban area:
Saving Niagara’s Natural Beauty
A historian believes one of the world’s most visited natural sites is
being ruined by tourist development. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s
Lester Graham reports that instead of new hotels and casinos…one man is
pushing for an appreciation of the natural beauty of Niagara Falls:
Preserving Remnants of the Tallgrass Prairies
There’s an effort underway in western Minnesota to preserve the Midwest’s last remaining acres of northern tallgrass prairie. Once, the grasslands spanned close to 25 million acres through parts of Minnesota, the Dakotas and Iowa. More than 90% of the original tallgrass prairie was plowed under – what remains today are only patches of the early grasslands. Under a new U.S. Fish and Wildlife program the hope is to keep these last few areas intact for years to come. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Gretchen Lehmann reports:
The Prairie Pioneer
For almost forty years, Dr. Robert Betz searched the railroad tracks and
back roads of the Midwest for remnants of the nearly extinct tall-grass
prairie. Along the way, he helped define and popularize a new
environmental movement on the rise throughout the Great Lakes and the
country—a movement called ecological restoration. The Great Lakes Radio
Consortium’s Alex Blumberg has this report:
Chocolate Crisis
For years, environmentalists have searched for an issue that wouldmotivate all levels of society into protection of the rainforest. AsGreat Lakes Radio Consortium commentator Suzanne Elston has discovered,a sweet solution might be just around the corner.
Rediscovering the Alvar
Imagine you’re wandering through the woods on a trail shaded by trees.You turn a corner, and suddenly, you’re standing at the edge of a rockygrassland plopped down in the middle of a Northeastern forest. Theseseemingly misplaced grasslands are known as alvars and theGreat Lakes is one of only two regions in the world where they occur.The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Karen Kelly visited one of theseunique sites and met two local volunteers who’ve become the unofficialcaretakers:
Bringing Back the Loons
For many residents of the Great Lakes region, the loon is synonymous with wilderness – an enduring symbol of the wild outdoors. But, in northern Wisconsin, as development pressures increase, there are fewer and fewer places for the loons to nest. Now, one woman has decided to do something about it. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Nick Van Der Puy reports:
Farmland Threatened by Development
The outward growth of big city suburbs and of small towns booming because of retirees getting out of the city is putting pressure on some farm areas. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports state governments are stepping in to regulate some of the seemingly out-of-control growth: