Greal
Lakes
National
Progrsin
&EPA
On the Web at:
www.epa.gov/glnpo
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Great Lakes National Program Office
Significant Activities Report
June-July 2003
IN THIS ISSUE:
• Wetlands Efforts On Track
• Know Your Wetlands
• Lake Erie Oxygen Studies
• LOADS: Year 2
• 2002 Sediment Cleanup Tally
• Sediment Results Reported
• Buffalo River Probed
• Saginaw Dioxin Studies
• Chicago Hosts International
Conference
• Greening the Government
• Oak Openings:
"One of America's Last Great Places"
• Legislators Focus on Great Lakes
Wetlands Efforts On Track
The goal of the Great Lakes Coastal Wet-
lands Consortium is to develop indicators
and a long-term coastal wetland monitoring
program. The Consortium is funded through
a cooperative agreement between GLNPO
and the Great Lakes Commission, in part-
nership with a binational group of agencies
and organizations. On May 12th to 14th, the
Consortium's Program Management Team
met in Port Rowan, Ontario on the North
Shore of Lake Erie to discuss the results
from Year One Consortium-sponsored field
studies.
Presentations included:
• Examinations of indicators across several
wetland types by Cornell University in the
Wetlands Scientist at Work in the Field
Lake Ontario basin, Kent State University
and the Cleveland Museum of Natural
History in the Lake Erie basin, and Envi-
ronment Canada and the Canadian Wild-
life Service on the Canadian side of the
Lake Ontario basin.
• Bird Studies Canada coordinated the col-
lection of bird and amphibian data for all
the teams in the study and conducted a ba-
sin-wide analysis of the data.
• The possibility of developing indices of
biotic integrity for birds and amphibians
was examined.
• Site-specific analyses of the full range of
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Significant Activities Report
Wetland Area on Saginaw Bay, Lake Huron
indicators at a wetland site in the Lake
Erie basin was also conducted.
• A team of Grand Valley State and Michi-
gan State University researchers evaluated
a broad range of indicators at numerous
sites in the Lake Michigan and Lake
Huron basins. They built upon previous
work and refined the development of indi-
ces of biotic integrity for plants and inver-
tebrates.
• Finally, a U.S. Geological Survey team
conducted a thorough examination of all
Consortium indicators at a protected em-
bayment of Arcadia Lake on Lake Michi-
gan.
Year Two Consortium activities were also
discussed. Several sub-grants and contracts
are funding landscape-level indicator work
this summer. Information about this meet-
ing, the full final reports of the six Year
One studies, and other information about
Great Lakes Coastal Wetlands Consortium
activities can be found at http://www.glc.
org/wetlands.
Then on May 14th and 15th, wetland experts
from the United States and Canada met in
Ann Arbor, Michigan to finalize a Great
Lakes coastal wetland classification scheme
that will be applicable to all of the coastal
wetlands in the Great Lakes basin. This
classification will be used to design an in-
ternational monitoring plan for Great Lakes
coastal wetlands and is one of the products
of the Great Lakes Coastal Wetlands Con-
sortium.
(Contacts: Dr. John Schneider, 312-886-
0880, schneider.john@epa.gov; or Karen
Rodriguez, 312-353-2690, rodriguez.
karen@epa.gov, or)
Know Your Wetlands
Following up on the May meeting of Great
Lakes coastal wetlands classification ex-
perts (see previous article), the Great Lakes
Coastal Wetlands Consortium refined the
coastal wetlands classification system as
follows:
Lacustrine: Controlled directly by waters
of the Great Lakes and strongly affected by
lake-level fluctuations, nearshore currents,
seiches, and ice scour.
• Open lacustrine: directly exposed to near-
shore processes with little or no physical
protection by geomorphic features. This
exposure results in little accumulation of
organic sediment, limiting vegetation de-
velopment to relatively narrow nearshore
bands. Exposure to nearshore processes
results in variable bathymetry, ranging
from relatively steep profiles to more shal-
low sloping beaches.
• Protected lacustrine: Characterized by in-
creased protection by bay or sand-spit for-
Open Lacustrine: Search Bay, Lake Huron
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Drowned River Mouth: Salmon River, Lake Ontario
mation. This protection results in in-
creased organic sediment accumulation, a
shallower off-shore profile, and more ex-
tensive emergent vegetation development
than an Open Lacustrine form.
Riverine Wetlands : Occur in rivers or
creeks that flow into or between the Great
Lakes. The water quality, flow rate and
sediment input in the wetland is controlled
in large part by its drainage. Water level and
fluvial processes in the wetland are also in-
fluenced by the Great Lakes because lake
waters flood back into the lower portions of
the drainage system.
• Drowned river mouth: Water chemistry of
drowned river mouths can be affected by
both the Great Lakes and river water, de-
pending on Great Lakes water levels, sea-
son, and amount of precipitation. Typi-
cally have deep organic soils accumulated
due to deposition of watershed-based silt
loads and protection from coastal proc-
esses.
• Connecting channel: Located within a
large connecting river between the Great
Lakes; the St. Marys, St. Clair, Detroit,
Niagara, and St. Lawrence Rivers. The
wetlands are distinctive from the other riv-
erine wetland types (drowned river mouth)
because of their general lack of deep or-
ganic soils and their often strong currents.
• Delta: Formed of alluvial materials, both
fine and coarse, and extend out into the
Great Lake or connecting river. These
wetlands are extensive, typically with 30
to 100 cm of organic soils associated with
the wet meadow zone, and often with deep
organics occupying abandoned distribu-
tary channels and inter-distributary bays.
Barrier Protected: Originated from either
coastal or fluvial processes. Due to coastal
processes, these wetlands have become
separated from the Great Lakes by barrier
beaches or beach ridges. They are protected
from wave action but may be connected di-
rectly to the lake by a channel crossing the
barrier. When connected to the lake, the wa-
ter level in the wetland is determined by
lake levels, but tempered by the rate of flow
through the inlet. During isolation from the
lake, groundwater and surface drainage to
the basin of the individual wetland provides
the dominant source of water input, al-
though lake level may influence groundwa-
ter flow and, hence, wetland water level.
Inlets to protected wetlands may be perma-
nent or ephemeral due to nearshore proc-
esses that can close off the inlet from the
lake.
• Barrier beach lagoon: Form behind sand
barriers. There is reduced mixing of Great
Lakes waters and the exclusion of coastal
processes within the wetlands due to the
barrier. Multiple lagoons can form, and
water discharge from upland areas and in-
coming drainages may also contribute sig-
nificantly to the water supply. The wetland
Swale Complex: Stockton Island, Lake Superior
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typically contains thick organic soils.
• Swale complex: System wetland that oc-
curs between swale complexes formed be-
tween recurved fingers of sand spits or rel-
ict beach ridges. Ridge and swale com-
plexes are composed of a series of barrier
beaches separated by narrow swales. Typi-
cally only the first couple of swales are di-
rectly connected to the lake and ground-
water supplies water to swales further
from the lake. Organic soil depths are
quite variable, as is the vegetation, which
can range from herbaceous to swamp for-
est.
(Contact: Karen Rodriguez, 312-353-2690,
rodriguez.karen@epa.gov)
Lake Erie Oxygen Studies
Lake Erie Dissolved Oxygen studies contin-
ued this Summer. Surveys of the Central
Basin of Lake Erie were undertaken on June
5th and 6th, on June 27th and 28th, and on
July 18th and 19th to measure dissolved oxy-
gen levels there. The broad, shallow Central
Basin is where the so called "Dead Zone"
develops in Lake Erie. This is the part of the
Lake where dissolved oxygen levels in the
bottom waters decrease through the Sum-
mer to near zero.
Measurements were made at ten sampling
sites during each survey. As in 2002, Lake
Erie stratified late in the Spring (the water
column was not stratified at approximately
one-half the stations during the early June
survey). By mid-July, significant decreases
in dissolved oxygen concentrations were
observed throughout the Central Basin,
similar to that seen in recent years. Addi-
tional surveys will be conducted during Au-
gust and September to track the rate of oxy-
gen depletion.
During this year's dissolved oxygen sur-
veys, scientists who studied the situation in
GLNPO Intern, Christyanne Melendez,
Prepares Water Sampler for Deployment in Lake Erie
Dissolved Oxygen Survey
Lake Erie during 2002 have an opportunity
to conduct additional studies. In early July,
Dr. Hunter Carrick, a professor at Pennsyl-
vania State University, and his students col-
lected water and plankton samples to help
evaluate the contribution of algal communi-
ties to the observed oxygen concentrations.
To learn more about Lake Erie's dissolved
oxygen problems, go to: http://www.epa.
gov/glnpo/1 akeeri e/eri edeadzone. html.
(Contact: Paul Bertram, 312-353-0153,
bertram.paul@epa.gov)
LOADS: Year 2
USEPA Region 2 and GLNPO scientists
joined researchers from USEPA's Office of
Research and Development, Clarkson Uni-
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Scientist Puts Out Sampling Plates at the Bow of the
R/V Lake Guardian to Collect Dry Atmospheric
Deposition (Dust Particles)
versity, and the State University of New
York's Oswego and Fredonia campuses to
study air pollution levels over Lake Ontario
aboard GLNPO's 180-foot research ship,
the R/V Lake Guardian. The team collected
air deposition and concentration samples
over 16- to 24-hour periods as well as water
samples to study how toxic materials such
as PCBs, dioxins, pesticides and mercury
find their way into the lake through the air.
The Lake Ontario Air Deposition Study be-
gan in 2002 with two cruises (Spring and
Fall). Canada has contributed scientific ex-
pertise and equipment to the study. Findings
from the binational LOADS study will help
USEPA and its partners on both sides of the
border further reduce toxic pollutants in the
Great Lakes, which are already cleaner than
they have been in decades.
(Contact: Bob Kelly, 212-637-3709, kelly.
bob@epamail.epa.gov, or Todd Nettesheim,
312-353-9153, nettesheim.todd@epa.gov)
2002 Sediment Cleanup Tally
In 2002, over 180,000 cubic yards of con-
taminated sediments were remediated from
five U.S. sites in the Great Lakes Basin.
These sites were:
• U.S.S. Lead Refinery, Inc. in East Chi-
cago, Indiana;
• Ten Mile Storm Drainage System PCB
Spill Site in St. Clair Shores, Michigan;
• U.S. Steel - Gary Works in Gary, Indiana;
• Moss-American Site in Milwaukee, Wis-
consin;
• Pine River in St. Louis, Michigan; and
• Tannery Bay in White Lake, Michigan.
The Pine River cleanup was in its fourth
year of operation. Remediation projects at
the rest of the sites were begun in 2002.
Several of these projects are expected to
continue into 2003.
(Contact: Marc Tuchman, 312-353-1369,
tuchman.marc@epa.gov)
Ten Mile Drain PCB Spill Cleanup Underway
in St. Clair Shores, Michigan
Sediment Results Reported
GLNPO recently completed a summary re-
port on the results of sediment sampling on
the Chicago River, Chicago, Illinois. The
sediment sampling took place in October
2000 and August 2002. The report shows
elevated concentrations of PAHs, PCBs,
and heavy metals throughout the Chicago
River and recommends additional, follow-
up sampling in several areas of the river, in-
cluding the North Avenue turning basin.
One of the conclusions of the report is that,
while still contaminated, the surficial (more
recent) sediments are significantly less con-
taminated than the deeper (older) sediments.
This indicates that the highest levels of con-
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GLNPO's R/VMudpuppy Travels to Next Sediment
Sampling Location on Chicago River, Illinois
tamination may be from past sources. An
electronic copy of the report is available by
contacting Scott Cieniawski by phone at:
312-353-9184, or by Email at: cieniawski.
scott@epa.gov.
On June 26th, GLNPO's Scott Cieniawski
traveled to Monroe, Michigan to give a
presentation to the Raisin River Remedial
Action Plan (RAP) Committee on the re-
sults of an October 2001 sediment sampling
survey in the Raisin River Area of Concern
(AOC). That study found continued, wide-
spread PCB contamination of the sediments,
including sediments in the area remediated
under a 1997 Superfund emergency removal
action. Bioaccumulation tests and caged
fish testing indicate the potential for bioac-
cumulation of PCBs. Representatives from
the Michigan Department of Environmental
Quality (MDEQ) also attended the meeting
to present the State's proposal for cleaning
up contaminated sediments in the Raisin
River AOC. The MDEQ proposal is avail-
able in the report entitled "Remedial Alter-
natives Evaluation, Raisin River 307 Site,
Monroe, Michigan."
On July 17th, Mr. Cieniawski spoke to the
Waukegan Harbor Citizens Action Group
on the status of efforts to remediate PCB
contaminated sediments in the Waukegan
Harbor AOC. The presentation focused on
summarizing the extent of contamination in
the harbor, as well as discussing the efforts
by USEPA and the U.S. Army Corps of En-
gineers to address the contaminated sedi-
ments. The federal agencies are coordinat-
ing with state and local groups to address
the contamination through a variety of fund-
ing authorities, including the Corps' Water
Resources Development Act authority and
GLNPO's new Great Lakes Legacy Act au-
thority (for more information on the Legacy
Act, see the February 2003 Significant Ac-
tivities Report). The meeting also gave
USEPA an opportunity to discuss current
work activities at the site. GLNPO and Re-
gion 5 Superfund have retained a consult-
ant, CH2M Hill, to develop a Remedial Al-
ternatives Evaluation/Data Gaps Analysis
report. This report will perform a prelimi-
nary evaluation of potential alternatives for
cleaning up the sediments, as well as iden-
tify gaps in the current data that need to be
addressed prior to making a final remedial
decision. A draft report is expected in Sep-
tember 2003.
(Contact: Scott Cieniawski, 312-353-9184,
cieniawski.scott@epa.gov).
Buffalo River Probed
From July 7th to 10th, GLNPO's specially-
outfitted sediment sampling boat, the R/V
Mudpuppy collected sediment samples from
the Buffalo River in Buffalo, New York.
The sampling was conducted as part of a
collaborative effort between GLNPO,
USEPA Region 2, and the State University
of New York at Buffalo as part of a GLNPO
grant (GL975074-01) awarded to the Uni-
versity in FY2002. The Mudpuppy was used
to collect approximately 15 cores that will
be analyzed for PCBs, PAHs, and metals.
The data obtained will be used to prioritize
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areas of sediment contamination for reme-
dial actions outside of the navigation chan-
nel in the Buffalo River system.
(Contact: Marc Tuchman, 312-353-1369,
tuchman.marc@epa.gov).
Saginaw Dioxin Studies
On May 3rd and 4th, GLNPO's sediment sur-
vey vessel, the R/VMudpuppy, visited
Saginaw, Michigan to collect sediment sam-
ples in the Saginaw River watershed near
Saginaw, Michigan. The field crew col-
lected a series of sediment cores from the
watershed for laboratory analysis for diox-
ins, furans, and total organic carbon. The
main purpose of the sampling was to collect
preliminary data characterizing the horizon-
tal and vertical extent of dioxin/furan con-
tamination in the Saginaw, Cass, and Shia-
wassee Rivers' sediments, downstream of
the confluence of the Tittabawassee and
Saginaw Rivers. Sampling was coordinated
with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the
Michigan Department of Environmental
Quality, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engi-
neers. Results of the laboratory analysis are
expected by the end of August 2003.
(Contact: Scott Cieniawski, 312-353-9184,
cieniawski.scott@epa.gov)
)\
Scientists Hold Collected Sediment Core Sections
Before Placing into Sample Jars
Chicago Hosts International
Conference
The 46th annual conference of the Interna-
tional Association for Great Lakes Research
was held at DePaul University in Chicago
from June 22nd to 26th. This year's Great
Lakes Conference was held jointly with the
International Lake Environment Commit-
tee's 10th World Lakes Conference. The
theme for the joint conferences was:
"Global Threats to Large Lakes: Managing
in an Environment of Instability and Unpre-
dictability."
Over 700 people attended the conference
which included 45 technical sessions.
GLNPO scientists were heavily involved in
the conference, chairing sessions, present-
ing papers, presenting posters, and assisting
in overall conference organization.
Specific sessions chaired by GLNPO in-
cluded:
• Using indicators to assess Great Lakes
ecosystem health;
• Lake Michigan Mass Balance results and
implications;
• Toxic and nutrient loadings to the Great
Lakes and other large lakes; and
• Status and trends of planktonic communi-
ties in the Laurentian Great Lakes and be-
yond.
The subjects of papers presented by
GLNPO scientists included:
• Quality Assurance, organics, and mercury
monitoring in the Lake Michigan Mass
Balance Study;
• Great Lakes Binational Toxics Strategy
and emerging chemicals of concern in the
Great Lakes;
• Ranking critical ecological areas in the
Great Lakes basin;
• Beach monitoring;
U.S. EPA Great Lakes National Program Office
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• Fish contaminant monitoring;
• Great Lakes zooplankton; and
• Contaminated sediments.
The conference was partially supported by a
grant from GLNPO and was held in con-
junction with the International Lake Envi-
ronment Committee. For more information
on the International Lake Environment
Committee, see: http://www.ilec.or.jp/eg/
index.html. From this web site, one can ac-
cess a database of lakes from all over the
world.
(Contact: Marc Tuchman, 312-353-1369,
tuchman.marc@epa.gov)
Greening the Government
GLNPO's Danielle Green spoke on
"Sustainable Landscaping" at the "Greening
the Government Conference" in Philadel-
phia, Pennsylvania. Her presentation fo-
cused on ways to reduce pollution and save
money by managing lands using native
plants. USEPA Regions 1, 2, and 3 co-
sponsored this first in the nation conference
for Federal Facilities, Tribes, and state and
local government agencies. This two and a
half day conference provided a forum for
learning about Green programs, tools, and
successful case studies from both the gov-
ernment and private sectors. The conference
included presentations on topics such as
Green Buildings and Green Purchasing and
Example of Sustainable Landscaping
Using Native Plants
Energy Conservation. Current Executive
Orders encourage the use of native plants in
landscaping federal lands.
(Contact: Danielle Green 312-886-7594,
green.danielle@epa.gov)
Oak Openings: "One of America's
Last Great Places"
Funded by a GLNPO grant, The Nature
Conservancy:
• Developed a marketing and outreach cam-
paign which evaluated the awareness and
knowledge level of local residents regard-
ing the Oak Openings;
• Developed a professional marketing strat-
egy and campaign to inform and engage
local residents on the importance of the
Oak Openings as a unique natural area;
• Implemented an Oak Openings marketing
campaign;
• Conducted a market evaluation to gauge
effectiveness of the campaign; and
• Restored three small sites as visual exam-
ples of the messages disseminated through
the marketing campaign.
As a result of this project, the Oak Openings
Region Green Ribbon Initiative was cre-
ated. This is a community-based effort to
preserve an additional 6,000 acres of habitat
within the region. Initiative supporters in
addition to The Nature Conservancy in-
clude: Metroparks for the Toledo Area, the
Black Swamp Conservancy, Oak Openings
Region Preservation Alliance, and the Ohio
Department of Natural Resources. A local
advocacy group, Oak Openings Region
Preservation Alliance, was also formed as a
result of the project. This group created a
signage program and installed road signs
throughout the region to inform motorists
when they are entering the Oak Openings
Region. One possible indirect impact of the
campaign was the successful passage of the
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Irwin Prairie State
Nature Preserve
Oak Openings
Preserve
Metropark
Metroparks of the
Toledo Area's $19
million land acqui-
sition levy in the
fall of 2002. Al-
though the Oak
Openings campaign
was not connected
to the levy cam-
paign, it passed
with 61% in favor,
and it is reasonable
to assume the mar-
keting strategy to
inform residents
about the Oak
Openings helped
them visualize what
acquisition dollars
would be used to
purchase.
TNC designated
Oak Openings re-
gion as "One of
America's Last Great Places."
To learn more about the Oak Openings,
please visit: http://oakopen.org/
(Contact: Karen Rodriguez, 312-353-2690,
rodriguez.karen@epa.gov)
Legislators Focus on Great Lakes
Last year, Congress passed the Great Lakes
Legacy Act of 2002, which provides for a
multi-year, multi-million dollar program to
clean up contaminated sediments in U.S.
Great Lakes Areas of Concern. For more
information on the Legacy Act, see the Feb-
ruary 2003 Significant Activities Report.
This year, responding to recommendations
in an April 2003 report (http://www.gao.
gov/new.items/d03515.pdf) by the United
States General Accounting Office, legisla-
tors have introduced several significant
Map of the Oak Openings Region in Ohio
pieces of Great Lakes legislation:
The Senate and House introduced Bills call-
ing for increased monitoring on the Great
Lakes (Senate Bill 1116, introduced on May
22nd and House of Representatives Bill
2668, introduced on July 8th).
On July 14th, the House and Senate both in-
troduced bills calling for funding restoration
efforts in the Great Lakes (House Bill 2720,
Senate Bill 1398).
On July 16th, the U.S. Senate Committee on
Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the
Federal Workforce, and the District of Co-
lumbia held hearings on Great Lakes Resto-
ration Management. The Honorable George
Voinovich, United States Senator, chaired
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Significant Activities Report
the hearing. Witnesses testified in 3 panels:
Panel 1:
• The Honorable Mike DeWine, United
States Senator
• The Honorable Carl Levin, United States
Senator
Panel 2:
• John Stephenson, Director of Natural Re-
sources and Environment Issues, United
States General Accounting Office
• Robyn Thorson, Region III Director, U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service
• Thomas Skinner, Region 5 Administrator
and Great Lakes National Program Man-
ager, U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency
• Colonel William E. Ryan, III, Deputy
Commander, Great Lakes Ohio River Di-
vision, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
• Timothy Keeney, Deputy Assistant Secre-
tary, National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
Panel3:
• The Honorable Dennis L. Schornack,
Chairman, United States Section, Interna-
tional Joint Commission
• The Honorable Susan Garrett, Illinois
State Senator, District 29
• Chris Jones, Director, Environmental Pro-
tection Agency, State of Ohio on behalf of
the Council of Great Lakes Governors
• Margaret Wooster, Executive Director,
Great Lakes United
The witnesses' written statements are avail-
able at: http://govt-aff.senate.gov/index.
cfm?Fuseaction=Hearings.
Detail&HearingID=98
(The General Accounting Office is Con-
gress' investigative, evaluation, and audit
arm which probes issues at the request of
the U.S. Congress.)
(Contact: Gary Gulezian, 312-886-4040,
gulezian.gary@epa.gov)
We welcome your questions, comments or
suggestions about this month's Significant
Activities Report. To be added to or re-
moved from the Email distribution of the
Significant Activities Report, please contact
Tony Kizlauskas, 312-353-8773,
kizlauskas.anthony@epa.gov.
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