Great
Lakes
National
Program
&EPA
On the Web at:
www.epa.gov/greatlakes
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Great Lakes National Program Office (GLNPO)
Significant Activities Report
July 2004
IN THIS ISSUE:
• Lake Superior Day
• Lake Michigan Diporeia Survey
• School-Ship
• Limnology Courses Bear Fruit
• Organic Contaminants Survey
• Binational Coordination
• Great Lakes Mayors Meet
• Watershed 2004
• Fish and Wildlife Goals for AOCs
Lake Superior Day
The second annual Lake Superior Day was
held at Wisconsin Point (Duluth-Superior
Harbor) on Sunday, July 18th. Copies of
Lake Superior Day proclamations were dis-
played at the ceremony. The following gov-
ernments/institutions signed proclamations
for Lake Superior Day this year:
• From Michigan: Governor Jennifer
Granholm; Keweenaw Bay Indian Com-
munity; Villages of L'Anse, Baraga, Ea-
gle Harbor, and Calumet; the cities of
Houghton and Hancock; and Keweenaw
County.
• From Minnesota: Governor Tim
Pawlenty and the City of Duluth.
• From Wisconsin: Governor James
Doyle; the cities of Ashland, Superior,
and Washburn; Douglas County; North-
land College, a private environmental
liberal arts college in Ashland; Bad
JAiver Tribal Council.
Members of the Little Eagles youth drumming group
from Duluth, MN, sing ceremonial songs during a
Lake Superior Day celebration on Wisconsin Point,
Wl, on July 18, 2004. Several recipients of the Lake
Superior Binational Program's inaugural Environ-
mental Stewardship award listen in the background.
(Photo courtesy of Jeff Frey)
The winners of the Lake Superior Environ-
mental Stewardship Awards were also an-
nounced. As part of the $50,000 GLNPO
grant to the Lake Superior Forum, the first
Environmental Stewardship Awards Program
announced seven winners: four from the U.S.
and three from Canada. These awards high-
light successful efforts to protect and restore
Lake Superior. The awards program recog-
nizes the important contributions that indi-
viduals, businesses, industry, communities,
and First Nations/Tribes have made to pro-
tect and restore the natural resources in the
Lake Superior basin in the U.S. and Canada.
The U.S. winners include:
• Roy Johnson of Cloverland, Wisconsin,
a lifelong resident of Wisconsin's Lake
Superior basin. He has converted 160
acres of farmland to restored wetlands.
Through two separate partnerships with
the Wisconsin Department of Transporta-
tion, he has helped to turn cropland into a
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July 2004
Significant Activities Report
diverse range of wetland habitat, includ-
ing shallow ponds, deep marsh, sedge
meadows, and mudflats. Once home to
crops and cattle, the wetlands now host
a number of sensitive wetland birds and
plants. Johnson's commitment to land
stewardship began in the 1950s when he
and his father dug a pond in their hay
field to establish a home for geese and
ducks. In 1995, Johnson sold 80 acres of
land to the Wisconsin Department of
Transportation for the purpose of estab-
lishing a wetland mitigation site. In
2001, he signed a permanent limited
easement with the WDOT that provided
lasting protection for an additional 80
acres of wetlands. The restored wetlands
are adjacent to the Brule River State
Forest, which links them to over 50,000
acres of public land. The Johnson prop-
erty is four miles from the Lake Supe-
rior shore, which makes it uniquely
suited for shorebird habitat restoration.
The U.S. winners in the Industry and Busi-
ness category were Minnesota Power and
the Pinehurst Inn at Pikes Creek (a tie).
• Minnesota Power of Duluth, Minne-
sota, tackled the issue of mercury emis-
sions from coal-fired power plants from
both the production and consumption
side of the problem. The company car-
ried out full-scale mercury emissions
control technology testing at their
Laskin Energy Center (which is within
the Lake Superior watershed) as part of
an Electrical Power Research Institute
study. In the emissions study, Minnesota
Power found carbon injection and
chemical additives show some promise
towards removing mercury from that fa-
cility's stack. To reduce mercury emis-
sions at a consumer level, the company
designed and constructed a model en-
ergy-saving house called the Millen-
Lake Superior Stewardship Awards on display
nium Star in Duluth. The model house
showed that building design, materials,
and construction techniques can signifi-
cantly reduce energy consumption and
costs. The Millennium Star house runs
on a yearly heating bill of less than
$300. This demonstrated that if more
houses were energy-efficient, demand
for electricity would decrease, resulting
in lower mercury emissions from fossil
fuel-fired power plants.
Pinehurst Inn at Pikes Creek, Bayfield,
Wisconsin, is a bed and breakfast that
consists of an historic inn built in 1885
and a one-year-old Garden House offer-
ing guest and common rooms. The Gar-
den House was designed to architectur-
ally compliment the main house, yet
built using "green building" techniques,
materials, and systems the comple-
mented natural systems. Owners Steve
and Nancy Sandstrom wanted to mini-
mize the inn's impact on Lake Superior
and the surrounding environment by re-
ducing its contribution to air and water
pollution, minimizing solid wastes, and
enhancing the inn's natural landscaping.
The inn and addition have new, energy-
efficient thermo-pane windows, energy-
efficient light bulbs and appliances, sig-
nificantly increased insulation in the at-
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tic and walls, and a solar hot water
heater for the addition. Inside the inn,
the Sandstroms use only non-toxic, bio-
degradable laundry and dishwashing de-
tergents and cleaning supplies. The
owners also use only eco-friendly, non-
toxic fertilizers in the gardens and land-
scaping.
The U.S. winner in the Community/
Organization Category was:
• The City of Superior, Wisconsin. Staff
at the city's wastewater treatment facil-
ity have conducted extensive reduction
and education programs that prevented
mercury from entering the lake through
wastewater discharges. By working in
partnerships with state agencies, re-
gional tribes, area schools, and private
businesses, the city has kept 300 pounds
of bulk mercury, 400 lab thermometers,
4,000 fever thermometers, and 1,000 ve-
hicle switches that contain mercury out
of landfills and waterways. City staff
have incorporated mercury reduction
curriculum and activities in public
schools, conducted workshops for build-
ers to teach them how to recycle ther-
mostats and other toxic materials during
construction, organized free mercury
thermometer exchanges for digital de-
vices, organized light bulb collections
with area hardware stores, worked with
dentists to identify and remove mercury
in dental offices, and numerous other
programs.
The Lake Superior Binational Program con-
sists of a partnership of U.S. and Canadian
government agencies, First Nations/Tribes,
and citizen stakeholders that work together
to protect and restore the natural environ-
ment in the Lake Superior basin. The Lake
Superior Binational Forum, a volunteer
stakeholder group, is funded in the U.S. by
GLNPO, and in Canada by Environment
Canada. The U.S. coordinator is housed at
the Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute at
Northland College in Ashland, Wisconsin.
(Contacts: Elizabeth LaPlante, 353-2694,
laplante.elizabeth@epa.gov, or Lissa Radke
Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute
Northland College at (715) 682-1489)
Lake Michigan Diporeia Survey
Dr. Thomas Nalepa, of the National Oce-
anic and Atmospheric Administration's
Great Lakes Environmental Laboratory,
sampled Lake Michigan from the R/VLake
Guardian, from July 24th through July 27th,
looking for the half-inch-long shrimp-like
crustaceans, Diporeia hoyi. This GLNPO-
supported study is documenting the disap-
pearance of this important animal from
Lake Michigan.
The Diporeia is a small benthic invertebrate
that is an important source of food for fish.
The Diporeia
population has
declined se-
verely over the
last ten years in
southern Lake
Michigan. This
survey examines
the trends in the
Diporeia popu-
lation to better
understand
population dynamics. This was the fifth
year of this investigation. Diporeia abun-
dance is examined in sediments collected
using a ponar grab sediment sampler. Sam-
ples are collected from approximately 60
stations.
The final Diporeia survey will be conducted
in August in southwestern Lake Michigan
(off of Waukegan, Illinois) home to the last
Diporeia
(actual size about V* inch
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healthy population of Diporeia in the south-
ern part of the Lake.
(Contact: Glenn Warren, 312-886-2405, war-
ren.glenn@epa.gov)
School-Ship
The R/V Lake Guardian was on Lake Supe-
rior from July 5th through 10th and on Lake
Michigan from July 19th to 23rd for week-
long teacher institutes. The courses were de-
signed to teach elementary, middle, and high
school educators about the physical, chemi-
cal, and biological components of the Great
Lakes ecosystem. In an exciting week
aboard the Lake Guardian, participants had
the opportunity to live and work in the re-
search ship's scientific labs beside research-
ers doing hands-on data collection and analy-
sis. The course is also designed to help K-12
educators to integrate Great Lakes concepts
into their programs and/or curricula through
both field and laboratory sessions aboard the
vessel. The classes were taught using a com-
bination of lectures and practical hands-on
exercises. The classes were given high marks
by the participants.
The R/V Lake Guardian has been offered as a
floating classroom at low-cost to individual
students since 1993. These courses are de-
signed to teach undergraduates, graduate stu-
dents, or teachers about the physical, chemi-
cal, and biological components of the Great
Lakes ecosystem.
(Contact: George Ison, 312-353-1669, ison.
george@epa.gov)
Limnology Courses Bear Fruit
In 2003 Clarkson University, Potsdam, New
York was given a grant to conduct a limnol-
ogy course on Lake Ontario in conjunction
with EPA Region II. Three papers resulting
from this class are being submitted to the
Journal of Great Lakes Research:
1. The Lake Ontario Great Lakes Science
Students collect samples of organisms dwelling in the
bottom sediments of Lake Michigan
(photo courtesy of William M. Kane)
Practicum: A model for training lim-
nology students on how to conduct ship-
board research in the Great Lakes. Mi-
chael R. Twiss , Tom A. Langen ,
George S. Bullerjahn , and Steven W.
Wilhelm , and David C. Rockwell.
2. Phosphorus bioavailability and plank-
ton distributions in Lake Ontario in the
aftermath of Hurricane Isabel, Septem-
ber 2003. Gouvea, Sandra P., Christ-
yanne Melendez, Matthew Carberry,
George S. Bullerjahn, Steven W.
Wilhelm, Tom A. Langen, and Michael
R.Twiss.
3. Pelagic bird survey on Lake Ontario
following Hurricane Isabel, September
2003: Observations and remarks on
methodology. Tom A. Langen, Michael
R. Twiss, George S. Bullerjahn, and
Steven W. Wilhelm.
One of the authors, Christyanne Melendez,
was a GLNPO intern and Dr. Michael
Twiss, the lead professor for the limnology
course, was a student in the 1993 limnology
class aboard the Lake Guardian.
(Contact: David Rockwell, 312-353-1373,
rockwell.david@epa.gov)
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Organic Contaminants Survey
During the week of July 12th to 17th, Dr.
Matt Simcik of the University of Minnesota
took samples for trace (ultra-low levels) or-
ganic contaminants in Lake Michigan. Wa-
ter was sampled for a suite of hydrophobic
organic contaminants (HOCs) including
PCBs, PAHs, organochlorine pesticides,
toxaphene, PBDEs, PFOS, Mercury and di-
oxins and furans. Because hydrophobic
(avoiding water) contaminants prefer to dis-
solve in lipids (fat) rather than in water,
they tend to bioaccumulate in living organ-
isms (benthic organisms, fish), raising con-
cerns about their impacts on wildlife and
human health. This study will produce a co-
herent data set on HOCs in Lake Michigan
waters consistent with measurements cur-
rently being made in the air and fish of the
Great Lakes. For some of the HOCs
(PBDEs and PFOS/PFOA) this data will
represent some of the first measurements in
the water column of the Great Lakes provid-
ing baseline information on water concen-
trations of these emerging contaminants.
Data from the study will be compared to
fish concentration data from the Great
Lakes Fish Monitoring program to calculate
bioconcentration factors and with air moni-
toring data from the Integrated Atmospheric
Deposition Network to help understand the
exchange of HOCs between the air and wa-
ter. Because of the very low concentrations
of HOCs in the water, large volumes of wa-
ter must be processed. In this study, Dr.
Simcik sampled approximately 800 liters
(over 200 gallons) of water from each of
five sites in Lake Michigan.
(Contact: Melissa Hulting, 312-886-2265,
hulting.melissa@epa.gov)
Binational Coordination
On July 13th and 14th, the Great Lakes Bina-
tional Executive Committee (EEC) held its
The setting sun reflects off a window onboard
the R/V Lake Guardian
semi-annual meeting in Chicago, Illinois to
discuss binational programs being imple-
mented under the terms of the Great Lakes
Water Quality Agreement (the Agreement).
The EEC serves a crucial role in coordinat-
ing a variety of binational commitments in
the Great Lakes Basin. Federal, State, Pro-
vincial, Tribal and non-governmental ob-
server agency personnel from both the U.S.
and Canada met to discuss vital Great Lakes
issues including President Bush's Executive
Order on the Great Lakes, the upcoming re-
view of the Agreement, updates on the
Great Lakes Integrated Atmospheric Data
Network (IADN), the next State of the
Lakes Ecosystem Conference (SOLEC),
and the Great Lakes Binational Toxics
Strategy, as well as informational items on
work to coordinate binational monitoring
activities. Fruitful, in-depth discussions led
to a number of assignments for actions to be
completed before the next BEC meeting in
December 2004. On the evening of the first
day, a farewell reception for Mr. John Mills,
the BEC Canadian Co-Chair, was hosted by
the Canadian Consul General to Chicago.
Mr. Mills, the Regional Director General of
the Ontario Region of Environment Canada,
is retiring from the federal service.
(Contact: MarkElster, 312-886-3857, elster.
mark@epa.gov)
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Great Lakes Mayors Meet
The International Association of Great
Lakes and St. Lawrence Mayors held their
annual conference in Chicago, Illinois on
July 15th and 16th. Among the highlights of
the conference:
• Presentations on the economic benefits
of cleaning up harbors were given by a
number of Great Lakes Mayors.
• EPA Administrator Mike Leavitt and
Wisconsin Governor James Doyle
spoke on the unique opportunity for col-
laborative restoration work in the Great
Lakes Basin.
• Administrator Leavitt stressed the com-
plexity of the problems and the agenda
of the Interagency Task Force (created
by the President's Executive Order on
the Great Lakes) to align all the pro-
grams. He used the needed funding for
the Carp barrier as an example of where
the Task Force can make a difference in
moving efforts along.
• Governor Doyle stressed the need for
protecting the waters of the Great Lakes
through Annex 2001 and against
"federalization of water."
• The co-chairs of the International Joint
Commission, Herb Grey Canadian Sec-
tion and Dennis Schornack U.S. Sec-
tion, spoke of the need to involve the
Mayors in the upcoming review of the
Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement
(the cornerstone of the binational pro-
gram to protect and restore the Great
Lakes).
GLNPO manned an informational display at
the conference, fielding questions and hand-
ing out Great Lakes CDs, bookmarks, and
magnets to interested visitors.
(Contacts: Judy Beck, 312-353-3849, beck.
judy@epa.gov; or Tony Kizlauskas, 312-
353-8773, kizlauskas.anthony@epa.gov)
GLNPO Display at International Association of Great
Lakes and St. Lawrence Mayors Conference
Watershed 2004
Judy Beck, Lake Michigan Team Manager,
participated in the National Watershed 2004
Conference in Dearborn, Michigan on July
11th to 14th. The Opening session featured
Dennis Schornack, Chairman of the U.S.
Section of the International Joint Commis-
sion, who outlined the many events cur-
rently underway in the Great Lakes. Mike
Shapiro from USEPA's Office of Water
presented the re-invigorated watershed vi-
sion of the agency which includes the align-
ment of all programs by watershed. Judy
Beck presented a status report on Great
Lakes Strategy 2002 and attended the field
trip to the Ford Rouge River Complex. The
tour covered not only the plant but its
stormwater management and green roof.
When completed, the Phase 1 Rouge Com-
plex will retain and steadily discharge the
precipitation of a 10-year storm over a 15-
day period. This watershed will, as closely
as possible, emulate the hydraulic and water
quality behavior of the area's natural water-
shed.
(Contact: Judy Beck, 312-353-3849, beck.
judy@epa.gov)
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Fish and Wildlife Goals for AOCs
On July 21st, GLNPO staff presented
"Restoration Planning for Fish and Wildlife
in Michigan's Areas of Concern: A Prelimi-
nary Assessment and Guidance for Action,"
to about 130 Michigan Public Advisory
Council members and state and federal
agency staff in Monroe, Michigan. The
workshop outlined a process for achieving
restoration goals and delisting fish and
wildlife impairments in Michigan's Great
Lakes Areas of Concern.
Workshop presentations assessed the status
of restoration efforts for fish and wildlife in
the Areas of Concern and GLNPO staff pro-
vided a recommended pathway for estab-
lishing measurable targets for fish and wild-
life habitat, populations, and benthic com-
munities.
The keynote speaker, Keith Bowers (the
current chair of the Society for Ecological
Restoration), provided an introduction to
the field of ecosystem restoration and out-
lined practical actions that local groups can
take at the watershed level.
Successful local efforts were showcased and
opportunities to integrate habitat restoration
into other remediation activities were high-
lighted.
GLNPO staff concluded that AOCs have
made progress toward restoring beneficial
use impairments — but mostly through in-
dividual, small-scale projects. Explicit,
AOC-wide site designs are almost absent
from the Remedial Action Plan documents
and monitoring programs are needed to as-
sess progress toward delisting.
(Contacts: Karen Rodriguez, 312-353-
2690, rodriguez.karen@epa.gov; or James
Schardt, 312-353-5085, schardt.james@epa.
gov)
A sandhill crane at home in a Great Lakes wetland
U.S. EPA Great Lakes National Program Office
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Upcoming Events
October 6-8
November 30
2004
State of the Lakes Ecosys-
tem Conference: Toronto,
Canada
2005
Great Lakes Binational
Toxics Strategy Stake-
holder Forum: Chicago,
IL
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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