Explore the causes and effects of water contamination, including microplastics, chemicals, and stormwater runoff. Learn how to protect lakes, rivers, and freshwater resources.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency released new information regarding its ongoing efforts to determine what caused a massive fish kill in Duluth’s Tischer Creek in August. MPCA Communications Specialist Beverly Godfrey says the city of Duluth drained an estimated 1.7 million gallons of chloraminated water into the creek from the Woodland Reservoir over a 15-hour
Although many people might think oceanside cities bear the responsibility to keep plastic and trash out of the water, the Mississippi River can act as a funnel for that trash from the heart of the country to the Gulf of Mexico. The Mississippi River drains more than 40% of the continental U.S. – just how
Funded by a variety of groups including the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, Massport, the City of Boston, and the Eastern Salt Company, organizers say the program is working and the harbor is cleaner than ever. The program is The Boston Harbor Association’s Marine Debris Cleanup Program, the boat and its two crew members, armed with
With heavy rains this summer, Scott Cassavant and his crew of the Lynyrd Skymmr have been scooping up debris eight hours a day from rivers around the City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. “When there is a heavy rain with a lot of current flow, what is a living, thriving tree will become uprooted and ends up
Bioengineering is defined by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality as “using a combination of native planting and natural, or biodegradable materials to provide shoreline protection.” It also is often referred to as softshore engineering or lakescaping. Many shorelines use seawalls. These are a hard surface, such as wood, metal or concrete, that is installed
Hydrilla and water hyacinth, two of the worst aquatic weeds, have taken over the surface of Tapi River in India just above the pumping stations. This phenomenon of summer, which creates problems in the pumping of water from the pumping stations to Surat city, has occurred this time of the year for the first time.
Heavy metal poisoning is a growing concern in many parts of the country. A new method for removing chromium-6, a highly toxic heavy metal, from waste water has been developed by a group of scientists from India and Ethiopia. They claim it to be low-cost and safe. The new method uses water hyacinth, a weed
Plastic is killing 40 % of young sea turtles, shocking new research has shown. Baby turtles are almost four times more likely to be killed by ingesting plastic waste compared to adults. Not only do these animals have weaker bodies, but they also feed in offshore waters closer to the surface, which are more likely
A study by the Center for Limnology at UW-Madison says invasive species usually exist in low number and that overabundance is NOT the most common scenario. “Invasive species are often thought of as species that take over wherever they get in,” says Jake Vander Zanden, a UW limnology professor who directed the research. “But, in
Posted on July 9, 2013 by Dan O’Keefe, Michigan State University Extension Aquatic ecologists tend to avoid the term “weeds” when referring to macrophytes – the rooted aquatic plants that many swimmers and boaters disdain. These plants provide food for waterfowl and habitat for fish, but they can also play a critical role in maintaining