Air and Water Quality

Air Toxics Inventory
The newest Great Lakes Regional Air Toxic Emissions Inventory is part of an effort to measure the toxic air emissions that affect the air and water quality and the communities of the Great Lakes basin. Funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, it lists emissions by type, quantity and source. For more information, contact Jon Dettling at dettling@glc.org

Aquatic Nuisance Species
Since 1991, the Great Lakes Panel on Aquatic Nuisance Species (ANS) has worked to prevent and control the occurrence of aquatic nuisance species in the Great Lakes. This is an immense task, as more than 87 nonindigenous aquatic species have been accidentally introduced into the Great Lakes in this century. Once introduced, they must be managed and controlled, as they are virtually impossible to eradicate. For more information, contact Kathe Glassner-Shwayder at shwayder@glc.org

Beach Health
The U.S. EPA Great Lakes National Program Office is supporting the Great Lakes Commission in using the Great Lakes as a pilot for communicating the results of USEPA's National beach survey a beach health survey, assessing the current degree of consistency with beach closure and restriction advisories, generating a report of action items, and expediting a Great Lakes mapping effort that will connect with and enhance a national database. For more information, contact Christine Manninen at manninen@glc.org

Coastal wetlands
The Great Lakes Commission has convened a coastal wetlands consortium of scientists and policy makers. The consortium's work will expand the monitoring and reporting capabilities of the U.S. and Canada under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. For more information, contact John Hummer at jhummer@glc.org

Dredging
The Great Lakes Dredging Team (GLDT) is a partnership of federal and state agencies created to assure that the dredging of U.S. harbors and channels throughout the Great Lakes, Connecting Channels and tributaries is conducted in a timely and cost-effective manner while meeting environmental protection, restoration and enhancement goals. For more information, contact Victoria Pebbles at vpebbles@glc.org

Great Lakes Basin Program for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control
The purpose of the Great Lakes Basin Program -- coordinated by the Great Lakes Commission under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-Region V, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) -- is to coordinate the efforts of the various levels of government with the specific goal of protecting and improving Great Lakes water quality by controlling soil erosion and sedimentation. For more information, contact Gary Overmier at garyo@glc.org

Lake St. Clair/St. Clair River Management Plan
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Great Lakes Commission are leading a binational project that will develop a comprehensive management plan for Lake St. Clair and the St. Clair River. The plan will be a concise, action-oriented document that synthesizes existing studies and recommendations into cohesive, ecosystem-based framework. The preliminary outline calls for a review of the sources and causes of environmental degradation to Lake St. Clair and the St. Clair River followed by a series of topical chapters. For more information, contact Matt Doss at mdoss@glc.org

Michigan Clean Water Corps
The Michigan Clean Water Corps (MiCorps) was created through an executive order by Governor Jennifer M. Granholm. The mission of MiCorps is to network and expand volunteer water quality monitoring organizations statewide for the purpose of collecting, sharing and using reliable data; educate and inform the public about water quality issues; and foster water resources stewardship to facilitate the preservation and protection of Michigan’s water resources. For more information, contact Matt Doss at mdoss@glc.org

Michigan Statewide Public Advisory Council
The Statewide Public Advisory Council (SPAC) was formed in 1991 to facilitate public participation in decisions affecting Michigan's statewide Areas of Concern (AOC) program, heighten public awareness of and participation in the Remedial Action Plans (RAPs) being developed in the AOCs, and generate public support for implementation of restoration and protection measures in the AOCs. For more information, contact Matt Doss at mdoss@glc.org

Oil Spill Contingency Planning
Since 1992, the Great Lakes Commission has provided support to the U.S. EPA Region 5 and the Inland Area Planning Committee (IAPC) in developing the Area and Regional Contingency Plan and associated Sub-area Plans under OPA and the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), including Sub-area Plan preparation and data compilation through the use of a geographic information system (GIS) in the Great Lakes States. For more information, contact Stuart Eddy at seddy@glc.org