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U-M divers retrieve 8,900-year-old piece of wood from Lake Huron
Annarbor.com (12/12)
University of Michigan researchers announced they have found a 5 1/2 foot long, pole-shaped piece of wood that is 8,900 years old in Lake Huron.
RIVERKEEPERS: Tending the waterways
Niagara Gazette (2/6)
The goal of the Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper is two-fold: protecting the water quantity and the quality, as well as connecting people to the waterfront.
Internationally renowned ‘Ocean Doctor’ to speak in Grand Rapids
MLive.com (2/3)
Known as the “Ocean Doctor,” David Guggenheim will speak in Grand Rapids, Mich., about the many similarities between the threats to the oceans and to our Great Lakes.
SUNY Fredonia to lead Great Lakes pollution study
Wall Street Journal (2/3)
Plastic pollution in the Great Lakes will be the focus of a study this summer. Led by the State University of New York at Fredonia, researchers will try to quantify the amount of plastic polluting the fresh water Great Lakes.
SSC students taking part in marine science bowl
Arenac County Independent (1/31)
Teams of Michigan high school students will be heading to Ann Arbor this weekend to take part in the annual Great Lakes Bowl, a quiz event that focuses on questions about marine and freshwater systems and biology.
No aquarium for Windsor
CBC News (1/31)
Aquariums in Cleveland, Toledo, and Chicago prove to be too much competition for Windsor.
What's going on in your neighborhood this month? Meet other people and learn together at recreational and educational events! Our new dynamic calendar is updated daily with current educational events.
3 | Effects of water pollution
Water pollution affects the health of the waterway, the health of the organisms living in and around the waterway, and, eventually, the health of humans. The effects of water pollution can range from aquatic deformities to contaminated fish to "dead" lakes.
Aquatic diseases and deformitiesAs virtual "canaries in a gold mine," the deteriorating health of fish and wildlife speaks volumes about the need to clean up the Great Lakes. Heavy metals such as mercury and lead, and human-made organic chemicals such as pesticides, biomagnify as they move up the food chain, resulting in tumors and death for predatory animals, such as lake trout, herring gulls, and even humans.
Toxic pollutants can also alter the genetic makeup of an organism, resulting in either death or extreme deformities. Studies have found cormorants suffering from cross-billed syndrome at rates 42 percent times the natural occurence, while terns exhibit birth defects from dioxin, PCBs and furan exposure at 31 times the normal levels. Other examples of deformities include large fish tumors and three-legged frogs.
Human health issuesPersistant Organic Pollutants, or POPs, such as dioxin, PCBs and DDT, are chemical substances that persist in the environment and bioaccumulate through the food web; therefore, POPs can also cause sickness and disease in humans, who are at the end of the food chain. People who regularly consume a lot of fish will have larger levels of toxic chemicals in their bodies than those who only eat fish occasionally. While scientists are still studying the effects of high chemical levels in humans, studies have suggested that toxic chemicals can lead to reproductive problems, cancer and neurological disorders.
People who are most at risk of health problems due to contaminated fish consumption are those with weakened immune systems, including children, pregnant women and the elderly. Those in the "high-risk" category should either abstain from eating Great Lakes fish, or only eat one meal consisting of fish every week or month, depending on the type of fish. Each state/province in the Great Lakes region publishes a yearly fish advisory; of the 1,400 fish consumption advisories in the United States, more than 1,000 are found in the eight Great Lakes states. See GLIN's fish advisory page for more information.
Other human health issues related to water pollution include drinking water contamination and skin infection, caused by bacterial contamination.
EutrophicationBefore Europeans arrived in the Great Lakes region, the Great Lakes were mainly oligotrophic lakes, meaning they contained little plant nutrients and were continuously cool and clear due to their immense size and depth. Oligotrophic lakes can support high levels of animal life and receive proper amounts of nutrients, mainly phosphorous and nitrogen, from natural sources, such as decomposing plant matter.
European settlement and industrialization changed all of that. The amount of nutrients entering the Great Lakes has intensified greatly, mainly due to increased urbanization and agriculture, leading to increased biological growth, or eutrophication. Under eutrophic conditions, nutrient loading (more nutrients than the waterbody can handle) stimulates excessive plant growth, which in turn decreases the amount of oxygen in the water and eventually kills off certain species of animal life. Other pollution-tolerant species, such as worms and carp, grow more rapidly; thus, the ecological balance of the lake is significantly altered.
Graphic: Tumor on long-nosed sucker found in the Great Lakes.
