Great Lakes Today

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Great Lakes Today, a collaboration of public media stations, was created to highlight issues affecting the lakes. All reports are available to stations for free -- whether or not the station is in the Great Lakes region.

The main partners in the collaboration are WBFO (Buffalo), ideastream (Cleveland) and WXXI (Rochester); other stations in the region will also contribute reports. Great Lakes Today is funded through a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Series

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4 Pieces

Drownings at Great Lakes beaches often have a common cause: dangerous currents similar to those found along the ocean. Over the past decade, some 500 drownings and rescues have been attributed to structural, longshore and rip currents. This four-part series examines the issue from various perspectives, including a grieving mother, scientists developing a warning system, and a Michigan beach where drownings are concentrated. NOTE: Stories can run as a series or individually. Intros and outros are customized

Caption: Victor Small gets help for his asthma at an East Baltimore clinic., Credit: Angelica A. Morrison
3 Pieces

Minorities in the Great Lakes bear the burden of environmental problems such as air pollution, water contamination and waste dumps. This series examines the issue through residents of Cleveland, Buffalo and an indigenous community in Ontario, Canada.

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3 Pieces

The environmental movement is being redefined. Many advocacy groups are reaching out to minorities and addressing issues important to them. This three-part series explains how the movement has changed -- and what still needs to be done.

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5 Pieces

A look at the impact of President Trump's proposed budget cuts


Pieces

Caption: by ANGELICA A. MORRISON / 21 Brix Winery and farms 2017, Chautauqua County NY., Credit: by ANGELICA A. MORRISON / Great Lakes Today
Reports on climate change often highlight the impact to America's coastal cities. But plants, crops and trees are also at risk -- and the harm can ...

Bought by WOSU, WXXI Rochester, WCPN, WKSU, WBFO and more


  • Added: Nov 17, 2017
  • Length: 03:26
  • Purchases: 9
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It may be hard to imagine a composer being inspired by public hearings and court cases. But Lake Erie and its problems take center stage in a new o...

Bought by WDET Detroit Public Radio and WBFO


  • Added: Nov 14, 2017
  • Length: 03:40
  • Purchases: 2
Caption: Decal on truck, Credit:  Kevin Lavery, WKAR
The day of the driverless car is gaining ground...FAST. Autonomous vehicles have caught the attention of Tesla, Uber and Google. Now, add the U.S. ...

Bought by WDET Detroit Public Radio, WXXI Rochester, WRST-FM Oshkosh, WCMU Michigan, WMUK and more


  • Added: Nov 10, 2017
  • Length: 03:36
  • Purchases: 7
Caption: The algae bloom near Maumee Bay State Park in September, Credit: Elizabeth Miller/ideastream
The 2017 algae bloom is over in western Lake Erie. And while it didn’t directly threaten drinking water, its bright green hue prompted national at...

Bought by WDET Detroit Public Radio, WAMC Northeast Public Radio, Interlochen Public Radio, WXXI Rochester, WCMU Michigan and more


  • Added: Nov 08, 2017
  • Length: :54
  • Purchases: 9
Caption: Lake Superior beach near Duluth, Credit: Dan Kraker, Minnesota Public Radio
Here's a question for you Great Lakes lovers. Which is the clearest lake? You probably guessed Lake Superior. Well, that was true for a long time. ...

Bought by WDET Detroit Public Radio, WXXI Rochester, Interlochen Public Radio, WBFO, WCPN and more


  • Added: Nov 03, 2017
  • Length: 03:38
  • Purchases: 6
Caption: Blue Accounting site
Over the years, billions of dollars have been allocated to restoring the Great Lakes – whether its money spent cleaning up pollution, preventing in...

Bought by WDET Detroit Public Radio, North Country Public Radio, WAMC Northeast Public Radio, WOSU, WSKG and more


  • Added: Nov 02, 2017
  • Length: 01:00
  • Purchases: 9
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The Maumee River runs more than 100 miles before emptying into Lake Erie in Ohio. And it carries a lot of the farm runoff that triggers algae bloom...

Bought by WBFO, WCPN, and WKSU


  • Added: Oct 31, 2017
  • Length: :45
  • Purchases: 3
Caption: Bruce Martineau poles his father Francis Martineau to the shore of Deadfish Lake after harvesting wild rice on the Fond du Lac reservation, Credit: Dan Kraker, Minnesota Public Radio
For generations, Native Americans in the northern Great Lakes have harvested wild rice. It's an important food source. For some it's a way to make ...

Bought by WDET Detroit Public Radio, WRVO Public Media, WXXI Rochester, WCPN, WRST-FM Oshkosh and more


  • Added: Oct 26, 2017
  • Length: 03:21
  • Purchases: 9
Caption: Lamprey Wound on fish caught in Lake Ontario, Credit: Photo by Paul Zybczynski
There’s some bad news in the Great Lakes and it’s all about the sea lamprey, an eel-like creature that literally sucks the life out of fish. They d...

Bought by WAMC Northeast Public Radio, WXXI Rochester, WBFO, WCMU Michigan, Interlochen Public Radio and more


  • Added: Oct 23, 2017
  • Length: 03:21
  • Purchases: 7
Caption: Kramer's dairy cows turned out to pasture., Credit: Veronica Volk
What does a dairy cow have to do with a healthy lake ecosystem? At a recent Great Lakes Restoration Conference in Buffalo New York, people were inv...

Bought by KTXK, WBFO, WAMC Northeast Public Radio, WSKG, WXXI Rochester and more


  • Added: Oct 20, 2017
  • Length: 03:23
  • Purchases: 7