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The Great Lakes form a sprawling ecosystem of nature and industry.  In a strong economy, ships can transport up to 200 million tons of cargo across these waters each year.  But now the shipping industry has declared a state of emergency.  The cause is a region-wide dredging backlog.&n

Editor's note: This story was produced by Great Lakes Echo, a project of Michigan State University's Knight Center for Environmental Journalism.When Rob Gorski bought a Lake Superior island on Craigslist he didn’t know exactly what he wanted to do with it.

The Inverhuron Cemetery is a small pioneer cemetery dating back to the 1800s.It sits nestled in the aged trees in what is now a Provincial Park along the Canadian Coast of Lake Huron. It was once a town, until a fire in 1887 burnt every building to the ground.

Editors note: This story first appeared in Great Lakes EchoRegulations have been made, legislation passed and enforcement tightened.  Yet leaking septic tanks continue to threaten human and environmental health.The rules are well-intended, said Sandra Shaefer, a septic

Biologists with the National Park Service are in their sixth year of visiting eagle nests on Lake Superior for blood and feather samples that help them monitor the level of toxic pollutants in the lakeFeisty is good from WBEZ on Vimeo.Jim Spickler is wearing an orange hardhat and hanging on