WBEZ 91.5 Chicago

A law that’s designed to prevent other parts of the country and the world from draining the Great Lakes is getting its first big test in our own backyard.The water-use compact is part of an agreement between eight Great Lakes states and two Canadian provinces to figure out who can have Great Lakes w

In connecting the Great Lake Michigan to the Mighty Mississippi, Chicago left the back door open to some unwelcome visitors. Asian Carp are the latest threat and our last line of defense spans the Sanitary and Ship Canal, about 30 miles southwest of the city.

The Great Lakes hold six quadrillion gallons of water. That’s 20 percent of the world’s fresh surface water. As scarcity grows, there’s concern more and more people are eying that water -- it's  been likened to death by a thousand straws."

 The Great Lakes hold 20 percent of the world’s fresh surface water.  We share the stewardship of this precious resource with Canada and our joint responsibility is more vital today than ever before.  That’s because water is becoming increasingly scarce around the globe.  In the

The Great Lakes region has always been defined by water. The “sweetwater seas,” as the lakes were known, sustained indigenous people, and served as a thoroughfare for hunters, fur traders and early voyagers.

Lake Michigan soon will be home to a new 75 mile shoreline recreational water trail, according to the U.S Department of the Interior.The Department formally announced the creation of the first leg of the Lake Michigan Water Trail during a press conference on Thursday.

Federal and state officials are beginning a series of projects to pinpoint how close Asian carp are to the Great Lakes and reduce their numbers in Chicago-area waterways near Lake Michigan. The Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee released a $7 million monitoring and sampling plan Monday.