LAKE SUPERIOR LAKEWIDE MANAGEMENT PLAN (LaMP) HIGHLIGHTS 2004 L

LAKE
SUPERIOR
LAKE SUPERIOR LAKEWIDE
MANAGEMENT PLAN (LaMP)
BINATIONAL
PROGRAM
HIGHLIGHTS 2004
LAKE SUPERIOR LaMP HIGHLIGHTS 2004
Breathtaking rocky cliffs towering over shimmering aquamarine waters
...hidden, mysterious coves, protecting an astonishing array of habitat for fish
and wildlife . . . deep, crystal clear, frigid waters silently guarding the final
resting place for more than 350 shipwrecked vessels...These are some of the
images evoked by the “greatest” of the Great Lakes: Lake Superior, or as the
Ojibwe Indians named it, “gichigami.”
Several binational and national programs have been developed to protect,
restore, and maintain the Great Lakes ecosystem. Foremost among them is the
Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA), which has been hailed as an
important example of international environmental cooperation. The 1978
GLWQA between the United States and Canada commits the governments to
“restore and maintain the chemical, physical and biological integrity of the
waters of the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem.”
To achieve that goal, the Canadian and U.S. federal governments, the Province
of Ontario, and the States of Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin, in 1991,
announced a “Binational Program to Restore and Protect Lake Superior”. The
Binational Program identified two major areas of activity: A Zero Discharge
Demonstration Program dedicated to the goal of achieving zero discharge or
emission of nine persistent bioaccumulative toxic substances (mercury, PCBs,
Dioxin, HCB and five pesticides); and a “Broader Program” focusing on the
protection and restoration of the broader Lake Superior basin ecosystem.
The Lake Superior Binational Program (LSBP) represents a partnership of
federal, state, provincial, and Tribal/First Nation governments working together
to ensure the protection of this international treasure. These partners are
assisted in their work by the Lake Superior Binational Forum, the citizen’s public
outreach and input group comprised of 12 Canadians and 12 Americans
representing various sectors from around the basin and including individual
citizens.
Scope of the Lake Superior Binational
Program
The Binational Program is concerned with the Lake Superior basin and the
lands and waters within its watershed boundary. The program is also
concerned with activities that affect the lake either directly or through
impact on the basin. Some problems which originate outside the basin
(e.g. air-borne contaminants and exotic species), are being dealt with
through other mechanisms, but the LSBP will advocate progress on those
issues. The Binational Program is intended to add value to existing and
future programs and activities by linking initiatives and coordinating
efforts towards common objectives.
LAKEWIDE MANAGEMENT PLANS
To accomplish the goals of the GLWQA and the Binational Program, and to
address the continuing challenges remaining in the basin, a Lake Superior
Lakewide Management Plan (LaMP) was developed in 2000, to develop a
strategic, action-focused management plan for restoring and protecting the
ecosystem. The LaMP focuses on partnership activities targeted at zero
discharge of nine critical pollutants, protecting and restoring high quality
habitat, and sustaining high-quality terrestrial and aquatic communities.
Every two years, a LaMP update is produced detailing progress, successes and
continuing challenges.
The LaMP contains actions for restoration and protection to bring about
improvement in the ecosystem including commitments by governments to use
regulatory programs, as well as voluntary actions that could be taken by nongovernmental partners. LaMP 2000 identified these actions in six ecosystem
themes which recognize the interaction of land, air and water with living things,
including humans. LaMP theme areas and their primary goals are: critical
pollutants: to achieve zero discharge of nine persistent chemicals; habitat: to
protect, maintain and restore high quality habitat; terrestrial wildlife
communities: to sustain diverse, healthy wildlife communities; aquatic
communities: to sustain diverse, healthy aquatic (fish) communities; human
health: to eliminate risks to people from contaminants of human origin; and
sustainability: to cultivate a society in which humans utilize but do not degrade
the basin's natural resources.
A LaMP update in 2002 reported on the success of those actions, and identified
challenges remaining to achieve established goals and ecosystem objectives.
LaMP 2004 builds on the LaMP 2000 document and includes progress reports
and an accomplishment summary of the 1) actions completed or underway to
improve the lake, 2) challenges, and 3) next steps or changes to ongoing
management actions.
The Lake Superior Binational Forum
The Lake Superior Binational Forum has been key to establishing an
effective multi-stakeholder process with the Program. The Forum has held
many workshops over the years to acquire necessary background
information to help develop recommendations and proposals for
sustainable development, human health and reducing the Lake Superior
nine critical pollutants. The Forum has also published many documents on
key issues relating to the LaMP.
Accomplishments include:
! initiating joint projects on chemical reductions, outreach and
stewardship;
! organizing elected officials in two states, four cities, and one tribe to
sign a proclamation declaring the third Sunday in July 2003 as Lake
Superior Day; and
! holding workshops on household garbage burning, mercury, and
riparian areas. The mercury workshop in Thunder Bay in June 2003
featured speakers on human health issues, the mercury inventory of
Lake Superior sources, and on a variety of mercury reduction activities,
including those in the municipal, industrial, and commercial sectors.
Next Steps include:
! establish Lake Superior stewardship and awards program;
! expand and celebrate Lake Superior Day on an annual basis;
! expand outreach on residential garbage burning;
! prepare and publish a newspaper insert; and
! continue public input sessions at Forum meetings.
LAKE SUPERIOR LaMP HIGHLIGHTS 2004
A Vision for Lake Superior
As citizens of Lake Superior we believe...
That water is life and the quality of water determines the quality of
life.
We see a Lake Superior watershed...
That is a clean, safe environment where diverse life forms exist in
harmony; where the environment can support and sustain
economic development and where the citizens are committed
to regional cooperation and personal philosophy of
stewardship;
That is free of toxic substances that threaten fish, wildlife and
human health; where people can drink the water or eat the fish
anywhere in the lake without restrictions;
Where wild shorelines and islands are maintained and where
development is well planned, visually pleasing, biologically
sound, and conducted in an environmentally benign manner;
Which recognizes that environmental integrity provides the
foundation for a healthy economy and that the ingenuity which
results from clean, innovative and preventive management and
technology can provide for economic transformation of the
region;
Where citizens accept the personal responsibility and challenge of
pollution prevention in their own lives and lifestyles and are
committed to moving from a consumer society to a conserver
society; and
Where there is greater cooperation, leadership and responsibility
among citizens of the basin for defining long-term policies and
procedures which will protect the quality and supply of water in
Lake Superior for future generations.
We believe that by effectively addressing the issues of multiple
resource management in Lake Superior, the world’s largest
lake can serve as a worldwide model for resource
management.
PROGRESS TOWARD ZERO DISCHARGE
The Lake Superior Binational Program is a unique activity led by governments,
industries and community groups. One of our goals is to bring about zero
discharge and zero emissions of certain toxic chemicals now being released in
the basin. We have an ambitious set of reduction schedules to remove nine
chemicals from the waste in industrial processes, municipal discharges and
from consumer products by 2020.
As the first in the chain of Great Lakes, Lake Superior is cleaner than the other
Great Lakes and has a smaller population and industrial base. This makes it
the logical place to pioneer projects to eliminate sources of toxic chemicals for
all of the Great Lakes. Since the release of the LaMP in 2000, many chemical
reduction activities have been carried out by the program and our partners.
There is a complete listing in the LaMP 2002 and 2004 updates. In the following
sections are highlights showing the types of projects we are doing in the Lake
Superior watershed.
Reduction Schedules
In 1991, the governments around the lake announced the Lake Superior
Binational Program which included an important challenge: the Zero
Discharge Demonstration. The Lakewide Management Plan (LaMP)
published reduction schedules which used 1990 as a baseline year and
set a series of reduction targets ending with zero discharge in 2020 for
mercury; PCBs; the pesticides chlordane, DDT, dieldrin and toxaphene;
and industrial and combustion by-products dioxin, octachlorostyrene and
hexachlorobenzene.
Mercury
Removal of mercury in consumer products has been progressing successfully.
EcoSuperior in Thunder Bay, Ontario, set up a program to recover mercury
switches from automobiles. To date they have collected 1,340 switches from
nine auto companies in Thunder Bay, Marathon and Sault Ste. Marie. In
Superior, Wisconsin, approximately 60 cars were checked by the students from
Indianhead Technical College and 38 mercury switches were replaced. The
Cities of Superior and Ashland set up a program with auto dealers to replace
mercury switches in vehicles before they leave the lots. Members of the Bad
River Reservation also carried out a program to survey abandoned cars and
remove their switches, fluids and batteries. The Red Cliff Tribe has hired a
mercury elimination coordinator. In addition to removing auto switches, cities
throughout the basin have been carrying out thermometer swaps, thermostat
collections and fluorescent bulb recycling.
Elimination of dental amalgam from the waste stream is also continuing. In
Ontario, a 2003 regulation required that dental offices install dental amalgam
separators to prevent mercury from getting into the sewer. In Minnesota, the
Western Lake Superior Sanitary District, Hibbing, Virginia and Two Harbors
installed amalgam separators. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has
distributed additional separators to dentists in other cities. The City of Superior,
Wisconsin, has offered workshops on best management practices to dentists.
Several local governments including the cities of Duluth, Minnesota; Superior,
Ashland, and Douglas County, Wisconsin have passed ordinances restricting
the sale and/or banning landfill disposal of certain mercury bearing products.
Energy conservation can significantly reduce the amount of mercury released
from coal fired power plants. Recent energy conservation projects include the
Duluth Zoo, which installed solar hot water; photovoltaic cells; and a
geothermal heat exchanger that uses the earth's crust to cool polar bear and
seal pools. Not only is this a benefit for the environment, but the new equipment
is projected to save about $136,000 (U.S.) annually! At the park building at
Hartley Nature Center in Duluth, solar panels cover the roof, passive heat and
lighting are incorporated in the design and a geothermal heat pump is the
primary heating and cooling system. Grand Portage, Bay Mills and the Bay Mills
Tribes are assessing wind generation feasibility. In addition, Minnesota Power
constructed an innovative, high-efficiency home in a northern climate with a
goal of heating it for $300 (U.S.) per year. The Millennium Star house in Duluth
incorporated energy efficient design, materials and appliances.
LAKE SUPERIOR LaMP HIGHLIGHTS 2004
PCBs
THE BROADER PROGRAM
The phasing out of PCBs in the basin is happening in both Canada and the
United States. A canvass of seven pulp and paper mills on the north shore of
Lake Superior revealed that three mills (Marathon Pulp, Smurfit Stone (closed
2003) and Norampac) are entirely PCB-free and the remaining four are phasing
out their in-use and in-storage PCBs. Algoma Steel Inc. in Sault Ste. Marie,
Ontario, under its Environmental Management Agreement has already
destroyed 83 percent of its PCB inventory.
Ecosystem Activities
In the United States, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has evaluated
transformer inventories at several utilities in the basin and found roughly 700
transformers have a moderate to high risk of containing PCBs. The current
phase of the project is to remove as many of the transformers as possible,
starting with those that are closest to waterbodies.
PCB Phase-Out Award
The City of Thunder Bay was recently recognized by the Great Lakes
Binational Toxics Strategy for successfully phasing out its PCB containing
equipment. Beginning with an inventory in 1991, the City systematically
removed PCB-containing transformers, capacitors and light ballasts from
service and in 2001 sent over 25,000 kilograms of materials for
destruction. Today 60 municipal buildings, plants, arenas and old age
homes are virtually PCB-free.
Dioxin,Hexachlorobenzene,Octachlorostyrene
Dioxin, Hexachlorobenzene and Octachlorostyrene are released during the
incineration process. This is particularly true during the open burning of
household wastes where lower burn temperatures do not allow for materials to
be completely burned. A number of LaMP partners have engaged in outreach
efforts to convince people to reduce open burning of household waste.
Pesticides
Collections of waste pesticides continued in Michigan, Minnesota and
Wisconsin and the first ever hazardous waste collections were held in two
Ontario towns. Thunder Bay continued to collect pesticides as part of its
hazardous waste program.
Between 1999 and 2003, various
pesticide collections have been
carried out in the watershed. A
total of 25,693 kg (56,525 pounds)
of pesticides were collected. In
Minnesota and Wisconsin where
the type of pesticide was tallied, 28
kg (62 pounds) of aldrin/dieldrin,
280 kg (616 pounds) of chlordane,
788 kg (1,734 pounds) of DDT and
17 kg (37 pounds) of toxaphene
were collected.
Under the Aquatic Communities theme
the LaMP has linked up with the Great
Lakes Fishery Commission and its
programs. By working together, we can
protect, restore and rehabilitate fish
populations, habitats and fisheries in a
more effective way.
What's Aquatics?
!
!
!
!
Fish populations
Fish habitat
Management plans
Commercial catch
Member agencies have worked on many projects focused on Lake Superior and
its watershed. Three of these projects seek to answer important research
questions related to fish production and habitat supply, predator/prey
relationships and restoration of native species. Because of their lakewide scope
these kinds of projects are expensive and challenging to execute. It was only by
forming partnerships between agencies and non-government organizations
that sufficient resources, expertise, and funding were pooled to do the work. The
Canada-Ontario Agreement (COA) respecting the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem
has been instrumental in funding the Ontario portion of many of these projects
in 2003 and 2004.
Remote Sensing Techniques can answer important questions about the
aquatic environment. Bouncing sound waves off the lake bottom or off schools
of fish and recording the strength of the return signal allows scientists to count
and describe things that are beyond our reach and resources to observe
personally. Two separate projects have been underway for the past two years
using remote sensing techniques.
As partners, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, U.S. Geological Survey
Lake Superior Biological Station, Great Lakes Environmental Research
Laboratory of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, the
University of Minnesota-Duluth and others have developed a lake-wide
acoustic assessment program to estimate fish population in Lake Superior. The
information gathered will provide valuable insight into the important
relationship and balance of predators (lake trout) and their prey (rainbow smelt,
chubs and herring) in Lake Superior.
The second project contributes to a better understanding of the relationship
between the amount of good habitat and fish production. To a fishery biologist
that means answering questions such as: Does the amount of spawning habitat
limit the number of walleye or lake trout produced annually? Could there be
greater numbers of young fish if nursery areas were larger? How many more
fish might be produced if proximity between habitats was improved or critical
habitats rehabilitated?
Experts in acoustic technology are presently identifying critical spawning and
nursery areas around the lake. When this is finished, fisheries managers will
know what substrates (sand, clay, gravel, cobble) are present, in what quantity,
at what depth and exactly where they are relative to other substrates or bottom
features. This will provide information needed to manage and protect fish
communities.
LAKE SUPERIOR LaMP HIGHLIGHTS 2004
Radio telemetry and genetic profiling are two means of learning more about
a fish population and its habitat. Rehabilitation of lake sturgeon is a lake wide
effort involving many agencies sharing staff and resources to survey rivers
where sturgeon spawned historically. Progress is being made toward
establishing an understanding of the status of local populations, their use of
large tributaries via telemetry and describing the uniqueness of each population
through genetic profiling. This information will assist in making local plans for
protection and rehabilitation where it is needed.
These projects fill in large knowledge gaps about the Lake Superior ecosystem
and will allow for more informed planning and decision making as we seek to
rehabilitate and sustain Lake Superior fish communities and fisheries.
With regard to the Terrestrial Wildlife
Communities theme, activities have What's Terrestrial
focused on monitoring and inventory of Wildlife?
rare native plants and wildlife and of
species at risk within the basin as well as ! Mammals
completion of long-term and short-term ! Birds
ecosystem goal-setting. Besides ! Insects
monitoring and planning, some recovery ! Reptiles/amphibians
projects have been implemented. Two
examples are the Wood Turtle Recovery
Plan Implementation Project and the Superior Coastal Wetlands Initiative Phase II.
Wood turtles are a small docile turtle displaying colourful markings that make
them popular targets for the pet trade. They have been designated a species of
“Special Concern” by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in
Canada (COSEWIC); in Ontario they have been recommended for “Endangered”
status by the Committee on the Status of Species at Risk in Ontario (COSSARO).
Despite these listings, and the inclusion of wood turtles on CITES (Convention
on International Trade in Endangered Species), this species has suffered
population declines throughout their range due to habitat destruction and
commercial collecting. During the spring and summer of 2002, a study was
undertaken which resulted in locating wood turtle populations in 4 streams, one
of which was found to have a healthy population. Therefore this stream has
been proposed as a new protected area under “The Room to Grow” program.
Due to the undisturbed nature of the habitat in the Lake Superior Basin, this
population is one of the last refuges for the wood turtles in Ontario. The newest
wood turtle project was initiated in 2003 and funded under Ontario's
commitment to COA. Its focus is to locate new, and monitor existing populations
for population demographics in adherence with the Ontario Wood Turtle
Recovery Plan (revised, 2002).
The Superior Coastal Wetlands Initiative is a highly successful partnership
made up of communities, tribes, non-government organizations and agencies
working together to conserve wetlands in Lake Superior's Chequamegon Bay
area. Through the hard work and over $5,500,000 in matching contributions by
the partners, North American Wetland Conservation Act (NAWCA) grants
totaling nearly $2,000,000 have been secured. Wetlands make up 10 percent of
Wisconsin's Lake Superior watershed and play a critical role in the preservation
of the region's wildlife populations. Nearly 10,000 acres of fish and wildlife
habitat were restored, enhanced or protected in Phase I of the project.
Highlights included establishment of the Whittlesey Creek National Wildlife
Refuge and acquisition of lands within it, the restoration and enhancement of
4,383 acres of wildlife habitat in the watershed, and the acquisition of over
2,000 acres of critical coastal wetland/bottomland forest and associated
uplands in the Kakagon/Bad River Sloughs. Phase II of the Initiative is now
underway and the partners are targeting priority wetlands and their
watersheds. The objectives of Phase II are to acquire 1,037 acres of wetlands
and 1,433 acres of upland in fee title, acquire 250 acres of wetland and 435
acres of uplands through easements, restore 249 acres of wetlands, enhance
70 acres of wetlands, and set aside 2,500 acres through a conservation
stewardship program on private lands.
The focus of the LSBP regarding the
Habitat theme is to protect, What's Habitat?
maintain, and restore high-quality
habitat sites in the Lake Superior ! Watershed management
basin as well as the ecological ! Forest stewardship
processes that sustain them. ! Protect and restore ecosystems
Projects to advance these goals ! Wetlands
include: implementing watershed
management and forest
stewardship projects; implementing monitoring, assessment and inventory
projects; and implementing habitat restoration projects including culvert
replacement, dam removal, stream restoration, stream-bank improvement and
wetland restoration.
An example of one of these projects in action is the Central Lake Superior
Watershed Partnership Works to Restore and Protect Lake Superior
Ecosystems facilitated by the Marquette County Conservation District. The
Partnership includes concerned citizens, area watershed councils, local
governments and businesses. It was established to provide watershed
planning services, stream restoration, habitat protection, zoning improvement
and other services related to ecosystem protection and restoration.
The Watershed Partnership has completed some notable habitat restoration
projects including many on the Salmon Trout River near Marquette. The Salmon
Trout River is the only river on the south shore of Lake Superior that supports a
naturally reproducing population of coaster brook trout. However, degradation
has taken place over many years due to sedimentation from many different
sources. Over the past three years the Partnership, with help from the United
States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Lake Superior Basin Trust, the Huron
Mountain Club and the U.S. EPA's Great Lakes National Program Office, has
completed projects including bridge installations, critical erosion control,
bottomless arch culverts and sediment traps.
The Partnership has also produced two land use planning tools. The first is a
document, “Your Upper Peninsula: A Guide to Planning for Tomorrow's
Shorelines,” which was distributed to every township and county in the Upper
Peninsula. The second is an example of wording that communities could use to
produce legislation designed to provide a buffer between the water and the land
in order to protect water quality and shoreline habitats.
LAKE SUPERIOR LaMP HIGHLIGHTS 2004
Remedial Action Plans for Areas of
Concern
The GLWQA amendments of 1987 called for the federal governments of
Canada and the United States to cooperate with state and provincial
governments in the development of Remedial Action Plans (RAPs) for
designated degraded areas (Areas of Concern (AOCs)) in the Great Lakes
basin. There are eight AOCs in the Lake Superior basin; four in Canada,
three in the U.S., and one shared between the two countries along the St.
Marys River.
The RAPs and LaMPs are similar in that they both use an ecosystem
approach to assess and remediate environmental degradation of the 14
proscribed beneficial use impairments. RAPs, however, encompass a
much smaller geographic area, concentrating on an embayment, a single
watershed or stretch of a river. The main focus of a RAP is on
environmental degradation in that specific area, and remediating the
beneficial use impairments locally. In most AOCs, the impairment (e.g.
habitat loss) can be related to or connected to local activities. On the other
hand, some fish advisories are attributable to the lakewide concentrations
of persistent, bioaccumulative toxic chemicals.
Forging a strong relationship between the LaMPs and the RAPs is
important to the success of both efforts. The AOCs, in many cases, serve
as point source discharges to the lake as a whole. Improvements in the
AOCs will therefore, eventually help to improve the entire lake. As much of
the expertise about the use impairments and possible remedial efforts
resides at the local level, cooperation between the two efforts is essential
in order for the LaMPs to remove lakewide impairments.
SUSTAINABILITY
When we consider the risks associated with environmental problems in the
Lake Superior basin, we rarely look beyond fixing existing problems.
Watersheds can be rehabilitated; municipalities, industries, and citizens can be
held accountable; or the air can be purified and the threat seems to “go away.”
However, in order to ensure that these problems do not recur, a more
fundamental puzzle must be solved: How should citizens around Lake Superior
sustain their society now that we know just how easy it is to damage the
environment upon which we depend?
The Lake Superior Binational Program is interested in more than protecting and
restoring the ecosystem or reducing toxic chemicals produced and released in
the basin. In developing a management plan for Lake Superior, government
agencies have sought to develop regional sustainability to restore and preserve
a range of social, economic, and environmental values. This emphasis
provides a basis for assessing where we are as a society in the watershed,
seeing how close we are to achieving our “Vision for Lake Superior,” and
suggesting how to sustain an ecosystem in the Lake Superior watershed that
supports thriving communities in the future.
Various groups interpret the concept of sustainability differently but, at the very
least, it means that we must conserve existing resources so that future
residents are not left without access to vital elements of daily life. To achieve a
sustainable society in the Lake Superior basin requires us to be flexible and
responsive to changes in the social, economic, and environmental conditions of
the region. It also requires us to engage in ongoing education and to measure
progress about the natural resources we need, the quality of life in the area,
resource consumption patterns, citizens' awareness of their ability to contribute
to sustainability, and economic vitality. As an initial attempt to measure these
indicators, we have examined a wide range of existing databases to determine
trends in our progress toward sustainability. Overall, research to-date
reinforces the fact that humans must be seen as a part of, rather than apart
from the Lake Superior ecosystem.
In addition to measuring indicators of sustainability, the Lake Superior
Binational Program has initiated a “Community Awareness Review and
Development” project to survey residents of the basin, identify community
priorities, and begin a person-to-person dialogue regarding sustainability
issues. We are examining the status of “Sustainability Education” in the region,
as well as the causes of urban and rural sprawl in the watershed. More
importantly, there is increasing evidence that grassroots initiatives are at the
heart of successful gains in sustainable development. Consequently, we have
partnered with several local and regional groups to facilitate homegrown selfreliance in the quest for sustainability. For example, by assisting local
communities to stretch existing resources through conservation and recycling,
we hope to show how economic growth is directly tied to ecological
sustainability.
Communities play a critical role in sustainable development and the LSBP
provides an important means for coordinating our efforts.
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?
We often hear from citizens that it is beyond their control to reduce critical
pollutants, restore wildlife habitat or build sustainable local economies. Your
everyday choices as a consumer, investor or volunteer, however, can help to
protect and restore Lake Superior.
The backyard burning of household trash produces dioxin that enters the food
chain and contaminates food sources all over the continent. Individuals can
prevent this through recycling, reducing their waste and utilizing landfills
instead of burning.
You can buy mercury-free products. Become involved in projects that recycle
mercury found in fluorescent lamps, thermometers, dental amalgams,
thermostats and button batteries. You can help remove hundreds of kilograms
per year from the waste stream and prevent it from entering the air and water of
the Lake Superior basin.
When constructing or renovating homes and other buildings, investigate and
buy products made from recycled materials.
Become involved in community-based groups which are busy restoring small
watersheds and habitats. Everyone has a role to play in the Lake Superior
Binational Program. If you are a citizen, contact the Forum (at 1-888-301-LAKE
LAKE SUPERIOR LaMP HIGHLIGHTS 2004
(1-888-301-5253)) and learn about what you can do to help. Participate at the
level you wish but please get involved!
! Support strategies that protect drinking water sources, including
groundwater
! Reduce storm water impacts on lakes, streams, and wetlands
If you are a government agency at any level, including tribes and tribal
authorities, a First Nation or indigenous peoples organization or any
organization whose primary purpose is environmental restoration, protection,
management, or health, and who have an ability and commitment to implement
the LaMP, contact us. We need your help!
Sustainability:
! Help communities to live and work sustainably
! Identify community priorities, needs and opportunities for participation
CHALLENGES AHEAD
Although there are many success stories to tell, ongoing vigilance and hard work
are necessary to combat the issues still facing the Lake Superior ecosystem.
Some actions include:
Critical Pollutants:
! Continue reduction
of persistent
bioaccumulative toxics
(PBT) into the lake,
including mercury
emissions from electrical
utilities and mining
operations in the basin
! Clean up the industrial
legacy of contaminated
bottom sediments
! Measure and report
against the 2005 toxics
reduction target
Habitat:
! Reflect basin-wide goals
and strategies in land use
decisions, and monitor
land use change
! Develop watershed management plans to address threats associated with
development and forest fragmentation
! Expand the geographic database and projects associated with the Lake
Superior Decision Support System, including public information kiosks
Aquatic Communities:
! Ensure the maintenance of healthy aquatic communities on rivers with, and
those identified for hydro power development
! Complete around the lake mapping of near shore fish habitat
! Protecting critical lake and tributary habitats
Terrestrial Wildlife:
! Develop and implement biological community monitoring programs
! Monitor herptiles and work on medium sized carnivores
Water:
! Address threats to protect Lake Superior from inter-basin transfers and
exports
General:
! Enhance resources available for restoration/protection, development and
maintenance of long-term monitoring programs, and public outreach
! Develop a consensus on uniform monitoring protocols and techniques.
! Prevent, control and monitor exotic terrestrial and aquatic species
! Target restoration opportunities and monitoring (land, water, and biological)
in watersheds that score lower in relative water health, including AOCs
Even though the idea of
sustainability has long
provided a foundation for the
Lake Superior Binational
Program, it is difficult to
decide how we should go
about facilitating sustainable
practices on the ground. To
promote practices that
provide for sustainable
outcomes requires
consideration of a variety of
issues that go beyond the
prevention of pollution. To
produce a truly sustainable
society, we must grapple with
issues that are more general
in scope than those
associated with other aspects
of the LaMP. Though progress
has been made, we are still a long way from promoting a full range of social and
economic initiatives that will make for a sustainable future.
Future accomplishments will be dependent upon commitments by
governments, NGOs and individuals to support the science, resource
management and legislative activities that will protect and restore the basin.
Monitoring the environment is key to understanding the Lake Superior
ecosystem - how it functions and changes. In addition to ongoing longterm monitoring programs, priorities which will be the subject of special
monitoring efforts in 2005 and 2006 include obtaining additional
information related to contaminant levels in fish, air and open water; land
use change; prey fish; lower trophic levels; invasive species and fish
community changes; and herptiles (reptiles and amphibians).
Photo Credits: Dave Hansen, Minnesota Extension Service; Wisconsin Division of Tourism; Robert F. Beltran, USEPA. All photos are courtesy of the US EPA Visualizing the Great
Lakes web site.
For More Information
For further information about the Lake Superior Binational Program, please view the Lake Superior Binational Program
website at www.binational.net. As the Program has many partners, additional reports and documents relevant to
people interested in the Program may be found on the Partner Agency Sites. Links to those sites can also be found on
binational.net or contact:
In Canada:
Marlene O'Brien
Environment Canada
867 Lakeshore Road
Burlington ON L7R 4A6
In the United States:
E. Marie Graziano
United States Environmental Protection Agency
77 W. Jackson Boulevard (G-17J)
Chicago IL 60604-3511
Phone (905) 336-4552
Marlene.o'[email protected]
Phone: (312) 886-6034
[email protected]
Information Kiosks
Check out the LSBP Information
Kiosks found at the following
locations:
! Great Lakes Aquarium - Duluth, MI
! Northern Great Lakes Visitors
Center - Ashland, WI
! Watersmeet Visitor Centre, Ottawa
National Forest - Watersmeet, MI
! Terry Fox Memorial Visitors Centre Thunder Bay, ON
! Bush Plane Heritage Museum Sault St. Marie, ON

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