The Great Lakes hold nearly 20 percent of the world’s surface freshwater, making them a resource of national and international importance. They power regional economies, support shipping routes vital to global trade, and provide drinking water to 40 million people across the U.S. and Canada. Safeguarding the Great Lakes is not only essential for the communities that rely on them daily, but also for the stability of North America’s environment, economy, and international partnerships.
Fresh is a weekly newsletter from Circle of Blue that unpacks the biggest international, state, and local policy news stories facing the Great Lakes region today. Sign up for Fresh: A Great Lakes Policy Briefing, straight to your inbox, every Wednesday.
— Christian Thorsberg, Interim Fresh Editor
Weekly Watershed
- Michigan legislators have approved a new state budget that slashes millions of dollars from the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy.
- A new federal bill seeks to fund conservation and restoration efforts in the Ohio River Basin with $350 million annually over the next five years.
- New legislation targeting unchecked road salt usage in Pennsylvania received majority approval during a House session this week, bringing it one step closer to passage.
- A court of claims judge has ruled that a lawsuit filed against the State of Michigan for its liability for a 2020 dam collapse will proceed to trial.
Fresh from the Great Lakes News Collaborative
- PFAS cleanups delayed by years at Michigan military sites — Bridge Michigan
- How Buffalo, New York has adapted to and embraced an influx of climate migrants — Great Lakes Now
- $50M cut from controversial mining project in new Michigan budget — Michigan Radio
- Beavers disappeared from syilx territories. Could imitating their habitats bring them back — and restore their wetlands? — The Narwhal
Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television, Michigan Public and The Narwhal work together to report on the most pressing threats to the Great Lakes region’s water. This independent journalism is supported by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. Find all the work here.
The Lead
Early Friday morning, Michigan state legislators ended a partisan stalemate and a marathon legislative session to approve a new $81 billion state budget for FY26. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed the bill on Tuesday.
The compromise budget slashed state funding for several agencies working on water quality, infrastructure, and conservation, though it also provided one-time funds and earmarks for designated local projects.
Roughly $90 million in state general funds were cut from the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) compared to last fiscal year — $170 million appropriated for FY26 , down from $260 million in FY25. A significant portion of these savings came at the expense of water infrastructure line items, which will be reduced by $38 million. Some $15 million in state general funds were appropriated for FY26, compared to $53 million in FY25.
Funding for the state’s Water Resources Division was also hit with a $2 million cut, and the state’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development will receive nearly $12 million less over the next year, compared to 2025.
But the final budget also includes $50 million for local governments to improve wastewater treatment facilities, address outdated culverts, and develop stormwater runoff projects in local communities. Most notably, the Four Lakes Task Force and city of Midland will together receive a total of $19.8 million to build new flood-resistant infrastructure in response to the 2020 Edenville dam collapse. EGLE also received a one-time allotment of $17.4 million to replace lead service lines.
The budget omits $50 million that would have supported a controversial copper mine in the Upper Peninsula, and does not include increased costs for facilities that dump hazardous waste and trash. Michigan is one of the country’s top importers of out-of-state waste. Last year, 19 percent of the state’s landfills were filled with waste that originated elsewhere.
In the News
Ohio River Basin: Last week, Rep. Erin Houchin (R-IN) and Rep. Morgan McGarvey (D-KY), the co-chairs of the Ohio River Basin Congressional Caucus, released the text for a new bill to establish the Ohio River Restoration Program, an effort to protect, conserve, and generate funding for the massive watershed, which spans 15 states and 130 million acres.
More than 25 million people get their drinking water from the Ohio River, which in 2023 was listed as the country’s second-most endangered waterway. It is “the largest body of water in the United States that does not receive any dedicated federal funding for clean-up,” according to the caucus. The new bill seeks to allocate $350 million annually over the next five years to projects in the basin. According to a 2024 Earth Economics study, “natural ecosystems in the Ohio River Basin produce at least $50 billion in annual benefits.”
Last December, HR 1043 was introduced in the House but did not advance.
Pennsylvania Road Salt: On Monday, Pennsylvania representatives voted 102 to 101 in support of HB 664, which seeks to create a “best management practices” plan to reduce the amount of salt used on commonwealth roads. “It takes only one teaspoon of salt to permanently contaminate five gallons of water, and salt is permanently changing the chemistry of our freshwater streams,” the bill’s memo reads. Over each of the last five winters, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation reported using roughly 881,000 tons of salt on its roadways.
The bill has received support from organizations including PennEnvironment, which has cited USGS data showing that every stream surveyed in southeastern Pennsylvania became more saline between 1999 and 2019. The bill has been recommitted to an Appropriations Committee, before it is given third consideration for final passage.
In Context: Road Salt, A Stealthy Pollutant, Is Damaging Michigan Waters
Looking Ahead
When heavy rains fell on the Michigan town of Edenville in May 2020, the failure of a local dam led to the destruction of 2,500 homes and businesses, causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damages and forcing the evacuation of roughly 10,000 people. A lawsuit filed in the disaster’s aftermath claimed that the state is partially to blame for the failure, by allowing the dam’s former owner to raise the water levels of a nearby lake. The state requested a summary disposition, which, last week, was denied by a judge in the Michigan Court of Claims. The judge’s ruling guarantees that the state will be put on trial, which is currently set for January.
You can find more stories from the Great Lakes region here.
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