Current Reflections Newsletter

Current Reflections is a publication of Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council that features current events and educational articles written by our knowledgeable staff and guest writers. 

Current Reflections Newsletter - Fall/Winter 2018

​​Inside this issue:
  • FEATURED ARTICLE: What Difference Does a Degree Make?
  • Reflections from our Executive Director
  • The Forever Chemicals: PFAS Update
  • Update: Line 5
  • Aquavist Corner
  • Deicers: A balance between winter safety and water quality
  • New Grant Projects on the Horizon
  • Pickerel Lake Road/Stream Crossing Project
  • Milton Township Greenbelt Project
  • More Partnerships, Less Phragmites in Northern Michigan
  • Zequanox Project Update
  • Bigger in Not Always Better
  • Event Recap
  • Watershed Academy
  • Macy Doster: AmeriCorps Volunteer
  • WAVE Teams in Action
  • FreshwaterCenter.org
  • Thank yous, Our Wish List, New Members
  • Your Matching Gift Matters!
  • Getting an Early Start on Treating Spring Invasives

Past Issues of Current Reflections
Current Reflections Newsletter - Summer 2018

​​Inside this issue:
  • FEATURED ARTICLE: Inspiring the Next Generation
  • Welcome Aboard: Caroline Keson
  • WAVE - New volunteer program for Charlevoix and Emmet Counties
  • Healing the Bear - Bear River Cleanup
  • Aquavist Network - Climate Change Summit
  • Update on Line 5
  • In-Situ Burning in the Great Lakes
  • Voices from the Lake: Volunteer Stream Monitoring
  • Mayflies! In the Spotlight
  • FLAB: What is this stuff?
  • Youth Programs
  • Welcome Interns
  • Alumni Gathering
  • Green Infrastructure Workshop
  • Ice Berms
  • A Better Backyard
  • Boaters Play a Critical Role in Preventing the Spread of Invasive Species
  • 13th Annual Lake Association Summit
  • Washing Away Aquatic Invaders
  • Ensuring the Protection of Our Waters
  • Beetle Mania Project
  • Upcoming Events
Current Reflections Newsletter - Spring 2018

​Inside this issue:
  • FEATURED ARTICLE: 2018 Volunteer Monitoring Report
  • Preventing Damaging State Legislation
  • Welcome New Staff
  • Diverting Great Lakes Water
  • Federal Policy Priorities
  • What are PFAS?
  • Elk River Chain of Lakes Greenbelt Initiative
  • Project Rain Garden
  • Line 5 at the Straits: Risk Analysis
  • Education Update
  • Events Calendar and more!
    ​
Current Reflections Newsletter - Fall 2017/Winter 2018
Inside this issue:
  • Battle on Invasive Mussels Continues
  • Michigan Swimmer's Itch Partnership
  • Update: Line 5 at the Straits of Mackinac
  • Opportunities to Submit Public Comment on Final Alternatives Analysis
  • Asian Carp: Report Finally Released
  • Repeal of Clean Water Act Rule
  • State Wetland Program Update
  • Stover Creek Dam
  • Project Rain Garden
  • RSX Restoration: Minnehaha Creek at Maxwell Road
  • Make Plans to Improve your Shoreline
  • Youth Education Program Continues to Grow
  • Little Traverse Bay Watershed Green Infrastructure Initiative
  • Five Fall Fridays for Water
  • Clean Boating
Current Reflections
Summer 2017
  • Line 5 Draft Analysis Released
  • Nestlé Update
  • Rolling Back Environmental Protections
  • Aquavist Corner
  • Lake Association Summit
  • Michigan Shoreland Stewards Program
  • Elk River Chain of Lakes Greenbelt Initiative
  • Rain Garden Project Update
  • Proper packaging of medications for disposal
  • Where in the Watershed?
  • Lake words worth knowing
  • Youth Education Program
  • The Value of a Volunteer
  • "Healing the Bear" Bear River Cleanup
  • All Hands on Deck
  • Planned giving opportunties
  • A little extra adds up
  • Making an impact beyond her lifetime
Current Reflections
​Spring 2017
  • FEATURE: Annual Volunteer Water Monitoring Programs Report
  • Advocating for Michigan's Water Resources
  • Elk River Chain of Lakes Greenbelt Initiative
  • Watershed Council Youth Education Expands to Middle Schools
  • Protecting Little Traverse Bay: One garden at a time
  • Generosity that will live on for generations
  • Michigan Shoreland Stewards Program
  • Calendar of upcoming events and more
Current Reflections 
Fall 2016 / Winter 2017
  • FEATURE: Update on Watershed Management Plans
  • Microplastic Pollution
  • Interview the the New Director of Michigan Department of Environmental Quality
  • Duncan and Grass Bays Watershed Management Plans Final Steps to Approval
  • 2016 POD Program Update
  • Climate Change Adaptation: Focus of New Publication
  • One Hot Summer: A reflection of the impact of warming temperatures
  • 12th "Healing the Bear" Bear River Cleanup 
  • Land and Water Education Fund
  • Pipeline Video Series
  • New Publications
  • Watershed Academy Completes Second Year
  • Share your love of water this holiday season
  • Invasive Species Awareness Campaign
Current Reflections 
Summer 2016
  • FEATURE: The Septic Question Project: Final Report for Lake Charlevoix Watershed
  • Watershed Council awarded $641,000 to battle Zebra and Quagga Mussels
  • Waukesha diversion approved
  • Aquaculture in the Great Lakes
  • Our Position: Crude oil transportation in the Great Lakes
  • Enbridge emergency response improvement announced
  • Michigan Pipeline Safety Advisory Board update
  • Natural Shorelines
  • Shoreland Stewards website: NOW LIVE!
  • Shoreline Protection Resources
  • Citizen Scientists Wanted! - Help collect important data to measure the health of our streams
  • Welcome Summer 2016 Interns
  • Emmet County Property Owner's Permit Guide available
  • Youth Programs - Developing good stewards for tomorrow
  • Protect the water you love, for the people you love
  • ACUTE: New Video and Fact Sheets Available - Educational resources to help understand the TCE Plume in Antrim County
Current Reflections 
Spring 2016
  • FEATURE: Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring Programs
  • Volunteer Lake Monitoring through the ages
  • Momentous Win for the Great Lakes - Microbeads
  • Go Green and Stay Connected
  • Invasive Species Monitoring: Elk River Chain of Lakes
  • Boyne and Jordan River Road Stream Crossing Inventory Project
  • POD Survey Results
  • Aquavist Update
  • Is my drinking water safe?
  • Welcome Eli Baker, AmeriCorps Volunteer
  • Become a MI Shoreland Steward
Current Reflections
Fall 2015 / Winter 2016
  • Quagga Drift Inland from the Freshwater Seas
  • Worries About Waukesha's Plan for Lake Michigan Water
  • Pipeline Improvement and Preventing Spills Act
  • Northern Michigan Pipeline Education Project
  • Michigan Petroleum Pipeline Task Force Recommendations and Moving Forward
  • Michigan Water Strategy
  • Golden Brown Algae or Brown Crud?
  • SNRE Team: Road Stream Crossing Inventory Update
  • Bay View Rain Garden Initiative Update
  • The Power of Resilient Shorelines
  • POD Update: 2015 a Record Collection Year!
  • Watershed Academy Update
  • Rain Garden Workshop a Success!
Current Reflections
Summer 2015
  • Are Great Lakes Diversions a Case of California Dreamin'?
  • Oil Transportation and the Great Lakes
  • Michigan Pipelines Worshop
  • Avian Botulism: 2014 Report
  • Little Traverse Bay Watershed Protection Plan
  • What's Happening Up Stream? Results from an intensive 2-year assessment of Lake Charlevoix Tributaries.
  • Youth Programs: Growing good stewards for tomorrow
  • Welcome: University of Michigan SNRE Team
  • Low Impact Development Seminar Recap
  • Partnership Focus: Creating a State-wide Natural Shoreline Recognition Program
  • Waganakising Bay Day Water Festiva
Current Reflections
Spring 2015

Inside this issue:
  • Join us in Welcoming the NEW Watershed Academy
  • Stover Creek Update
  • Low Impact Development (LID) Seminar
  • Are you eligible for a beautiful Rain Garden?
  • 2015 Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring Report
    (Volunteer Lake Monitoring and Volunteer Stream Monitoring)
  • Welcome our New AmeriCorps Volunteers
  • Clean Water and Our Local Economy - Making the Connection
Current Reflections
Fall 2014 / Winter 2015

Inside this issue:
  • Holy Toledo! Are we the next blue-green algae crisis?!
  • Plagued by Plastics: Microbead in the Great Lakes
  • Sealcoat Toxins Invade Our Lakes
  • Pipelines Update
  • Unprepared for Heavy Oil in the Great Lakes
  • Crooked River Spill: Take Two
  • Michigan Natural Shoreline Project Update
  • Coastal Tributaries - Why Coastal Creeks Are Important
  • Surveying the Water's Edge in the Burt Lake Watershed
  • Monitoring Aquatic Invasive Species in the Elk River Chain of Lakes
  • Tannery Creek: Completed
  • What's the Word on Watermilfoil?
Current Reflections
Summer 2014

Inside this issue:
  • Grass River Large Woody Debris Demonstration Project
  • Signs of the Times: Little Traverse Bay Watershed Awareness Campaign
  • Walstrom Marine earns a perfect score
  • BEWARE: Mobile Meth Lab Waste is a concern for the safety of our volunteers
  • Avian Botulism: 2013 Report
  • Deluge of Monitoring and Surveys: The Watershed Protection Team Ramps it up.
  • Roadside Invaders: Local Road Commissions gather to learn about invasive species
  • Poop-Sniffing Dogs?! On the Trail of Stormwater Pathogen Pollution in the cities of Petoskey and Charlevoix
  • POD commercial created by NCMC students
  • Summer Interns: The Watershed Council welcomes 8 interns to assist with heavy summer work load
  • Database Specialist: Watershed Council welcomes Debbie Esposito
  • Beetle release on the Bear River
Current Reflections
Spring 2014

Inside this issue: 
  • Put Your Pills in the POD
  • What you should know about Northern Michigan Pipelines
  • Proposed Rules for Fracking
  • Protecting Water Quality by Protecting Land in the Torch Lake Watershed
  • GLMRIS Completed
  • Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring Programs
    (Lake and Stream Monitoring)
  • Little Traverse Bay Watershed Road/Stream Crossing Inventory
  • The Hidden Life of Vernal Pools
  • Students Learn About Stormwater
  • Watershed Council welcome new AmeriCorps Volunteer
  • Winter Outing and Potluck
  • 2014 Upcoming Event
Archived Issues
Current Reflections
Fall/Winter 2013
Current Reflections
Summer 2013
Current Reflections
Spring 2013
Current Reflections
Fall/Winter 2012
Current Reflections
Summer 2012