The Once and Future Great Lakes Country: An Ecological History

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John L. Riley’s The Once and Future Great Lakes Country: An Ecological History is a sweeping, deeply researched account of environmental transformation in the Great Lakes region. Spanning from the last Ice Age to the present, Riley blends ecological science, historical narrative, and personal reflection to illuminate how this once-abundant landscape was reshaped by Indigenous stewardship, European colonization, industrial exploitation, and, more recently, efforts at ecological restoration.(rhnaturalists.ca)

📘 Overview and Structure

The book is divided into three thematic sections:

  1. The Land and What Happened to It – This section traces the region’s ecological history from pre-1500 Indigenous land management through the upheavals of European contact, including the introduction of disease, warfare, and resource extraction. Riley emphasizes that Indigenous peoples actively managed the land through sophisticated horticulture and controlled burns, contradicting the myth of a “pristine wilderness.” (mqup.ca, NiCHE)
  2. Voices of Nature Past – Here, Riley presents vivid accounts from early explorers and settlers, documenting the staggering abundance of wildlife—such as six-foot sturgeons in Lake Michigan and vast flocks of passenger pigeons—and the subsequent ecological collapse due to overhunting, deforestation, and the introduction of invasive species. This section offers a poignant chronicle of loss and change. (tom4tnc.blogspot.com)
  3. Nature’s Prospect – The final section examines contemporary challenges and restoration efforts, including the impacts of climate change, urban sprawl, and globalization. Riley discusses initiatives like land protection and rewilding, highlighting a growing societal commitment to ecological renewal. He reflects on his own experiences restoring a farm in Mono Township, Ontario, as a microcosm of broader environmental recovery. (Project MUSE)

Continue reading ‘The Once and Future Great Lakes Country: An Ecological History’ »

NYS Assemblyman Patrick Burke Introduces Great Lakes Bill of Rights

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The bill paves the way for litigation against polluters on behalf of the ecosystem

March 2, 2022

Buffalo, NY – New York State Assemblyman Patrick Burke has introduced legislation that will create a Great Lakes Bill of Rights with the goal of securing legal rights for the entire ecosystem and giving people and nature a role in the decision-making process regarding current and future projects that impact the ecosystem.

The language was drafted with the assistance of the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) at the invitation of Assemblyman Burke’s office. CELDF has been at the forefront of Rights of Nature legislation for over 20 years. Beginning with its pioneering work to draft the first law recognizing legal rights for an ecosystem in 2006, CELDF has now partnered with dozens of communities across more than 10 states to enact rights of nature laws.

The Great Lakes Bill of Rights, A3604, recognizes, “that the people and the natural environment, including each ecosystem of the state of New York, shall possess the right to a clean and healthy environment, which shall include the right to clean and healthy Great Lakes and the Great Lakes ecosystem.”

https://nyassembly.gov/mem/Patrick-Burke/story/100976#:~:text=The%20Great%20Lakes%20Bill%20of,and%20the%20Great%20Lakes%20ecosystem.%E2%80%9D

Life & Death of the Great Lakes

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…the Great Lakes were resuscitated after a century’s worth of industrial abuse only to be hit with an even more vexing environmental catastrophe.

Tragically for the Great Lakes, the Clean Water Act helped to lull most of the public into thinking that the lakes…were on their way to recovery throughout the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s. But the law—or more specifically ther agency charged with enforcing it—in fact did unfathomable damage to the lakes. It turned out that the federal regulators decided to exempt one industry’s form of “living pollution”—biologically contaminated watrer discharged from freighters.

This led to an explosion of invasive species, most notably Zebra and Quagga mussels that in less than 20 years became the lakes’ dominant species.

—Dan Egan, The Death & Life of the Great Lakes (2017).

CLGR Foundation

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Council of the Great Lakes Region Foundation

https://cglrfoundation.networkforgood.com/

https://cglrfoundation.networkforgood.com/projects/194658-sustainable-food-production-in-the-great-lakes-region?

The CGLR Foundation is a qualified 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and contributions are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law. If you are located outside of the United States, please check with your tax advisor for guidance.

The Foundation is a part of a bi-national network of related organizations, collectively referred to as the Council of the Great Lakes Region (CGLR), which includes CGLR USA, an Ohio-based, 501(c)(6) trade association, and CGLR Canada, a not-for-profit corporation based in Ontario, Canada.

Let’s keep the Great Lakes free of plastic litter!

Help us Accelerate the Shift to Sustainable Farming in the Great Lakes Region

Sustainable food production is great for farmers and the health of our Great Lakes and environment!

Agriculture is a primary land use in the Great Lakes region, holding the key ingredients for feeding not only the region – but also North America and the world.

However, as the demand for more foods grown in our region increases, so will the pressures on our environment, such as our freshwater and wildlife.

For example, agricultural nutrients flowing into Lake Erie are already causing toxic blue-green algae blooms, killing fish and polluting our drinking water.

By donating today, you can build a better future by helping us bring businesses, government representatives, scientists, and NGOs together to advocate for and invest in sustainable agricultural practices.

Updated 6/21/2023

The Council of the Great Lakes Region

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Membership is $150 for an individual, $350 for a nonprofit organization.

The Council of the Great Lakes Region is a binational, non-profit corporation that seeks to deepen the United States-Canada relationship in the Great Lakes region by creating stronger, more dynamic cross-border collaborations focused on finding new ways of harnessing the region’s economic strengths and assets, improving the well-being and prosperity of the region’s citizens, and protecting the environment for future generations.

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