GLIFWC Contributions to the TREC Sub-committee of the LSPWG
Introduction
Anishinaabeg Gichigami or Lake Superior is a unique and valuable ecosystem. It is the largest, coldest, and deepest of the Laurentian Great Lakes and contains more water than the other Great Lakes combined. The Lake Superior watershed is approximately 49,300 square miles (127,700 square km); is sparsely populated when compared to the other Great Lakes; accounting for only 1.7% of the coastal population off the Great Lakes. Lake Superior is home to unique ecosystems, species assemblages, and is exceptionally rich in water and aquatic environments. Once water enters the lake from the watershed, it remains in Lake Superior for 173 years, almost three times longer than any other Great Lake.
Anishinaabeg Gichigami (Lake Superior) shoreline near Wawa, Ontario.
The Transportation and Resource Extraction Committee (TREC) of the Lake Superior Partnership Working Group (LSPWG)
Taconite mining along the Marquette Range in Michigan.
The Lake Superior Partnership Working Group, formerly the Lake Superior Binational Program consists of scientists, managers, and staff from federal, tribal, and state government agencies as well as scientists from academic institutions. Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC) staff work in the partnership to protect and restore the Lake Superior ecosystem through collective and coordinated action. According the the Lake Superior Lakeside Management Plan (LAMP), Metallic mining and oil/natural gas transportation are two threats to the ecological integrity of Lake Superior and its watershed. The TREC subcommittee's focus is on characterizing potential impacts of mining and oil and gas transportation through the Lake Superior basin and to provide relevant information to the agencies involved in the LSPWG. In addition, the TREC committee promotes the goals of the Zero Discharge Demonstration Program (ZDDP) and the broader ecosystem goals as outlined in the binationally developed Lakewide Action and Management Plan (LAMP).
Copper mine tailings dump (stamp sands) on the shore of Lake Superior at Gay, Michigan.
The purpose of this story map is to share knowledge and information that the GLIFWC has developed and compiled while participating in the TREC committee. This work is used to track emerging ecological threats to Lake Superior.
Metallic Mining
Metallic mining activity in the Lake Superior watershed
The geology of the Lake Superior Basin includes economically valuable deposits. Iron and copper ores were mined and smelted locally since the mid 1800's and transported outside the basin via rail and barge. Iron ores are still mined and processed along the Marquette Range in Michigan and the Mesabi Range in Minnesota. High grade iron ores are exhausted and only taconite and other low-grade ores are now mined and enriched on site. Other past and present metallic mining activities include copper mining along the Keweenaw Peninsula and silver mining near Thunder Bay, Ontario.
The Lake Superior basin has a long history of mining operations and related impacts, including the designation of two former Areas of Concern due to past mining operations. There are currently fourteen mines operating in the basin, with explorations and proposals for new mines ongoing.
GLIFWC maintains a GIS based dataset of metallic mineral mining and exploration activities in the Lake Superior Basin. This data can be accessed through the interactive web mapping application below. A poster describing GLIFWC's mapping in the Lake Superior basin is available for download here.
GLIFWC has developed a series of stand-alone maps illustrating the proximity of existing and proposed metallic mining activities to important habitat areas of Lake Superior. Important habitats are areas that the LSPWG has identified as environmentally or culturally important on a Lake Superior basin scale. Click on the story map below for additional information on this ongoing project.
Pipelines
Crude oil and natural gas pipeline right-of-ways in the Ojibwe Ceded Territories. The ceded territories include the Lake Superior basin and portions of the Lake Michigan and Lake Huron basins.
The Lake Superior watershed is crossed by several crude oil and natural gas transmission pipelines. Many of these pipelines were constructed before modern environmental regulations and the environmental impacts of construction and operation of these pipelines are unknown. Furthermore, there is a lack of information on how these linear industrial features have impacted Lake Superior watershed ecosystems in the past. There is also a lack of understanding regarding the risks that these features pose, individually and cumulatively, to the ecological integrity of the watershed. Research and field data collection that fill these knowledge gaps should be conducted.
To view crude oil and natural gas pipeline right of ways and the natural resources they intersect, click on the web map on the right. Zoom in to the map and click on individual features for site specific information.
GLIFWC developed a series of stand-alone maps illustrating a preliminary spill impact analysis as well as the proximity of existing and proposed metallic mining activities to important habitat areas of Lake Superior.
GLIFWC has worked to characterize the past, present, and reasonably foreseeable impacts of crude oil and natural gas pipelines in the ceded territories of our member tribes. This information can be accessed at the story map below. Additional work is needed to similarly characterize impacts on the Canadian side of the Lake Superior watershed.
Mercury in the Great Lakes Basin
According to the State of the Great Lakes Report, water quality in the Lake Superior basin is generally good, particularly when compared to the other Great Lakes. Mercury is a notable exception to this classification. The reasons for this are complex and under investigation but mining activity is one notable contributing factor.
GLIFWC, in cooperation with other LSPWG committees, tracks existing and proposed mercury emissions from metallic mines in the basin. In addition, many agencies that participate in the committee have ongoing projects to identify mercury sources, characterize impacts of mercury on biota, and investigate the factors that convert elemental mercury into methyl mercury, a powerful neurological toxin.
Webinars & Presentations
The TREC committee has organized a number of webinar presentations to fulfill the objective of providing information to members of the SPWG. The presentations, grouped by topic, are available below.
Pipelines
Cumulative Effects Analysis
General Mining Information
White Papers
Committee members have developed these white papers for specific topics. They are intended to provide background information for LSPWG members.
