MN Sea Grant: Listening to the Lake

Hurricane Katrina’s devastation on the Gulf Coast is much in the news these days. What some people don’t realize is that in the early 1970s, Duluth had major flooding, causing then President Nixon to declare the city a federal disaster area. We’ll learn more about the Duluth flood and what’s being done to minimize the impacts of stormwater runoff in this show.

Today we’ll meet Leah Ladehoff (LADEEHOF). This lucky lady gets to spend the summer along the North Shore of Lake Superior, interpreting its biology and geology for visitors. Her work is a new part of the Shorelink Program, which is trying to strengthen interpretation and cooperation among organizations along the shore. The Sugarloaf Cove Interpretive Center Association based out of Schroeder leads the effort.

Today we’ll learn about a fish native to Lake Superior called the coaster brook trout. Long ago they were incredibly abundant, causing fishing scenes reminiscent of the smelt runs during the 1960s and 70s. We’ll investigate what caused their decline and an initiative that’s trying to help coaster brook trout rebound.

Today we’ll journey aboard the research boat the L.L. Smith Jr. onto Lake Superior. The trip is part of the popular "View From the Lake" program, which offers residents a chance to see what their communities look like from the water and to get hands-on experience collecting water samples.

The focus of today’s program is harbor corrosion. Just what is eating holes through steel structures in the Duluth-Superior Harbor is a mystery. Thanks to a panel of corrosion experts and funding at state and federal levels, we may find out before the docks and pilings disintegrate much further.

The focus of today's program is sea lamprey. Lampreys are an eel-like fish considered an invasive species in Lake Superior and the Great Lakes. Researchers estimate about one hundred and four thousand lampreys are swimming around in Lake Superior. Lamprey control costs millions of dollars every year.

The focus of today’s show is rip currents. The week of June 5 is National Rip Current Awareness Week. If you recall, these currents, which can take lives, have been a hot topic the last few summers.

The focus of our first show is bacteria found in the water and the Lake Superior Beach Monitoring Program. The monitoring program is about to go into full swing for the season, looking for harmful bacteria along Lake Superior’s beaches.