Water Quality Articles

Science – Articles that contain information about Water Quality.

Past, present and future of fisheries management in the Apostle Islands

Past, present and future of fisheries management in the Apostle Islands

Fish are an important part of the local culture and fisheries management has faced many challenges over the past 50+ years. Declines in fisheries due to invasive species and over-harvest began in the 1950’s and by the formation of the Apostle Island National Lakeshore in 1970 the fish populations were at historic lows. Fisheries management successfully focused on Lake Trout restoration goals thorough cooperative management of all users in Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior. Current management is focused on monitoring and setting safe harvest limits for fisheries through fisheries management...

Underwater Landscapes of the Apostle Islands

Underwater Landscapes of the Apostle Islands

In the upper Great Lakes region, the NPS protects diverse coastal environments in Lakes Michigan and Superior. Until recently, very little information existed with respect to the bathymetry, geomorphology, or benthic habitat features of these areas. Since 2010, NPS and partners have developed high resolution benthic habitat maps for six coastal parks in the Great Lakes, using a novel combination of LiDAR, multi-beam sonar, and satellite imagery. In addition to high resolution bathymetry, we collected photo and video imagery to validate substrate and benthic features documented in our mapping...

Emerging Water Resource Issues in the Apostle Islands

Emerging Water Resource Issues in the Apostle Islands

Unique among the world’s waters, Lake Superior lays an impressive foundation for our collective experience of the Apostle Islands. The lake is big, omnipresent, and seemingly resistant to change. However, a closer look reveals a variety of emerging issues and threats. High lake levels and increasingly intense storms have caused significant coastal erosion and damage to coastal resources. Historic rainfall events have delivered excess nutrients and sediments to the lake, affecting its clarity and interacting with warming water temperatures to cause unprecedented blooms of harmful algae....

A Retrospective – Research and Resource Management at Apostle Islands NL

A Retrospective – Research and Resource Management at Apostle Islands NL

The Apostle Islands are a homeland, a place of adventure, solace and beauty, afascinating natural laboratory, habitat for diverse plant and animal communities, a refuge for those that are rare, and a place of national significance. Over time there have been many who have worked tirelessly and passionately to learn, understand, and uncover secrets of this “special collection of islands.” During this presentation, I will provide an overview of the history of natural resource management and research at the national lakeshore over the past 5 decades – highlighting changing issues and needs; the...

“Friends” groups are a collective force for water and land protection

“Friends” groups are a collective force for water and land protection

Your Friends of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore participated in Wisconsin Water Week, a weeklong celebration and study of all things water in our state. This virtual event highlighted innovative ways that groups devoted to protecting the state's most important resource are advancing their work in the face of unprecedented challenges. Erica Peterson Friends of the Apostle Islands Board Chair Erica Peterson was an invited guest on a panel discussing the importance of “Friends” groups in the Wisconsin Lake Superior region. Peterson joined Mike Koutnik from the Lake Superior Reserve in...