News By Topics
Small Bird, Big Comeback: Great Lakes Piping Plovers Reach Record Numbers for the Second Year in a Row
The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is helping guide the federally endangered piping plover on the path to recovery. 2025 saw the highest number of nesting pairs since the species was first listed in 1986.July 28, 2025
Taking Stock of Our Progress for Lake Trout
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services and a network of partners, using funding provided through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, have helped this once-devasted fishery make a stunning recovery.July 24, 2025
Habitat Restoration in the Great Lakes: By the Numbers
NOAA habitat restoration projects in the Great Lakes basin have strengthened fisheries and ecosystems, benefited local economies as well as, supported resilient communities. NOAA has worked through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative for 15 years to restore habitat through 98 high priority projects and have consequently restored over 5,180 acres of habitat and reopened more than 520 miles of rivers and streams for fish and wildlife populations.
June 24, 2025
Restoring Habitat for Great Lakes Fisheries on New York’s Salmon River
NOAA supports efforts to restore habitat and prevent erosion on the Salmon River in New York, a popular recreational fishing destination. Erosion, sedimentation, and changes to the water flow of the Salmon River have contributed to habitat degradation and threatened the health of the river’s fish population. NOAA provided $390,000 in Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funding to remove an abandoned railroad trestle bridge which was causing sediment buildup and erosion of the river’s streambank.
May 20, 2025
Revitalizing the Detroit River Ecosystem for Great Lakes Fisheries
NOAA, with help from partners across the Great Lakes Basin, is transforming the Detroit River to create important spawning and nursery habitat for native fish like the walleye, lake sturgeon, northern pike, and smallmouth bass. These restoration initiatives are improving the health of the river and making progress towards removing the Detroit River from the list of areas of concern.
May 20, 2025
New Dashboard for Collaborative Great Lakes Benthic Habitat Mapping Project
The release of a new tool depicting bathymetric data and benthic habitat mapping for the Great Lakes Basin is released by NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management.April 21, 2025
Invasive Species Control and Wetland Restoration at Four Mile Creek State Park, New York
The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation lead a project funded through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to control invasive species and enhance wetland restoration at the mouth of the Four Mile Creek.April 1, 2025
Port Clinton Coastal Restoration Project Restores Costal Wetland Along Ohio’s Lake Erie Shoreline
March 2025 - Federal, state, and local agencies celebrate significant progress in Lake Erie’s shoreline expansion through the implementation of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Great Lakes Fishery and Ecosystem Restoration Program and support from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.March 13, 2025
Ashland, Green Bay, Two Harbors, and Oscoda Township selected for engineering and design support through Great Lakes coastal resilience program
Projects will use nature-based solutions to address coastal hazards and support habitat and species goals prioritized by the Great Lakes Restoration InitiativeDecember 30, 2024
EPA Announces New 5-Year Plan to Accelerate Restoration of the Great Lakes
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announces an updated action plan for federal agencies and their partners under the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to restore and protect the Great Lakes over the next five years
November 29, 2024