{"id":890998,"date":"2026-10-22T17:34:14","date_gmt":"2026-10-22T17:34:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/890998\/"},"modified":"2026-10-22T17:34:14","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T17:34:14","slug":"great-waste-in-the-great-lakes-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/890998\/","title":{"rendered":"Great waste in the Great Lakes"},"content":{"rendered":"

More than 40 million people in the United States and Canada depend on the Great Lakes for drinking water. Each glass of treated lake water is laden with tiny bits of plastic \u2014 microplastics \u2014 made of toxic chemicals linked to cancer and other diseases. Also contaminated are fish, staples of Midwestern fish fries and fish boils, and an important part of the diet of Indigenous tribes, certain immigrant populations and communities of color.<\/p>\n

Yet this pollution isn\u2019t regulated, and manufacturers are moving to dramatically increase the amount of plastics produced in the United States.<\/p>\n

The Chicago Tribune is exploring the plastics dilemma with a focus on the Great Lakes, the world\u2019s largest source of fresh surface water. When confronted about their pollution, industry executives often have blamed consumers, using tactics borrowed from and shared with Big Tobacco, according to a Tribune review of thousands of government, scientific and internal industry documents.<\/p>\n

This coverage, supported by the Pulitzer Center\u2019s StoryReach U.S. initiative<\/a>, delves into the spread of plastic waste in the Great Lakes, research into health hazards and possible solutions.<\/p>\n

\"SherriSherri Mason, a Gannon University researcher, picks up plastic pellets, pieces barely larger than a grain of rice, that litter the ground where they are transferred from rail cars to trucks and delivered to local manufacturers on May 1, 2026, in Erie, Pennsylvania. (Brian Cassella\/Chicago Tribune)
\nAs plastics clog the Great Lakes, industry presses to make more and downplays dangers, Tribune analysis finds<\/a><\/p>\n

When confronted about their pollution, industry executives often have blamed consumers, using tactics borrowed from and shared with Big Tobacco, according to a Chicago Tribune review of thousands of government, scientific and internal industry documents.<\/p>\n

Some of the world\u2019s most powerful companies downplay the dangers posed by plastics and overstate the ability to recycle them, the Tribune found. Read part 1.<\/a><\/p>\n

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\"ResearchResearch coordinator Roxanne Sawhill measures the waist of Jamie Headley, 6, of Urbana, during an Illinois Kids Development Study (IKIDS) microplastics test at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign on June 18, 2026. Scientists at the Beckman Institute have been tracking levels of plastic-softening phthalates in the blood of children since before they were born up until age 11. (Josh Boland\/Chicago Tribune)
\nMicroplastics linger inside people and animals, multiple studies show. But regulation is still far off<\/a><\/p>\n

Scientists are particularly concerned about\u00a0microplastics, bits no larger than a grain of rice that could trigger heart and brain diseases and other ailments, either by their mere presence in people or from toxic chemicals leaching out of the particles.<\/p>\n

Scientists also are exploring whether microplastics contribute to or cause Parkinson\u2019s disease, impaired fertility, premature births, certain cancers and developmental problems in children. One example: University of Illinois researchers have been tracking the effects of plastics-related chemicals in more than 400 downstate kids since before they were born. Read part 2.<\/a><\/p>\n

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\"UniversityUniversity of Toronto biologist Chelsea Rochman, center, and Meredith Omer, left, collect northern pearl dace to be measured for research at the Experimental Lakes Area, in western Ontario on Oct. 1, 2025. (Brian Cassella\/Chicago Tribune)
\nAs microplastics pollute every corner of the Great Lakes, scientists push governments to combat threat<\/a><\/p>\n

Microplastics are in every corner of the Great Lakes, from Canada\u2019s \u201cChemical Valley,\u201d a strip of fossil fuel plants off Lake Huron north of Detroit, to the pristine Apostle Islands in Lake Superior. The Tribune is documenting the scourge as part of \u201cGreat Waste in the Great Lakes,\u201d an ongoing series delving into mostly unseen risks to the health and environment of Americans and Canadians who depend on the world\u2019s largest source of fresh surface water. Read part 3.<\/a><\/p>\n

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\"MelissaMelissa Duhaime, center, an associate professor at the University of Michigan, hand-processes recently harvested flax straw to prepare fibers for engineering experiments with farmer Kyle Thom, left, and graduate student Shiho Apperson, on Sept. 22, 2026, at her home farm in Dexter, Michigan. (Brian Cassella\/Chicago Tribune)
\nThe overwhelming problem of plastic<\/a><\/p>\n

From flax that can be used in clothing and cars to robotic skimmers to stricter laws, determined researchers, activists and volunteers fight an industry intent on making more plastic. Read part 4.<\/a><\/p>\n

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\"EmilyEmily Kowalski, the associate director at Environment Illinois, looks over a glass container of industrial plastic pellets known as nurdles found along the Wild Mile in the North Branch of the Chicago River, on Aug. 10, 2026. (Antonio Perez\/Chicago Tribune)
\nIllinois law is the first in the Great Lakes region to designate industrial plastic pellets as pollution<\/a><\/p>\n

Illinois is requiring polluters to begin reporting spills of industrial plastic pellets known as nurdles, a growing source of contamination in the Great Lakes and Mississippi River watersheds.<\/p>\n

Companies that manufacture, use or transport nurdles also must develop plans to limit them in storm runoff, making the state the first in either watershed to officially designate bits of wasted plastic as pollution. Read the full story.<\/a><\/p>\n

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\"Anouk,Anouk, 9, from left, Louisa Reiter, 8, and Elina Ernemann, 8, pick up trash during a cleanup event at Montrose Beach in Chicago on Sept. 20, 2026. The group collected 27 pounds of plastic and other garbage. (Brian Cassella\/Chicago Tribune)
\nMicroplastics trigger inflammation linked to disease and death. Now scientists appear to have discovered why.<\/a><\/p>\n

Plain old water could be responsible for making plastics harmful to people, according to a new study that portends significant consequences for human health.<\/p>\n

The study, published in the prominent scientific journal Nature<\/a>, found chemical reactions between water and six types of fossil fuel-based plastic created particles that damaged red blood cells and proteins in laboratory tests. Read the full story.<\/a><\/p>\n

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Chicago Tribune event: How plastic pollution is clogging our waters<\/p>\n

Join Michael Hawthorne<\/a>, a Pulitzer-finalist investigative reporter who focuses on the environment and public health for the Chicago Tribune, for a conversation with Melissa Duhaime<\/a>, a University of Michigan biologist, and Chelsea Rochman<\/a>, a University of Toronto researcher, who also co-leads the U of T Trash Team.<\/p>\n

The virtual event will be held on Oct. 16, from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. CDT. RSVP here.<\/a><\/p>\n

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Chicago Tribune event: How plastic pollution is clogging our waters<\/p>\n

Join Michael Hawthorne<\/a>\u00a0for an Ask Me Anything on Reddit<\/a>. The event will be held on Oct. 20, from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. CDT. Join the conversation here.<\/a><\/p>\n

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