Sean Ericson, Great Lakes Now, Author at Great Lakes Now https://www.greatlakesnow.org/author/seanericson/ Great Lakes Now shares stories about the unique culture and history of the Great Lakes basin Fri, 16 May 2025 14:32:08 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://www.greatlakesnow.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/cropped-gln-avatar-32x32.jpg Sean Ericson, Great Lakes Now, Author at Great Lakes Now https://www.greatlakesnow.org/author/seanericson/ 32 32 Buses vs. Trains: The Future of Public Transit in the Great Lakes Region https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/05/buses-vs-trains-the-future-of-public-transit-in-the-great-lakes-region/ Tue, 13 May 2025 20:35:30 +0000 https://www.greatlakesnow.org/?p=42448 Buses vs. Trains: The Future of Public Transit in the Great Lakes Region

Cities around the Great Lakes region are trying to make transportation cheaper for riders and more environmentally friendly by expanding their public transit networks. Two modes that are often pitted against each other are light rail and bus rapid transit (BRT). While not every BRT line meets the same standards, in general, they have been upgraded for higher capacity and speed, although they have fewer stations.

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What would the Great Lakes region be like with bullet trains? https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/03/what-would-the-great-lakes-region-be-like-with-bullet-trains/ https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/03/what-would-the-great-lakes-region-be-like-with-bullet-trains/#respond Wed, 26 Mar 2025 17:41:52 +0000 https://www.greatlakesnow.org/?p=41638 What would the Great Lakes region be like with bullet trains?

A few months ago, I was riding on Amtrak’s new Borealis line from St. Paul, Minn., to Chicago. The train was packed that day, and the new line has proved popular.

My coach seat was much nicer than any airline. Plus, I didn’t have to go through security.

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What the recent tariff news means for the Great Lakes https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/what-the-recent-tariff-news-means-for-the-great-lakes/ https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2025/02/what-the-recent-tariff-news-means-for-the-great-lakes/#respond Fri, 14 Feb 2025 17:12:50 +0000 https://www.greatlakesnow.org/?p=40815 What the recent tariff news means for the Great Lakes

President Donald Trump has made rethinking international trade policy a centerpiece of his second administration. While Congress generally has the authority to regulate international trade, it has also delegated some of this authority to the president. On Feb. 1, Trump announced he would be imposing 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico, with a 10% tariff on Canadian energy.

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Environmentalists, Industry Divided Over Energy Permitting Bill https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/11/environmentalists-industry-divided-over-energy-permitting-bill/ https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/11/environmentalists-industry-divided-over-energy-permitting-bill/#respond Fri, 15 Nov 2024 18:06:28 +0000 https://www.greatlakesnow.org/?p=39467 Environmentalists, Industry Divided Over Energy Permitting Bill

Melting ice. Wildfire smoke. Crop losses. Climate change is already having an impact on the Great Lakes region. According to a 2022 report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, in order to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius, humanity would have to reach net-zero emissions by the 2070s.

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Expecting smoke to be a more frequent part of seasonal planning https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/06/expecting-smoke-to-be-a-more-frequent-part-of-seasonal-planning/ https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/06/expecting-smoke-to-be-a-more-frequent-part-of-seasonal-planning/#respond Wed, 26 Jun 2024 15:52:35 +0000 https://www.greatlakesnow.org/?p=37310 Expecting smoke to be a more frequent part of seasonal planning

I was taking out the trash one evening this May when I noticed it. The sky had a reddish tint, and the air smelled faintly of smoke. Like many people across the Great Lakes region, I learned last summer to recognize the telltale signs of wildfire smoke. Amid a big year for wildfires in Canada, many of us got used to outbreaks of pollution caused by smoke from up north.

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Through a Glass Darkly https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/03/through-a-glass-darkly/ https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2024/03/through-a-glass-darkly/#respond Fri, 29 Mar 2024 13:36:13 +0000 https://www.greatlakesnow.org/?p=36269 Through a Glass Darkly

Increasingly, scientists and regulators are concerned about the presence of pharmaceutical pollution in our waterways, including in the Great Lakes region. This contamination has the potential to harm wildlife and make antibiotics less effective. However, more research needs to be done to understand this issue, according to scientists who have studied pharmaceuticals and other contaminants.

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