News by Topics - Restoration
EPA, State, and Local Partners Announce $37.6 Million Investment to Restore Maumee Area of Concern
On August 12, 2026, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency along with state and local partners announced three projects totaling more than $37.6 million in funding to support continued restoration and remediation efforts in the Maumee Area of Concern in Northwest Ohio.August 18, 2026
Innovative $13.4M Niagara River Fish Passage Completed, Revitalizing Critical Great Lakes Food Web
On July 23, 2026, representatives from EPA, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the City of Buffalo attended a celebration event for the Emerald Shiner Fish Passage Project in the Niagara River Area of Concern. Fish are already using the 778-foot-long structure at Freedom Park.August 5, 2026
EPA and Partners Announce Projects to Clean Up Detroit Area Waterways
Multiple cleanups around Detroit, including Monguagon Creek, Harbortown and Lower Rouge River’s Old Channel, will help restore the Detroit and Rouge Rivers. EPA and partners have already addressed about 400,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment and restored more than 320 acres of habitat within the Detroit River AOC.June 12, 2026
EPA, MPCA and Partners Celebrate Completion of St. Louis River Cleanup Projects in Minnesota
With the completion of the Thomson Reservoir project, all eight sediment cleanup projects are now complete for the Minnesota side of the St. Louis River Area of Concern. More than 1.9 million cubic yards of contaminated sediment have been addressed and over 1,000 acres of habitat have been restored across the AOC.May 28, 2026
EPA and Partners Celebrate Completion of Fish Passage Project and Return of Lake Sturgeon in the Milwaukee River
The Estabrook Falls Fish Passage Project modified the waterfall which prevented native fish from being able to swim upstream to critical spawning habitat during a majority of the year. After the project was completed, several Lake Sturgeon made their way upstream to Ozaukee County for the first time in over 100 years.May 13, 2026
Increasing Habitat and Supporting Native Fish in Saginaw Bay
The Great Lakes Fishery Commission completed construction of a nearshore rock reef by Channel Island using GLRI funding provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Habitat Conservation.February 3, 2026
EPA and Partners Announce more than $200 Million to Clean Up Grand Calumet River Area of Concern
The project will remove over 240,000 cubic yards of contaminated canal and river bottom sediment and remediate over 100 acres of sediment at two sites in the AOC.January 26, 2026
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Using GLRI Funds to Set Up Habitat Restoration Projects for Success
NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management and other partners are leveraging funding from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to advance habitat restoration projects in all eight Great Lakes states.November 25, 2025
EPA and EGLE Celebrate Removal of Muskegon Lake Area of Concern from List of Most Environmentally Degraded Areas in the Great Lakes
In September, Muskegon Lake became the 8th overall U.S. AOC delisted and the 7th delisted under the GLRI. The designation comes after years of restoration and remediation work which restored more than 134 acres of habitat and 6,000 linear feet of shoreline.October 8, 2025
EPA and Partners Celebrate Completion of Major Restoration Work in Ohio’s Cuyahoga River Area of Concern
The West Creek Flume Spillway Project, completed with a $7M Great Lakes Restoration Initiative grant, stabilized 6,500 linear feet of shoreline and restored fish passage.August 14, 2025