Wisconsin Water News

Aug 09 2024 60 ep. 6 mins 31
Wisconsin Water News Podcast artwork

Wisconsin is a state shaped by water. From its western border defined by the Mississippi River to two of the five lakes that make up the world’s largest freshwater system to its north and east, the state is awash in this valuable commodity. The interior is defined by more than 15,000 lakes scattered across counties both rural and urban, more than 5 million acres of wetlands, more than 84,000 miles rivers and streams and 1.2 quadrillion gallons of groundwater. Two Wisconsin programs provide a statewide and multidisciplinary approach to supporting livelihoods and enhancing lifestyles through the research of, education about and outreach focused on those waters. These programs are the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute and the University of Wisconsin Water Resources Institute at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This new podcast series, Wisconsin Water News, highlights stories previously only available in print from these programs. Series Narrator and Science Communicator Marie Zhuikov brings the stories alive by featuring in-person and phone interviews of the people behind the news.

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Using Sound to Connect People to Green Bay

Aug 09 2024 17 mins  
On a sunny morning in mid-June 2024, the Phoenix, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay’s research vessel, headed out onto the bay. Aboard were Sea Grant researchers Emily Tyner and Bill Sallak and a small mound of recording equipment. It was piloted by Chris Houghton, assistant professor and fish ecologist, who was assisted by first mate, undergraduate student Jacob Hoffman.The bay

Lake and River Foams Study Reveals High PFAS Levels

Jul 14 2024 5 mins  
In a new study, natural foams and water surface microlayers of 43 Wisconsin rivers and lakes were found to contain 36 compounds in a group of chemicals known as PFAS. While PFAS were detected in both the foam and the water surface, it’s the foams that the researcher said were orders of magnitude higher in PFAS concentration compared to water, and they urge people and their pets t

Episode 58: Wisconsin sport fish carry suite of new viruses

Apr 12 2024 5 mins  
Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have detected a suite of new viruses in five species of Wisconsin sport fish. Although none pose a threat to human health, one is a type of coronavirus that’s usually associated with birds. It was found in healthy walleyes from Wisconsin lakes. The finding is part of a Wisconsin Sea Grant-funded study by Tony Goldberg, a professo

Episode 57: Northern Wisconsin communities benefit from climate change program

Feb 06 2024 5 mins  
Leaders in several northern Wisconsin counties and cities were chosen to participate in a Lake Superior Climate Champions Program organized by Wisconsin Sea Grant and the Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve in 2023. The program provided funding and guidance to two teams to work on goals of their choosing that addressed climate change. Hear what they worked on and othe

Episode 56: Marine Debris Play Script Available for Free

Jan 29 2024 8 mins  
What is marine debris, what are its impacts and what can we do about it? These are the central messages of a play written on behalf of Wisconsin Sea Grant by David Daniel with American Players Theatre of Wisconsin.“Me and Debry,” is a half-hour, whimsical, audience-participation play about litter (or marine debris) in the Great Lakes. It had its “world premiere” in Wisconsi

Episode 55: Wisconsin’s rural residents concerned about water quality

Dec 12 2023 4 mins  
A new report published by the University of Wisconsin-Madison found that Wisconsin’s rural residents perceived significant risks to water quality from pesticides, PFAS (which are per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances) and excess nutrients. They also ranked water as very or extremely important for supporting wildlife and for hunting and fishing, in addition to home uses such as dri

Episode 54: Plastics learning kit educates and enthralls

Nov 03 2023 5 mins  
Wisconsin Sea Grant’s Anne Moser has learned enough about wastewater treatment to create “Plastic Panic,” a grab-and-go kit that formal and nonformal educators can use to teach about plastic pollution in the Great Lakes, specifically, microplastics. The colorful artwork in the “grab-and-go” kit both educates and enthralls it audiences.

Episode 53: Hoping for snow: Wisconsin snow data project captures snowflake images and students’ attention

Oct 09 2023 5 mins  
Michael Notaro with the University of Wisconsin-Madison is teaching Wisconsin school children the similarities in snowflakes to share the wonder of nature and information about the Great Lakes climate, but also to expand an international environmental database.

Episode 52: Providing Access for All to a National Lakeshore

Aug 29 2023 7 mins  
How do you make a park in the middle of Lake Superior accessible to people with disabilities? Natalie Chin and Marie Zhuikov from Wisconsin Sea Grant had the chance to travel to Stockton Island in the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore to see first-hand what the park is doing to make it more accessible.

Episode 51: Lack of housing looms large as barrier to nature-based jobs in northern Wisconsin

Aug 24 2023 7 mins  
A report published recently by Wisconsin Sea Grant cites a lack of housing as a major barrier to development of nature-based jobs in Wisconsin’s northern tier. This includes Douglas, Ashland, Bayfield and Iron counties. This episode features interviews with the report authors and panel members from a webinar about the report, “Workforce Needs for Nature-Based Solutions in Wisco