Video by Abigail Bobrow,  IISG communication specialist

Sense of place is a social science concept that captures whether a person identifies with or feels an attachment to or dependence on a location, and it is predictive of future environmental stewardship at that site. Caitie Nigrelli, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant environmental social scientist, evaluated the students and found an increase in their sense of place for the natural area after their field trip.

On May 18, the Grand Calumet Stewardship Day, an annual event for the past five years, brought out students from Eggers Middle School and Bishop Noll High School, both in Hammond, Indiana, and 21^st Century Charter School in Gary. The students visited four stations where scientists and experts guided them through bird watching, learning fish species, identifying macroinvertebrates, and planting oak trees.

“This is my first time actually walking around, looking at stuff,” said ninth-grade student Demondrick Velez from the 21^st Century Charter School. “Is this my first time here? No, I’ve been here, but just not deep into it like this.”

At one point, the Grand Calumet River was considered the most polluted river in the nation. In recent years, with funding from the Great Lakes Legacy Act and local partners, the river is being cleaned up and restored. Altogether, two million cubic yards of sediment have been removed or capped. The work on the East Branch of the river, which is where Seidner Dune and Swale is located, is finished, with 1.1 million cubic yards of sediment remediated and 58 acres of marsh habitat restored.

Even during the river’s worst days, there were pockets of natural wonder.

“The Grand Calumet River is historically known as biologically diverse and it has very unique ecosystem associated with it. The globally rare dune and swale complex, which is next to the river, is globally rare. There is only about 17,000 acres left on the entire planet of this kind of habitat,” said Susan MiHalo, conservation coordinator at The Nature Conservancy, and organizer for this year’s event.

“I love that they’re bringing back the native plants and the native animals and they’re trying to get rid of the pollution. When I get older, even now if I can, I’m going to try to help so I can make it better too,” said Jamarion Evans, an Eggers Middle School student.

“We look forward to coordinating with the teachers to plan additional field trips that can further establish the students’ sense of place for the river,” said Nigrelli.

In addition to Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant and The Nature Conservancy, the stewardship day was hosted by the Shirley Heinze-Land Trust, Dunes Learning Center, City of Gary, Indiana Department of Environmental Management, Indiana Department of Natural Resources,

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Audubon Chicago Region, Wildlife Habitat Council, and Urban Waters.

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant is a part of University of Illinois Extension and Purdue University Extension.

We depend on nature for our health and well-being in what seems countless ways—from food, medicine, and shelter, to our quality of life. Yet when decision makers plan for a community’s future, there may be no concrete value ascribed to natural areas.

An IISG study supported by NOAA through the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, and Indiana Lake Michigan Coastal Program, has begun the process of defining the value of Indiana’s aquatic ecosystems.

“Ecosystem services are the benefits that people, communities, and economies receive from nature,” said Leslie Dorworth, IISG aquatic ecology specialist. “For example, a healthy food web in Lake Michigan is part of a thriving ecosystem, but it can also provide a benefit to those who engage in fishing.”

Dorworth, and Margaret Schneemann, IISG resource economist, sat down with 10 Indiana natural resource managers and decision makers to define coastal ecosystem services in the region. They identified the biggest threats to natural areas as nutrient pollution from a variety of sources, climate change, and physical changes to water bodies or water flow. The participants prioritized ecosystem services, including water purification, native flora and fauna, spiritual and aesthetic recreation, and the combination of erosion, sediment and flood control.

The list of priority coastal ecosystem benefits developed in this process became the driver for Dorworth and Schneemann’s literature search of studies in the Great Lakes region. They reviewed available economic value estimates of these coastal ecosystem services, finding only a few that included Indiana.

“We also found a mismatch in what ecosystem services were prioritized by coastal zone managers and those that are studied,” said Schneemann. “For example, there is a lack of research on spiritual and aesthetic values of the coastal zone, which is a top ecosystem service as identified by stakeholders along the Indiana coast.”

“The next step in this process is to work with Indiana coastal resource managers to refine research questions that when answered, will help them make decisions that are informed by what is important to people,” she added.

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant is a part of University of Illinois Extension and Purdue University Extension.

When communities look to address water quality issues like nutrient pollution, there are an assortment of computer models to help them simulate scenarios to solve their problems.

But how do local officials and watershed planners know which models will best address their needs? Which ones will consider cost as part of the solution?

“When watershed planners want additional information that will help them make decisions about nutrient management and land-use issues, they want to do it in the most expeditious way possible—with the data they have available, as well as economically, quickly, and with confidence in the results,” said Purdue University agricultural engineer Bernard Engel.

With funding from IISG, Engel and his team analyzed these tools to assess their value in addressing community land use and water concerns.

“Models vary greatly in terms of data inputs, level of expertise needed to use them, what exactly they model or simulate—each has strengths and weaknesses because of that,” said Engel. The researchers compared model performances to observed data sets, which allows them to make some recommendations on when you might use the models and what you might expect from them.

Engel’s team is hoping to push for some models that they feel very confident about to be more accessible to stakeholders. And some are already available in more comprehensive decision support tools, such as Tipping Points and Indicators.

Tipping Points is a complex web-based tool that uses data to help communities planners understand how close their watershed is to ecological thresholds related to a range of water issues and what the watershed will look like if land-use decisions continue on the same course.

Through facilitation, communities develop an action plan that includes customized steps to improve current conditions and steer clear of tipping points.

Engel’s team spends most of their time developing and improving land-use computer models. One of their additions to Tipping Points is a tool to analyze the impacts of land-use changes due to urbanization and the construction of green infrastructure such as rain barrels, porous pavement or green roofs. It was incorporated when decision makers in Peoria, Illinois signed up to use Tipping Points to develop a green infrastructure plan to address the city’s stormwater issues.

Engel’s assessment project has helped inform what direction the team is heading. For example, they plan to explore ideas to improve speed and cost effectiveness. “If the models are faster, they will be more accessible for people,” said Engel.

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant is a part of University of Illinois Extension and Purdue University Extension.

Shrimp is the number one seafood consumed in the United States, and Indiana, of all places, is a leader in inland shrimp farming. One reason is that Kwamena Quagrainie, IISG aquaculture marketing specialist, is providing these producers with practical information on how to maximize their profits.

Quagrainie studied the economics of raising Pacific white shrimp indoors and found that turning a profit can depend on being a little patient.

“Because demand is high, the temptation is to sell smaller shrimp. But if the producers wait until the shrimp are bigger, they can charge more,” he said. “The value you can set by growing them to a larger size far out ways the cost.”

His study revealed that marine shrimp are more profitable if grown to at least 26–30-count per pound.

It also pays to wait until the shrimp are bigger before moving them from the nursery to the growing tank. This can help boost the survival rate.

Indiana has 11 shrimp farmers in the state who sell their product on-site directly to consumers or to nearby restaurants. “People are looking for food that is fresh and the shrimp market has benefited from the local foods movement,” said Quagrainie. Although, the majority of shrimp consumed in the U.S. is imported from farms in Southeast Asia, Ecuador, and Mexico.

In addition to IISG, this study was funded by Indiana State Department of Agriculture as well as from Purdue Extension, and Indiana Soybean Alliance, and in partnership with the Indiana Aquaculture Association Inc.

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant is a part of University of Illinois Extension and Purdue Extension.

Nutrients that flow into lakes and streams from urban and rural environments are a key cause of algal blooms, which can then crash into low-oxygen ‘dead zones.’ In fact, Illinois, with its many acres of farmland and its major municipalities, is a key contributor to nutrient pollution in the Gulf of Mexico. Researchers at the Illinois State Water Survey set out to better calculate nutrient levels in waterways, the dynamics of when nutrient pollution happens, and what this means in the face of a changing climate.

With support from Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG), hydrologist Momcilo Markus and his team looked at years of data from 14 rural and suburban watersheds in Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to get a better understanding of the factors that influence pollution rates.

The project is part of a larger regional effort to understand the science behind nutrient pollution and develop management strategies based on the findings. This effort is being led by University of Illinois Extension, Prairie Research Institute, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Illinois EPA), Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA), Illinois Water Resources Center, and IISG.

Markus’ work improved the accuracy of estimating nutrient loading from limited monitoring data. Typically, for most waterways, monitoring is infrequent—several data points are extrapolated for a year. The researchers used a rich Ohio data source where there is as much as 38 years of daily measures from 10 streams. This served as a Rosetta stone of sorts, and by modifying their calculations, they were able to make estimates of nutrient loading in Illinois and the Midwest more accurate.

“We adjusted our model to reflect reality as measured in real data,” explained Markus.

This new model could help scientists better measure of the amount of nutrients leaving the 13 watersheds prioritized in the Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy. In addition to continuous statewide tracking by eight U.S. Geological Survey super gauges for roughly the past year, natural resource managers have historic data that can be analyzed using Markus’ model to estimate long-term trends in Illinois’ statewide contributions to the Gulf.

The comprehensive study also reveals key patterns in nitrate, phosphorus, and sediment pollution. For example, although there is more precipitation in summer, river flows and nutrient levels are at their highest in winter and spring, when there are fewer plants to help prevent erosion and absorb nutrients. In fact, the five largest river flow events in a watershed carry more than half of the nutrients that run off it each year.

“A wet year in terms of nutrient loading is defined by large storm events,” said Markus. “More precipitation, on average, in a given year doesn’t necessarily lead to an increase in pollution. The increase is tied to heavy precipitation.”

The consensus of climate models shows that by mid-century in northern Illinois, there may well be a 15-30 percent increase in intensity and frequency of heavy storms.

For Illinois EPA, IDOA, and others charged with implementing the state’s nutrient strategy and reducing nutrient loading to the Gulf by 45 percent, these findings could lead to a more accurate understanding of the impact of their efforts. Farmers, city officials, and wastewater treatment plants across the Prairie State have been ramping up practices that reduce nitrogen and phosphorus loss since the state began work on the strategy in 2012.

At the same time, government agencies, university researchers, and others are keeping an eye on the amount of nutrients leaving the state to help determine whether current strategy practices are enough to reach reduction goals. Understanding the critical role high-intensity storms play in nutrient loads could help ensure the value of these efforts isn’t obscured by a wet year. And knowing that these types of storms will be more frequent gives the state lead time to adapt strategy practices to the changing climate.

“What we design today, may not be sufficient in the future,” said Markus. “We can speculate that there will be more pollution, so management strategies that work today may not down the road.”

Anjanette Riley is a contributing author.

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant is a part of University of Illinois Extension and Purdue University Extension.

University of Illinois geneticist Michael Plewa discovered that a non-toxic medical diagnostic chemical that accumulates in drinking water sources can become a toxic chemical as water goes through the disinfection process.

This study, funded as an Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant Discovery Grant project, revealed that wastewater generated by hospitals can contain toxic disinfection by-products associated with X-ray contrast media. Contrast media are widely-used substances, which when ingested, can enhance medical imaging.

IISG has funded 41 Discovery grants since 2009—these small pots of money are awarded to support graduate student work, to help when researchers need a final boost to finish a project, or to explore new questions or follow up on data that may grow into something larger.

Plewa’s project provides a great example of how a Discovery Grant can open the door to new knowledge and provide a stepping stone to answer bigger questions. It’s also a story about how when data doesn’t fit one’s hypothesis, the quest for answers can lead to new discoveries.

In previous research, Plewa’s lab was looking at the connection between naturally-occurring iodide in drinking water sources and the creation of very toxic substances through the disinfection process. In their study of 23 cities, they measured the level of toxic iodinated disinfection by-products (DBPs) in the drinking water. “Surprisingly, four cities that had no natural iodine in the water­ still had these toxic iodinated DBPs,” said Plewa. “Where was the iodine coming from?”

At a scientific conference, a colleague suggested that the iodine source in these four water supplies may be from X-ray contrast media, and Plewa set out to find out if that was right. Sure enough, the water samples were tested and had high levels of iopamidol, the most commonly used contrast media.

“We let the data carry us to help us understand,” said Plewa. “It’s a puzzle and an adventure. It’s very exciting.

“Through the Discovery Grant, we were able to confirm that iopamidol plus disinfection led to disinfection by-products that were more toxic than iopamidol alone or disinfection alone.”

This project was selected for a 2012 U.S. EPA Scientific and Technological Achievement Award (Level I). According to the EPA, Level 1 is awarded to those who have accomplished an exceptionally high-quality research or technological effort. Awarded work has national significance or has high impact on a broad area of science and technology.

The findings from this project also led to a $495,000 National Science Foundation grant and international collaboration. Working with scientists at the Federal Institute of Hydrology in Germany, the University of Akron in Ohio, and at U.S. EPA, Plewa was able to further study the toxicity of contrast media and the mechanisms of how the chemical change happens.

“When we studied five contrast agents, only iopamidol transformed into a toxic substance during disinfection, but iopamidol is also the most widely used.” said Plewa.

And as their adventure in science continued, Plewa and his team learned that their theory of how iopamidol was transformed was, in fact, wrong. Instead, they discovered it was a very different mechanism, which opened a door to new information. They were able to identify a molecule associated with these toxic chemicals that inhibits an enzyme involved in cellular metabolism. This molecule could be contributing to neurological diseases, like Alzheimer’s, or to birth defects.

“There’s much about this that we still don’t understand,” said Plewa, and he defers to medical researchers to make any direct health connections.

Despite decades of research on drinking water disinfection by-products, Plewa sees water disinfection as the greatest public health achievement of the 20^th Century. “Lincoln’s children died of water-borne disease. Before the advent of water disinfection in 1908, water borne disease and death was common in the U.S. With water purification we have dramatically reduced the risk of acute disease.

“But since 1974, we’ve also identified over 600 disinfection by-products, which is maybe only 50 percent of what’s in the water,” he added. “And of these, we’ve analyzed only a few. It makes sense to identify the most toxic chemicals and modify the disinfection process to reduce their presence. The goal is to make good drinking water better.”

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant is a part of University of Illinois Extension and Purdue University Extension.

The Be Current Smart water safety campaign won an APEX Award of Excellence for  its social media effort last summer. At the heart of this award are the colorful graphics designed by IISG’s Joel Davenport. Communicator Anjanette Riley planned the social media promotion of the graphics on Facebook, Twitter and Google.

Be Current Smart is a collaborative Great Lakes project led by Michigan Sea Grant, Wisconsin Sea Grant and IISG. With funding from NOAA, Be Current Smart provided important safety and rescue equipment to beach managers and others in Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana. The project also included bringing together water safety experts and managers in the region and developing new outreach messages for beachgoers.

The IISG communication team led the social media component of this outreach effort, which included seven cartoon graphics with water safety tips. These graphics ran in most of the Great Lakes states and resulted in over 1.3 million impressions. This campaign is up and running again this summer on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. To see all the graphics and learn more about how to Be Current Smart, visit Michigan Sea Grant’s Dangerous Currents website.

Not all non-native plants and animals turn out to be invasive in a new environment. How can we predict whether a species poses a threat to local waters? If we could predict that, how can we make the best use of that information?

IISG and University of Notre Dame researchers set out to answer the first question by analyzing which traits help a species thrive in a new environment. They brought this data to an Indiana working group looking to proactively prevent the introduction of invasive plant species through water garden and aquarium retailing. The group of researchers, resource managers, retailers, and hobbyists created a risk assessment tool and their work led to 28 aquatic plants being banned in the state.

As a result of this work, Notre Dame’s David Lodge, and Reuben Keller, now with Loyola University Chicago, were funded through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to create risk assessment tools for all taxa in the Great Lakes, including crayfish, fish, mollusks, plants, and turtles. These tools can help decision makers establish consistent and comprehensive regulations focused on species that pose the biggest threat.

Meanwhile, IISG’s aquatic invasive species (AIS) team has been pulling out all the stops to distribute information that can help prevent the spread of AIS in trade—in other words, species that are bought and sold for water gardens, aquariums, and to a lesser extent, classrooms. Leading the effort as part of the Great Lakes Sea Grant Network, and informed by social science research from North Carolina State University, the specialists are targeting all levels of this AIS pathway—from retailers to hobbyists—and sharing information across the region through a variety of media.

The suite of tools contains publications for retailers and their customers that include lists of non-invaders as well as known or potential invaders. “Many of these resources are informed directly from the risk assessment findings,” said Pat Charlebois, AIS outreach coordinator.

Great Lakes Sea Grant programs and the Sea Grant Law Center are contributing their expertise. For example, Wisconsin Sea Grant created a training video for water garden retailers, and Ohio Sea Grant hosted a webinar for aquarium hobbyists. In addition to writing news articles, other programs helped craft non-technical versions of relevant state regulations to give retailers easy access to the information.

All of this work is raising awareness and potentially changing behavior. “Most of the retailers that have received materials about the risk of AIS have reported that they will distribute publications and talk with their customers about invasive species, and a majority will avoid selling them,” said Greg Hitzroth, IISG AIS outreach specialist.

You can find these resources and many more on the new website Aquatic Invaders in the Marketplace (AIM) or TakeAIM.org. AIM are aquatic plants and animals available for sale that can negatively impact ecosystems, economies, or public health. These organisms are commonly found in the live food, aquarium, pet, biological supply, live bait, water garden, and aquaculture industries.

This comprehensive resource provides a wealth of information for resource managers, retailers, hobbyists, aquatic farmers, and more on how to prevent the spread of AIS that can happen with plants and animals that come to new environments through the marketplace. The website includes links to regulations, lists of contacts and invasive species, and species prediction tools for the Great Lakes and beyond.

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant is a part of University of Illinois Extension.

Sophomores at Penn High School in Mishawaka, Indiana got to spend a school day in nature and take part in real science. Using an EPA monitoring tool, the hydrolab, and their own observations, the students provided data for a restoration project in Cobus Creek.

In early May, around 90 students visited six stations over the course of several hours, each with a different approach to thinking about nature, including looking up close at wildlife in the creek,  hiking the woods, and discussing ways to reduce waste.

The hydrolab came to this event through the efforts of science teacher John Gensic, who organized the field trip to Cobus Park. Gensic was one of 15 participants in the week-long shipboard teacher workshop on the R/V Lake Guardian on Lake Michigan last summer. There, he was introduced to the hydrolab, which is available for teachers to borrow for class monitoring projects.

The students made observations about the conditions of Cobus Creek to help with a monitoring project of the waterway. The St Joseph Basin Commission is funded through a grant from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources to describe current water quality trends and problems and prioritize restoration projects.

The students also got experience using the hydrolab to collect more data about the creek. The hydrolab measures Ph, temperature, depth, conductivity, and more.

The data collected by the hydrolab was reported to Jeremy Reiman, an environmental planner with the St. Joseph River Basin Commission. Reiman walked the students through the data collection process.

At another station, Kristin TePas and Allison Neubauer, both with IISG, raised the students’awareness about how long everyday products–from plastic bottle to disposable diapers–take to degrade in the environment. The students discussed how they might use fewer products, less often.

The students also learned about electrofishing from several Elkhart biologists who collected samples of fish and other creek wildlife to share with the students.

“This park is a real gem, and many of the students had never been here,” said Gensic. “This was also a great opportunity for them to take part in a real-world restoration project–to take part in something optimistic.”

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant is a part of University of Illinois Extension.