• Quantify the economic benefits of contaminant clean-up for
  communities adjacent to Great Lakes Areas of Concern (AOC)
• Educate the public and elected officials about the economic benefits of clean-up

This project will evaluate the impacts of microplastics, in combination with a common environmental estrogen (17-alpha ethinyl estradiol) on critical early life stages of a model species, the fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas). Specifically, these data will seek to fill knowledge gaps in three areas; (i) the impacts of microplastics on fish at early life stages; (ii) the potential for transgenerational and multigenerational effects of exposure; and (iii) the effects of multiple environmental stressors on individuals. 

• Identify specific radicals and other reactive species that are photochemically generated in water bodies of the Calumet Watershed
• Quantify the rates of generation of such species
• Relate the rates of active species generation to the water composition
• Develop a general protocol for carrying out such studies
• Develop a predictive model for the observed phenomena
• Identify implications and impacts of the findings

The objectives of this project are:

• To develop optimal in vitro methodology for Asian carp muscle hydrolysis using largemouth bass (LMB) endogenous digestive enzymes obtained from adult LMB.
• To evaluate the effect of Asian carp muscle protein hydrolysates obtained using methodology in Objective 1 as a first feed for larval LMB.

• Calculate the loads of 17α- and 17β-estradiol, estrone, and estriol, nitrate, and dissolved reactive phosphorus exported from a subsurface tile drain and a receiving ditch
• Compare the export dynamics of nutrients and hormones in response to animal waste applications
• Assess the potential for nutrient best management practices (e.g., no-till, buffer strips, wetlands, etc.) to reduce hormone export from tile-drained agroecosystems

• Determine the existing and near-term (5-10 years) market for striped bass species in the Midwest region of the US for food consumption
• Analyze the competitive advantages of rearing a euthyhaline species (Striped Bass) in Illinois/Midwest using regional saline water resources
• Locate appropriate saline water resources in Illinois and examine water quality for compatibility with striped bass production