Meet the blogger
Jeff Alexander
My life, in 60 seconds
I grew up in suburban Los Angeles. Moved to Michigan to play college hockey. What? Seriously. Hockey didn't work out. Settled on journalism. Met girl of my dreams (now wife) while in college. Encountered the wondrous Great Lakes. Never returned to California. Blessed with three wonderful children. Worked as a reporter and editor for 25 years at several Michigan newspapers. Wrote two books. Left the newspaper industry in 2009. Started my own writing and media consulting business (J. Alexander Communications). Now a contract writer for hire. I enjoy kayaking, hiking, reading, watching pro hockey and college football, traveling, exploring the Great Lakes and occasionally trying to rise above the rank of world's worst angler. And I blog about the Great Lakes because these freshwater seas are, in a word, incredible. Thanks for visiting!
Author Archives: jalexander8288
Growing concern about Great Lakes nuclear hot spots
Two recent news items should give pause to anyone who loves the Great Lakes and the 30 million people who rely on the lakes for drinking water. Great Lakes United and the International Institute of Concern for Public Health released … Continue reading
Taking stock of the Great Lakes on Earth Day 2013
In honor of Earth Day, I thought it appropriate to explore the current state of the Great Lakes — the good, bad and ugly. The lakes today are far healthier than in 1972, when Congress passed the federal Clean Water Act. … Continue reading
Asian Carp Doomsday Clock nears midnight after study suggests some of the invaders are in the Great Lakes
Some Asian carp are likely living in southern Lake Michigan and western Lake Erie, according to scientists at the University of Notre Dame. Researchers recently announced that they found more Asian carp DNA in western Lake Erie and southern Lake Michigan. The … Continue reading
Nonprofit wins Pulitzer for Kalamazoo River oil spill coverage
The nonprofit news organization Inside Climate News won journalism’s top prize, the Pulitzer Prize, on April 15 for its coverage of the 2010 Kalamazoo River oil spill and subsequent articles that exposed serious problems in the nation’s oil pipelines. The online … Continue reading
Rivers recover as Michigan steps up pace of dam removals
The state of Michigan is making strides in restoring rivers by removing obsolete and dangerous dams. I wrote about the issue for an online magazine called Bridge. You can read the article here. There are about 2,500 dams in Michigan … Continue reading
BBC produces amazing video of flying Asian carp
Leave it to the BBC, one of the world’s great news organizations, to produce an incredible video of Asian carp leaping in the air. The secret: High speed video coupled with ominous sounding music. The result is a video that … Continue reading
Good news: Bald eaglets return to north shore of Lake Ontario
Here’s a bit of good news that will brighten a gray spring day in the Great Lakes region: Baby bald eagles recently hatched for the first time in decades along the north shore of Lake Ontario. The bald eagle population … Continue reading
Ferry allowed to pollute Lake Michigan for 2 more years
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Friday that the coal-fired Lake Michigan ferry SS Badger will be allowed to operate — and continue dumping coal ash into Lake Michigan — for two more years. The Badger, which sails between Ludington, … Continue reading
Some moments of nature from the Great Lakes
Lately I’ve been writing about a lot of the problems facing the Great Lakes. So I’m taking a brief respite to point out a few of my favorites photos from the Great Lakes region. It’s important that we fight to … Continue reading
Lake Erie’s toxic algae nightmare is national news … again
Poor Lake Erie: The Rodney Dangerfield of the Great Lakes just can’t get a break. Time magazine declared Lake Erie declared dead in the 1960s, when the lake was actually too alive with algae. Sadly, the algae blooms that made … Continue reading
