The Great Lakes ecosystems are dying a slow and painful death. Lax enforcement of the Clean Water Act is causing the lakes to regress to pollution levels not seen since the 1960s, say environmentalists. A �dead zone� has reemerged in Lake Erie. The lakes had 2,980 days of beach closings and advisories in 2004, climbing 737% since 2000. The states bordering the lakes are scrambling to save the ecosystems that create an annual economic boon of $15 billion in tourist dollars alone.
�The Lakes are starting to see an ecological breakdown at the largest levels,� says Andy Buchsbaum, director of the Great Lakes� office of the National Wildlife Federation. Ecosystems are failing in areas where the contamination levels are far lower than the historical failure threshold. �The Lakes seem to be losing their resiliency,� he says.