Great waste in the Great Lakes: How plastic pollution is clogging our waters By Michael Hawthorne | mhawthorne@chicagotribune.com | Chicago Tribune PUBLISHED: May 29, 2026 at 5:00 AM CDT

Great waste in the Great Lakes: How plastic pollution is clogging our waters By Michael Hawthorne | mhawthorne@chicagotribune.com | Chicago Tribune PUBLISHED: May 29, 2026 at 5:00 AM CDT https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/05/29/great-lakes-plastic-pollution/?lctg=A453547515C26451D5A3E471AE&utm_email=A453547515C26451D5A3E471AE&active=no&utm_source=listrak&utm_medium=email&utm_term=https%3a%2f%2fwww.chicagotribune.com%2f2026%2f05%2f29%2fgreat-lakes-plastic-pollution%2f&utm_campaign=trib-chicago_tribune-daywatch-nl&utm_content=curated More than 40 million people in the United States and Canada depend on the Great Lakes for drinking water. Each glass of treated lake water is laden with tiny bits of plastic — microplastics — made of toxic chemicals linked to cancer and other diseases. Also contaminated are fish, staples of Midwestern fish fries and fish boils, and an important part of the diet of Indigenous tribes, certain immigrant populations and communities of color. Yet this pollution isn’t regulated, and manufacturers are moving to dramatically increase the amount of plastics produced in the United States.