Good news out of Wisconsin this week. The state’s Supreme Court has refused to hear an appeal of a lower court ruling blocking the sale of Lake Superior water. A proposal to turn artesian groundwater that feeds Lake Superior in northern Wisconsin into a product for sale ran head-on into the law, the community, a …
Of all the startling events taking place in national governance, the one getting the least attention, I believe, is that no president since Grover Cleveland has returned to the presidency after being ousted in a re-election try. I hope the return of this one does not result in a retreat to the environmental policies of …
A long time ago, in what seems like a different lifetime, I took somebody else’s idea and ran with it. The result, after much discussion and amendment and under the leadership of Governor James Blanchard, was the creation of the Office of the Great Lakes in what was then the Department of Natural Resources. The …
You probably don’t know it, but in early June, Michigan observed Great Lakes and Freshwater Awareness Week. It’s certainly appropriate. Michigan has an astounding array of waters. As Governor Whitmer said in her proclamation, “during this week, we encourage Michiganders to learn more about the unique wonders of our Great Lakes and freshwater resources that are …
Give the U.S. EPA and its Canadian counterpart points for recycling. When they released the 2022 State of the Great Lakes report in July, they offered the same characterization as in previous reports: overall, the Great Lakes are fair and unchanging. Merriam-Webster defines “fair” as ‘not very good or very bad: of average or acceptable …
It will be an honor to appear on the same stage as renowned author Jerry Dennis as part of the National Writers Series in Traverse City on August 25 at 7 p.m. Jerry is a local favorite as well as nationally prominent for his perceptive and lyrical prose about fishing, nature in general and the …
I recently posted a survey on both Twitter and Facebook asking followers and friends to name their favorite Great Lake and to explain their allegiance. The answers were both quantitative and qualitative. The quantitative results came from a Twitter poll. Because Twitter offers only four options for a poll, I chose to leave out Lake …
As October begins this week, the first of many 50th environmental anniversaries is soon to take place. It’s a good time to remember — and celebrate where possible. Less than four months after Cleveland’s Cuyahoga River infamously caught fire on June 22, 1969, Michigan’s Rouge River broke out in flames in October 1969. “The oil-matted …