Great Lakes Echo (https://greatlakesecho.org/2009/05/page/9/)
(IL) Chicago Tribune – Environmental groups are raising concerns about the restoration of Miller Meadow, contending that the site poses hazards to visitors and the environment. Specifically, they are concerned about numerous shards of broken concrete, glass, brick and metal pipes that are scattered across the site — and the erosion that is carrying debris and gray sludge, used to promote vegetation, toward the nearby Des Plaines River. More
(NY) The New York Times – Why, after decades of battling, complaining and maneuvering over fuel economy standards, did carmakers fall in line behind the tough new nationwide mileage standard President Obama announced Tuesday? Because they had no choice. The auto industry is flat on its back, with Chrysler in bankruptcy, General Motors close to it, and both companies taking billions of dollars in federal money. Foreign automakers are getting help from their own governments. Climate change legislation is barreling down the track, and Congress showed last fall that it had no appetite to side with Detroit any more.
(MI) Detroit Free Press – A group of 178 Michigan scientists from 11 universities have signed a letter backing legislation that would set up a national cap and trade system to curb greenhouse gases. The legislation is under discussion today in the U.S. House Energy and Commerce committee. More
(MI) Detroit Free Press – Adam Rhein trudged through a murky branch of Stoney Creek in Washington Township in chest-high rubber waders on Tuesday and lowered a long net into the gentle water. Rhein and more than a dozen other juniors from Romeo High School joined the council’s effort to collaborate with communities, schools and businesses in order to test for pollution in the river and more than 1,000 miles of creeks. The rivers and streams meander through Oakland and Macomb counties then spill into Lake St. Clair, a major source of drinking water and recreation. More
(ON) The Toronto Star – A magnetic formation running deep beneath Toronto might explain why songbirds head straight here on their spring migration. Instead of skirting Canada’s largest city, chirping birds by the tens of thousands hone in on the place as though following a compass. “For some reason Toronto attracts birds,” says Ralph Toninger, manager of Tommy Thompson Park, jutting into Lake Ontario south of downtown from Leslie St. More
(MI) Detroit Free Press – Ever wondered what it takes to open up a park, ever wondered why close a park? Well, Isle Royale National Park in Lake Superior, which is 70 miles from its mainland headquarters in Houghton, is closed to visitors from Nov. 1 to May 1 every year. This is due to the isolation factor and the severe weather and lake conditions during the long winters, which make it virtually inaccessible. The only exception is for scientists and park staff who participate in the wolf-moose study, which takes place annually from January through early March.
(MN) Duluth News Tribune – In 2005, a coalition of Midwestern corn growers, giant agribusinesses, environmental groups and politicians anxious to assuage public concern over dependence on foreign oil joined together to mandate the addition of ever increasing amounts of ethanol to our gasoline. This was never a good idea, but we now know it is even worse than we imagined as we’ve learned more about its impact on our environment, our transportation infrastructure and our economy. More
By Jeff Gillies, gilliesj@msu.edu
Great Lakes Echo
May 19, 2009
In the alphabet soup of Great Lakes contaminants, PCBs, PCDDs and PBDEs usually rule the broth. But in a recent study, Canadian scientists took a closer look at another noodle. They examined a group of seldom-studied, dioxin-like contaminants called polychlorinated naphthalenes, or PCNs. These chemicals can have toxic effects including chloracne and liver damage. And although industry abandoned their use 30 years ago, the researchers still found the chemicals in lake trout collected from Lake Ontario from 1979 and 2004.
(MI) The Detroit News – Federal officials dealt a setback to opponents of a proposed nickel mine in the Upper Peninsula Monday by declining to place a trout species that spawns in the area on the endangered species list. Conservation groups looking to block Kennecott Minerals Inc. from mining 160 acres of state land near Marquette had hoped the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would designate the Coaster Brook Trout for federal protection. That designation may have forced Kennecott to revise its permit applications seeking state approval for the project. But three years after the Sierra Club and Huron Mountain Club petitioned for the trout to receive endangered species status, the federal government announced Monday it would not do so. More
(NY) The New York Times – President Barack Obama wants drivers to go farther on a gallon of gas and cause less damage to the environment — and be willing to pick up the tab. Obama on Tuesday planned to announce the first-ever national emissions limits for cars and trucks, as well as require a 35.5 miles per gallon standard. Consumers should expect to pay an extra $1,300 per vehicle by the time the plan is complete in 2016, officials said. More