Great Lakes Echo (http://greatlakesecho.org/tag/capital-news-service/)
A new study by Michigan State University shows an increase in doctor visits for shortness of breath among long-term sand and gravel mine workers in Michigan, compared to the rate for production workers in other industries. The state has more than 3,500 surface miners, 1,207 of whom voluntarily participated in the study.
The Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) was reinstated earlier this year and reimburses farmers for following proper conservation practices. To be eligible for the program, land must have a cropping history, or planting history, of four out of six years between 2012-17 and have been owned at least one year prior to applying.
Public transit agencies in Michigan are facing post-pandemic ridership and staffing shortages. The Michigan Public Transit Association launched ad campaigns in February to address those needs and has seen many great responses, especially on social media, but the association’s members still face hardships, and no one knows if they’ll get all of their riders back.
Michigan watersheds are still wracked with pollution from decades ago, along with new runoff. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s MI Healthy Climate Plan would make preserving land and water a statewide priority.
Fifteen businesses, including Ford Motor Co., General Mills, General Motors and two West Michigan microbreweries, have written to Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in support of her administration’s carbon neutrality goals.
Coastal restoration efforts are underway across the state as recipients of the Michigan Coastal Management Program grants begin work locally. Seventeen awards totaling more than $1.1 million will fund projects and initiatives to protect, preserve and enhance the state’s coastal resources.
A recently launched bridge bundling program by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) is expected to repair up to 78 locally owned bridges that are in serious or critical condition. The repaired bridges could last up to 50 years before needing to be fixed again and could potentially last even longer with maintenance project.
Dangerous metals such as arsenic and mercury have been found in wild rice beds located on the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community reservation and surrounding areas, according to research from Michigan Technological University scientists and their associates.
Although flying cars aren’t currently in the sky, they could be very soon. Michigan legislators have introduced bills that would establish an “Advanced Air Mobility Study Committee” to review current laws that affect the aeronautics industry.
After a two-year hiatus, Great Lakes cruise ships are back, and the industry is trying to prepare itself. Cruise companies will start expeditions in May and end them in October.