Great Lakes Echo (https://greatlakesecho.org/author/capital-news-service/page/28/)
Capital News Service is a wire service at Michigan State University covering state government - issues and personalities.
Michigan lawmakers want a Nevada disposal site to start accepting nuclear waste.
The state’s waste from nuclear power plants is now stored on-site, although ratepayers have paid $760 million toward a proposed national repository.
Optimistic plans for biomass plants in the state are largely on hold, leaving the expansion of a highly publicized renewable energy source up in the air.
Proposals to add to the existing seven commercial biomass plants have faced problems ranging from public backlash to funding to concerns about fuel supplies.
As the U.S. Forest Service considers banning snowmobiling and firearm hunting in 70,000 acres of the Huron-Manistee National Forest, one study found they produce considerable economic impact.
Legislation to formally recognize a long-standing farm environmental improvement program is well on its way to Gov. Rick Snyder’s desk for approval.
Climate change impacts songbird breeding and distribution patterns and could potentially lead to health problems in birds. Birds now migrate north earlier and south later. They might also arrive too early or too late to feed on hatching insects due to changes in climate.
Sustainable communities will be a hot topic in the next 50 years, according to a coalition of environmental groups.
That movement will include activities such as the East Stadium Bridges Improvement Project in Ann Arbor, a new master plan in Grand Traverse County and a job training plan in Southeast Michigan.
The long-term vision outlined by the Michigan Environmental Council includes energy, water, great cities, sustainable communities, transportation, agriculture and natural resources.
As the state’s agricultural sector continues to grow, so does the need for young farmers, according to the Michigan Farm Bureau.
While the average age of the state’s farmers was about 54 in 2007, the Department of Agriculture believes that number is currently higher.
A proposal to bring wireless Internet service to state parks to boost tourism appears far from certain.
Broadband service could promote agri-tourism to golf courses, fishing docks and state parks.
LANSING – State and federal agencies, conservation groups and residents have been teaming up to increase the amount of environmentally important land protected in Michigan.
Securing development rights is gaining popularity as it’s cheaper than purchasing land outright to preserve it.
New information about sand dunes along Lake Michigan is expected to improve protection of archeological sites, researchers and planners say.