Great Lakes Echo (https://greatlakesecho.org/author/capital-news-service/page/32/)
Capital News Service is a wire service at Michigan State University covering state government - issues and personalities.
Train ridership has reached all-time highs and President Barack Obama has proposed a big boost in federal aid to transportation. Advocates want more direct routes, an increase in the frequency of trains and schedules that better accommodate business travelers. They say paying for public transportation is far cheaper than expanding and maintaining highways.
Native American tribes in the Northern Lower Peninsula and Upper Peninsula are seeking to develop renewable energy, but a lack of money is impeding many projects, experts say.
Michigan tribes have a potential for wind energy and wood-based biomass, said Roger Taylor, the principal project manager of the Tribal Energy Program.
As rainfall in Michigan gets increasingly severe and erratic, fertilizer prices skyrocket and concern grows over the environmental impact of agricultural run-off, many farmers are returning to an old technique.
Water quality advocates are fighting legislation that would let voter-approved bond money be used for brownfield cleanup rather than water infrastructure improvement.
The money is on hand because Michigan voters in 2002 approved $1 billion in loans to improve water quality.
Despite its reputation for gray skies, clouds and rough winters, Michigan may begin to rely more heavily on solar power to meet its electricity demands, some energy experts say.
A shortage of trained fire officers in Michigan is reducing the capacity to fight and prevent forest fires on state land, according to a state official.
New research from the Department of Agriculture (MDA) and Michigan State University suggests there’s a growing viral threat to blueberry plants in the state: blueberry shock and scorch.
Oakland and Macomb counties are getting a little greener with federal money for energy-based projects under the Obama administration’s stimulus program.
Sixty-one communities received grants from the Department of Energy, most in the southeast part of the state. Among them are projects to manufacture wind turbines, generate electricity from wastewater sludge and install solar shingles.
Michigan’s got a big pig problem, and nobody wants to take the blame.
The presence of feral pigs has been widely reported in the media.
Legislators from Detroit and Greenville have teamed up in an effort to ease restrictions on Detroit under the state farming laws.