Great Lakes Echo (https://greatlakesecho.org/author/keweir/page/22/)
(MI) Ann Arbor.com – Electricity customers in the Ann Arbor region will receive an infusion of “smart grid” technology for their power-monitoring equipment within five years. Detroit-based DTE Energy today landed an $83.8 million grant to accelerate expansion of its SmartCurrents program, which involves installing various high-tech power monitoring technologies to replace outdated analog meters. More
(MI) The Mudpuppy – The Interstate Renewable Energy Council has posted a report on small wind in Michigan and other parts of the United States. If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you’re probably familiar with hurdles that the technology has been facing in the Saginaw Valley area. Those hurdles include restrictive zoning laws and a lack of support from some local government officials. There are similar problems across the state. More
(MI) Traverse City Record-Eagle – Some officials expect Gov. Jennifer Granholm to line-item veto funding for Michigan State University’s research and extension offices. “I think it’s a safe assumption,” said Patrick Cudney, north region director of MSU Extension. The state allocates $64 million a year to MSU Extension and Michigan Agricultural Experimental Station. But October’s payment was $5 million short, and no one seems to know why. More
(MI) The Holland Sentinel – A controversial farm animal welfare bill signed into law this month by Gov. Jennifer Granholm has left some local farmers wondering how they will survive after implementing the law’s new requirements. The law requires that farm animals confined to cages have enough room to turn around and fully extend their limbs. More
(ON) The Toronto Star – Tiny nano-crystals derived from forest-industry wood waste are added to car paint. They make the coating more resistant to scratches, chips and sunlight. Changing their alignment alters their colour, without toxic dyes or pigments. The technology, being developed in Ontario, is at least several years away. But it’s part of a new industry that promises jobs here and greener vehicles around the world.
(NY) The New York Times – According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, feeding humanity in 2050 – when the world’s population is expected to be 9.1 billion – will require a 70 percent increase in global food production, partly because of population growth but also because of rising incomes. The organization hopes that this increase can be brought about by greater productivity on current agricultural acreage and by greening parts of the world that aren’t now arable. It is also “cautiously optimistic” that, even with climate change, there will be enough land and probably enough water to do so. It’s important to look at this projection in light of another United Nations goal – preserving biodiversity – and ask whether the two are compatible. More
(WI) Milwaukee Journal Sentinel – Even a hint of water scarcity is enough to drive a brewer to drink. “Simply put, beer is 92% water,” said Wisconsin Commerce Secretary Richard Leinenkugel, who hails from one of the nation’s oldest breweries, the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co. Water scarcity rapidly is becoming a concern for brewers as water supplies tighten in regions as diverse as Atlanta, southern California and Waukesha, making water an ever-more precious and pricey commodity. More
(IN) Indiana University – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded Indiana University a $5 million grant to continue a project that measures levels of airborne toxic chemicals being deposited in the Great Lakes. The Integrated Atmospheric Deposition Network (IADN) project is led at IU by Ronald Hites, Distinguished Professor, and by Ilora Basu, a research scientist in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs. The project began in 1990 under an agreement between the U.S. EPA and Environment Canada. Indiana University has been in charge of the U.S. portion of the study since 1994. The grant announced today continues the project for five years.
(ON) The Standard – Niagara’s portion of the Great Lakes got just a bit greater Saturday. The federal government gave a $326,000 financial boost for seven ‘areas of concern’ in Niagara as part of Environment Canada’s Great Lakes Sustainability Fund. The money will go towards habitat improvement, cleaner water, and other issues identified by biologists, technicians and trained volunteers. “We can’t forget the Great Lakes,” said Niagara Falls MP Rob Nicholson during the announcement at Table Rock. “They are a crucial eco system that contains 20 percent of the world’s fresh water supply.” More
(MI) The Mudpuppy – Almost every time there’s a post on Mlive about climate change or global warming, one or more people usually chime in about “global cooling.” The Associated Press also has heard the talk about global cooling, it seems, and has done some checking. Not true, folks. More