Echo

Community group gets $16,310 to plant trees along St. Lawrence Seaway

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A community-based conservation group has received a $16,310 grant to plant native trees and other vegetation along a stretch of the St. Lawrence Seaway near Cornwall, Ontario, according to the Seaway News. The vegetation is to help restore natural riverbank habitat, which provides food and cover for wildlife. The Raisin Region Conservation Authority received the grant from the Great Lakes Guardian Community fund, which is operated by the province’s Ministry of the Environment. The fund gives out grants to community associations and other groups every year, including grants to the Toronto Zoo and the Walpole Island First Nation tribe.

Echo

Report grades Great Lakes states’ water efficiency

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A report grading water efficiency gives the Great Lakes states some low marks. Wisconsin scored the highest in the region with a B-. Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania were tied for the lowest grade with a D.

Wisconsin got high marks for availability of technical assistance and for water conservation planning, according to the Alliance for Water Efficiency, a non-profit group, and the Environmental Law Institute, a legal consulting firm. “Wisconsin represents how water conservation planning can vary by source,” the report said. “Wisconsin has one generally applicable planning process for public water suppliers, and another planning process only applicable to large withdrawers from the Great Lakes Basin.”

The report also showed dryer, southwestern states with higher grades than the national average, C. Perhaps dry states are more efficient because they must make due with less.

Water

Coast Guardsman writes children’s books about Great Lakes adventures

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A U.S. Coast Guardsman stationed in Buffalo wrote a children’s book about his adventures on the Straits of Mackinacas seen through the eyes of an adopted dog, Onyx. Petty Officer 1st Class Tyler Benson began writing the book from his original home in St. Ignace, Mich. because his three daughters would often ask why he would be gone for days, according to this story from WGRZ news in Buffalo. His family now lives in Buffalo where the book has been published.

Land

Flint River Farm documentary premiere

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It spotlights the efforts of two urban farmers fighting to develop a food community in Flint. The Michigan State University production includes video recorded by the farmers themselves as they navigate the hurdles that come with pioneering work.

Echo

Great Lakes states have some of the most coal plants bad for minority health

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Illinois has the most coal plants in the nation that disproportionately threaten the health of poor people and minority communities, according to a recent report by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. The state had nine plants that received a failing grade from the organization. Indiana and Michigan had the second most plants, with five each, that failed the organization’s test. “Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin and Ohio – are home to 32 percent of the failing coal-fired power plants in the U.S.,” said the report. “In addition, eight of the 12 worst offending coal plants are located in communities in these states.”

People living near coal plants are more likely to be minorities and poor, so they are more often exposed to pollutants that damage their health, said the Daily Climate, a news service run by the non-profit Environmental Health Sciences.

Echo

Bill may increase energy competitiveness

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The federal Master Limited Partnerships Parity Act would give renewable energy companies some of the tax and funding advantages fossil fuel companies enjoy. Advocates say that giving energy sources the same advantages improves competition and the economy.

Echo

Video details Great Lakes governors’ protection efforts

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A video featuring former governors, scientists and policy experts details projects financed by the Great Lakes Protection Fund. The fund has committed more than $63.9 million to 245 projects to advance conservation, produce sustainable technologies and restore ecosystems in an economically viable way. It was endowed in 1989 by former Great Lakes governors with an $81 million contribution of public funds. About $4 million a year is spent on projects, which are funded by the interest off the endowment, said Amy Elledge, communications director for the fund. Featured projects include scientists designing ballast filters and policy experts discussing ways to make sustainability marketable.

Echo

Interactive map shows cities’ drinking water sources

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An interactive map shows users where different communities draw their drinking water. It works by zooming in on selected areas whereby clicking on a city shows descriptions of its water sources. For example, Lansing, Mich. draws much of its water from 124 wells tapping an underground aquifer. Fort Wayne, Ind.