Echo
Guardian program starts for Ontario farmer suicide prevention
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In a move to reduce farmer suicides, a new program will train “guardians” in Ontario to recognize suicidal tendencies and mental illnesses.
Echo
Legislative fixes to Michigan’s drain code stir controversy
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A proposed plan to revamp how Michigan manages water problems would give drain commissioners authority across county lines.
Echo
Cottage food producers want income cap raised
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Cottage food producers in Michigan are asking for more leeway in the laws to do business. Proposed legislation would raise the $25,000 cap on gross annual income, allow third-party delivery systems and change the requirement that home addresses be placed on each label.
Capital News Service
A soil breakthrough plants hope in city rooftops
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Researchers at University of Toronto have discovered a new way to boost plant growth in rooftop gardens using granulated biochar.
Echo
Study nudges college students to eat more fruits, veggies
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Underconsumption of fruits and vegetables is a universal problem. However, a study from the University of Guelph in Ontario introduces a new technique called “nudging” to increase fruit and vegetable consumption in its students.
Echo
‘Best before’ dates may be on the chopping block in Canadian stores
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There is a misconception that food is unsafe to consume after the “best before” date has passed. Eliminating these dates or changing the way consumers think about them, can help reduce food waste.
Books
Novel set in Ontario examines Great Lakes nuclear waste
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In her debut novel, “King of Hope,” Michigan native Kim Conklin writes about a small community in southern Ontario facing the looming threat of environmental disaster. That threat comes in the form of nuclear waste and willfully ignorant officials.
Echo
Belle Isle study lights way for savings
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The installation of a state-of-the-art street lighting system on Belle Isle – located on the Michigan side of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario – was a major step forward in saving energy and electricity while improving safety for visitors. Now five years later, a new study says computer optimization modeling could lead to even further savings and other benefits, such as fewer crashes, for communities that upgrade their street light systems.
Echo
Tracking trail trees: Looking for horizontal shapes in a vertical world
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Native Americans once bent saplings to grow into directional markers. They signaled such things as where to cross a river and where to enter and exit trails. There are likely only a few hundred original trail trees left in the Great Lakes area. Some are over 200 years old.
Echo
More Michigan communities strive to become age-friendly
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Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in June approved a plan to make the state age-friendly. It focuses on communication and information, respect and social inclusion, health services and community support, social participation and transportation.