From the siting of ethanol plants based on available aquifers in Southwest Minnesota to the danger of bottling the Great Lakes that grace our Northeast corner, we need statewide conversations about how we use our water - on going and in multiple arenas.  We’ve been engaged the last few years now in the important work of protecting and restoring our lakes and rivers.  And we still have a ways to go to create a true Clean Water Legacy.  But we also need to be talking about our drinking water.  That’s one of the main reasons I am happy to see In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre poised to launch a new effort dedicated to water. 

On Friday, they premiere their new show “Invigorate the Common Well: Come to the Well.”  Come to the Well is just part one of a multi-year initiative in the works.  I was fortunate enough to see a preview this morning and I encourage you to see the show.  I really couldn’t do it justice to try to describe the work, so here is how they express it:

“Grounded in the science — yet flowing with the spirit — of Water, Invigorate the Common Well is a theatrical and civic experience that will inform and inspire all ages to stewardship and action…Each episode features mini-performances, installations and a hands-on “lab” of practical actions and questions, as well as ideas for community advocacy.”

They will be having shows Thursdays thru Sundays in March.  You can see their schedule, order tickets, and find more information with this link. 

After last week’s busyness, I’ve been thinking of this week as being kind of slow at the capitol, but it definitely is not.  Here are some of the things happening this week:
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As the biggest winter storm in years swoops down on parts of the Upper Midwest, I can’t help but think of an 18 by 24 foot island of summer that’s confounding the weather forecast by producing fresh, green vegetables for 15 families.

Carol Ford and Chuck Waibel have developed a passive solar greenhouse on the side of their garage in the western Minnesota farm town of Milan. It’s low-tech, but, as the Ear to the Ground No. 29 podcast featuring Ford shows, the thinking that went into the greenhouse is anything but simplistic. They have combined engineering, thermodynamics and innovative organic vegetable production techniques to create a winter garden amidst thousands of acres of frozen corn and soybean fields. (more…)

I wasn’t kidding when I said that this would be a busy week.  In addition to all the bill hearings (for outcomes, see John Tuma’s update this week) and a stellar Citizens Day, we had two bill signings.  It is quite impressive that two of the first three bills passed this year by the legislature have been on the environment (and part of the collaborative Protect Our Great Outdoors initiative).  To boot, I spent yesterday in Milwaukee with advocates from all of the Great Lakes states who are working to pass the Compact in their state.  They were quite happy that Minnesota has taken action and the race is on for the silver medal.

Speaking of the Compact, here are a couple of photos from the bill signing that occurred on Tuesday: (more…)

Here is this week’s update from MEP’s man at the Capitol, John Tuma:

What a Big Week
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A bill introduced yesterday in California’s Legislative Assembly hopes to find out. The bill–AB 722, literally titled, “How Many Legislators Does it Take to Change a Lightbulb”–is authored by Assemblyman Lloyd Levine (D-Van Nuys) and would make the state the first to ban sales of incandescent light bulbs by 2012. Though compact fluorescent (CF) bulbs (incandescents’ more efficient counterparts) cost several times more than a traditional bulb, they are up to 75 percent more efficient and last up to ten times longer. According to the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, replacing a bulb that is run 4-8 hours a day could save $38-$72 over five years. And regular readers here know those savings also translate to cleaner air, cleaner water, and a more secure and healthy climate. Moreover, for Minnesota, where the generation of almost a third of our state’s largest utility’s electricity impacts Native lands (nuclear power and large-scale hydro), using energy in smarter, more efficient ways also means less impact on communities of color that disproportionately bear the impact of electricity generation and global warming consequences.

To be sure, efficiency is only one “wedge” in the diverse, sensible strategies needed to slow global warming, and switching to CF bulbs is itself only a portion of the “energy efficiency” wedge. Even CEOs of major energy companies acknowledge that some kind of carbon regulation is ultimately necessary to tackle global warming. But for those who feel the urgency of the global warming problem or simply seek innovative, modern, and efficient energy solutions to light their homes, an investment in CF bulbs are an easy first step. And while making the CF switch is now largely an action driven by individual consumers, the California bill offers this promising idea a prominent home in public policy as well.

There is a lot happening this week to help protect and restore Minnesota’s environment.  Here are some highlights:

Great Lakes Compact
There will be a bill signing for the endorsement of the Great Lakes Compact tomorrow (Tuesday) at 11:45 a.m. in Duluth.

Renewable Electricity
The House will be voting on the Renewable Electricity Standard (SF4) tonight during a floor session that starts at 6 p.m.  If passed unamended, it will be headed to the Governor’s desk.

Biofuels
The Clean Energy Minnesota biofuels legislation has hearings in the House and Senate ag policy committees today and tomorrow, respectively. 

Global Warming
The Senate Energy policy committee will be discussing global warming on Tuesday and Thursday

Citizens Day at the Capitol
Bus loads of Minnesotans, literally, are coming to the capitol on Wednesday to help Protect Our Great Outdoors.  Trainings occur in the morning, then there’s a rally at noon in the Capitol Rotunda and meeting between legislators and constituents following that. 

Electronics Waste
You can’t throw away your old TVs and computer monitors in the trash anymore - because they are full of heavy metals and they’re not good to landfill.  Since the ban came into being last July, Minnesota counties have faced an increased burden from the mounting waste. And it’ll only get worse from here.  Enter in then the legislation to create a better system in Minnesota for recycling e-waste.   Once implemented, the manufactures of certain electronics would be responsible for recycling the same amount of e-waste as they sold the year before - as measured by weight.  So, if they sell a thousand pounds this year, they have to recycle a thousand pounds next year.  This has the nice incentive of rewarding manufactures who reduce the amount of heavy metals like lead that they use in products. This legislation gets its first hearing on Wednesday in the Senate environment policy committee.

It’s hard to believe that lobbyists outside of the environmental community are calling this a slow year so far.

Four key bills related to sustainable agriculture were passed during two days of hearings earlier this week. The hearings, which were held by Rep. Mary Ellen Otremba, Chair of the Agriculture, Rural Economies and Veterans Affairs Committee, are an important sign that legislators are recognizing the growing importance of sustainable/organic agriculture as one of the fastest growing sectors in farming today. The bills that came out of those hearings are icing on the environmenally-friendly farming cake. If they are eventually signed into law, Minnesota will send an important message to farmers and the general citizenry: sustainable agriculture is a public good, and therefore deserves public support. (more…)

This week’s update from John Tuma:

Celebrating Valentines Day and Energy
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Minnesotans can proudly preen our loon tail feathers from time to time and rightfully so. The recent passage of the RES by the Minnesota Senate and the stellar work being done collectively by Clean Energy Minnesota cuts through the complicated nonsense that often surrounds energy policy. Like our beloved loon teaching hatchlings to fly, Minnesota continues to provide much-needed leadership to the region and the nation.

But fellow birders (and energy activists) should take note of the majestic Hawkeyes to the south. With the leadership being provided by the Iowa Environmental Council and her members–particularly in pushing for a statewide Midwest Greenhouse Gas Initiative that is steadily gaining momentum–we’ve got a next-door neighbor providing some serious regional energy policy leadership. That’s just fine. We need all the help we can get to fly.

Even if we do have the prettier plumage.