The Legislative Citizens Committee on Minnesota Resources has resumed a full schedule and things have been busy as of late. (more…)

The dog days of summer are in full cry, nipping at the sweaty heels of a crabby populance. It’s good to remember at times like this that the Upper Midwest doesn’t always resemble a sauna at the New Orleans Y. Like last January, when I visited a southeast Minnesota farm on a high ridge above the Mississippi River. The mercury read 7 above zero, and a harsh wind sent the real temperature well into negative territory. But food was being produced on that farm, even under such harsh conditions. And it’s being produced there today, under harsh conditions on the other end of the spectrum. That food is being produced by young people who are using sustainable, environmentally-friendly methods that don’t rely on intense inputs of energy and other resources. Industrial agriculture doesn’t want you to think that your pantry can be stocked by such farms. The world is a dangerous place, and thus our food must be produced using dangerous methods, goes the industrial way of thinking. Well, the CEOs at Big Ag Incorporated need to get out of their climate-controlled offices and get a glimpse at real farming. While they are at it, they can sign up for the 2007-2008 edition of the Land Stewardship Project’s Farm Beginnings course before the Aug. 30 deadline. How’s that for a transition from talking about the weather to nakedly promoting a beginning farmer program? Lame, I know. Blame it on the humidity. (more…)

Today’s topics: 3M chemicals, Agriculture, Atrazine, Development, Energy, Great Lakes, Health, Off-Highway Vehicles, Trails, Transportation, Water, and Wetlands.
(more…)

by Michael Noble, executive director, Fresh Energy

The United States Senate is on the verge of passing the most important energy legislation in decades, with emphasis on real action on global warming and reduced reliance on foreign oil. By Friday June 22, the outlines of final legislation may be clear, but at least four hot button issues are not resolved as of Wednesday. Fortune’s CNNMoney.com summaries the battle royal in its Tuesday edition. Like in Minnesota in 2007, maybe the tipping point has been reached, and old logjams can be cleared away. (more…)

The Star Tribune’s Dan Browning and Tom Meersman have dug deeper into the whisteblower lawsuit filed last week against the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA).   It appears that the Department of Ag asked for an investigation of Paul Wotzka prior to his request to testify against the use of Atrazine.  It is unclear whether or not they asked for this investigation prior to or after Mr. Wotzka left Ag for the MPCA. 

Also, Tom at Sky Blue Waters adds a new dynamic wondering about the role of Wayne Anderson, MPCA policy directory and agency liason to the Department of Ag.  Mr. Anderson held a key role in the Atrazine controversy surrounding Dr. Tyrone Hayes a couple of years back. 

There are still a lot of questions that remain in all of this.  I am going to go out on a limb and say that Mr. Wotzka’s criticism of the Department of Ag’s love affair with ethanol was pretty well known prior to his departure from the agency.  Did that influence the agency’s actions?  What prompted Mr. Wotzka’s move from Ag to MPCA anyway?  Hopefully there will be some legislative inquiries into all of this soon.

Today’s topics: Development, Energy, Great Outdoors, Health, Off-Highway Vehicles, Transportation, Waste, and Wildlife.
(more…)

Today’s topics: Member News, Atrazine, Development, Energy, Fish, Funding, the Future, Great Lakes, Health, Non-Native Invasive Species, Off-Highway Vehicles, Parks, Transportation, Waste, and Water.
(more…)

Naively, I kind of thought these days were behind us… 

(more…)

Today’s news that 20 common birds are in serious trouble because of habitat destruction highlights the key role working farmland can play in helping out our avian friends, particularly grassland species. Designating “important bird areas” to heighten public awareness of this critical issue will help. And providing more public funding to state and federal wildlife refuges won’t hurt either. But birds don’t adhere to the arbitrary boundaries of refuges and “important bird areas.” They pretty much go where they please, and that means we need to make sure private lands are more bird-friendly. In the rural Upper Midwest, that means developing and supporting farming systems that are environmentally and economically viable. This doesn’t just mean setting aside more islands of habitat on working farms via initiatives such as the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) either. (more…)

Today’s topics: Development, Energy, Great Lakes, Non-Native Invasive Species, Off-Highway Vehicles, Transportation, Water, Wetlands, and Wildlife.
(more…)