I was talking to a hydrologist the other day when he mentioned he was investigating the development of a sinkhole adjacent to a large dairy manure lagoon in Winona County. Southeast Minnesota’s fractured limestone geology, otherwise known as karst, has always offered a handy way for pollutants such as liquid manure to find their way into our groundwater. Sinkholes can appear literally overnight in that part of the country under even normal meteorological conditions. And when you have an unprecedented flooding event like the one that occurred in August, the combination of fast-moving water, liquid crap-fueled hydraulics and Swiss cheese-like rock formations has the makings of a manure meltdown. Well, the Aug. 31 Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Southeastern Minnesota Flash Flooding Situation Report confirms that in localized areas, this is exactly what happened. Read it and weep: (more…)

Today’s topics: Agriculture, Business, Education, Energy, Forests, Funding, Great Lakes, Mining, Mollusks, Non-Native Invasive Species, Off-Highway Vehicles, Water and Wetlands.

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Today’s topics: Agriculture, Arsenic, Development, Energy, Me, Mining, Natural Areas, Transportation, Waste and Water.
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Want to get the latest facts on one of America’s most popular weed killers while supporting a government whistleblower in his battle to do science in the public interest? Then head up to Northeast Minneapolis Wednesday, Oct. 10, for a special forum/fundraiser. The event, which will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Ritz Theater (345 13th Ave.), is a legal defense fund fundraiser for Paul Wotzka, a former hydrologist for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency who has conducted cutting-edge research on pesticide contamination in southeast Minnesota. Wotzka was not allowed to present his research to the Minnesota Legislature in March. He was fired soon after he made the request to testify at the Legislature. Wotzka has filed a federal whistleblower lawsuit against the MPCA, charging that his First Amendment right to free speech was violated by the agency. Besides Wotzka, also presenting at the Oct. 10 event will be Tyrone Hayes, an internationally-respected expert on pesticides and health risks who has had his own freedom of speech run-ins with the MPCA. Paul Metsa will even be there to provide a little musical support. To reserve a seat for this event, contact Bobby King at 612-722-6377 or bking@landstewardshipproject.org. More details on the event and how you can help Wotzka in his legal battle are available by clicking here. Read more about the hydrologist and his research in the Summer 2007 Land Stewardship Letter (page 28).

By Carin Skoog, Global Warming Solutions Coordinator, Fresh Energy

Honoring the Swedish heritage of Gustavus Adolphus College means more than simply coffee and cookies and incorporating the three-crowns logo. For the past four decades, it has also meant Gustavus hosts the Nobel Conference, the first ongoing education conference in the United States to have the official authorization of the Nobel Foundation in Stockholm, Sweden. This year’s Nobel Conference is shaping up to be a one-of-a-kind, with an entire two-day schedule devoted solely to the topics of energy and global warming. (more…)

Today’s topics: Agriculture, Bonding, Development, Energy, Food, Natural Areas, Transportation, Waste and Water.
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American Public Media, a kissing-cousin of Minnesota Public Radio, has a new web feature out to measure your impact on the planet, called Consumer Consequences.  You enter some data about your lifestyle and it’ll tell you how many planet earths would be needed if everyone lived like you.

Sadly, I am sitting at a need for 3.3 planets for everyone to live like me.  My transportation choices are hurting me the most.  Food is the next highest, though being a vegetarian certainly helps there. 

There was a nice little silver lining though.  After you’ve gone through your life and compared it to others, you can also adjust a few government policies.  Turns out, if we upped car gas milage and implemented global warming solutions, my impact goes down by half a planet.  It just so happens that as you read this many organizations are preparing to advance these issues during the next legislative session.  Stayed tuned for how to get engaged with that.

Sure, you’ll find the game a wee bit simplistic and all, but it was a good reminder to me that I have miles to go on the road transit-way to sustainability.  Give it a try and let me know how you do.

Today’s topics: Energy, Food, Forests, Great Lakes, Transportation, Waste and Water.
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Today’s topics: Agriculture, Energy, Fish, Great Lakes, Natural Areas, Water and Wetlands.
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Protecting the environment in our rural communities takes more than getting educated, speaking out, writing letters and attending meetings. It also means bird-dogging those dry documents that fill our county courthouses to the brim. By digging up some of those documents and asking questions, Land Stewardship Project members in southern Minnesota’s Mower County have recently learned that their feedlot officer may have benefited financially from the construction of a mega-livestock factory in their community. What we appear to have here is a conflict of interest, which is a civil servant no-no. We also appear to have yet another example of private citizens showing government officials how to do their jobs. (more…)