August 14, 2002 - Most of us think of earthworms as benign creatures. Gardeners are always happy to spot a worm in the flowerbed. And many anglers say they're the best thing for catching fish. But scientists are beginning to learn worms aren't so friendly to forests. Mainstreet Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports. Outcue: You can find a link to the Minnesota Worm Watch web page by going to Minnesota Public Radio - dot - org.
August 26, 2002 - World leaders are gathered in South Africa this week to take the next steps in protecting the environment. Some have expressed doubts about how much can really be accomplished at the Earth Summit, because the Bush Administration is resisting setting new targets on environmental improvement, including global warming. All of us -- in our daily lives -- contribute some of the greenhouse gases that cause global warming. Some cities around the world are deciding they need to set an example. Duluth is the most recent Minnesota city to join the effort. Mainstreet Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports.
September 2, 2002 - Mardi Oakley Medawar (MAR-dee OAK-lee MED-ah-war) is a Cherokee who lives in Wisconsin. She's written several historical novels and family sagas, and a series of mysteries set in 19th century Kiowa country. Now she's turned her attention to a book about contemporary Indian life in Wisconsin. She says most non-Indians have no conception of what life is like on a reservation today. Mardi Oakley Medawar talked with Mainstreet Radio's Stephanie Hemphill.
September 2, 2002 -
September 10, 2002 - Residents in the central Minnesota town of Albertville spent the day wondering whether it was a tornado that hit their town overnight. The National Weather Service gave them an answer this afternoon. It was a tornado. It was a small one, but bounced through a new neighborhood and damaged 20 homes, even ripping some of their roofs off. Mainstreet Radio's Tim Post has this report.
September 13, 2002 - Officials at the University of Minnesota's Raptor Center are alarmed at the number of birds they've seen with symptoms of west nile virus. Until a year ago, only about a dozen bird species were known to be hosts to the virus, primarily crows and blue jays. But the National Wildlife Health Center now estimates between 110 and 120 bird species have been infected. The Raptor Center's Dr. Patrick Redig says it seems like the most recent epidemic got its foothold in southern Ohio, and then advanced quickly to the Midwest. Redig says its too early to determine the extent of the West Nile outbreak in Minnesota's bird population:
September 15, 2002 - On this American RadioWorks special radio report, “Nature's Revenge - Louisiana's Vanishing Wetlands” looks at a region of the United States that is crumbling and sinking into the sea. Scientists say it's causing one of the worst and least-publicized environmental disasters in America's history. As Daniel Zwerdling reports for NPR News and ARW, there's a moral to this story: when humans try to outwit nature, it can strike back with a vengeance.
September 16, 2002 - Officials are using bait and liquid smoke to trap a black bear that injured a man in a wildlife management area north of Milaca. Wildlife researcher Miles Becker is recovering from a broken leg and puncture wounds. He was attacked yesterday afternoon while tracking woodcocks that he and his colleagues had fitted with radio transmitters for a study. Dave Garshelis is a bear expert with the Department of Natural Resources. He spoke with Becker this morning. Garshelis says Becker was working with a receiver that suddenly made a loud static noise just before the bear attacked:
September 17, 2002 - The walleye were biting on Lake Mille Lacs this year like no time anyone can remember. Record numbers of anglers headed to the big lake to get in on the action. The result was serious overfishing. Indian conservation officials say the Department of Natural Resources let non-tribal anglers take too many fish. Officials with the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe and Fond du Lac Band of Chippewa wanted the DNR to stop the fishing on Mille Lacs. The DNR and the bands have been negotiating for months. But now they say talking things out has failed. Mainstreet Radio's Jeff Horwich reports the bands and the DNR are headed for mediation.
September 18, 2002 - The University of Illinois is reporting the first West Nile virus death in a dog in the United States. Officials at the school say the eight-year old Irish Setter-golden retriever mix may have had another immunity compromising infection that contributed to his death. The virus primarily attacks birds, but mosquitoes can pass it to humans, horses and other hosts. The only other documented case of West Nile in a dog occured in Botswana in 1978. Dr. Jeff Bender is an assistant professor of veterinary public health at the University of Minnesota. He says pet owners shouldn't worry: