February 27, 2003 - The John Beargrease Sled Dog race starts near Two Harbors Sunday. Organizers had to postpone the race for a month, and move the start 20 miles north because there isn't enough snow. But the thin snow cover won't bother one musher. Dee Morris drove up from St. Petersberg, Florida with her nine huskies. It's her first race. It's also the first time her dogs have seen snow. Mainstreet Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports. {
March 3, 2003 - The federal Environmental Protection Agency is getting ready to issue new rules about what taconite plants in Northeastern Minnesota can release into the air. But some environmental activists are upset that the new rules don't say anything about mercury. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports.
March 6, 2003 - The moose on Lake Superior's Isle Royale are some of the most closely studied animals in the world. Moose on the mainland of Minnesota are not so well known. There's more than 4,000 moose living in Minnesota's Arrowhead. Nobody's studied them at all. But a team of researchers is trying to change that. Mainstreet Radio's Stephanie Hemphill went along last week when the team was hunting moose to fit them with radio collars.
March 13, 2003 - A showdown is coming up in the U.S. Senate over whether to drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Senate Republicans say they need just one more vote to pass a provision that would allow drilling in the Alaska refuge. That puts the pressure on lawmakers like Republican Senator Norm Coleman. Coleman says he came to the debate opposing drilling.
March 14, 2003 - The cold spell earlier this month in historical perspective represented the third coldest ever March 1-10 in the modern state records. Only 1943 and 1960 were colder in early March. This exacerbated already thick lake ice and deeply frozen soils. Last week, we noted that the deep soil frost will take some time to thaw this spring. Similarly lake ice, now up to 50 inches thick in some places, will take a good long time to disappear as well, as it did in those other years with a cold March like 1943 and 1960. In addition, ice dams may be a problem on some Minnesota rivers.
March 18, 2003 - The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced today it's reclassifying gray wolves. Wolves will be considered a threatened species, instead of endangered in most of the lower 48 states. Minnesota's wolves are already considered threatened. The reclassification also starts a countdown to where wolves might be taken off the endangered species list altogether. Mainstreet Radio's Bob Kelleher reports:
March 24, 2003 - Mainstreet Radio’s Chris Julin takes a ride with the crew of the Coast Guard cutter Sundew. The vessel is carving a path through the ice of Lake Superior in Duluth harbor so the ships can leave.
March 31, 2003 - Researchers from around the world are gathering in St. Paul this week to talk about the possible dangers in fibers in taconite ore. Those microscopic fibers are a lot like asbestos, and asbestos causes cancer. Some studies show the fibers in taconite cause cancer too. Organizers of this week's conference will try to determine once and for all whether taconite fibers pose a health risk. The answer could have a big impact on future mining projects, and the economy of northeastern Minnesota.
April 1, 2003 - Duluth's port director is retiring. Davis Helberg has been in charge of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority for 24 years. That makes him the longest serving port director in the Great Lakes, and second in seniority among all the nation's ports. Mainstreet Radio's Stephanie Hemphill talked with Helberg as he packed up his things, and found he's concerned about the port's future.
April 11, 2003 - Though the 71 degrees F high temperature at International Falls, MN on Wednesday, April 9th did not set a new record, it was only the 3rd time in history that the temperature has reached 70 F or higher there on that date.....the others were 72 F in 1977 and 77 F in 1987. Many other Minnesota communities reported highs of 70 F or above on Wednesday as well.