August 23, 2000 - Federal divers have found a large infestation of zebra mussels on the Saint Croix River. The mussels were discovered last week on the lower end of the river, north of Prescott, Wisconsin. It's the first significant foothold by the mussels in the federally protected river. Jay Rendall is the exotic species program coordinator for the D-N-R. He says the Saint Croix has been considered a high risk location because it is so close to the infested Mississippi:
August 24, 2000 - The Clinton Administration gave its approval to guidelines that will allow scientists to use federal money in doing research with stem cells from human embryos. The National Institutes of Health issued the guidelines hoping for breakthroughs in treating diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and diabetes. Opponents say it's ethically wrong to use human embryos for such research. But in making his announcement, President Clinton said there could be "potentially staggering benefits" from stem cell research. Joining us on the line to talk about that potential is Catherine Versaillie (ver-SIGH), director of the Stem Cell Institute at the University of Minnesota.
August 24, 2000 - The price of gas has gone up 10 cents in the last month and is expected to keep climbing higher. According to the Triple-A in Minneapolis, the average price of unleaded in the Twin Cities is $1.47 a gallon. That's up almost 25 cents from a year ago at this time. Triple-A spokeswoman Dawn Duffy says this latest jump shouldn't come as a complete suprise:
August 25, 2000 - They're good for the garden, but in northern Minnesota's hardwood forests, earthworms are a regular menace. That's according to University of Minnesota-Duluth researcher Cynthia Hale. She says earthworms are killing tree seedlings by consuming duff. That's the layer of decaying plant matter on the forest floor, which seedlings prefer to grow in. She says there are two things you can look for in a forest bed to determine whether there is an infestation of worms.
August 29, 2000 - Hearings continue today on the Minnesota portion of the proposed power line between Duluth and Wausau Wisconsin. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports on last night's opening session. { The evening hearing started noisily. But once those crowd got into the hearing room, the discussion was detailed and wide-ranging. Technically, the question in this week's hearings is, should the short 12 mile section of the project in Minnesota be exempt from the normal environmental revuew? But opponents are discussing much broader questions about how we should power our lives. Speakers last night raisedf concerns about possible health effects of electromagnetic fields, more mercury in the environment, and lower property values. Northern Manitoba's Cross Lake Cree were represented by William Osborne. He said flooding from the massive hydroelectric power plants that the new line will allow to be sold in Wisconsin and throughout the midwest have destroyed his peoples way of life.
September 5, 2000 - An early start to the bear hunting season hasn't done much to thin the state's growing black bear population. A third year of bumper crops of the bear's natural food source of nuts and berries have kept the animals healthy and reproducing at record rates. The Department of Natural Resources was hoping this hunting season would reduce the population by about 6,000 bears, but early numbers suggest hunters will only bring in about two-thirds that number, mainly because the well fed bears are not enticed by hunters bait. David Garshelis is the DNR Bear Project leader based in Grand Rapids. He says bear mortality is also low because North Woods residents are giving pesky bears a little more leeway.
September 6, 2000 - The Nature Conservancy of Minnesota has nearly doubled its holdings with the purchase of 25,000 acres in Northern Minnesota. While it is now prairie, gravel and wetlands, the conservation group's new land once was completely underwater, part of the Lake Aggasiz lakebed. Aggasiz was huge, three times the size of Lake Superior. It covered parts of what is now Minnesota, the Dakotas and Canada. When it drained, the Aggasiz shoreline became wetlands and prairies. "Glacial Ridge," as the Nature Conservancy is calling its new purchase, was part of that former shoreline. Rob McKim, the State Director of the Minnesota Nature Conservancy, says that the area is important because it connects other wildlife management areas, and because Aggasiz left behind a unique topography.
September 7, 2000 - Minnesota is the birthplace of the Mississippi, the proverbial father of all rivers. So it's not surprising that river recreation figures prominently in the lives of many state residents. But Thomas Waters wants us to know more about rivers and streams than just the best place to fish or launch a boat. In his new book "Wildstream: A Natural History of the Free Flowing River," the professor emeritus of stream ecology shares his knowledge of ox bows and eddys in a way most readers without a scientific background can comprehend. I met up with Waters this week at Rice Creek in Roseville, where he used to take his university students on field trips.
September 11, 2000 - Two Republicans are vying for the chance to take on Democratic Congressman Jim Oberstar in Minnesota's 8th district, stretching from the Iron Range down to the northern Twin Cities suburbs. Oberstar has held the seat for 26 years. But so far, much of the Republican attempt to unseat him has centered more on an internal dispute on who should control the party. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports. { The dispute boils down to this. Bob Lemen, a Grand Rapids computer consultant, has the GOP party endorsement. Warren Nelson, an engineering consultant from Chisago County, says the endorsement should have gone to his friend Mike Darling. Darling's candidacy did get a vote of support, but party leaders say it happened at a meeting which was not meant to endorse anyone. Darling is now running as an independent.
September 12, 2000 - A new pest discovered in Minnesota in recent weeks is a significant threat for soybean farmers. An infestation of aphids previously seen only in Asian countries and Austrailia is spreading across the midwest. Farming experts are scrambling to learn what it means for a crop that has so far enjoyed a virtually pest-free existance in the United States. Mainstreet Radio's Art Hughes reports. (sound---soybeans, crickets)