October 12, 2000 - The clear blues skies over Snowbank Lake filled with billowing smoke, as the Forest Service set a prescribed fire in timber blown down in the July 1999 windstorm. Fire experts consider controlled burn just the first of many more to come in and near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
October 18, 2000 - More than 2,000 gray wolves live in Minnesota. That's by far the largest wolf population south of Alaska, but the number of wolves is growing in several states. A few hundred wolves now live in Michigan and Wisconsin, and a few hundred more in western states. In response, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposes taking wolves off the "endangered" list across most of the country. Federal wildlife managers will gather public testimony on the proposal at a public meeting tonight in Duluth. Minnesota Public Radio's Chris Julin has the story.
October 18, 2000 - In Northeastern Minnesota, voters in the 8th district have returned Jim Oberstar to his House seat thirteen times. This year he faces two opponents, because of a battle during the Republican endorsement process that prompted the loser to run as an independent. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports.
October 19, 2000 - Many Saint Paul residents are getting more vocal in their complaints about the odor problem emanating from the Gohper State Ethanol plant on the city's West End. Last night (Wed) the city council held a public hearing in a school near the plant. Minnesota Public Radio's William Wilcoxen reports council members heard plenty of anger from citizens living with the smell...
October 24, 2000 - Revised rules dealing with the state's feedlots went into effect yesterday. Farm feedlots are the byproduct of livestock operations. Large dairy and pork farms have received attention lately for their affects on air and water quality. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency says the new rules will help deal with that pollution while considering the number of operations in an area, as well. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Post reports.
October 26, 2000 - With high gas prices, some automakers are taking serious looks at building hybrid cars, cars that use gas and run on electricity. This week, another automaker promised to build a hybrid vehicle. The US unit of Germany's DaimlerChrysler says it will make a hybrid Dodge Durango SUV. Hybrid vehicles are gaining popularity because they are more fuel efficient and environmentally friendly than cars that run only on gas. One of the new hybrids is the Toyota Prius. It gets up to 52 miles to the gallon, seats 5 people, and will cost about 20-thousand dollars. Workers at the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency are already using a few of the cars on the job. The MPCA's Ned Brooks took me for a spin in the Prius and says he likes the way the car looks.
November 1, 2000 - The three leading candidates for the U-S Senate in Minnesota divide sharply over some environmental issues; but sound remarkably similar on others. There are clear divisions on what to do about oil exploration and global warming But the differences get cloudy over logging, mining, and motorized recreation. Minnesota Public Radio's Bob Kelleher reports: { {script}
November 1, 2000 - Tomorrow (Thursday) on the North Shore, state biologists will be looking for insect larvae in the Beaver River. Last week a broken pipline at Northshore Mining in Silver Bay spilled tons of taconite tailings into the river. Researchers say the spill will likely suffocate the tiny creatures on the river bottom, and cut into the food supply for the river's fish in coming years. The spill is reviving memories of past concerns about tailings pollution. Minnesota Public Radio's Chris Julin starts our two part report.
November 2, 2000 -
November 3, 2000 -