January 10, 2001 -
January 10, 2001 - More than a thousand band members gathered at Mille Lacs Tuesday to hear their new chief executive's State of the Band address. Melanie Benjamin defeated former executive Marge Anderson last June. Her campaign stressed accountability and reform. Yesterday's speech amplified those ideas. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill has this Mainstreet report. { Benjamin's central theme was courage. She reminded the attentive audience of the courage shown by past generations of Ojibwe. They were warriors in the past and in more recent conflicts ranging from the Great War to the Gulf War, and they defended their language, their religion, and their treaty rights.
January 10, 2001 - US Forest Service has put a stop to logging old trees, or old growth, in forests. Lee Frelich is the director of the University of Minnesota's Center for Hardwood Ecology and he is being interviewed about this situation.
January 12, 2001 - Opponents of corporate agriculture say a vote to end a mandatory fee represents a major victory for family farmers. Known as the pork checkoff, the fee is collected on every hog sold and raises about 50 million dollars a year. Independent farmers with small operations say the money collected has not helped them sell more hogs, but checkoff supporters say they'll challenge the results in court. Mainstreet Radio's Mark Steil reports: The fight over the future of agriculture is mostly a behind the scenes struggle which most consumers rarely see. But the pork checkoff produced at least one bit of adverstising that most people have heard:
January 12, 2001 - From Mark Seeley Re Suggestions for MPR's Morning Edition, Friday, Jan 12, 2001 Topic Seasonal Snowfall Accumulation Slowing Thankfully, the frequency of snowfall has slowed considerably this month over last. Many communities reported that snow removal budgets were depleted rapidly, stocks of salt and sand were running out and roof ice dam damages were building up during December. Both the Twin Cities and Rochester reported over 30 inches
January 12, 2001 - The Minnesota and Wisconsin transportation departments announced today (friday) plans to suspend construction of a new bridge over the Saint Croix River. The announcement comes just days after MN-DOT commissioner Elwyn Tinklenberg failed to find federal funding for the project. Reaction to the decision is mixed. Environmentalists are calling it a victory against urban sprawl while project supporters say traffic problems in the area will remain until there's a new bridge. Minnesota Public Radio's Lynette Nyman reports.
January 15, 2001 - Two new Giant Pandas at the National Zoo in Washington DC have focused the world's attention on one very high profile endagered species. But countries from India to Brazil are working to save species as diverse as the Giant Grizzeled Squirrel and the Golden Lion Tamarin. An organization based at the Minnesota Zoo in Apple Valley is facilitating much of this work. The Conservation Breeding Specialist Group, or CBSG, has just a few employees in Minnesota, and relies on a network of over 700 people from 150 countries. CBSG Chairman and Founder Ulysses Seal says his organization is dedicated to protecting the planet's biodiversity:
January 17, 2001 -
January 22, 2001 - The push to use reusable energy is building up at the Capitol.
January 23, 2001 - Parts of Northern California may be hit with more blackouts this morning as officials scrounge for electricity. Efforts continue to find a long-term solution to the problem. A proposal crafted over the weekend would allow the state to take over hydro-electric facilities, currently owned by cash-strapped utilities. California's energy crisis is the result of both deregulation and an energy shortage. Linda Taylor is the Deputy Commissioner for Energy at the Minnesota Department of Commerce. She says we shouldn't see anything like the California crisis here in Minnesota-- but we ARE facing a shortage of our own.