May 20, 1998 - In observance of B-BOP Day, when commuters are encouraged to find a way to get to work without driving alone in a car, Gary Eichten talks with Bob McFarlin and John Lundell about highway congestion and what the future holds. McFarlin and Lundell also answer listener questions. Program begins with an interview with Trish Moga, Manager of Metro Commuter Services, about B-Bop Day.
May 20, 1998 - MPR’s Bob Kelleher reports that leading environmentalists are vowing to fight a proposal that would return trucks to two boat portages in Northern Minnesota's Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
May 20, 1998 - MPR’s Bob Kelleher reports on Obertstar-Vento compromise over motor use in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wildnerness. Northern Minnesotans hope the compromise will settle long standing disputes over the region. Congressman Jim Oberstar's proposal to allow trucks on two wilderness portages has been entered into the transportation bill now under consideration by a Congresional Conference Committee. It has Congressman Bruce Vento's reluctant support after the addition of a provision removing some lakes from motor access.
May 21, 1998 - More than 125 Native American tribes from across the nation are represented at a tribal environmental conference underway at the Prairie Island Dakota Community. One session addressed a key issue facing Prairie Island and other tribes - the storage of nuclear waste on or near their lands. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports... One Prairie Island official says the most ominous issue facing the tribe is its nuclear neighbor. Northern States Power Company's Prairie Island plant sits less than a mile away from the reservation, along with its seven dry casks storing spent nuclear fuel. Whether tribes should accept nuclear waste for storage has been hotly debated across the country - Robert Hold
May 25, 1998 - The Chippewa National Forest in northern Minnesota is celebrating its 90th anniversary this weekend. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Robertson takes a look at the history of the forest, and why thousands of visitors come back year after year. Teddy Roosevelt was in his seventh year in office when the Chippewa National Forest was established in 1908, the first national forest reserve established east of the Mississippi River. It followed a heated debate between the logging industry, eager to harvest the timber, and a growing number of conservationists who believed strongly in setting the lands aside. With the help of the Minnesota Federation of Womens Clubs, the conservationists were victorious in establishing what was then known as the Minnesota National Forest.
May 26, 1998 - The federal government has awarded more than $21 million dollars to the city of Minneapolis for housing and community development. Federal officials say Minneapolis is an example of what they want cities to do to get federal housing money. Minnesota Public Radio's Eric Jansen reports.
May 28, 1998 - Minnesota is one of the few places without complaints against El Nino. The mysterious change in the weather has brought us a mild, sunny spring and staved off the humidity of summer. Commentator Wendy Knox says that the fabulous weather makes her think of cows. Wendy Knox is the artistic director of the Frank Theater and a gardening enthusiast. Sun 28-MAY 11:03:53 MPR NewsPro Archive - Wed 04/11/2001
May 28, 1998 - A local company has come up with a new method for washing food that it hopes will significantly reduce food-borne illness. St. Paul-based Ecolab president and CEO Al Schumann says washing fruits and vegetables with periocidic acid kills more germs on fruits and vegetables than the usual chlorine wash. Ecolab president and CEO Al Schumann. Ecolab says the periocidic acid poses no threat to consumers and isn't harmful to the environment. Sun 28-MAY 11:03:01 MPR NewsPro Archive - Wed 04/11/2001
May 28, 1998 - "Boreal" means northern, as in "aurora borealis." The terms is also used to describe the forests of northern Minnesota, full of pine and spruce, and the birds that live there. Today (Thursday) the Gunflint Trail in Cook County kicks off its first annual boreal birding festival, celebrating the variety of birds to be found in the northwoods. Minnesota Public Radio's Amy Radil reports. Driving up the Gunflint Trail, a paved road that begins in the town of Grand Marais on Lake Superior, Sue McDonnell points excitedly out the windows at an ever-changing forest. McDonnell: We have the north shore hardwoods area, maples, poplar, then get into the decisuous/conifer mix, and then the conifers
May 28, 1998 - Wolves are also thriving in the northwoods of Minnesota. Their population is estimated to be over 2-thousand and they soon may be pulled from the endangered species list. But Minnesota doesn't have the largest population of wolves in the United States. Doctor David Mech is a renowned biologist who has studied wolves in Minnesota since 1966. He's in town today to speak about the wolves of Denali National Park in Alaska, the subject of his new book: "The Wolves of Denali".