February 25, 1999 -
March 3, 1999 - Representatives of a conservative California-based think tank visited Minnesota this week to share their vision of new approach to protecting the environment. Representatives of the Reason Foundation say they came to Minnesota because its among the states moving fastest toward a non-traditional, freemarket style of environmental regulation.
March 17, 1999 - US and Canadian wildlife officials are preparing to significantly reduce the population of snow geese. The estimated six million geese are destroying their nesting habitat in northern Canada. Hunters are being called on to shoot more geese in an extended spring season.
March 17, 1999 - Legislation banning the use of underwater video cameras for fishing is headed to the Senate floor, following an 8-to-5 vote today in the Environment and Natural Resources Committee. Supporters say the cameras change the nature of the sport, and put pressure on limited fishing resources, but manufacturers say the state is trying to put them out of business without any evidence the cameras are dangerous.
April 14, 1999 - The Koch Petroleum Group has announced plans to cut emissions at its Rosemount Refinery by 50 percent over the next 5 years. Koch officials say the voluntary effort is designed to polish the company's environmental image and help it compete in the long haul. Koch also announced a Minnesota environmental group will help monitor the company's emmissions.
April 15, 1999 - Arsenic in drinking water is a growing concern among environmental epidemiologists in Minnesota. It's estimated that two-thirds of all drinking wells in the state exceed acceptable levels for arsenic set by the Environmental Protection Agency. The University of Minnesota's Water Resources Center held a conference today in Morris to discuss the potential dangers of naturally-occuring arssenic and possible solutions to the problem.
May 5, 1999 - MPR’s Bob Kelleher reports on the diminishing population of rainbow smelt in Lake Superior. Years ago, the smelt run drew huge crowds to Lake Superior beaches, where fish were netted by hand and cooked over open fires. Raucous all-night beach parties fueled by generous doses of alcohol achieved mythical status around the big lake. But now, the big smelt runs are history.
May 24, 1999 - In Martell, Wisconsin, residents are organizing to stop a new dairy farm planned near one of the best trout streams in the midwest--- the Rush River, about an hour's drive east of the Twin Cities. Opponents say a manure spill from the farm's storage lagoons could wipe out the trout in the Rush River for years to come. Defenders of the project say such fears are based on emotion, not science, and that large scale dairy operations are the way of the future in Wisconsin.
May 26, 1999 - A Mainstreet Radio special broadcast from Lake Benton. Rachel Reabe hosts a discussion about Minnesota's wind farm on Buffalo Ridge and the greater wind-power industry with guests Marlin Thompson, Lake Benton mayor; Jim Nichols, a former agriculture commissioner who now heads economic development efforts for the area; and Audrey Zibelman, director of Energy Marketing for Northern States Power.
May 26, 1999 - A Mainstreet Radio special broadcast from Lake Benton. Rachel Reabe hosts a discussion about deregulation of the electric industry with guests Steve Minn, Minnesota Public Service commissioner; Jim Nichols, Arlene Lesewski, Republican state senator from Marshall; Michael Noble, executive director of Minnesotans for an Energy-Efficient Economy; and Rick Lemonds, general manager of Lyon-Lincoln Electric Cooperative.