May 8, 2007 - The Ham Lake fire continues to burn unpredictably and furiously at the end of the Gunflint trail. Governor Pawlenty flew over the fire this morning and spoke with residents. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill spent much of the day with fire crew members and joins us now from the Gunflint.
February 26, 2007 - MPR’s Stephanie Hemphill reports that commercial fishermen along the North Shore of Lake Superior could be allowed to bring more lake trout to market. A bill addressing the issue received a first hearing. Commercial trout fishing has been essentially banned on Lake Superior since the 1960s.
February 14, 2007 - MPR’s Stephanie Hemphil profiles Joseph Kalar, a long-lost regional poet. Hemphill interviews Duluth poet Barton Sutter, who admires Kalar’s poetry; and poet Ted Genoways, who put together a collection of Kalar’s work, titled “Papermill.”
February 8, 2007 - About one hundred supporters and critics of a proposed copper-nickel mine in northeastern Minnesota got together in Duluth last night to talk about the project. Polymet Mining Company is working on detailed studies about possible environmental impacts. They've got a long way to go, to convince some people the mine is a good idea. Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports.
December 22, 2006 - A group opposing a proposed copper-nickel mine in northern Minnesota is going to court to prevent logging on a wetland associated with the project. Polymet Mining will destroy some wetlands to build the mine. State law requires they be replaced. The company says it will build new wetlands near Floodwood. But Len Anderson, with the Wetlands Action Group, says that land is already wetland.
December 20, 2006 - MPR’s Stephanie Hemphill reports on a new attraction on the Duluth waterfront…a huge wooden “crib.” It washed ashore after northeaster windstorms. City officials are trying to figure out what to do with it. The giant structure is an impressive reminder of Duluth's industrial past, but it could also present a liability problem.
November 15, 2006 - Duluth has long been known as a union town. A new book tells the story of how and why. It's called "By the Ore Docks...A Working People's History of Duluth." Minnesota Public Radio's Stephanie Hemphill reports.
October 2, 2006 - Governor Pawlenty was in Duluth today (Monday) campaigning with Eighth District Congressional candidate Rod Grams. Grams is challenging Jim Oberstar, who has represented northeastern Minnesota for more than thirty years. Pawlenty acknowledged that Republicans face an uphill battle. But he asked voters to consider whether the region's perennial economic problems should be blamed on Democrats.
August 18, 2006 - Amy Klobuchar, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, was in Duluth to campaign with Eighth District Congressman Jim Oberstar. They called for an increase in the minimum wage. Klobuchar said people in small towns across Minnesota are feeling the effects of Bush administration policies -- policies she says have led to higher costs for gas, health care, and education.
July 26, 2006 - MPR’s Duluth bureau reporter Stephanie Hemphill visits some of the burned and blackened areas after the Cavity Lake wildfire. It was the largest fire in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in over a century, burning nearly 32-thousand acres. Hemphill toured the area with two forest service workers, Lissa Griver and Tim McKenzie. They find surprising signs that life there was not only surviving, but thriving.