New Series From The River Alliance: Bad Water Is Bad For Business
 We are excited to share our first web-based issue series with our dear readers. "Bad Water Is Bad For Business" takes a closer look at how phosphorus pollution is affecting businesses that depend on clean, swimmable/fishable water and points up the irony of our governor's plan to fund tourism marketing while simultaneously dismantling phosphorus rules aimed at cleaning up our state's precious freshwater resources. Readers will meet a group of business owners who are losing money due to severe phosphorus-induced algae blooms. From a realtor who is concerned about reduced property values to a resort owner who has watched business steadily drop over the years due to persistent algae, these individuals can speak directly to the need to better manage phosphorus. We are very grateful to these individuals for sharing their stories and are eager to refute the false notion that a strong economy can exist without a clean environment. See Why Bad Water Is Bad For Business >> |
Two-State Solution: WI and MI Protect Something Gorgeous
The word "gorge" is rarely used in the Midwesterner's vocabulary (except when fathers describe their gorgeous daughters). But the river that Wisconsin and Michigan share, the Menominee, rushes through a narrows in the riverbed, creating a legitimate gorge that has thrilled whitewater rafters for decades.
Piers Gorge, about 40 miles northwest of Marinette, is a natural gem that, as of last week, is one step closer to being protected forever. Michigan governor Rick Snyder okayed spending $2.4 million to buy 2,400 acres (nearly 10 miles of river frontage) along the Menominee River. Michigan natural resources officials say the deal won't be done for a few months yet, but once it is, it will be public land managed as a river recreational corridor.
Wisconsin has already done its part. Last fall the state added 2,700 acres of land to an already existing Menominee River Natural Resources Area. The entire property, to be named the Menominee River State Park and Recreation Area, now totals almost 5,000 acres and 17 miles of river corridor, including Quiver Falls, upstream from Piers Gorge. The states plan to manage the park cooperatively.
 These lands were purchased from WE Energies. We're glad to see the utility willing to make these lands public; by contrast, WE's counterpart, Wisconsin Public Service Corp., has been selling off its former hydro project lands for lakeshore development.
The Menominee River is in many ways a hidden treasure. Though more developed than a similar counterpart, the Lower Wisconsin, it is beloved by smallmouth bass anglers and people who enjoy a slow, quiet, clean, accessible river. (Its summer mosquitoes will carry you away, but that makes it no different than your back yard.)
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Water Course: A Conversation on the Health of Wisconsin's Lakes and Rivers
Two of Wisconsin's leading water experts-Rebecca Klaper and Mark Sandheinrich- will share their knowledge about the state of Wisconsin's waterways in this program hosted by the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters.
Water Course: A Conversation on the Health of Wisconsin's Lakes and Rivers takes place Tuesday, April 12, 2011 from 7:00-8:30 pm at the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art. Doors open at 6:15 pm. Free and open to the public. Click here for more information on this event.
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Advocate For Water
Governor Walker's proposed state budget for the next two years is chock full of major cuts to important public services, popular programs, environmental protections and the staff who make sure laws to protect the environment are followed.
On the other hand, there's lots of money allocated for more highways, the shadowy new Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, more highways, tourism marketing ("Come visit our pea green lakes!"), and more highways. The Legislature intends to act fast on these sweeping changes; it is critical to add your voice to the debate to make sure environmental issues don't get lost in the shuffle.
Learn More About How You Can Advocate For Water >>
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