Wisconsin’s Pipeline
I had no idea this company was building an oil pipeline the length of Wisconsin until I met someone from Rice Lake who is working on a section of it. I hope this company uses the best technology to contain oil spills. It seems to me they have succeeded in attracting very little media attention to this project. Here is the article from the MJS :
Superior-Delevan project passes environmental review, agency says Madison - Wisconsin regulators have approved permits for construction of a 321-mile underground pipeline to move unrefined oil extracted from the tar sands in northeast Alberta to the Chicago area. The Department of Natural Resources concluded that the pipeline from Superior to Delavan would have little adverse impact on the environment. The agency’s authority on the project concerns effects on wetlands and waterways. The Enbridge Energy Co. Inc. pipeline would follow virtually the entire right of way of an existing pipeline that the Houston company operates, and it would carry 500,000 barrels of the petroleum material through the state each day. About four miles of the pipeline would traverse a new route to avoid land held by the Lac Courte Oreilles band of Chippewa Indians. Construction is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2008. The Army Corps of Engineers has given its approval. Environmentalists wanted the DNR to conduct a more extensive environmental review. They expressed concern about harm to waterways and wetlands during construction, when Enbridge would expand the use of land from 80 feet to 180 feet. Environmentalists were also worried about the company’s environmental record, which includes a spill of about 250,000 gallons in 2002 in Itasca County, Minn. In Wisconsin, the company has been responsible for seven spills since 1999. David Siebert, director of the DNR Office of Energy, said six of the spills were at the company terminal in Superior and were largely contained. The pipeline would require 242 crossings of perennial and intermittent streams and rivers, including the Namekagon, Chippewa, Black, Wisconsin, Fox and Rock rivers. Oil is extracted from tar sands, or oil sands, in western Canada, liquefied and then transported to refineries in the Chicago area. - Printed in the Milwaukee Journal Sentential
DNR backs 321-mile oil pipeline
By LEE BERGQUIST
lbergquist@journalsentinel.com
Posted: Nov. 29, 2006
Chetek Lakes’ Mystery Snail
Coming back to the Chetek chain of lakes was nice; however I did notice a change. No, the water was not any greener, nor was there a lack of Illinois tourists trying to bag the prized bluegill, there was however a drastic change in the fauna of the lakes. My Grandfather and I worked on Prairie Lake for several days this summer straightening out a dock and we encountered a multitude of large snails. You would walk in the shallows or bush your foot across the lake bottom and dislodge dozens of 1-2 inch to nearly the size of golf balls sized snails. At this density there must be millions of these snails infesting the lakes. Fifteen years ago I do not remember any large snails like this being in the lake. I remember the Chetek chain having two very distinct snail species. One was a small elongated spiral, at the most a 1/2 inch long, the other was a curled shell, the shape of a nautilus, also not more than a 1/2 inch in diameter, often much smaller. Where are these two species today? I didn’t find any. I recently found out that this new variety of large snail is an invasive species from Asia and it’s a real-life mystery. Better known as the “Chinese Mystery Snail”, it was imported to the United States as an aquarium cleaner/pet and let go into our lakes by some careless folks. The Mystery snail is not just infesting the Chetek chain of lakes but also other Lakes around the country, including the Great Lakes and their tributaries. I wonder if fishing communities like Chetek have considered the impact of the Mystery snail on the local economy, native species, and the environment? Here is more on the Chinese Mystery snail from the Indiana DNR website : http://www.in.gov/dnr/fishwild/fish/ais/snail.htm
I would advocate not purchasing any plant or animal from pet stores, unless you are sure that they are native to the area where you are from, even then I would not recommend this because of questionable harvesting practices. I would recommend getting your aquarium pets from your local lakes and rivers. Then when you’re done with them put them back where you found them.
Portage Glacier Alaska 1996
A quick 1 min 27 sec video of Portage Glacier in Alaska, taken in June 1996. The sound track is from Northern Exposure - The Tellakutans.
Earth Day Activities
On Saturday, Rosalind and I met up with a neighborhood group, some Boy Scouts, and a few UW college students to help clean up our local park. It was a good day and together Roz and I filled a large garbage bag full of all sorts of discarded waste products.
On Sunday, Earth Day, all three of us, helped plant a bunch of trees at Madison’s new and forming Central Park. We had a good turn out, including some from Rosalind’s Daisy Troop. It was organized by UrbanOpen Space which is trying to turn a former industrial area into a beautiful park in the heart of Madison’s East side.
Then Rosalind and Jean went out on Monday and cleaned another local park. Great work to Rosalind for getting out there all three days and making a difference for our local environment!
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Following the Enchanting River
Posted in the Wisconsin State Journal there was an article about the Ladysmith copper, silver and gold mine.
Company: Mine Land Restored
Ladysmith Mine Site Is Back To Its Natural State, Firm Says
Wisconsin State Journal :: LOCAL :: B1
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
ROBERT IMRIE Associated PressA decade after digging a huge open pit in northwest Wisconsin to mine nearly 1.9 million tons of mostly copper ore, a mining company says the land has been restored to its natural state without environmental harm. Flambeau Mining Co. has asked state regulators to declare that its restoration of the mine just south of Ladysmith was successfully completed, a change that would allow the company to lower the amount of a required reclamation bond by millions of dollars.
The Ladysmith mine on about 150 acres was the first metallic mine to open in the state in decades. The site attracted hundreds of protesters during various demonstrations to oppose it…
More of the article here : http://www.madison.com/archives/read.php?ref=/wsj/2007/03/20/0703190907.php
I guess time will only tell if the company is telling the truth or not. But one thing is for certain, if there wasn’t a grass roots effort to protect the River, like Roger’s article in the Eau Claire Leader in 1991 : http://www.rozworld.net/Enchanting_river_1991.htm the company wouldn’t have been as concerned with it’s environmental impact.
Reducing our Carbon Footprint
I wanted to put together a list of the things that we’ve done as a family in the last few
years to reduce our carbon footprint. This might be helpful for others looking to do the
same. Implementing most these things has been fairly simple and there are plenty of benefits. I’ve found that not only have they contributed to our peace of mind but has also been financially beneficial and contributed to a healthier more active lifestyle.
- Insulated the house attic.
- Sold the 2-stroke lawn mower and bought a hand push mower. (This was the
hardest for me but now I love this little push mower) - Single Car Household for the last 6 years (Biggest money saver on
insurance/maintenance/gas) - Purchased a gas/electric hybrid vehicle.
- Incorporated alternative commuting into daily routine, i.e. walking/biking/busing
- Replaced 90% of household light bulbs to compact florescent (Thanks Gram for the
tip!) - Buy organic foods and purchase other green products when possible.
- Signed up for the Wind Energy program at utility provider.
- Recycle plastics, glass, paper, card board, and metal. (This one is required
by ordinance, so I guess it doesn’t count) - Move Investments into Environmentally and Socially responsible funds.
- Replace old washer with front-loading/high efficiency washer.
- Replace storm windows and some windows with high efficiency windows.
Some of the things we’d like to do in the future :
- Replace water heater with an "On Demand" water heater.
- Create compost heap.
- Install a smart thermostat.
- Plant a tree.
- Solar panels for the roof (We need to "Get off the Grid" -Jean)
More deaths than Sept. 11
Our society moves in the right direction, slowly but surely, but only because of mounting evidence and pressure from group like the American Lung Association. The latest semi-heart warming news comes from the EPA and their new standards of fine particulates in air quality. But the EPA did not go far enough and we know the reason why they stopped short, “Industry groups don’t like the new EPA standards either, they say they’re too strict.” Personally, I think it’s always better to error on the side of health and safety when it comes to any aspect of our lives than to have a couple extra bucks in some CEOs wallets.
I bike to work often and I know what it’s like to get behind a huge diesel truck and breathe in that soot. Why should bikes and pedestrians have to breathe in this garbage? Is it healthier to just get in that air filtered car and sit in traffic and not get any exercise? It just might be. To read the full article go to, EPA Unveils Tighter Rules on Particles in Air
The Effects of Global Warming
I wanted to share these two photos that I have in my digital collection of the same glacier only 35 years apart. The pictures are of Portage glacier in Alaska just outside of Anchorage along the Seward Hwy. The first one was taken in 1961 and features my great-uncle Ron in the photo. You can see Portage glacier coming down into the glacial lake. The second one was taken by yours truly in 1996 and shows portage glacier receding back up into the mountains. Now these two photos were taken about the same time of year and glaciers in general do not change much throughout the year. There still is copious amounts of pack ice on Portage Lake in both photos, but the glacier itself is noticeably smaller. Now this is not a scientific study but this looks to me likes it’s evidence of global warming.
Prius Ordered
We ordered our new 2006 Toyota Prius from Jon
Lancaster Toyota. It’s scheduled to be delivered on April 30th. We’re
very excited. We ordered the "Silver Pine Mica" colored one with
Package #5. It comes with the Smart key, rear camera, vehicle stability control,
and a few other extras. We really did not want to go through another Wisconsin
summer without AC, so now was a good time to order. Our old car was also starting
to consume a lot of oil after 12 years and 106,000 miles.
