Rozworld’s WebLog

Capt. Eric Maresh of the Hill AFB is a bioenvironmental engineer with the US Air Force and a high school friend of mine. I found a great article on his exploits in these troubling times.

The story can be found here:
High marks for base H2O supply

“We are held to EPA’s and Utah’s strict drinking water standards,” Captain Maresh said.

An interesting set of talks by various well-known people, some talks better than others, over at T.E.D - Technology Entertainment Design.

http://ted.com/tedtalks/

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 Press

A 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.

The only irony of Little Guy was that he was neither Little nor a Guy. He was a dog with a big heart of gold in the Alaskan North. He was a friend and a companion to my parents when they were just adjusting to that rugged environment. As a young pup, Little Guy sought them out and adopted them out of the vastness of the wilderness. Then through the last 13 years he never left their side. Little Guy was many things. He was a mushing dog, he was a early warning when moose would come into the vicinity, and he loved to play ball. He survived countless scuffles with other dogs, coming home sometimes with multiple bite-marks. Little Guy survived a moose attack, with the beast bearing down with full force upon his dog house. More recently he survived being shot with an arrow by a careless neighbor. In the last days Little Guy had trouble going outside without being carried. We will remember him as a brave and gentle companion.

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)