Environment
Conservation groups complain of being shut out by conservation congress rule change
Conservation groups are raising an alarm about a rule change made by the Wisconsin Conservation Congress (WCC) which would make it harder for citizens to contribute questions to an annual survey that policymakers use to shape statewide policies on issues such as water quality and hunting rules. The WCC was created in 1934 and has […]
Navy decompression experiments at UW-Madison come to an end
U.S. Navy experiments on animals have been canceled at UW-Madison following pressure from animal rights activists. The canceled experiments subjected sheep to conditions meant to induce decompression sickness. Two years before their scheduled completion, the experiments exposed test subjects to pressure in hyperbaric chambers, according to a letter sent by the animal rights group People […]
Lawmakers looking to address PFAS pollution
A Republican-led committee appeared open to dedicating more resources this budget cycle towards addressing PFAS contamination in Wisconsin during a hearing on Tuesday. The informational hearing about PFAS — or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — comes about a month after University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers determined there were PFAS in Green Bay and a week after […]
USDA to use outdoors recreation to boost economy around national forests, grasslands
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Agriculture began planning this month to develop outdoor recreation opportunities near national forests and grasslands, part of a broader Biden administration push to help communities reap economic rewards from the growing recreation sector. Three USDA agencies — the U.S. Forest Service, the National Institute of Food and Agriculture and […]
What’s in the air? Climate activists in Beloit decide to look for themselves
A volunteer project in Beloit to measure particulates in the air has produced findings that project organizers say might indicate significant and previously unmonitored pollution. The project, sponsored by the Wisconsin Health Professionals for Climate Action, also offers a model that advocates hope to replicate in other communities around the state — to raise awareness […]
White House launches new push to help states remove lead pipes that carry drinking water
WASHINGTON — The White House on Friday announced plans to speed up the use of infrastructure law funds to replace lead pipes in underserved communities, with a focus on Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin beginning this year. The four states, each led by Democratic governors, will be part of what’s called the Lead Service […]
Public lands near Minnesota’s Boundary Waters withdrawn from federal mining leases
WASHINGTON — After more than a year of assessment and debate, the U.S. Department of the Interior on Thursday announced the withdrawal of more than 225,000 acres of public lands near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota from federal mine leasing programs. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland signed Public Land Order 7917, […]
Natural Resources Board discusses water quality, bear management in first meeting with new members
In its first meeting in nearly two years without a member holding onto his seat long past its expiration, the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board approved new water quality standards and the 2023 bear harvest quota without the acrimony that has shaken the state’s conservation policy making since 2021. The meeting Wednesday was the first in […]
Report forecasts clean-energy boost from turning cornfields into solar power fields
About 1 million acres of Wisconsin farmland produces corn for ethanol fuel, but an environmental group says the land could produce 100 times as much energy if planted with solar farms instead. In addition, it would take less than one-third of the land currently used for ethanol corn to house enough solar generation to eliminate […]
Groups petition U.S. Forest Service to ban hound hunting in Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest
A group of conservation and wildlife protection organizations have sent a petition to the U.S. Forest Service asking the agency to ban hunting with hounds within the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest (CNNF) in northern Wisconsin. The controversial practice is common among Wisconsinites who hunt bears, coyotes, fox, bobcats and, when allowed, wolves. Opponents of hounding say […]
New DNR Secretary wants agency to ‘be a leader not a follower’
In a speech at his daughter’s wedding, Adam Payne, the newly appointed secretary-designee of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR), told a story about the first time he went deer hunting with her and the joy they shared when she harvested a doe and buck that day. In an interview with the Wisconsin Examiner, […]
Two dozen private wells contaminated with PFAS found in northern town of Stella
Testing has revealed that 24 private wells in the Town of Stella outside of Rhinelander are contaminated with levels of PFAS higher than the Wisconsin Department of Health Service’s standards. The contamination was found when the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) was randomly sampling 450 wells across the state for PFAS and found one well […]