Report highlights development threats on Canadian watershed→

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Hannah Hoag, reporting for Nature:

 

“Without better governance, a robust science programme and stronger regulations for extractive industries and hydroelectric developments, Canada’s massive Mackenzie River basin could continue to face destroyed landscapes and massive bills for environmental clean-ups, an international panel of experts warns in a report issued today.

The Mackenzie River is the longest river in Canada, pouring 10.3 million litres of fresh water, the equivalent of four Olympic swimming pools, into the Arctic Ocean per second. Its ecosystems are mostly intact. They provide breeding habitat for migratory birds and include wetlands, boreal forest and carbon dioxide–absorbing peat lands, but they are at risk under warming climate scenarios and natural-resource development.”

Stormwater rules roil Minnesota cities→

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Josephine Marcotty, reporting for the Star Tribune:

 

“More than 200 Minnesota cities, from tiny Lauderdale to wealthy Rochester, will have to devise ways to keep the rain where it falls as part of a controversial new mandate designed to protect urban streams and lakes from the dirt and pollutants that wash off streets and yards along with the stormwater.

The cities, for the first time, will be required to maintain or reduce the volume of runoff leaving their systems, under a stormwater management plan approved Tuesday by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency governing board. The plan also requires the cities to account for their share of pollutants such as phosphorus and sediment that foul many urban lakes and streams.”

This is an important step in addressing lake pollution within cities. Perhaps we can start to think about non-point pollution oming from agricultural lands.

Glimmer of hope for freshwater research site→

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Hannah Hoag reports:

 

“The Ontario provincial government has stepped in to keep open the Experimental Lakes Area. The freshwater research facility located in northern Ontario was closed in March by the government of Canada, despite protests from scientists.”

Good news, as an incredible amount of lake research was produced from the ELA, including eutrophication and acid rain studies. xplore the work from this facility at: http://www.experimentallakesarea.ca

Minnesota Running Out of Water?→

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Paul Austin writes:

“A recent study by the Freshwater Society of Minnesota looked at the groundwater issues Minnesota is currently facing. From their research, they came up with a plan for reducing the strain we currently place on our aquifers. The plan will take some personal responsibility and some political leadership to attain.

The basic thrust of their report was that we cannot maintain our current trajectory when it comes to water usage and not expect to run out of water in certain places. Their analysis indicated that the state’s water usage increased 31 percent between 1988 and 2011. To cut that number, we need to start looking at ways each and every one of us can decrease our personal usage, and work with the various levels of government to ensure that where voluntary reductions are not working, mandatory backstops are in place to help protect this valuable resource.”

Lake Elmo wrestles with boat noise near Catholic retreat→

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Kevin Giles, reporting for the Star Tribune:

“The Jesuit retreat grounds, and nearby Carmelite campuses for cloistered nuns and hermits, cover fully a third of the Lake Demontreville shoreline. “I think there is a great deal of respect and reverence for what happens there with the Jesuits and Carmelites among lake owners,” Zuleger said. Boaters unfamiliar with the situation confuse the retreat grounds with a park, trespassing for picnics and parties and leaving litter behind...”

In crowded shoreline areas, surface water ordinances regulated time of ome activities are becoming more common.

Sustainable Living?

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It is best to live in a community and to be part of a civil society. A place where people care about the well-being of others. Other ways of life seem uncivil or harsh, regardless of their sustainability: