Blog posts by FLOW team and guest writers
Now that Michigan’s governor and attorney general have sunk the oil tunnel scheme hatched by the last administration, I’m asked nearly every day: What can citizens and state leaders do to shut down the propped-up, banged-up Line 5 oil pipelines in the Straits of Mackinac for good? Here’s my answer, as succinctly as I can distill… Read more »
How Did We Get Here on Line 5? Tracing the Law and the Politics The plotting of former Governor Snyder’s administration and Enbridge to hand over the public trust soils and bedrock under the Straits of Mackinac for the company to build and operate a new crude oil pipeline in a tunnel for 99 years… Read more »
Above: Jim Olson and his wife Judy Bosma pose with Patagonia environmental programs associate Alex Cangialose and environmental grants coordinator Tom Kaheli on the front steps of Patagonia’s headquarters. Patagonia, the cutting-edge outdoor clothing company with a mission to serve the common good and the planet’s environment, started out as a climbing equipment company in… Read more »
Once upon a time, state environmental agencies operated for decades under the same name, providing continuity and tradition — but perhaps failing to meet evolving needs. The Michigan Department of Conservation operated for nearly 50 years, beginning in 1921, a period of rapid growth in the state forest and park system and the gradual adoption… Read more »
Governor Whitmer’s directive Tuesday to the Department of Environmental Quality to develop an enforceable state drinking water standard for toxic PFAS chemicals is a welcome step. It signals that her Administration believes the health of Michigan citizens and the environment is not something to be left to foot-dragging federal officials, and that she is actively… Read more »
With an estimated 130,000 septic systems leaking E. coli and other pollutants into Michigan groundwater, lakes, and streams, you would hardly think it time to relax inspection requirements. But that’s exactly what Kalkaska County is considering this spring – and this has some local residents and environmental experts concerned. Kalkaska County has a sanitary code… Read more »
Freshwater Facts Only freshwater will sustain human life. About 97% of the water on earth is salt water. Of the remaining fraction of approximately 3% that is freshwater, over 98% is locked in ice caps, glaciers and groundwater. Of the remaining fraction of about 1.2% of all freshwater, about .25% is found at the surface… Read more »
One governor of Michigan is remembered in large part because of his environmental ethic and accomplishments. William G. Milliken of Traverse City, who turns 97 on Tuesday, March 26, supported and signed into law most of Michigan’s modern environmental laws while he was the state’s chief executive from 1969-1982. Governor Milliken said his environmental commitment… Read more »
Above: A Summer day on western Lake Eire A lake, river, creek, parkland, wilderness, or canopy of redwoods or old sugar maples can’t walk to the courthouse to file lawsuits to protect their right to be free from harm, nor can they walk into a precinct and vote. Come to think of it, neither can… Read more »
This is the second installment in a series of essays by FLOW board member Rick Kane on the vital issues of risk management and the responsibilities of public officials under the public trust doctrine. Rick is the former Director of Security, Environment, Transportation Safety and Emergency Services for Rhodia, North America. He is certified in… Read more »
