Blog Posts

Blog posts by FLOW team and guest writers

Departing Governor and Lame Duck Legislature Speed toward 99-Year Oil Tunnel Scheme, Leaving Mackinac Straits at Risk from Line 5 Pipelines

December 12, 2018

https://forloveofwater-wp-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Liz-testifying-12.11.18.mp4 FLOW Executive Director Liz Kirkwood testifying Dec. 11, 2018, at the Michigan House of Representatives Government Operations Committee. https://forloveofwater-wp-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Kelly-testifying-12.11.18.mp4 FLOW Deputy Director Kelly Thayer testifying Dec. 11, 2018, at the Michigan House of Representatives Government Operations Committee. In coordinated fashion, the Michigan’s lame-duck legislature on Tuesday and governor today opened the flood gates to a 99-year… Read more »

Down to the Wire in the Lame Duck: Lansing Attacks Threaten our Waters and Values

December 10, 2018

Photo credit: Charles Brackett Michigan’s waters and environmental values are under attack. In the next two weeks, Michigan citizens have an opportunity to defend them from a lame duck Legislature that is defying the clear mandate of the State Constitution and the preferences of strong majorities of Michigan voters. Michiganders are not clamoring to leave… Read more »

Interview with Bill O. Smith, author of Chickadeeland

December 7, 2018

Bill O. Smith, committed environmentalist and author of the beloved Chickadee book series, talks to FLOW about Chickadeeland, writing children’s books, and his commitment to supporting environmental organizations.  Could you provide additional biographical information beyond what is on your website?    I grew up in suburban St. Louis, MO…couldn’t have cared less about clean water and the environment, never paid any attention… Read more »

Line 5 – a Long-Term Asset? Not a Chance in this Century

December 6, 2018

Photo credit: Nancy May By Liz Kirkwood and Skip Pruss Substitute Bill SB 1197 continues to be riddled with faulty assumptions and logic that favor and bend towards Enbridge’s private corporate shareholder interests. Most glaring of all is the audacious and misguided underlying assertion that we humans will continue to rely on a fossil fuel… Read more »

Legislature’s Assault on Environment Defies State Constitution

December 5, 2018

Photo credit: Charles Brackett In the midst of multiple legislative attacks on environmental laws and natural resources that Michiganders cherish, it is tempting to despair.  But at FLOW we seek positive, right solutions based on the principle that no matter who a person is, no matter her or his walk of life or political persuasion,… Read more »

Presto! Another Tunnel Bill Appears, as Michigan Lawmakers Rush to Save Enbridge from the Public’s Will

December 4, 2018

In response to an outpouring of bipartisan public pressure to save the Mackinac Bridge from Enbridge, the shareholder-owned Canadian corporation, Michigan Senate Republicans today released yet another rushed version of their Senate Bill 1197 that makes matters worse for the Mighty Mac, the Great Lakes, and Michigan taxpayers. Specifically, in a race to guarantee a… Read more »

We should strengthen, not weaken wetland protection

December 4, 2018

This month, in its lame duck session, the Michigan Legislature intends to pass a number of bills harming public health and welfare and the environment – all without meaningful public input or debate.  Included within this eleventh-hour debacle is Senate Bill 1211, sponsored by outgoing Senator Tom Casperson, chair of the Senate Natural Resources Committee…. Read more »