Blog posts by FLOW team and guest writers
Mr. McGuire: I just want to say one word to you. Just one word. Benjamin: Yes, sir. Mr. McGuire: Are you listening? Benjamin: Yes, I am. Mr. McGuire: Plastics. Benjamin: Exactly how do you mean? Mr. McGuire: There’s a great future in plastics. Think about it. Will you think about it? Benjamin: Yes, I will…. Read more »
Young people are changing the world. More evidence is an effort by a young Elk Rapids advocate, Zander Cabinaw, to help organize a June 3 event promoting awareness of aquatic invasive species prevention in the Great Lakes. Hundreds of canoeists, kayakers, paddleboarders and more will turn out for the event at the beach of Traverse… Read more »
The MDEQ and the Snyder Administration have failed (again) to fulfill their public trust responsibilities as defenders of our waters. While we are continuing to analyze the state permit and accompanying documentation, and will have a comprehensive response in the near future, some things are clear. The DEQ issued Nestlé a permit to pump up… Read more »
FLOW’s organizing principle is the public trust doctrine. What sounds like an exotic concept is quite simple. This centuries-old principle of common law holds that there are some resources, like water and submerged lands that by their nature cannot be privately owned. Rather, these commons – including the Great Lakes — belongs to the public. And… Read more »
Poets Anne-Marie Oomen and Linda Nemec Foster will read from their new book, The Lake Michigan Mermaid, at a fundraiser for FLOW on Thursday, April 19. The reading and reception take place from 5:30-7:00 p.m. at the Centerpointe conference center, top floor, on the west arm of Traverse Bay. Published by Wayne State University Press for the… Read more »
Today at FLOW, we are launching our latest campaign. It’s called Get Off the Bottle, and it combines facts, law, and policy with good old fashioned humor about the absurd implications of bottled water, whose sales surpassed the sales of soda for the first time in 2016. Just think about that for a moment…. Read more »
Hope is in the air, and the water. On a recent trip to Chicago to attend the Patagonia Action Works conference, FLOW Executive Director Liz Kirkwood met an extraordinary young advocate, Marcella Carter. Spurred into action by her concern about the oil and gas pipelines threatening the Straits of Mackinac, Marcella organized friends and classmates… Read more »
On Monday, Traverse City’s own William G. Milliken, the state’s longest serving governor, turns 96. It’s an appropriate time to reflect not only on his outstanding environmental record — the best of any chief executive of Michigan — but also on his legacy of civility and decency, as scarce these days in public life as… Read more »
Today is World Water Day, focusing attention on the importance of water. The theme for World Water Day 2018 is Nature for Water – exploring nature-based solutions to the water challenges of the 21st century. In Michigan, citizens are rallying to call attention to the failure of state policymakers to protect our water. Shannon… Read more »
Although proponents of Great Lakes aquaculture say it can be done without compromising the lakes, accidents have led tribes and First Nations peoples to call for a shutdown of Atlantic salmon net-pen farming along the West Coast of North America. photo: NOAA It would be hard to imagine Michigan State University Extension studying how to accommodate corporate… Read more »
