1st Friday Focus on the Environment

Governor Gretchen Whitmer is set to release her first budget proposal next week.  Through her campaign and into the first months of her administration, improving the environment has been at the fore.  In this month’s edition of "1st Friday," State Senator Jeff Irwin joins WEMU’s David Fair and Michigan League of Conservation Voters executive director Lisa Wozniak to see what has been done, what is being proposed, and where we can go from here.

After the November election, there was fast and furious action in Lansing, as lawmakers made a harried run through the lame duck session.  Some of that action could impact the environment in 2019.  In this month's "1st Friday Focus on the Environment," WEMU's David Fair and Michigan League of Conservation Voters executive director Lisa Wozniak discuss these New Year's challenges  Joe Schwarz, a former state lawmaker and current board member with both Voters Not Politicians and the Michigan League of Conservation Voters.

Environmentalists contend the ongoing, lame-duck session of the state Legislature is proving detrimental to health of “Pure Michigan.”  In the December edition of WEMU’s "1st Friday Focus on the Environment," David Fair explores measures that could strip away wetlands protections and measures that could keep the nearly 70-year old Line 5 pipeline operational in the Straits of Mackinac for another decade.  Michigan League of Conservation Voters executive director Lisa Wozniak and Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council policy director Jennifer McKay join in with their perspectives.

Elections are right around the corner and the future of the controversial Enbridge Line 5  may be put in the hands of those elected.  Then again, the State of Michigan has reached agreement with Enbridge to bury the 65-year old pipeline in a concrete tunnel in the Straits of Mackinac.  That binding agreement could be enacted in a lame duck session of the legislature, post-election.  As it turns out, that agreement may be in violation of a treaty with the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians.  Desmond Berry is the Natural Resources Department Manager for the Band and is this week’s guest on 89.1 WEMU’s “1st Friday Focus on the Environment.”

There are three statewide ballot proposals to be decided on November 6th.  Two of them have to do with voting.  Proposal 2 is being called “Voters Not Politicians” and aims to end gerrymandering.  If approved, it would create an independent commission to redraw legislative and congressional district lines after each census.  Proposal 3 is being called “Promote the Vote.”  It would create greater access to voter registration and aims to increase voter participation.  Both could have impacts on the overall health of Michigan’s environment.  

In this month’s “1st Friday” conversation, “Promote the Vote” leader and former Michigan ACLU executive director Kary Moss discusses the implications with WEMU’s David Fair and Michigan League of Conservation Voters executive director, Lisa Wozniak.

PFAS contamination of Michigan waters is growing.  It has forced a “Do Not Eat Fish” advisory for the Huron River and has been discovered in the Ann Arbor Municipal Drinking water supply.  More new contamination sites are being discovered throughout Michigan and the rest of the country.  WEMU has been exploring what is being done at the local and state levels over the past few weeks.  In this month’s “1st Friday Focus on the Environment,” David Fair and Lisa Wozniak of the Michigan League of Conservation Voters explore what is being done at the federal level with Congresswoman Debbie Dingell.

The annual, summer algae bloom has hit Lake Erie.  That’s not all.  Agricultural run-off, in some way, affects many of Michigan’s rivers streams and more than 11, 000 inland lakes.  Explore the causes, impacts and search for solutions in this month’s edition of “1st Friday Focus on the Environment.”  Lisa Wozniak of the Michigan League of Conservation Voters and Tom Zimnicki of the Michigan Environmental Council share their perspectives with WEMU’s David Fair. 

Environmentalists are exceedingly unhappy about Enbridge Energy's safety measure proposals for oil pipelines running through the Straits of Mackinac.  WEMU's David Fair talks with two such leaders about those concerns.  Lisa Wozniak is executive director of the Michigan League of Conservation Voters and Liz Kirkwood serves as executive director of FLOW, an acronym for "For Love Of Water." 

From spills in the Straits of Mackinac, to large-scale water diversions to tainted drinking water, Michigan has plenty of issues to address and remediate.  There are questions as to whether the political landscape will allow for the development of policies to adequetly do so.  Dave Dempsey has authored 10 environmental books and served on the Michigan Environmental Council.  Now, he is Senior Advisor for FLOW.  His perspective is on tap in this month's "1st Friday Focus on the Environment." 

Some call it "Fox Guarding the Hen-House" legislation.  Bills under consideration in Lansing would create an oversight panel for the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.  It would have the authority to grant and deny permits and overrule decisions made by the MDEQ.  It would also be comprised of people who may represent businesses and industries that have a financial stake in the decisions being made. 

PFA's are being found in more and more Michigan waterways and the threat to the environment and public health is real.  In this month's "1st Friday Focus on the Environment," you'll hear from attorney, activist and advocate Tony Spaniola about the the existing problems and growing likelihood of worse repercussions without quick and decisive action from the state. 

The State of Michigan is in the process of revising its Lead and Copper rule.  The decisions made could impact whether we see another situation like the Flint Water Crisis occur in Michigan.  What should, and could, happen as the public comment period winds down, is the topic of conversation on this month's edition of WEMU's 1st Friday Focus on the Environment. 

Through the course of this week, Governor Rick Snyder has released some ambitious plans for environmental policy for his final year in office.  WEMU’s David Fair caught up with James Clift, Policy Director of the Michigan Environmental Council, to discuss the plans and whether any of it will actually make it into policy. 

The new year brings a number of environmental challenges in Michigan.  Governor Rick Snyder is in his lame duck year, and mid-term elections could impact legislative priorities.  In this month's edition of "1st Friday Focus on the Environment," you'll get a sense of where we're headed. 

On Monday of this week, the state of Michigan made an agreement with Enbridge Inc. to allow the energy company to conduct its own safety study of the pipelines running through the Straits of Mackinac, albeit with some supervision. WEMU talks with Lisa Wozniak of the Michigan League of Conservation voter sand Liz Kirkwood of For Love Of Water (FLOW) about why they believe, that's not good enough. 

Oakland County was recently forced to issue a boil water advisory for nearly a dozen communities after a major pipeline ruptured in Farmington Hills.  It  brought to light some important issues related to water and infrastructure.  In this month's "First Friday Focus on the Environment," WEMU's David Fair talks to Michigan League of Conservation Voters executive director Lisa Wozniak about what comes next. 

The 1,4 Dioxane plume emanating from the old Gelman Sciences facility in Scio Township is moving slowly moving towards the Huron River and, if left unchecked, could be dangerous to Ann Arbor's drinking water.  In this month's edition of "1st Friday Focus on the Environment," Michigan League of Conservation Voters executive director Lisa Wozniak speaks to Mitch Adelman from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality about what is being done to contain this hazardous situation.

Recovery and relief efforts continue in southeast Texas. Harsh environmental issues will have to be dealt with in Hurricane Harvey's aftermath. 89.1 WEMU's David Fair and the MLCV's Lisa Wozniak  also explores the Lake Erie Algae Bloom and Nestle's desire to withdraw more water in Osceola County for its bottled water operations. It's all part of the monthly series, "1st Friday Focus on the Environment." 

Michigan would generate 50% of its electricity from clean, renewable sources by 2035 and greatly reduce energy waste under legislation under consideration in Lansing.  The package of bills aims to reduce energy costs, create jobs and build upon recently enacted energy laws.  In this month’s edition on “1st Friday Focus on the Environment,” WEMU’s David Fair discusses the issues with the Government Affairs Director for the Michigan League of Conservation Voters, Charlotte Jameson and with 52nd District State Representative Donna Lasinski (D-Scio Township), who is a co-sponsor of the house bills. 

Warmer temperatures may lead to even bigger algal blooms on Lake Erie this summer. Meantime, Flint, MI is still without a safe water supply, three years after lead contamination was discovered.  WEMU's David Fair gets the latest on those issues in his conversation with Lisa Wozniak, executive director of the Michigan League of Conservation Voters. 

Legislators, policymakers, business leaders and a variety of advocates have been meeting on Mackinac Island this week. Among the attendees, are environmental advocates, two of whom join David Fair for a conversation in this month's edition of '1st Friday Focus on the Environment.'  Larry Bell is founder and owner of Bells Brewery and Lisa Wozniak is executive director of the Michigan League of Conservation Voters. 

Proposals in both Lansing and Washington would make available publicly held lands for private enterprise. environmentalists are fighting regulatory rollbacks and cuts to funding health and sustainability programs. Those are among the topics David Fair addresses with Michigan League of Conservation Voters executive director, Lisa Wozniak, in this month's edition of WEMU's  "1st Friday Focus on the Environment," 

As the federal and state government continuing ironing out their budget priorities, environmentalists are expressing concern over proposed funding and regulatory rollbacks. In this month's edition of WEMU's 1st Friday Focus on the Environment, David Fair discusses some of those concerns with Charlotte Jameson, Government Affairs Director at the Michigan League of Conservation Voters. 

President Trump has put forth his nominees to lead the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy. Lawmakers, pundits and advocates alike are trying to assess what direction  environmental policy will take. 

It's been over a year since state officials in Michigan acknowledged Flint was in the midst of a water crisis and many of the city's children were suffering with high lead levels in their blood. Dr. Mona Hannah-Attisha brought the lead concerns to the fore and has remained an advocate for the children and safe water in Flint and around the state. She discusses where we've been and where we're going with David Fair and Michigan League of Conservation Voters executive director Lisa Wozniak . 

The State of Michigan has languished without passage of a new energy law for well over  a year. In this month's panel discussion on we look at where the legislation stands, where there is common ground and what may happen before the end of the calendar year.

Algae blooms have been problematic in Michigan, especially in Lake Erie.  In this month's "First Friday Focus on the Environment," WEMU's David Fair talks to Lisa Wozniak, executive director of the Michigan League of Conservation Voters, and Jim Byrum, president of the Michigan Agri-business Association, about ways to keep algae blooms from growing out of control.

Poor air quality in regions of our state contributes to chronic health problems including asthma, COPD, some cancers, and more. In this month's edition of WEMU's 1st Friday Focus on the Environment, Lisa Wozniak discusses the impact of air pollution on our communities with State Rep. Stephanie Chang and what it would take to move our state forward with environmental justice.I

As Michigan Lawmakers ponder a new energy plan, 89.1 WEMU explores where businesses in the state stand on the issues. In this month's edition of '1st Friday Focus on the Environment,' Michigan League of Conservation Voters Executive Director Lisa Wozniak talks with Dan Scripps. Mr. Scripps Senior Advisor for the Michigan Energy Innovation Business Council. 

There is a long road ahead to adequately address an expanding 1,4 dioxane plume in the Ann Arbor area. The plume has contaminated wells in Scio township and Ann Arbor and is slowly moving towards the city's municipal water supply at Barton Pond. In this month's '1st Friday Focus on the Environment',  Liza Wozniak talks with Washtenaw County Commissioner Yousef Rabhi about the next steps in the journey.