Burke-Lehman Retail Campaign on Environment

Ripon College Democrats hosted State Sen. John Lehman (D-Racine), candidate for Lieutenant Governor on Tuesday night.

Attendees went away impressed. Most people don't want to told their drinking water is not safe to drink, like what happened up north earlier this month.

Wrote attendee Elaine Swanson from Ripon College:

John Lehman came to the Ripon College campus last night.  He spoke about important issues - and left time for questions.  I brought up my neighbor Rosendale Dairy (the largest CAFO in Wisconsin)and the operation's untreated waste spread over fields surrounding homes where people are living; spray irrigation being pushed. 

Senator Lehman responded by telling of the tour he recently had in the central part of the state where a CAFO has been proposed.  He said he met the citizens who are fearful of the impacts on their lakes and streams from high-cap wells.  I was applauding you guys up in Rome & Saratoga for organizing that very important tour!

As I'm remembering, it was a tour of CAFOs in Kewaunee County that indirectly introduced more conservationists to spreading industrial operations in WI - like champion Greg Farnham. Thanks Kewaunee for organizing those tours that create lasting images - and lasting odors!

Scott Walker, Koch Stooge, Calls for New Federal Energy Policy

Scott Walker - Don't worry,
America, Walker won't be the next
president

"The governor told a group of Wisconsin farm reporters during a private gathering in his state Capitol office on May 28 that the country as a whole should be doing more to promote alternative energy sources like solar, wind, clean-burning coal, natural gas and ethanol," according to the Wisconsin Ag Connection.

The Wisconsin Ag Connection is an industry sell-out sheet, not worthy of a glance, except for the eye-catching hypocrisy (excessive even for Scott Walker) displayed as Walker's words on alternative energy are reprinted by the Ag Connection's stenographer.

Walker has blocked wind and solar energy as governor of Wisconsin, while specifically calling for solar and wind energy in his pretend run for the Republican Party's nominee for president in 2016.

Here are some relevant facts recently noted by Spencer Black:

Nearby states (to Wisconsin) are thriving. The director of Renew Wisconsin points out: 'Renewable energy is driving economic development throughout the Midwest and the nation. Our Midwest neighbors are investing heavily in wind power too.'

Walker administration policies are largely to blame. Under Walker, the Focus on Energy program curtailed funding for rooftop solar installations. State regulators appointed by Walker allowed utilities to reduce what they pay for power generated by utility customers' solar panels. Policies promoted by Walker have also made it harder to build new wind projects.

Ironically, while Wisconsin installs little new renewable energy, clean energy is still putting some folks to work here, but for projects in other states. For example, in Manitowoc, the Broadwind Energy factory will build towers for new Iowa wind farms. (The Capital Times, March 14, 2014) (emphasis added)

As Walker sucks in campaign money from oil, coal and gas interests, he continues his zealous opposition to critical and growing alternative clean energy industries that actually produce jobs.

Scott Walker takes his orders from ALEC, the Koch brothers and joins their assault on clean energy, to the detriment of American families' health as these special interests foul and toxify the environment.

This has been Walker's intention since he assumed office.

"Focus on Energy, a statewide program [since 2001] that promotes energy efficiency, is in the midst of big changes: new management by an out-of-state corporation, suspension of a popular rebate program, and sharp funding cuts in the pending state budget," reported Judy Newman (Wisconsin State Journal) on June 26, 2011, months after Walker assumed office. "Meanwhile, dozens of small Wisconsin businesses that specialize in setting up solar panels and wind turbines fear for their futures because of the slashed allocation and rebate removal."

Focus on Energy has a website, omitting mention of Walker's anti-wind power and solar energy policy that like most every Wisconsin state website under Walker has become a GOP propaganda outlet.

Scott Walker's pretending to be an pro-alternative energy governor is like Scott Walker pretending to be a pro-military veterans advocate—after Walker personally appointed two lackeys with no veterans' advocacy experience to run a non-profit charity for veterans and then stonewalled criminal investigators who later successfully convicted Walker's appointees for embezzling from these same non-profits. (Steve Schultze. Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, January 22, 2013; and Dan Bice. Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, May 31, 2012)

Too Beautiful to Bomb‏

We need the feds to come in and stop the calculated use of unlawful violence to intimidate the Wisconsin community.

View from Penokee Hills, Iron County Wisconsin
Proposed site of huge Iron Ore Open Pit Mine

Bad River Estuary

Bad River wetlands or sloughs flows into Lake Superior

Masses of plastic particles found in Great Lakes

Is this the legacy we really want to leave to our next generations?

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) -- Already ravaged by toxic algae, invasive mussels and industrial pollution, the Great Lakes now confront another potential threat that few had even imagined until recently: untold millions of plastic litter bits, some visible only through a microscope.
- By John Flesher, AP Environmental Writer

Stand with the Bad River Tribe Site

Stand with our environment, our state and the Bad River Tribe

Stand with our environment, our state and the Bad River Tribe,

"Throughout the process, Republican leaders along with the Governor have falsely claimed that the bill would not reduce environmental standards. However, the day following Senate deliberation of the bill, Senate author Tom Tiffany finally admitted the truth - that his bill would not only allow for 'adverse environmental impacts' to occur during mining, but that the bill was written to protect the company in the case of an inevitable lawsuit."

- Wisconsin Sen. Bob Jauch (Poplar, Wisconsin), via Sarah LittleRedfeather Kalmanson

View of the econsystem immediately downstream from Gogebic Taconite’s proposed mine

Update: Must reads today by Charles Pierce (Esquire) and Brian Pierson (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel), an attorney representing the Bad River band of Chippewa arguing for the rule of law.
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From Rep. Tod Ohnstad (D-Kenosha):  Aerial view of the econsystem immediately downstream from Gogebic Taconite’s proposed mine in northern Wisconsin.

"The way the Republicans have rushed this bill through the committee process left me no choice but to vote against it,” said Rep. Ohnstad. "We would have more hearings of the Kenosha City Council about whether to put up a new stop sign!"

As for Gogebic Taconite's Christopher Cline: You really think I give a shit, I live in Palm Beach!

Cline is like locusts; or more specifically the privately held Cline Resource and Development Group.

He buys up the politicians for sale; his companies come in, consumes all the natural resources; and then they as Cline's companies leave a wasteland.

He wants to despoil a pristine environment, and make a lot of money doing it.

What the people of Wisconsin, and the people of Ashland and Iron counties want is not Cline's concern.

Mining Owner from Palm Beach Gave Tommy Thompson $2,500, $10,000s More to GOP in 2012

Christopher Cline of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida and head of Gogebic Taconite gave Tommy Thompson $2,500 for Thompson's unsuccessful run for U.S. Senate in 2012, a search at the Center for Responsive Politics reveals.
Cline has numerous companies that he uses to funnel money into politicians with their hands out.

Cline also contributed over $100,000 in 2012 alone to GOP organizations and figures including Mitt Romney and House Speaker John Boehner, and remains a dirty coal producer who some call the New King of Coal.

As for Wisconsin, taking the iron and trashing the environment will do nicely.

Gogebic Taconite's Christopher Cline is set on raping the land in northern Wisconsin and no one is going to get in his way.

Certainly, not the people who live in in Iron and Ashland counties.

GOP May Find Out: Not a Good Idea to Mess with Folks' Land and Homes

Bad River Is Terrible Place to Rip Up and Plunder

GOP and Mining Interests: We're just here to help.The privately held Mining group that rewrote Wisconsin's environmental laws with GOP complicity is of course in this for the money, and it doesn't care what it leaves behind.
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Messing with people's land is not wise, no matter how illegally and underhanded the Wisconsin Republican Party has decided to scheme with the Florida-based Gogebic Taconite.

Scott Walker is in Florida for a fundraiser; wonder if any of his mining buddies are around.

For Gogebic Taconite to come to Iron and Ashland counties and rip up and pollute the land on the Bad River Watershed—which empties into Lake Superior, and the homes of the Bad River Indian Reservation and Wisconsin residents on this pristine land—will prove a difficult proposition no matter how many Republicans Gogebic Taconite have in their pockets.

In fact, this attack on a way of life may make Scott Walker's attack on workers look like a walk in the park by comparison.

"GOP extremists are fully in charge of Wisconsin state government and are willing to attack a native culture and the state's constitution for political and partisan hegemony," notes Jim Rowen after news that the state assembly passed the iron mining bill on a party line vote.

Now, GOP extremists may just find out how badly it plays to savage the Wisconsin Constitution, and pillage the pristine Bad River and Lake Superior in the land that Wisconsin citizens and Native Americans up North call home, many of whom live there because it's stunningly beautiful.

As for Gogebic Taconite, it is but one $billion company of the privately held Cline Resource and Development Group, of billionaire Christopher "Chris" Cline fame.

Cline is this for money, period. Not for jobs, not for preserving the land, not for helping Northern Wisconsin. In 2011, the New York Times (Geraldine Fabrikant) ran a piece on the slowing market for mega yachts.

The 161-foot Mine Games, a boat built by Trinity Yachts of Gulfport, Miss., was put on the market for $27 million several months ago, for example, because its owner, Chris Cline, who heads Cline Resource and Development, a mine development company, had a larger boat on order.

Not sure who Cline and his partners are going to have do Gogebic Taconite's public relations campaign up north in Wisconsin, but I can tell you they are going to be good.

Consider our neighbor to the South, Illinois. From the AP:

An investor who's trying to develop an iron ore mine in northern Wisconsin also owns a coal mine in Illinois that's accused of doing too little to resolve long-standing water pollution problems.

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency is seeking enforcement action over Macoupin Energy, alleging that the company isn't adequately addressing groundwater problems at its Shay 1 mine in Carlinville, Ill., the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported (http://bit.ly/14ts7XI) (on March 6, 2013).

The agency said it plans to refer the case to the Illinois attorney general's office.

Macoupin is one of four Illinois mines owned by billionaire Christopher Cline, who wants to build a $1.5 billion iron ore mine just south of Lake Superior ... .

The proposed Wisconsin mine, known as Gogebic Taconite, is at the center of a debate over whether Wisconsin should ease environmental safeguards and make other regulatory changes to the process of granting mine permits.

Republicans and the huge energy companies assure us: Don't fret over the environment, climate change, your land, your water, or your backyard; we're just here to help.

Obama Hails High-Speed Rail

High-speed rail, a labor-intensive project proposed by President Barack Obama means jobs, helping the environment and achieving energy independence.

The Republicans are going to hate this idea.

From Brian Knowlton in the Times

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama on Thursday highlighted his ambition for the development of high-speed passenger rail lines in at least 10 regions, expressing confidence in the future of train travel even as he acknowledged that the American rail network, compared to the rest of the world’s, remains a caboose....

'What we need, then, is a smart transportation system equal to the needs of the 21st century,' he said, 'a system that reduces travel times and increases mobility, a system that reduces congestion and boosts productivity, a system that reduces destructive emissions and creates jobs.'

And he added, 'There’s no reason why we can’t do this.'

Right on.

Mistele Sounds Like Green GOPer of Old

Nancy Mistele, candidate for Dane County executive, is sounding a lot like the Republicans of the 1970s.

Independent and innovative GOP thinkers such as the late former Governor Lee Sherman Dreyfus (1926–2008), Bill Kraus and others animated the Wisconsin political scene in the 1970s looking for practical solutions integrating the environment and business climate.

I had more or less given up hope that non-doctrinaire conservatives were still around. But Mistele is turning some heads.

Mistele put out her Protecting Our Environment, Protecting Our Jobs position paper today echoing her statement in an e-mail interview last month on the environment:

Like most others in Dane County, I am concerned about preservation, open spaces, clean air and clean water. We’ve got a proud tradition in Wisconsin, and particularly in Dane County, of respecting our Natural Resources, and I intend to respect and continue this tradition.

I think there are legitimate discussions we can have about how you balance the need for environmental preservation with the need for communities to grow and develop. If elected, I would not make an effort to immediately 'clean house' at our regulatory bodies, such as CARPC [Capital Area Regional Planning Commission], because I think we need to respect the experience and expertise many of these employees carry. Instead, I would ensure that members of my Administration support appropriate regulations for reasonable growth.

The Falk Campaign folks are already trying to caricature me as an anti-environment extremist. Not true. I’m an avid road biker and think there’s no better way to relax than to spend some time hiking in the woods or kayaking on one of our beautiful lakes. I can assure everyone concerned about the environment that as County Executive, my decision-making would be guided by my deep respect for the environment.

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Mistele's press release is below:

(Middleton) – Dane County must protect our environment and our job climate. County Executive Candidate Nancy Mistele is unveiling her environmental agenda which will protect the environment and jobs at the same time. Mistele says for too long, Dane County has been closed for business.

'I believe that we can, that we must protect the environment and protect the rights of property owners,' Mistele said, 'Being an environmentalist doesn’t have to mean putting up roadblocks to better paying jobs, safer roads and public safety.'

Mistele’s Environmental Agenda Includes:

· Save on cars that save at the pump - Eliminate County Sales tax on Hybrid/Electric Cars

· Green Business Czar - Create a business advocate that will help employers with permits so that they follow the rules, but don’t get overwhelmed or scared off with paperwork.

· Green Stamp of Approval - Follow the lead of local communities and streamline permitting and review process for businesses who follow green LEEDS standards which promote environmentally responsible construction and lower energy costs for builder.

· Put the brakes on Falk’s commuter rail - a $250 million amusement ride will pollute the environment with increased congestion, reduce public safety and sink them county in future debt. Instead, comprehensively evaluate extended county bus routes to all surrounding communities. Also explore expanding passenger rail routes from Madison to Chicago , Milwaukee and Minneapolis

· Respect our land and taxpayers - Applaud municipalities that protect land within their jurisdiction. Respect taxpayers by not purchasing land that is already protected. Taxpayers don’t need to own land to keep it green.

· Fair Market Value for Land - In today’s economy, taxpayers shouldn’t be expected to pay more for land than the market value. We must use proper comparables and independent appraisals when establishing purchase prices for land we do want to buy.

· Fair Notice - Establish a policy that requires county notification to property owners (business or residential) of potential zoning changes that may affect their property value or use.

· Cost Analysis - Require a fiscal impact study prior to any land use decisions.

· Public Access for Public Lands – If taxpayers are expected to pay for protecting land, they should have the right to enjoy those properties. Protected public lands must have public access.

· Green Awards - Reward and honor County Employees and citizens who come up with recommendations to streamline permitting process and maintain our high standard for environmental protection.

'We have a proud tradition in Dane County of respecting and preserving our environment—my agenda extends and builds on that tradition,' Mistele says.

'Personally, I have a deep respect for our environment, and my agenda balances this respect with the need for a county to grow, expand and create more high paying jobs.'

# # #

Self-reinforcing Global Warming

From Kari Lydersen in the Washington Post:

CHICAGO, Feb. 14 -- The pace of global warming is likely to be much faster than recent predictions, because industrial greenhouse gas emissions have increased more quickly than expected and higher temperatures are triggering self-reinforcing feedback mechanisms in global ecosystems, scientists said Saturday.

"We are basically looking now at a future climate that's beyond anything we've considered seriously in climate model simulations," Christopher Field, founding director of the Carnegie Institution's Department of Global Ecology at Stanford University, said at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Nancy Mistele's Challenge to Falk

Update: Mills: "(Q)uite frankly, I have been unimpressed with Falk's leadership, and am deeply concerned by the glaring holes left in her record by the massive fuck-ups with the 911 center." Rath: Falk dodges as Mistele fires

The Dane County Executive race is off and running with the first debate between Nancy Mistele and Kathleen Falk sponsored by the Dane County Public Affairs Council.

Though the political winds of Dane County blow left, this may prove to be a very interesting race in the face of a host of endorsements of Falk and Falk's 911 Center scandal.

As a Dane County writer who penned numerous anti-GOP pieces during the Bush administration reign, I cover the Nancy Mistele-Kathleen Falk race with negative preconceptions about the GOP, and about Falk’s performance in overseeing the 911 Center during and after the murder of UW-Madison student Brittany Zimmermann [ignoring a report that a “catastrophic” failure was possible], among other gripes.

One aspect of Nancy Mistele that escapes many progressives is that Mistele is not a fire-breathing, right-wing monster that is going to cook liberal children over fire pits hidden on endless miles of urban sprawl.

The message that the Mistele campaign is sending is that of a smart, judicious, consensus-building listener with a genuine appreciation for the environment, an indignation over the Brittany Zimmermann murder and Falk’s indisputable lack of candor, and an admiration of independent journalism.

"Falk has failed and I will fix it [the 911 center]," said Mistele at Wednesday's debate.

Mistele's message will animate the campaign with the ghost of a murdered UW-Madison student haunting this race.

What follows is an e-mail interview with Mistele composed of three questions sent to Mistele’s campaign and Mistele’s responses.

Question 1

Press queries into the conduct of the 911 Center have been, it is asserted, obstructed and stymied by Kathleen Falk as noted in an Isthmus piece by Jason Shepard?

Do you agree that Ms. Falk has been less than candid and open on the Zimmermann scandal? And would the Dane County’s Exec office be more open and transparent generally under a Nancy Mistele administration?

Specifically what would you have done differently on answering press queries on the Zimmermann affair?

It was the Isthmus that accused Kathleen Falk of ‘lying’ about the circumstances surrounding the handling of the 911 call from Brittany Zimmermann. Anyone familiar with the facts surrounding this case would not disagree with the Isthmus’ assessment. Within hours of Brittany Zimmermann’s death, Kathleen Falk and others in her Administration knew of the existence of Zimmermann’s desperate call for help. But, it wasn’t until weeks later that aggressive reporting on this incident blew the lid off the case and revealed the existence of Zimmermann’s desperate 911 call. If Kathleen Falk had her way, these facts would have remained hidden from public view.

In a Nancy Mistele Administration, I can assure you that our emergency responders will have every tool they need, that we will look for the most talented and experienced people to lead our critical public safety operations, and that I will not lie to the public when it comes to matters related to how their tax dollars are being spent and what we are doing to keep the community safe.

When it comes to a homicide investigation, obviously all information cannot be released before someone is apprehended and charged with the crime. But the existence of Zimmermann’s call to 911 was something that should not have been concealed from the public.

Our faith in government has been badly shaken by these tragedies. As County Executive, one of my most important duties will be to earn back the public’s trust, and that starts with always being honest.

Question 2

Dane County has a liberal-leaning electorate. If you are elected to the non-partisan exec’s office, what assurances are you willing to make that you will listen to and compromise with liberals holding policy views that seem to be at variance with your own views? In sum, are you the type of person willing to work with stakeholders to get something done?

I’m willing to work with everyone to improve the quality of life in Dane County, to create more high-paying jobs, and to protect the lives and property of everyone living in Dane County. I am not an ideologue. I am a woman who is willing to listen to all points of view and consider differing opinions. I realize that much of what the Executive can try to accomplish requires County Board approval, and I respect the diverse viewpoints each of these County Board members brings to the table.

The common ground that binds us all together is our collective desire to make Dane County a great place to live and work. We may not always agree on how that should happen, but we should be able to discuss and formulate a common-sense approach that protects and enhances our quality of life without trampling on the rights of others.

Question 3

The environment is key to many voters and the environment holds both a quality-of-life aspect and for deeper environmentalists holds a value in itself in that maintaining eco-systems is an objective of policy at all levels of government.

Is preserving the environment a conservative objective, in your view? What do you offer in your policy positions that would reassure Dane County’s many environmentally conscious voters?

Like most others in Dane County, I am concerned about preservation, open spaces, clean air and clean water. We’ve got a proud tradition in Wisconsin, and particularly in Dane County, of respecting our Natural Resources, and I intend to respect and continue this tradition.

I think there are legitimate discussions we can have about how you balance the need for environmental preservation with the need for communities to grow and develop. If elected, I would not make an effort to immediately 'clean house' at our regulatory bodies, such as CARPC [Capital Area Regional Planning Commission], because I think we need to respect the experience and expertise many of these employees carry. Instead, I would ensure that members of my Administration support appropriate regulations for reasonable growth.

The Falk Campaign folks are already trying to caricature me as an anti-environment extremist. Not true. I’m an avid road biker and think there’s no better way to relax than to spend some time hiking in the woods or kayaking on one of our beautiful lakes. I can assure everyone concerned about the environment that as County Executive, my decision-making would be guided by my deep respect for the environment.

Ecological Activism Blooms at Ecological Internet

Madison, WI—Merge environmental activism, info technology expertise, and deep ecological values, and you have the website Ecological Internet.

It is the brainchild of Glen Barry, Ph.D., a lifelong Wisconsinite from Denmark, WI, and former UW-Madison botanical information systems specialist in the Dept. of Botany.

A critical environmental portal, the site “specializes in the use of the Internet to achieve environmental conservation outcomes,” writes Barry.

The academic community is abundantly aware of the net’s potential for environmental activism, and collectively the literature on the net’s use in grassroots organizing sounds near-manic.

“(T)he political implications of the Internet’s effects are truly staggering … the Internet has fostered the metamorphosis of environmental politics from the pursuit of broad, national polices to a populist grassroots crusade …,” wrote Norman Millier in Environmental Politics: Interest Groups, the Media and the Making of Policy.

Miller is right. And Glen Barry is proving it in the real world at Ecological Internet.
Read about its successes, analysis and hard-core activism—truly fascinating stuff.

If you have even a passing interest in saving the environment, please check out Ecological Internet.

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