Thursday, August 20, 2015

WI is out on the DNR's limb

When Bucky reads the news about the state of the environment and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources run right now intentionally with a "chamber of commerce mentality"  - - that with the agency's OK, the new Wisconsin budget raised camping and entrance fees while ending direct funding for state park operations; that the agency is on board with selling thousands of acres of state land, including sensitive and vital trout stream ponds in Langlade County; that the corporate NW Wisconsin land owner holding mineral rights to miles and miles of deeply-buried, low-grade iron ore for which there is no market for the foreseeable future is intent on finding another open-pit iron mine operator to seek DNR permission under weakened state mining law to grind down the pristine Penokee Hills, clearcut the forests and damage Bad River waters and regional wetlands after the GTac mine debacle; that an Iowa company plans to seek the DNR's permission to build and operate a 26,000+ pig-raising operation within runoff and sniffing distance of Lake Superior not far from the proposed mine site; that severe water pollution has taken place on the DNR's recent watch from frac sand mine spillage in the St. Croix River and runoff from huge cattle feeding operations into neighboring waterways and residential wells; that the DNR is doing minimal environmental reviews of, and the state budget blocked county insurance mandates for, a tar sand pipeline expansion to run the length of the state and carry more oil than the Keystone XL pipeline too - - etc. etc. - - Bucky is right to ask the DNR: Is this the agency's management philosophy, the end game for Wisconsin? 

Stupid Person












1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The Wisconsin Citizens Media coop was on to this story years ago. "Gundy" has been moved to Revenue but his legacy lives on. http://wcmcoop.com/2012/05/28/walker-dnr-appointee-sought-to-privatize-trout-streams/