Commentary – Rediscovering the Clothesline

Smog levels in the Great Lakes basin can reach dangerous levels during the summer months. But as the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Suzanne Elston points out, simple gestures, like hanging our clothes out to dry, can add up to major savings for the environment:

Commentary – On the Road

Summer time is travel time. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Bob Lilienfeld has a few simple ways for you to enjoy your vacation without treading too heavily on the environment:

Commentary – Summertime Waste Reduction

With summer here, odds are you’ll be spending your free time in your back yard. Great Lakes Radio Consortium Commentator Bob Lilienfeld has a few ways for you to relax without putting a big strain on the environment:

Court Decision Gives Renewable Energy a Boost

Coal fired power plants produce two-thirds of the nation’s electricity. In the process, they emit millions of tons of carbon dioxide and other air pollutants. But a recent court decision in Minnesota may provide an incentive to embrace cleaner energy sources. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Steve Frenkel has more:

Midwest Power Shortage

As summer approaches, utility companies are bracing for possible energy shortages throughout the Midwest. And with many of the region’s nuclear power plants shut down, this summer’s energy crunch could be especially severe. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Steve Frenkel reports:

Incinerating Chicken Waste Provides Energy

Chickens raised on U.S. poultry farms produce nearly twentymillion-tons of manure every year. That waste is difficult to disposeof and can pollute water supplies. Now one British company thinks it’sfound a profitable way to manage that manure. The Great Lakes RadioConsortium’s Steve Frenkel has more:

Windpower Manufacturer Gets Government Boost

Advocates of renewable energy are hoping the deregulation of electric utilities will give solar and wind energy a chance to flourish. A small company in Duluth, Minnesota thinks they have designed a new wind-power electric generating system that will work equally well on Midwestern farms and in small villages in the developing world. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Stephanie Hemphill reports:

Bright Future for Wind Power

As concern over climate change grows, so does interest in clean energy sources like wind power. Currently, windmills generate less than one percent of America’s electricity. But that’s slowly beginning to change. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Steve Frenkel reports:

Energy Efficiency and Utility Deregulation

States around the nation are beginning to embrace electricity deregulation. Last November, the Illinois’ State Legislature passed its own deregulation bill. But environmentalists complained that it did little to promote clean and efficient energy use. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Steve Frenkel reports on a new proposal to improve Illinois’ deregulation law: