Commentary – Melting the Arctic Lifestyle

While international debate continues on how to limit the release ofgreenhouse gases, global warming is becoming a reality in the HighArctic. A new report by the International Institute for SustainableDevelopment is perhaps the first to document the observations of nativepeoples living in the region. Great Lakes Radio Consortium commentatorSuzanne Elston says that the evidence is a frightening taste of thingsto come:

Transcript

While international debate continues on how to limit the release of
greenhouse gases, global warming is becoming a reality in the High
Arctic. A new report by the International Institute for Sustainable
Development is perhaps the first to document the observations of
native peoples living in the region. Great Lakes Radio Consortium
commentator Suzanne Elston says that the evidence is a frightening
taste of things to come.

I was sorting out some family papers not too long ago when I came
across a very old magazine. It was a 1959 edition of the Illustrated
London News and in it was an advertisement for Shell Oil. The ad
pictured an Inuit woman, with a small child snuggled behind her in
the hood of her traditional native parka. They both appeared to be
warming their hands on something. The ad was to promote the many uses
of kerosene and the caption read, “The North Pole is getting warmer.”


I don’t think anyone could have imagined just how prophetic that
advertisement would turn out to be. The widespread use of fossil
fuels has brought warmth to the north – but in ways that no one could
have predicted.


And now this new study paints a disturbing picture of how seriously
climate change is affecting the Arctic. This study documents native
knowledge about changes to the northern environment. And after
spending a year with the Inuit people of Sachs Harbour, in Canada’s
Northwest Territories, scientists report dramatic changes.


For the first time in their oral history, the Inuit people are seeing
thunder and lightning. Species of birds like robins and barn swallows
have been observed and strange new insects are becoming part of the
landscape.


But these observations are just warning signs of more severe changes.
Changes that are threatening the very existence of a culture that has
spanned thousands of years. Thinner ice has made it dangerous for
native hunters to pursue polar bears and seals. Warmer temperatures
are making it difficult for polar bears to hunt as well. Seals used
to bask on ice floes in the harbour, but in recent years those floes
no longer appear. In one case, an entire lake disappeared when its
frozen shores gave way. As a result, all of the fish that lived in
the lake were killed when it drained into the ocean.


Even the permafrost is starting to melt. As the land thaws and
shifts, roads are being destroyed and buildings are tilting off their
foundations. What’s frightening is that these changes are just the
beginning. If the polar ice caps melt – as some scientists are
predicting – then the entire Inuit way of life will be wiped out.


Meanwhile, thousands of miles to the south, our governments still
aren’t able to confront the issue of climate change. The plight of
the Inuit is so distant that it’s hard for any of us to imagine these
kinds of dramatic changes here in the Great Lakes Basin. But change
is definitely happening. Given the failure of our leaders to move on
this critical issue, it would be better if we found ourselves in a
similar plight to the Inuit. Maybe then our leaders would find the
will to act.

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Teaching Walleye to Smell Danger

Walleye were once plentiful across the Great Lakes region, and were thefocus of a major sport fishing industry. But heavy over-fishing andotherproblems such as pollution depleted the walleye population. Now,researchersare trying to increase walleye stocks by drastically improving thesurvivalrate of small walleye stocked in lakes. The project focuses on teachingyoung fish how to use their sense of smell to avoid predators. Researchers say that if they are successful, the effect on themulti-million dollar sport fishing industry could be staggering. TheGreat Lakes Radio Consortium’s Bob Reha reports:

Transcript

Walleye were once plentiful across the Great Lakes region, and were the
focus of a major sport fishing industry. But heavy over-fishing and other
problems such as pollution depleted the walleye population. Now, researchers
are trying to increase walleye stocks by drastically improving the survival
rate of small walleye stocked in lakes. The project focuses on teaching
young fish how to use their sense of smell to avoid predators. And
researchers say that if they are successful, the effect on the multi-million
dollar sport fishing industry could be staggering. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Bob Reha reports.


(sound of gulls over head)


Doctor Brian Whizenden and his students sit in front of the Detroit
Lakes Fish Hatchery waiting for a DNR tank truck loaded with walleye
fingerlings to show up.


(Sound of truck backing into fishers)


As DNR workers back the vehicke into a stall Doctor Whizenden and his
crew spring into action. Rubber containers are filled with water.


(Sound of cross fade up water sound into containers)


Oxygen is then pumped into the containers to make sure the fish will
survive the 45 minute drive back to the MSU campus.


(Sound of oxgen bubbling into the water spiked and then faded cross
fade of walleyes being dumped in containers, Dr. Whizenden counting fish)


Finally fifty walleyes, ranging from 6 to 8 inches in length
are transported by hand held nets into the containers, loaded and driven
back to the Moorhead campus and they’re new home in Doctor Whizenden’s lab…

(Sound from lab)


All of this effort is part of an experiment to determine if young
walleye can be taught to use their sense of smell to avoid predators in the
wild. If successful, Doctor Whizenden believes the survival rate of
fingerlings, fish that are stocked in lakes will rise. This could mean lowering the costs of keeping catchable populations of fish in lakes. Better
populations of catchable fish mean more anglers and tourism dollars
pouring into walleye country. Doctor Whizenden has done research that shows
some fish, like minnows have an alarm cell in their skin, when attacked the
cell releases a signal or scent, this acts like an alarm bell to other
minnows that a predator is in the area.

“For example minnows can smell not only their predator but the diet of the predator when they smell a predator when they smell the predator they know not only that its a pike or something but they can tell what that pike has been eating lately.”


Whizenden says not only do minnows have a great sense of smell, they’re quick learners.


“But at the same time they learn to associate fear or an anti-predator response with anything else they encounter at the same time so if they encounter both the skin extract and the predator odor at the same time they learn to associate fear with the predator odor and this association, this pairing takes only one exposure for them to learn that just one time.”


Whizenden says research indicates that while walleye don’t share the
same genetic makeup as minnows, they do react to the chemical or scent
release of other walleyes when attacked by a predator.


“So what we’re trying to do is see if we can use this research
that has been quietly being done on minnows now for a number of years to
see if we can apply it to this walleye situation where we take naive walleye,
train them to be afraid of pike odor which is a dominate predator and
see if that training translates into increased survival once they’re
stocked into the big lakes.”


Whizenden concedes there are a lot of ifs remaining to be answered and
that tracking the success of the theory in the wild will be difficult. But
the potential rewards has gotten the attention of DNR officials. Dave Friedal
is the area fisheries manager for the Detroit Lakes district.


“It could be a means of getting better survival on the fish we’re
stocking in lakes and it could mean a fairly easy treatment if all
it takes is some very dilute smells in the water in order to educate or
train or if their behavior is changeable by a simple exposure to a smell
that might be pretty easy to do it might be something we could put in our
fish tanks on the way out to the lakes.”


If the project shows that Walleyes can be trained to avoid predators
before being stocked in lakes, it could reduce the cost
of the stocking program. Wildlife managers say higher survival rates of
fingerlings in the wild mean more fish for the same amount of money. It
could also mean more fish for anglers, which in turn could mean more
business for resort owners and other tourist related businesses across
the Great Lakes. Doctor Whizenden says if preliminary experiments in the lab
are successful the next step will be to do a field test some time next
year. For the GLRC I’m Bob Reha in Moorhead Minnesota.

Cherry Power Packed Into Pills

A cherry grower in Northern Michigan has farmed his last million poundsof tart cherries and is now pressing the fruit into service as a healthpill rich with anti-oxidants and other beneficial compounds. The GreatLakes Radio Consortium’s Michelle Corum reports from Traverse City:

Transcript

A cherry grower in Northern Michigan has farmed his last million
pounds of tart cherries and is now pressing the fruit into service
as a health pill rich with anti-oxidants and other beneficial
compounds. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Michelle Corum reports
from Traverse City.

Bob & Janet Underwood are working in a warehouse packing up cherry
pills. This is the first fall in years, they aren’t manning their orchard
market selling apple and cherry products.

“Last weekend would have been our busiest time of the
year.”

Now they buy their cherries from a local cooperative because as Bob
Underwood explains, they’re done farming.

“You know that’s history for us for now, we’re in another venture
that’s taking the fruit and putting it in a tablet form, giving the
public the chance to get whole fresh fruit in a diff way. Before it was in a cup, now its in a pill”

They call it “Cherry Rich”. Cherries fresh from the orchard are
only available for about 3 weeks. So Underwood came up with the
idea of putting cherries into tablets and chewable wafers so they
can be eaten year round. Making them is a region wide
production that sends the cherries around Lake Michigan: They’re
quick frozen in Traverse City, dried in northern Illinois, and
packaged in Watoma, Wisconsin, and marketed back in northern
Michigan.

The Underwoods say for years, customers have asked for their pure
cherry juice concentrate because they find it helps their
arthritis.

Michigan State University has taken note of anecdotal evidence like
that and done research on red tart cherries. Dr. Muralee Nair,
researcher in MSU’s department of Horticulture tells what they
discovered.

“What we found in the lab study is the cherry compound has the ability to inhibit the inflammation causing enzyme.”

And it’s the cherry’s red color which, he says, is superior to
other red-colored fruit.

“The red color in tart and sweet cherries are the same
compound. But the red color in raspberry is not the same as the red color
in tart cherries.”

He says eating about 20 tart cherries a day (and consuming its
compound called anthocyanin), could reduce inflammation and
headache, possibly better than aspirin.

Michigan State University researchers say their work is ongoing and
they don’t endorse any product. But “Cherry Rich” may not be
exclusive for long. Amway has rights to use patents from
Michigan State University research related to Tart cherries.
They’re developing their “Nutrilite” brand foods and supplements
involving cherries that they’re not ready to announce yet.

Nutriceuticals are compounds in plants that may have almost drug-
like properties. Research is only NOW finding out what these
properties are and how to extract them.

The Cherry Marketing Institute, (a promotion organization funded by U.S.
cherry growers) is doing it’s own research of the nutriceutical
properties of cherries. They say preliminary results of a
University of Texas Medical School study show cherries have high
levels of the anti-oxidant melatonin. Cherry Marketing President
Phil Corson says their studies are continuing.

“We’ve spent 40-80 thousand a year over five years, our goal is to
take a look at what’s there, and we feel we’ve only scratched
the surface.”

But although nutriceutical research is new and producing some
interesting results. David Schardt of the Center for Science in the
Public Interest in Washington DC expresses caution:

“Simply because a fruit has antioxidant value in a lab test
doesn’t mean it’ll have that same potency in a capsule.
It’s one thing to see something in the lab. It’s something else to
see it work inside our body when we’re under different
influences. It’s by no means assured that cherries
will have the terrific antioxidant capacity they seem to have in
the lab.”

Still, industry officials hope research can lead to more fruit
consumption and help a stunted market that hasn’t been a bowl of
cherries lately. Underwood’s plan is to bottle the positives
of cherries, and hopefully sell others on the pill’s convenience
and health. For the GLRC, I’m Michelle Corum, in Traverse City, Michigan.

CROPS MAY BENEFIT FROM WILD NEIGHBORS (Short Version)

Researchers are finding that crops planted near wild areas appear tobenefit more from nature than first thought. The Great Lakes RadioConsortium’sLester Graham reports:

Transcript

Researchers are finding that crops planted near wild areas appear to benefit
more from nature than first thought. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s
Lester Graham reports.


Researchers at Michigan State University’s Kellogg Biological Station are
studying the effect of nature on crops. They’ve found woods or overgrown
fence rows near farms can be home to beneficial insects. Kay gross is a
plant ecologist. She says farmers might even be helped by certain kinds of
weeds- but only certain kinds.

“And i do not want to say weeds are not a bad thing. In fact, when I
talk to farmers, I say ‘you know, ecologists, we think diversity is good.
and i say to you as a farmer, you don’t always want diversity. What you want
is a specific kind of community there.’ The question is how do you enhance
some of these species that will have beneficial effects and not the negative
effects.”

Gross says it will take years of study to find those benefits- but she and
other researchers say it’s already clear that nature can play a greater role
in increasing crop yields and reducing pesticide use.
For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Lester Graham.

Crops May Benefit From Wild Neighbors

  • Researchers at Michigan State University's Kellogg Biological Station are growing corn, soybeans, and wheat near weed patches and timbered areas to see how crop production is affected by things in nature.

Some researchers are beginning to believe farmers could produce cropsmore cheaply if they get back to nature. They think some insects foundin the wild and even some weeds could help. The Great Lakes RadioConsortium’s Lester Graham reports:

Transcript

Some researchers are beginning to believe farmers could produce crops more cheaply if they get back to nature. And they think some insects found in the wild and even some weeds could help. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports.


Just 20 years ago it was common to see farmers or some young kids they hired
cutting weeds out of soybean fields. It was a point of pride to have a clean
field- nothing but the crop.

“I am one of those older farmers that grew up with the idea that
you shouldn’t have a weed in the field.”

Tom Guthrie farms nearly 800 acres in southwestern Michigan.

“If you had a weed in the field, that was competition and that
was going to lessen the number of dollars that ended up on your bottom line.
But, we didn’t at that time understand the relationship among all systems.
And the weeds and the insects and so forth are part of those systems.”

Guthrie says farmers are now beginning to understand that they can’t just
rely on chemical fertilizers and pesticides to replace nature. At least not
without some harm to the environment. That’s why he has been watching with
some interest the research going on just a few miles from his farm.


Michigan State University’s Kellogg Biological Station is trying to find out
whether farmers could benefit more from some of the things in nature. They
already know that pollinators such as bees and butterflies, as well as
microbes in the soil are all needed to help crops grow well. But the
researchers are learning that there are a lot more connections between the
natural world and growing crops. Kay Gross is a plant ecologist at the
biological station. She says researchers are finding crops grown near
natural areas are helped in other ways.

“Because those hedgerows, old fields, and woodlots often provide
habitat for the beneficial insects that can serve as predators against pests
in agricultural systems.”

Gross says there are lots of examples. For instance lady bugs, or what some
people call ladybird beetles, eat aphids, a pest that damages soybeans. A
wasp that lives along the edge of timber destroys the European corn borer,
which is a major pest in corn fields. Without the natural areas where many
of these bugs live. Gross says farmers have to rely more on chemical
insecticides.


Gross says weeds also can help. low growing ground cover can help retain
nitrogen in the fields and help reduce soil erosion. Gross says the trick is
to find the kinds of plants that will help farm crops- not compete with
them.


“I mean, ideally you could come up with a crop rotation, tillage
management system that would get only the best out of the weed community and
none of the negatives. That may not be possible.”


Researchers say they’re just beginning to understand the inter-relationships
between nature and growing food. Finding a balance that makes economic sense
will take a lot more study.


Phil Robertson is one of the project leaders at the Kellogg Biological
Station. He says there might soon be a day when farmers leave a patch of
weeds in the center of the field, or leave strips of natural areas to take
advantage of nature’s resources.

“At this point it’s too early to make specific recommendations
other than the generalization that diversity at some level is likely to be
very beneficial and will likely save producers money over the long haul.
But, as to how much diversity is needed, how much diversity is desirable,
that question still awaits further information from studies such as the one
being conducted here.”

Robertson says unfortunately, farmers might have hurt their prospects in
recent years in an effort to become more productive. Many farmers cleared
away fence-rows and timber areas to make it easier to use much bigger
tractors and implements. The idea was to get more crops planted and
harvested to meet the demands of new world markets.

“Well, it’s very likely there’s has been a cost to removing
those fence-rows and removing that landscape complexity that we don’t yet
fully understand. But, certainly we know that maintaining the diversity of
the surrounding landscape will improve the ability of that landscape to help
provide services to the cropping system.”

Farmers who visit the biological station are intrigued. After a lifetime of
viewing bugs and weeds as pests to kill, farmer Tom Guthrie says it will
probably be the next generation of farmers who actually turn back to nature.
Not the ones who’ve already spent a good portion of their lives
hand-chopping and tilling weeds out of the fields.
For the GLRC, this is Lester Graham.

Battle Over Midwest Forests

Environmental groups, timber cutters and the Clinton Administration aregearing up for one final fight over some National Forest land. The fateof several hundred thousand acres of trees in the Midwest could be atstake. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Chuck Quirmbach has thestory:

Transcript

Environmental groups, timber cutters and
the Clinton administration are gearing up for one
final fight over some national forest land. And the
fate of several hundred thousand acres of
trees in the Midwest could be at stake. The Great
Lakes Radio Consortium’s Chuck Quirmbach has the
story.

The Forest Service has released a final
environmental impact statement for its plan to
limit new roads in the national forests. The
document has just been broadened to nearly ban
commercial logging in roadless areas. Forest
Service chief Mike Dombeck believes there is non-
partisan backing for saving big trees.


“People want good fish and wildlife habitats.
People want healthy forests. We want good
water quality, and there’s strong support behind
maintaining the National Forests for all the
American people.”


But timber companies in the Midwest and other
regions will try to get President Clinton to dump
the restrictions in the next month.
Environmentalists have launched a campaign to
help the rule take effect, and stay in place. For
the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Chuck
Quirmbach reporting.

Funds Created to Clean Toxic Sediment

The federal government is setting aside more money for cleaning upcontaminated sediment in the Midwest. The Great Lakes RadioConsortium’s Jonathan Ahl reports:

Transcript

The federal government is setting aside more money for cleaning up contaminated
sediment in the Great Lakes region. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Jonathan Ahl reports.


Congress recently renewed the Water Resources Development Act, a wide-ranging
bill that addresses several water quality issues. Cameron Wilson is a staff member for Michigan Congressman Vern Ehlers. He says the act includes help for communities that want to dispose of polluted sediment at the bottom of lakes and rivers.


“The authorizations for environmental dredging were increased from
fifty million to one hundred million dollars, and inside of that program, people can seek out appropriations for individual environmental dredging projects.”


Wilson says the funding is for the entire country, and Great Lakes communities will have to compete for the funds for local projects. For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Jonathan Ahl.

Redesigning Crane Flight Plan

Wildlife experts may alter a plan to establish the first summertimenesting flock of whooping cranes in the eastern U.S. The scientists saya test flight with sandhill cranes taught them a few things. The GreatLakes Radio Consortium’s Chuck Quirmbach has the story:

Transcript

Wildlife experts may alter a plan to establish the first summertime nesting
flock of whooping cranes in the eastern U.S. The scientists say a test flight with sandhill cranes taught them a few things. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Chuck Quirmbach has the story.


Eleven sandhill cranes recently arrived in Florida, after following an ultralight aircraft across the Midwest and South for six weeks. If the sandhills successfully return to Wisconsin next spring, a similar test migration may happen next Fall with a flock of endangered whooping cranes. U.S. Fish and
Wildlife spokesperson Joan Guilfoyle says based on the sandhill crane experiment the next flight with whoopers may start later in the year.


“We don’t want to run into warm weather if we can help it because the birds don’t fly as well when the air is warm and there’s less oxygen. They get tired more easily.”


Guilfoyle says the flight from Wisconsin may also head more directly south to avoid air pockets over hilly terrain. For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Chuck Quirmbach reporting.

Commentary – Living Rooftops

Flat empty rooftops are one of the last urban frontiers, and with newgreen roof technology they can be turned into a force for cleaner air,cleaner water, and cooler and healthier cities. Great Lakes RadioConsortium commentator Suzanne Elston says that thanks to this newtechnology, things are beginning to look up in Toronto:

Transcript

Flat empty rooftops are one of the last urban frontiers. And with new
green roof technology they can be turned into a force for cleaner
air, cleaner water, and cooler and healthier cities. Great Lakes
Radio Consortium commentator Suzanne Elston says that thanks to this
new technology, things are beginning to look up in Toronto.


Chicago was first. Last year a 38,000 square foot garden was planted
on the roof of Chicago’s City Hall. And now Toronto, Canada’s largest
city, is going even further to promote the idea. Besides greening
City Hall’s rooftop, city officials have formed an interesting
partnership with industry and environmental groups. The goal is to
not only plant rooftop gardens, but to make those gardens accessible
to the public and to promote the idea in the marketplace. So that
when builders are planning new projects or renovating old ones, green
rooftops become the preferred option.


And they should be – for a whole pile of reasons. Take urban sprawl.
In the city of Toronto, for example, the rooftops on large buildings
comprise more than 6% of the total land area. With green roof
technology that wasted space could be transformed into opportunities
to reduce energy consumption and cool the air.


This is how they work: According to Environment Canada, on a hot
summer day, the temperature of traditional flat rooftops can soar to
140 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s hot enough to fry an egg. By
contrast, a living, grassed rooftop won’t get any hotter than about
77 degrees and that means cooler buildings and less heat radiated
into the city. With enough green roofs, the entire temperature of a
city can be brought down. A 3 to 6 degree reduction in temperature,
could translates into a 10% reduction in energy use for all
buildings. Again, according research done by Environment Canada, the
shading effect of a green roof alone can cuts cooling costs by 20 to
30% for a one-story structure.


And that’s just the tip of the green iceberg. These living rooftops
temporarily hold as much as 50 to 70% of the storm water that falls
on them. The plants and the growing medium filter out pollutants like
lead and cadmium from the water before sending it on its way. This
reduces storm water contamination – a major source of water pollution
in the Great Lakes. The plants also filter out air borne pollutants
like nitrous oxides and volatile organic compounds.


Another benefit is that green roofs protect the underlying structure
of the roof itself, so it tends to last two to three times longer.
And finally, in my view they’re just plain nicer than flat old black
rooftops. Green rooftops can transform largely wasted rooftop spaces
into beautiful urban gardens for employees, day care centers and
recreational spaces for the public. They can even be used to grow
food. Talk about a win-win idea.


So I think it’s high time we followed in Toronto and Chicago’s
footsteps and started looking up to a great, green idea.

Related Links

SMALL FARMS RAISE HEALTHIER HOGS (Short Version)

A growing number of farmers in the Midwest are turning to more humaneand natural ways to raise animals in an attempt to save their smallfarms. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Jonathan Ahl reports:

Transcript

A growing number of farmers in the Midwest are turning to more humane and
natural ways to raise animals in an attempt to save their small farms. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Jonathan Ahl reports.


Some hog farmers are trying to preserve their way of life by raising animals that can be sold in health food stores and at high end restaurants. Theresa Carbrey of the Iowa based Pioneer Co-op Organic Foods company says she is seeing an increase in meat providers who are trying to serve this markets to avoid losing out to large, corporate farms.


“I think the persons that are interested in more naturally raised meats,
like those persons who are interested in crops that are produced without chemicals and pesticides, are a real market, and they answer a concern that the small operators have, and that’s how to stay in business.”


Carbrey says meat that is raised without chemicals, and in more humane and natural ways is a growing business. She says it can also serve multiple purposes of treating animals better, growing safer food, and saving small family farms. For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Jonathan Ahl.