Eco-Minute

Wisconsin’s summers are getting smokier. According to a new analysis from Clean Wisconsin, the number of days that we breathe air polluted by wildfire smoke has risen over the past 15 years from one day per year to nine days. Exposure to wildfire smoke now accounts for an estimated 250 premature deaths in Wisconsin every […]

Lawsuits starting to emerge over AI data centers in Wisconsin. Legal nonprofit Midwest Environmental Advocates is suing the Department of Natural Resources saying the agency skipped the required environmental review for Port Washington’s AI data center amid pressure from its developers. And in an effort to protect strict new financial requirements for data center owners […]

Happy Plastic Free July! The global movement meant to help people reduce their plastic waste is starting to catch on in Wisconsin. The challenge – to go a whole month without single-use plastics. A few things you can do—buy laundry detergent in a box, carry a reusable water bottle, and keep a couple reusable grocery […]

Bad news for Lake Superior. Another invasive species is getting a foothold in our largest, most pristine Great Lake. Bloody Red Shrimp – tiny crustaceans that travel in swarms that look like reddish clouds in the water – have been found in the Duluth-Superior harbor. The shrimp multiply quickly and feed on zooplankton, disrupting the […]

Time is running out for Wisconsin’s Knowles-Nelson stewardship program, the long-running conservation effort that has helped preserve more than 750,000 acres across all of Wisconsin’s 72 counties. Funding for the program ends on June 30th. This year, Wisconsin’s legislature declined to renew funding for Knowles-Nelson after 37 years of protecting Wisconsin’s treasured natural areas. New […]

Wisconsin’s largest power company, We Energies is joining forces with tech companies behind the Port Washington AI data center to challenge a recent order from the Public Service Commission. In April the Commission told We Energies that its new AI data center customers must meet strict credit and collateral requirements to ensure they can cover […]

Some Federal Funding could be coming to Wisconsin – to keep an old coal plant running. The 1970s-era Columbia Coal Plant was supposed to be shut back in 2022, but Alliant Energy never followed through. Now the plant is part of a $425 million dollar emergency order by the Trump Administration to keep coal burning. […]

The Trump Administration’s new budget for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration—or NOAA—could spell disaster for our Great Lakes. Funding for research programs that work on everything from water quality to maritime safety and weather observations are zeroed out in the budget. The $1.3 billion in cuts to NOAA still must be approved by Congress. […]

Happy 75th birthday to Wisconsin’s State Natural Areas Program created in 1951—the first program of its kind in the country and the largest. There are nearly 700 natural sites cared for and protected through the program. Our very first state natural area was Parfrey’s Glen in the Baraboo Hills. How often do you think about […]