Michigan officials are mulling how to thwart millions of tons of mining waste threatening to smother Buffalo Reef, a vital spawning ground for lake trout and whitefish. Here’s your chance to offer feedback.
The Buffalo Reef in the Keweenaw Peninsula teems with lake trout and whitefish. But a mountain of waste from a closed mine is slowly seeping into the water, prompting a desperate search for a solution.
As fish numbers drop in Michigan’s northern waters, efforts to limit the birds have ranged from raccoon squads to slicking their eggs with oil. Now the big guns are getting involved. (with slideshow)
Yoopers are doing it themselves, digging out after the worst flooding in more than a generation. But money is running out, and folks are getting tired of waiting for emergency relief assistance.
Officials in Copper Country are rushing to unclog culverts before the next round of heavy rain or melting snow again swamps homes. Some residents are calling for more dramatic action to reshape dangerous drainage systems dating back to mining boom days.
Few Yoopers will get insurance payouts after the floods, and homeowners have yet to get federal aid. Nearly 500 have applied for a Portage Health Foundation program to fill in those gaps.