Michigan Environmental Report
News from Michigan Environmental Council on public policies affecting the health of Michigan's people and environment
Big win for the Great Lakes: Schuette says no to fish farms in public waters
MEC and allies have argued for more than two years that commercial fish farms have no place in our Great Lakes. This week, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette agreed.
MEC uses panel appointment to push for more recycling and composting, less landfilling
Michigan's landfill-first approach to waste management is getting a much-needed overhaul, and MEC is helping to lead the charge.
Michigan Climate Action Network helps communities take action against climate change
Founder Tom Porter focuses on growing local efforts to build future capacity
Though he made a name for himself as a venture capitalist, Tom Porter may have been destined to be an environmental activist.
The eBikes cometh
Electric assist bicycles are growing in popularity, but without aligned thinking and sound legislation, are we ready for them?
Next year marks the 200th anniversary of the invention of the bicycle. Over those two centuries, bikes have evolved–slowly. But with the advent of the electric assist bicycle, two-wheeled evolution has taken a disruptive leap forward. What does this mean for road cyclists, trail riders, mountain bikers and commuters? It means we need to rethink issues of access and cycling infrastructure to determine where eBikes fit in, or others will do it for us.
100% renewable cities
New campaign brings fight for action on climate to local level
In a day of events in Traverse City focused on climate change, former Grand Rapids Mayor George Heartwell encouraged community members to act locally and shared his vision of how setting a goal of 100% renewable energy by 2025 is changing life for the better in Grand Rapids.
Gov. Snyder appoints MEC President Kolb to public health commission
Michigan Environmental Council President Chris Kolb was appointed in mid-November to the Public Health Advisory Commission by Gov. Rick Snyder.
Guest post: Make your holiday celebration more sustainable!
Editor's note: This post is by Kerrin O'Brien, executive director of the Michigan Recycling Coalition, an MEC member group.
Michigan's energy overhaul: What's in it and how we got here
After more than two years of negotiations, countless hours of committee hearings, numerous variations on several bills, untold column inches of news coverage and a dizzying series of false starts, dead ends and shifts of the political winds, the epic effort to overhaul Michigan's energy policy finally drew to a close Thursday evening.