Climate change, industry, parks, air and water quality are issues that are debated in congress, compete for funding and enpassion many Minnesotans.
April 23, 1998 - The Marvin Windows and Doors company got what it wanted from the state legislature yesterday (WED). The Minnesota House voted 99-to-30 to change the wording of a state law to help Marvin win a multi-million-dollar lawsuit against one of its suppliers. The Senate passed the same law change on Monday, and the Governor has already promised to sign it. But the Marvin Windows bill did NOT sail through the legislature without opposition. Minnesota Public Radio's Martin Kaste reports: Marvin Windows employees were all smiles as they lined up outside the House to thank Speaker Phil Carruthers for coming through for their employer. Carruthers assured company president Susan Marvin that he and the Legislature acted for the good of the whole state:
April 27, 1998 - More than a year after floodwaters swept through hundreds of homes in the Red River Valley... some people have yet to begin rebuilding. A combination of construction complications and fear of another flood are stalling repairs. Minnesota Public Radio's Hope Deutscher reports... (nat. of raking leaves...) As Gene Schutt rakes up the dead leaves lying scattered in his garden in Ada, he's getting excited about his new lawnmower...
April 28, 1998 - Mental health experts say talking is the best way to recover emotionally from a disaster. And that's the advice the people of Comfrey and St. Peter are getting as they rebuild following last month's tornadoes. Talking about loss and suffering is especially important for children. Minnesota Public Radio's Cara Hetland reports. 12-year old Paul Honnerman was not home when the March 29th tornado heavily damaged his family's northern Nobles County farm. He and his 7 year old sister Jill were staying five miles away at their uncle's. Paul was outside flying his kite before the storms moved through. : (and right at the time the tornado was hitting at our place
April 28, 1998 - The Department of Natural Resources and other agencies predicted a severe fire season in northeast Minnesota, and over the weekend they were proved right. Fire fighters finished "mop-up," or putting out remaining embers, on wildfires near the towns of Cotton and Grand Marais late Monday. And the continued dry weather is keeping the DNR and the Forest Service on alert for more. Minnesota Public Radio's Amy Radil reports from Duluth. Almost 1,500 wildfires have already been reported in Minnesota this year, with 37,000 acres of wilderness burned. Normally fire season does not even begin until late April; this year it started in mid-March. Jean Bergerson with the Interagency Fire Center in Grand Rapids says lack of moisture is the culprit. Bergerson: We went into winter with very little p
April 29, 1998 - The Minneapolis Institute of Arts is embroiled in a controversy that is sweeping museums across the country. Last night on ABC's "Nightline" program, a French family claimed one of the M.I.A.'s paintings was stolen by the Nazis' during World War II, and belongs to them. The Institute has launched its own investigation into the history of the painting, and believes it may have uncovered evidence that conflicts with the family's claim. Minnesota Public Radio's Chris Roberts has more.
May 5, 1998 - Health officials in the Red River Valley are reporting a dramatic increase in deaths, miscarriages and other illnesses. Some are blaming last years flooding... but researcher say it will take months of study to know for sure... or even the extent of the problems. Minnesota Public Radio's Hope Deutscher reports... Victoria Rinerson (Rye-ner-son) sings with about a dozen other residents gathering at a morning worship service at the Sunnyside Nursing Hom
May 5, 1998 - [Desk attempted to smooth out levels on the last piece from Robertson but they are still a little wild. Operator should ride them, especially transitions from actualities to middle voice track.] The upper midwest's warm dry spring continues to cause concern about grass and forest fires. In northern Minnesota, forest fire crews have been on standby for weeks... newly planted seedlings may die without rain... and the summer construction season is in full swing a month ahead of schedule. This is one of the driest springs in ten years for northern Wisconsin, where strict fire restrictions are in place. Minnesota Public Radio's Todd Moe has the first of several reports on the effects of the dry weather around the region.
May 6, 1998 - Warm, dry weather has helped spring fieldwork progress rapidly in the Dakotas and Minnesota. At least 81 percent of Minnesota's corn crop is in the ground -- one of the earliest planting seasons ever. In South Dakota, about 20 percent of the corn is in the ground...and the dry spring is allowing some South Dakota farmers into fields they haven't planted, for years. Minnesota Public Radio's Cara Hetland reports: There are high hopes out in the farm fields this season. Mild weather and dry soil are allowing some of the earliest planting on record. On Bob White's farm in eastern South Dakota the red tractor has been working overtime,
May 7, 1998 - Recovery from a natural disaster takes time. Sometimes years. Since the tornado hit southern Minnesota last March, people across the region have been working to make life normal, or at least comfortable. Over the next few months we will be visiting with some of the people of St Peter, to see how they are doing. Minnesota Public Radio's Lynette Nyman went back to meet cafe owner Tom Gravelin who is now living in a FEMA trailer. Tom Gravelin knows a lot of people in St. Peter. Those he knows best are artists, writers, and musicians...people who until recently had their own studios. Now they're knocking on the door of th
May 8, 1998 - When tobacco companies agreed to settle 40 state lawsuits against them last June, it did so with astonishing enthusiasm considering it was going to cost them more than 368-billion dollars. Critics, who are naturally suspicious of anything the Companies find acceptable, had little to use in an argument against the settlement.....until the Minnesota tobacco trial started. When it did, momentum toward a national deal stopped and the settlement collapsed. Minnesota Public Radio's Bob Collins looks at how the Minnesota trial has changed the national debate on tobacco.