“The news paper for people who love the north” Early April 2013 Vol. 60 No. 9 $2.50 Digital Delivery Michigan’s Conservation Sentinel Since 1953 Sniffin’ Out Springtime Toby the Beagle—an adopted member of The North Woods Call family—checks out the melting snow and fresh scents of the changing season. Slicing & Dicing Sound Off: Reprise: Gahagan the DNR Budget Reader Survey Nature Preserve Page 1 Page 1 & 8 Page 3 Wolf Management SS Badger Gets Another Trust Recommendations Two-Year Reprieve Fund Raid? Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 www.mynorthwoodscall.com Let us know your thoughts Sound off: Reader survey Spring break: It’s not Florida, but it will do It’s time, once again, for the traditional North two weeks, taking photographs, watching spring un - Here’s your chance to sound ble. But straightforward and hon - Woods Call spring break. fold and looking for new story ideas. off in a constructive manner—and est answers to these questions will That means we will not publish in late April and As longtime readers know, The Call for many help improve The North Woods help us take stock of where we’re the next issue of the newspaper will be the early years has scheduled regular quarterly breaks in the Call in the process. at and where we go from here.” May edition. editorial production schedule—usually in January, The newspaper has been pub - As always, The Call’s future No big plans here, other than to relax, regroup April, July and October. lished for seven months now—in depends on reader support and and generally catch up on things around home that The next few weeks should bring warmer weather both electronic and print for - growing the overall subscriber have not gotten enough attention lately. (hopefully), spring wildflowers and a welcome mats—since it was resurrected base to a point where more com - There’s also a good chance we’ll be wandering greening of the landscape. following the death of former mercial advertisers are attracted to around the north country sometime during the next Enjoy. We’ll be back in early May. publisher Glen Sheppard. To help the publication. Without those assess where things are at and things, there is little reason—or where they should go in the fu - economic ability—to carry on, ture, a brief reader survey is being VanBuren said. Early April 2013 Vol. 60, No. 9 conducted to solicit input around “We’re still working to get $2.50 Digital Delivery three basic questions: some solid legs under this ven - What do you like about the new ture,” he said, “and we often won - North Woods Call ? der whether we are meeting the What don’t you like about the needs and expectations of our new North Woods Call ? readers. A small handful of peo - Do you plan to renew again ple have already let us know their Michigan’s Conservation Sentinel Since 1953 when your current subscription ideas about some issues, but not runs out? enough for us to really have a The publisher is asking all good understanding of the readers—particularly those who whole.” have actually signed up since last Readers can give their feed - September—to consider these back in three ways, according to questions carefully and answer VanBuren—send an e-mail to ed - them directly. Specific positive [email protected], fill suggestions will be most helpful, out and submit the reader survey he said, and you may remain on the mynorthwoodscall.com anonymous, if you choose. website, or use the form on Page 8 “We know there are probably to put their thoughts in an enve - as many opinions as there are lope and send them via snail mail. readers,” said Mike VanBuren, The deadline for submitting The Call’s editor and publisher. your thoughts and suggestions is “and we’re always walking a June 1, 2013. tightrope in terms of pleasing Results will be shared some - everyone, which is seldom possi - time during the summer. North Woods Notes EARTH DAY: It’s nearly time to celebrate Earth Day 2013 on Mon - day, April 22. Several organizations are planning observances and ac - Budget cuts are affecting most state agencies, including the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. tivities surrounding that date. The Kalamazoo Nature Center, for example, will offer free admission, along with a 5K trail run and vari - Slicing & dicing the proposed DNR budget ous other activities aimed at families and kids. Earth Day began in 1970 to create awareness of the earth’s environment and to encourage con - As support continued to build among conservation funding to operate Detroit’s Belle Isle as a state park; servation efforts. In 1990, it was taken international and today more groups for a proposed restructuring of Michigan hunt - and $2 million to replace the Chinook , a 66-year-old than 500 million people in 175 countries are said to observe the event— ing and fishing license fees, the state House of Rep - Great Lakes research vessel. the theme of which is reportedly, “The Face of Climate Change.” resentatives was slicing and dicing the governor’s The adjustments—part of the targeted General HOLLAND POWER PLANT: The Michigan Court of Appeals has Fiscal Year 2013-14 budget proposal to eliminate Fund cuts that are occurring in most departments— ruled that state regulators legally approved the City of Holland’s appli - other desired strategic reinvestments in natural re - represent a $2.3 million reduction from current cation to expand coal-burning capabilities at its James DeYoung power sources programs. budget levels and a nearly $19 million reduction from plant. The appellate court upheld a lower court’s decision that the In late March, the House Appropriations Subcom - Gov. Rick Snyder’s original budget proposal, ac - Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) properly is - mittee on Natural Resources approved a package that cording to analysts. sued permits to the city. The Sierra Club had filed suit, claiming that the included changes to license fees that are consistent Changes can still be made and there is some hope plant didn’t comply with the Clean Air Act and that state regulators did - with those supported by the Department of Natural for restoring certain line items—such as funding for n’t consider cleaner technologies, but a three-judge panel found that the Resources (DNR), but which exclude General Fund a new Great Lakes research vessel—but citizens still DEQ conducted “an adequate best-available control analysis.” support for some other proposals. need to make their concerns known to their senators ENERGY INPUT: The citizen input process on Michigan’s energy Eliminated was $3.5 million in ongoing funding to and representatives. future began in March with the launch of a new website and announce - support the hiring of 25 new conservation officers and Yet another version of the bill was expected to ment of seven public forums around the state. Five of the public fo - $600,000 in one-time funding for the academy; an ad - emerge soon from the Senate Appropriations Sub - rums had been held as of this writing, but there were two more still ditional $150,000 for aquatic invasive species pre - committee on Natural Resources. Both bills will then scheduled—at Northern Michigan University in Marquette April 12 and vention and control; $9.7 million from the state go through their respective chambers and probably at Northwestern Michigan College in Traverse City April 22. The Waterways Fund for emergency dredging and other land in a conference committee to reconcile differ - agenda and speakers for each event, which run from 1 to 5 p.m., are pro - boating-related projects; $3.7 million in ongoing ences. vided about two weeks prior to each session. There will be ample time for the public to comment during the forums, officials said. The gover - Wolf hunting recommendation expected April 11 nor will rely on the factual questions, information, reports and sugges - The Michigan Department of whether a wolf hunt should take ence- and management-based de - tions presented when making his energy recommendations in December. Natural Resources (DNR) has place, as well as the parameters of cision about the possible harvest For more information, visit michigan.gov/energy. been asked to prepare a formal such a season. Included in the of wolves in our state.” GREAT LAKES CLEANUP PLANS: The federal government is recommendation regarding wolf DNR’s multi-faceted investigation Madigan said the NRC plans to making plans to continue a long-range cleanup program for the Great hunting in the state by April 11. has been series of public meetings bring out-of-state wolf experts in Lakes—known as The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative—although de - The Natural Resources Com - around the state (Ironwood, Mar - during May to meet with Policy cisions about how to pay for it will be made on a year-to-year basis. mission (NRC) requested the rec - quette, St. Ignace, Gaylord and Committee members. TRUST FUND GRANTS: Gov. Rick Snyder has signed legislation ommendation—for information Lansing). The 2008 Wolf Management approving $23,348,700 in Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund only, at this point—during its “Interest in this decision is, un - plan will serve as in important grants, funding 76 recreation development projects and land acquisi - March meeting and wants to hear derstandably, very high throughout guide tool for the meetings and for tions in 43 Michigan counties—66 to local units of government and 10 from the DNR when the commis - Michigan,” said John Madigan of any recommendation that is made, to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.