Approval of a proposed water-bottling business by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has been challenged by environmental groups and the Menominee Indian tribe, who fear the water withdrawals would harm the local watershed by driving down groundwater supplies that feed into the Wolf River. The Menominee tribe's reservation is just north of the project. The tribe filed a petition in Brown County Circuit Court that challenges the DNR's approval of the plant. Melissa K. Scanlan, an attorney representing the opponents, said that the DNR ignored its authority under the "public trust doctrine", which holds that all waters of the state are public resources owned by all citizens. The petition also contends that the DNR should have conducted an environmental assessment of the proposed well. For more information on how your state can protect groundwater, visit: http://www.serconline.org/groundwaterWithPermit/pkg_frameset.html.

Michigan has lost hundreds of wetlands to development -- land that is vital to everything from providing homes for animals to preventing pesticides from seeping into the groundwater. Lax state oversight has diluted a law mandating the replacement of every inch of wetland destroyed by construction. More than half of the 775 wetlands that were supposed to be built in the past decade are inadequate and at least 125 of these were never built, according to state records. The 1979 law requiring the construction of man-made wetlands for lost natural ones is tough to enforce because the state has 32 environmental inspectors to oversee 2,200 wetlands -- almost 70 apiece. Michigan officials said they are working to remedy the situation uncovered by a 2001 report from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency by hiring six new inspectors. In addition, three years of records, from 1990-92, are missing from the southeast Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) office, one of the areas experiencing the most intensive development. Robert Zbiciak, a DEQ employee, said developers sometimes do not build replacement wetlands because they believe they won't get caught. "Put yourself in the place of a developer," he said. "It's going to cost you $100,000 to build a wetland, and there's a 75 percent chance that no one will come and look to see if you did it and a 75 percent chance you won't get caught if you don't build the wetland." For more information on protecting wetlands in your state, see http://www.serconline.org/wetlands/pkg_frameset.html.

Minnesota is better off than many other states in fighting the uphill battle against invasive species. Some factors contributing to this success are a cold climate and the state's location midway between the two coasts, where invasive species often are introduced and addressed first. Another, and perhaps more instructive, factor is the state's relatively early response to invasive threats. Before many other states committed resources to combat invasive species, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Agriculture Department were already at work. In 1991, the legislature established an Exotic Species Program within the DNR that's responsible for monitoring and managing harmful exotics, including animals and aquatics. The Agriculture Department handles exotic insects and plants. Earlier this year, the legislature strengthened plant-protection standards and raised the exotic species program's budget from $1.2 million a year to $1.6 million. "The states I talk to, they look to Minnesota as a leader in terms of education and changing boaters' behavior," said Jeff Gunderson, associate director of Minnesota Sea Grant in Duluth. To find out more about preventing the spread of invasive species, visit: http://www.serconline.org/invasives/pkg_frameset.html and http://www.serconline.org/ballast/index.html.

A judge ordered the company that produces Ice Mountain bottled water to stop drawing water from wells in a Michigan county on Tuesday, saying the operation has damaged the environment. The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by environmentalists who said the company's water-bottling operation has depleted neighboring lakes, streams, and wetlands. Ice Mountain is one of the most popular brands of bottled water in the Midwest. Its parent company is Nestle Waters North America, the maker of brands such as Poland Spring, Arrowhead, and Deer Park. The company operates four wells in Mecosta County, in western Michigan and pumps the water to its nearby bottling plant. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality's water division had granted a permit allowing Ice Mountain's water-bottling plant to withdraw up to 400 gallons per minute, or 576,000 gallons per day. Circuit Court Judge Lawrence Root ruled that continued withdrawals will exacerbate existing problems with lower lake levels, sluggish streams, and drier wetlands in the area. "I am unable to find that a specific pumping rate lower than 400 gallons per minute, or any other rate to date, will reduce the effects and impact to a level that is not harmful," said Judge Root. Terry Swier, a founder of Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation, said Root's decision established an important precedent. For more information on how your state can protect groundwater, visit: http://www.serconline.org/groundwaterWithPermit/pkg_frameset.html.

On December 1, the New York City Council will hold a hearing, and possibly vote on a piece of legislation that would require the city to use cleaner fuel and pollution control technology for non-road engines that are used in equipment owned or leased by the city. Non-road diesel engines are a major source of harmful air emissions, including fine particulate matter, which has been linked to various respiratory illnesses such as asthma. The legislation would reduce the amount air pollution in a city that is plagued by dirty air and correspondingly high asthma rates. The legislation calls for an immediate switch to the use ultra low sulfur diesel in non-road diesel engines, which, combined with the use of pollution control technology, can reduce diesel emission by up to 90 percent.

With the support of South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster, state Senator Jake Knotts, R-Lexington, has introduced a bill that would give the state grand jury the authority to prosecute environmental crimes. Under the current laws, ways in which the state is allowed to collect information to prosecute environmental crimes are restricted, forcing the state to rely heavily on the federal grand jury to gather the necessary information. The bill proposed by Sen. Knotts would give the state the ability to prosecute environmental crimes without referring them to federal prosecutors. The bill faces opposition from businesses, which argue that federal agencies have done an adequate job, and there is no need to extend state jurisdiction to environmental crimes. McMaster, who is also a former U.S. attorney, disagrees, "We need a grand jury that operates like the federal grand jury," he says. Sen. Knotts adds that businesses have no reason to worry about the broader state authority, unless they are breaking the law.