TAKE THE READER SURVEY HERE! Water is getting less affordable over time for Michiganders across race and geography. We discussed the problem and the solutions. Public health begins and ends with clean water. People must have access to safe drinking water to survive and access to sanitation to prevent disease. But challenges with water and […]
Posted inUncategorized
From the headlines – March 21 – 25, 2022
Help on the way: Large amounts of money could be headed to Detroit to fix water infrastructure, prevent flooding and improve drinking water, among other priorities. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer reached a deal with the Michigan Legislature Thursday for a $4.8 billion spending plan to use Covid relief funds and federal infrastructure dollars to invest in things like cleaning up […]
Posted inVoices
Would gas tax breaks make a big difference when prices are skyrocketing? We asked 4 experts
The Conversation By: Jay L. Zagorsky, Erich Muehlegger, Sanya Carley, Theodore J. Kury With gasoline prices trending over US$4 per gallon nationwide, politicians are feeling the heat. In response, Maryland and Georgia have temporarily waived their state gasoline taxes to reduce the burden on consumers. Other states are considering similar actions, and some members of Congress have called for suspending the […]
Posted inGuides
How will climate change impact water affordability in the Great Lakes?
SUBSCRIBE TO MICHIGAN CLIMATE NEWS! In 2014, the City of Detroit cut off water service to more than 20,000 customers for nonpayment. This left scores of poor, primarily Black households without the necessities for safe and sanitary daily life. “People cannot drink. They cannot cook. They cannot flush toilets or maintain sanitation,” said Rev. Kenita […]
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Is Michigan’s climate plan in danger?
CO2 2022/2021 417.84 ppm / 418.05 ppm TAKE OUR READER SURVEY HERE! Is Michigan’s climate plan in danger? A potential Supreme Court ruling to limit the Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to regulate carbon emissions from power plants could threaten Michigan’s climate plan, which seeks to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. The court recently heard a […]
Posted inAccountability
‘A moral crisis’: Metro Detroit faith leaders call for end to water shutoffs, adoption of income-based rates
The call comes amid rising service rates as the city’s water department embarks on door-knocking campaign to get customers on payment plans The Rev. Kenita Harris has long witnessed many Detroit families struggle to pay for a basic life necessity: water. In the minister’s eyes, lacking access to clean, safe, and affordable water robs families […]
Posted inAccountability
SEC proposes far-reaching climate disclosure rules for companies – here’s where the rules may be vulnerable to legal challenges
The Conversation By: Daniel E Walters, William M Manson The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission released its long-awaited proposal to require companies to disclose their climate risks to investors, and it’s arguably the most significant action on climate change yet under the Biden administration. SEC Commissioner Allison Herren Lee called it a “watershed moment for investors and financial markets.” It is […]
Posted inAccountability
Environmental group pushes to ban controversial chemical
By ARYA DARACapital News Service LANSING — The recent discovery of a dangerous family of chemicals in Michigan cattle has a statewide environmental group renewing its efforts to ban the controversial substance. The chemicals are called per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS for short. You may have heard of the more common chemicals in this family, […]
Posted inSolutions
Experts weigh in on how to fix and pay for Detroit’s flooding problems
The Great Lakes Water Authority has said it could take anywhere $5 billion to $20 billion to upgrade the regional stormwater system enough to reduce basement flooding. In 1972, Milwaukee had the good fortune to be sued by the state of Illinois. At the time, Milwaukee and several nearby cities were sending an estimated 200 million gallons […]
Posted inAccountability
Lights Out: DTE Energy shut off electricity to homes hundreds of thousands of times
This story was originally published by ProPublica Lights Out: Profitable Utility Company Shut Off Electricity to Homes Hundreds of Thousands of Times by Sarah Alvarez, Outlier Media, with data analysis by Agnel Philip, ProPublica ProPublica is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom. Sign up for The Big Story newsletter to receive stories like this one in […]