Sustainable Ely
Envisioning a mining-free future for the Boundary Waters By Alissa Johnson On the first day of June, thirty canoes and some sixty paddlers made their way down the Kawishiwi River. …
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Sustainable Ely – Meet a Quetico Ranger – The Forest Service War on Weeds and More
The Summer Issue of Wilderness News is now online. Check out the Cover Story: Sustainable – Ely Envisioning a mining-free future for the Boundary Waters, Wilderness Voices featuring Quetico Ranger Janice Matichuk, Camp Manito-wish and Meet Board Member…
Janice Matichuk: Quetico Ranger and Ambassador to the Wilderness
When Janice Matichuk accepted the position of Interior Park Ranger for Quetico Provincial Park in 1985, her daughter was five months old. The Cache Bay Ranger Station where she was posted lay 1,000 miles away from the log home she and her husband were building in eastern Ontario.
In the Words of a Quetico Ranger
Janice Matichuk is about to begin her 29th year as an interior park ranger for Quetico Provinicial Park. Stationed at the Cache Bay Ranger Station on Saganaga Lake, she has a …
Popular Ely Bear Researcher Denied Permit
Bear feeding at the North American Bear Center in Ely. Photo by Michael Lore via Flickr. Lynn Rogers, who has studied black bears in northern Minnesota for 46 years, was recently …
Mining Truth Coalition Launches Summer Campaign
The environmental coalition Mining Truth, comprised of the Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness, Conservation Minnesota, and the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, has announced a new campaign. The “4 Simple …
Peculiar Spring Ice-out Recapped
The final 2013 ice out dates have been recorded for the lakes in the Quetico Superior. For many, even those that have reliable records back over 50 years this was a …
Montana Economist Presents in Minnesota on Mining Cost-Benefits
Retired University of Montana economics professor and researcher Tom Power was in northern Minnesota this week to speak about the risks of mining-dependent economies. He gave presentations in Duluth and Ely …
Ontario Endangered Species Act Weakened
The Ontario Provincial Cabinet announced May 31st its approval of several exemptions for industry under the Endangered Species Act, 2007 (ESA). Many environmental organizations are incensed at the this government action. …
Sigurd Olson Exhibit Opens in Ely
The International Wolf Center in Ely, MN has opened a new exhibit dedicated to wilderness writer and author Sigurd F. Olson. The exhibit is focused on Olson’s legacy as a writer, …
Re-engineering Campcraft
With the ice off the border lakes and the summer paddling season underway, it is a great time to refine some camping strategies. One of the rules commonly broken in the …
New Version of PolyMet Environmental Review Released to Cooperating Agencies
A revised draft of the environmental review for the first-ever copper mining project proposed in Minnesota has been completed. PolyMet Mining Corp.’s new document has been distributed to the Minnesota Department of …
Researchers Call for Isle Royale Wolf Management
Three scientists have published an op-ed in the New York Times calling for the National Park Service to not let Isle Royale’s wolf population disappear. There are now so few wolves on the remote Lake …
Longtime Sawbill Resident and Wilderness Advocate Bill Hansen YouTubes Two Lynx
Bill Hansen, whose parents began Sawbill Canoe Outfitters in 1957 and who has built his outfitting business into one of the most respected in the BWCAW, had the pleasure of spotting …
Moose Population Holding Steady in Voyageurs National Park
Photo by Steve Wall via Flickr The moose population in Voyageurs National Park remains steady, according to a Park Service study released Tuesday. Aerial surveys conducted in late February indicate a …
Cormorant Control Approved for Lake Vermilion
According to the Ely Timberjay newspaper the DNR recently announced their decision to kill up to 10% of the Double Crested Cormorants on Lake Vermilion, in Minnesota, this summer. In addition, …
Just How Late Will Ice-out Be?
The stubborn winter of 2013 seems to be baffling scientists and old-timers alike, but just how late will this year’s Quetico-Superior’s ice-out be? Following an extremely early ice-out in 2012 might …
Anti-mining Activists to Open Office in Ely
New mine proposals in northeastern Minnesota have prompted a group of local citizens and businesses to plan an anti-mining “action center” on Ely’s Sheridan Street. The office will provide information to …
South Kawishiwi River Named One of America’s “Most Endangered Rivers”
The South Kawishiwi River, which flows into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, has been named one of “America’s Most Endangered Rivers” as a result of the Twin Metals mine proposal …
Early Reports on Minnesota Moose Study Inconclusive
The Minnesota moose population has plummeted by 50% in just two years. In an attempt to discover what is causing this dramatic decline, this winter the DNR began an aggressive research …