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Bringing Broadband to the North Shore

Voters in Cook County will decide on a sales tax in November that would support the construction of a fiber optic network and the expansion of high speed internet to the North Shore. Proponents argue that Internet connection is vital to economic sustainability.

Forest Service Taking Comments on South Fowl Trail

The Forest Service is accepting public comments on the development of a new snowmobile trail from McFarland Lake to South Fowl Lake in far northeastern Minnesota. The new trail was necessitated by the closure of the Tilbury Trail which crossed land included in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

Minnesota’s Regional Haze Plan Open to Public Comment

A regional haze plan developed by the Minnesota Pollution Control agency seeks to address visibility impairment and haze in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Voyageurs National Park. The plan is open for public comment until September 3.

Guns in Voyageurs: Not Yet

A law passed in May that will allow loaded firearms in Voyageurs and other national parks is not in effect yet. That’s the message Voyaguers officials are spreading, noting that the law doesn’t take effect until February 22, 2010.

Groups Sue Over Wolf Decision

Five wildlife protection groups have filed a complaint in Federal District Court challenging the removal of federal Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves in the Upper Midwest.

Stimulus to Rehab Voyageurs Campsites

Voyageurs National Park will use $230,000 in federal stimulus funding to rehabilitate campsites over the next two years. The money appropriated through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will support work on some 38 campsites in the park.

Time-Out Called in Roadless Tug-O-War

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced a temporary order requiring all new projects in U.S. Forest Service-managed roadless areas be approved by his office. Apart from the permanently protected Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness, the Superior National Forest contains roughly 62,000 acres of roadless areas, mostly adjoining the BWCAW.

State Wolf Population Declassified

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has assumed management responsibilities for the state’s gray wolf population following the delisting of the wolf as a threatened species.

Photo courtesy of Airphoto – Jim Wark. Digital simulation—unmanned US Customs and Border Protection surveillance aircraft patrolling the Quetico-Superior border.

Securing the Wilderness Border

By Charlie Mahler, Wilderness News Contributor The Boundary Waters. The Border Route. Those dividing “B” words have long been embedded in the names used to describe the Quetico-Superior region. The notion, …

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The Roadless Area Conservation Rule

The Roadless Area Conservation Rule is the most significant public lands conservation measure of recent years. Protecting nearly 60 million acres of national forest land form logging and road-building, including 147,000 …

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