Northern Michigan Conservation Network

by Drew YoungeDyke – NMCN Contributing Editor A bill in the Michigan Senate would literally change the definition of conservation and remove biodiversity restoration from the Department of Natural Resources (DNR)’s responsibilities. SB 1276, introduced by Sen. Tom Casperson (R – Escanaba), prohibits the DNR from designating land for biological diversity. The bill is designed […]

As we approach the culmination of another painful election cycle, it has become increasingly clear that many national conservation and sportsmen organizations have found it necessary to choose sides and align more closely with one political party over the other.  It’s not a coincidence our collective voice as sportsmen-conservationists has been weakened in recent years […]

As many of you likely know by now, the publication of  The North Woods Call has resumed after a 1 ½ year suspension, following the passing of conservation legend Glen Sheppard.  This news comes at an especially good time for those of us who have struggled in our attempt to at least partially fill this […]

In reviewing one of the more recent legislative proposals involving natural resource management and all that is the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, we noticed that Senate Bill No. 1280, introduced on September 19, 2012 by Senators Casperson and Booher, contained one sentence which has the potential for a wide range of interpretations. The key […]

For some, purchasing this year’s hunting license may bring back to mind a discussion which took place in some Michigan circles about a year ago.  Although not entirely a new idea, the suggestion from DNR Wildlife Chief Russ Mason was to encourage non-hunters and others who support wildlife and fisheries habitat enhancement projects to buy […]

Please call your U.S. House of Representatives member and urge his or her support of the current Farm Bill.  As we’ve previously written on this site, the 2013 Farm Bill has significant implications on numerous northern Michigan conservation/restoration programs. For many of us in the northern Michigan area, our Representative is Dr. Dan Benischek. His […]

The Michigan Conservation Coalition, a diverse partnership of sportsmen’s organizations and conservation groups, is seeking grassroots support for its opposition efforts regarding Senate Bill 1212 (see NMCN post “Reversing Course on Great Lake Ballast Water” (https://nmconservationnetwork.org/2012/08/29/reversing-course-on-great-lakes-ballast-water/).  The Coalition is asking that its partner organizations and members sign on to this letter (or one of their […]

Although the reports are very preliminary and in many instances anecdotal, the 2012 travel and tourism season appears to have been the best in nearly a decade.   In a recent WTVB interview, Smith Travel Research said that “the statewide average hotel occupancy rate for the year to date as of July was at 56 percent […]

“Ballast Water, Shmallast Water.”  Well, at least that’s what some in the Michigan Senate are apparently saying with the introduction of SB-1212.  We’re not sure that there’s much we can add to what has already been written by the Michigan League of Conservation Voters, Drew YoungDyke and others on the topic, but there has been […]

Many natural resource management and conservation services are now being delivered in an entirely different manner than they were just a decade ago.  Since most of these changes and adaptations seemed to happen so incrementally, it went largely unnoticed. What we mean by a “New Conservation Model” is the shift away from agency-driven natural resource […]