Article from 1/13/08 Free Press
State has eyes fixed on land in UP
Aim is to guard more than 1,000 acres of beauty
January 13, 2008
TRAVERSE CITY — The state of Michigan is working toward ownership of more than 1,000 acres of scenic land in the Upper Peninsula, officials said last week.
The Department of Natural Resources said it had bought three parcels totaling 373 acres in Iron County from We Energies, an electric utility based in Wisconsin.
Additionally, the DNR said it was close to a deal for 681 acres of former We Energies land in Baraga County now owned by a nonprofit conservation group. “These acquisitions will help the DNR preserve and protect some of the wild beauty of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula,” said Mindy Koch, deputy director for resource management.
Click link at top of the page for full article
I’m not so sure this is something we need to cheer about so quickly. How can we possibly place too much trust in in the state agencies with our resources anymore? In my opinion, the land in question might be better suited in the hands of an energy company that has no use for it than in the hands of an agency that is more likely to sell out to potential mining operations than to truly keep the land conserved. With Rio Tinto breathing down our backs for more mines in the area, and now talk of a Uranium exploration, we must be cautious! I foresee more and more money being offered to the DNR/EPA/and the DEQ rubber stamp factory for mining rights to our wilderness. Write the DNR, call them, remind them of what their mission is, not what the mission of politicians is! Stand up for what you stand on!