Sept. 7, 2018 – Week 1
To: CNS Editors
From: Dave Poulson
http://news.jrn.msu.edu/capitalnewsservice/
For technical problems, contact CNS technical manager Tony Cepak at (517) 803-6841; cepak@msu.edu.
For other matters, contact Dave Poulson at (517) 432-5417 or (517) 899 1640 poulson@msu.edu.
WELCOME: This is the 2018 fall semester’s first file. Our new correspondents, their contact information and the CNS publications each especially serve are listed here: http://news.jrn.msu.edu/about-capital-news-service/contact-capital-news-service/
CNS member news organizations are encouraged to continue using still-timely feature stories from our summer Michigan environmental packages.
HERE’S YOUR FILE:
RENTERSINSURANCE: As college students across the state move into new campus homes, they’re increasingly bringing with them flat screen televisions, smartphones, laptops and other valuables. Those are handy targets for thieves, a risk that insurance officials say students and parents should assess. By Nick Kipper. FOR ALL POINTS
FIRECHEM: While health agencies statewide investigate the link between contaminated drinking water and a firefighting foam, use of the substance remains legal. The chemical, known as PFAS, is linked to contamination at Gerald R. Ford International Airport and Camp Grayling. Firefighters say alternative foams aren’t as effective. By Jeremy Wahr. FOR ALL POINTS
CONTAMINATEDHERBS: Food poisoning linked to a controversial herb supplement recently sickened four Michigan residents. They are the latest of 39 reports of poisoning linked to kratom, a Southeast Asian herb that proponents claim can fight depression, pain, anxiety and opioid addiction but that federal and state authorities consider a health risk. Efforts to regulate the substance are underway. By Kaishi Chhabra. FOR ALL POINTS.
w/KRATOMPHOTO: Kratom Tree. Credit: ThorPorre, Wikimedia Commons
EDUCATIONFUNDING: Local school districts in October can administer an additional set of student tests to assess student performance beyond the annual M-STEP exams. Officials say the new tests can help measure growth through the year, rather than simply getting the results after it’s too late. By Lance Cohen. FOR ALL POINTS
MININGLEGACY: Mercury levels remain high in the lakes, rivers and fish of the Western U.P. despite a substantial drop in airborne mercury emissions over the past 30 years, according to scientists from Michigan Technological University and the Environmental Protection Agency.
That’s a “geographic enigma” with serious health implications. By Eric Freedman. FOR BAY MILLS, MARQUETTE, ST. IGNACE, SAULT STE. MARIE, CHEBOYGAN & ALL POINTS.
w/MININGLEGACYGRAPHIC: Historic mining regions and shaft locations across the Western U.P. Large squares superimposed near shaft locations mark sites of copper smelters, taconite plant operations and early pig-iron furnaces. Solid dots with initials mark locations of mercury lake sediment samples. Credit: Environmental Science Processes & Impacts
EMPTYSEATCOMMENTARY: Editors note this should be labeled as commentary. When U.S. Rep. John Conyers resigned amid scandal last December, he’d served almost 53 years. The winner of this November’s election to fill the rest of his term will serve one of the shortest tenures in history through Dec. 31. Meanwhile, residents of the predominantly African-American and Democratic Detroit district will have lacked U.S. House representation for 11 months. In contrast, Gov. Snyder left a Republican-leaning suburban district without a representative for only four months. Commentary. By Eric Freedman. FOR ALL POINTS.