Environment

Ethanol use in Michigan cuts greenhouse gas, study finds

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By IAN K. KULLGREN
Capital News Service
LANSING — New research suggests increased ethanol fuel use could be dramatically reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Michigan. A study by scientists at Michigan State University shows ethanol use in the state is reducing carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 1.4 million metric tons each year, the equivalent of emissions from 294,000 cars. Ethanol fuel production, meanwhile, has nearly doubled in the past seven years, from 276 million gallons in 2007 to 452 million in 2012. The findings suggest ethanol could serve as one tool to slow global warming, experts said. “We can reduce some portions of greenhouse gas if we use more ethanol,” said Seungdo Kim, a chemical engineering and materials science professor who coauthored the study.

Business & Economy

Where rubber hits road, new taxes fix them

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By IAN K. KULLGREN
Capital News Service
LANSING — As lawmakers wrangle over how to fix the state’s crumbling road system, one group is increasingly volunteering to foot the bill: Local taxpayers. More than a third of counties now have local property tax increases in place to help fund road maintenance. In 2006, voters in 12 counties had approved local road maintenance levies. That number has now risen to 28 as of this year, when eight passed new increases in the August primary and November general elections. Although the taxes are expected to bring in millions of dollars in additional road funds each year, local leaders say it will barely make a dent, even if the House passes a bill in December to double the gasoline tax.

Environment

Money coming to help erase winter’s damage in Northern Michigan

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By IAN K. KULLGREN
Capital News Service
LANSING — As winter approaches, the Michigan Economic Development Corp.(MEDC) is pouring an additional $1.6 million into the effort to assist communities still reeling from damages sustained during last year’s deep freeze, bringing the total to $7.6 million. The funds will partially reimburse more than 30 communities in the northern Lower and Upper peninsulas for repairing damaged roads and water mains, and to wrap up construction before the cold weather sets in. “It’s really the first time we’ve seen that scale,” said Lisa Pung, manager of the MEDC community assistance team. “There are some projects that are being addressed now and some that will have to extend into the winter and spring seasons.”

Marquette, for example, had 700 water main breaks last year at a cost of $1.7 million. The city received nearly $500,000 to mitigate infrastructure costs, in addition to $3,400 to Marquette County.

Environment

Salmon fishing outlook steady despite fewer eggs collected

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By IAN K. KULLGREN
Capital News Service
LANSING — Natural resources officials are reporting record-low numbers of salmon eggs gathered at state collection sites this year, evidence that could have implications for future fishing seasons. In Manistee County, just 2,700 chinook salmon returned to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) collection site on the Little Manistee River, down from a previous low of about 5,800 in 2010. The same is true in Traverse City, where 1,300 fish returned, a notable drop from the 1993 low of 2,300. DNR workers trap the salmon in weirs throughout the summer season, and then harvest their eggs in the fall to be bred at hatcheries across the state

The cause, wildlife officials say, stems from the perennial competition for food with invasive species in Lake Michigan. “It shines a light on how variable things are in the system,” said Edward Eisch, the DNR’s acting fish production manager.

Business & Economy

New uses sought for old newspaper buildings

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By IAN K. KULLGREN
Capital News Service
LANSING — As some Michigan newspapers downsize to smaller offices, they are leaving behind massive buildings that are outdated, but still critical to the communities they cover. Some of these cavernous quarters, once anchors of downtown business districts, are being renovated, divided up and in some cases torn down to make way for prospective buyers in the education and health fields. Others, meanwhile, face an uncertain future. Officials in Grand Rapids have announced plans to demolish the 173,840-square-foot Grand Rapids Press building to make way for a new, six-story biomedical research center operated by Michigan State University. The old building, opened in 1966, is in the heart of the city’s downtown.