by jboullion | Jul 27, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article by Samantha Marcus in the La Crosse Tribune:
Recent changes to a plan for high-speed rail in Wisconsin has set up a potential tug-of-war between La Crosse and Eau Claire to be on the Chicago-Twin Cities route.
La Crosse officials and train enthusiasts considered it a foregone conclusion the much-desired span would route through La Crosse and into Minnesota.
But a final version of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s Connections 2030 plan puts the choice of which west-central Wisconsin city back into play.
“We have worked for years ensuring La Crosse’s place on the high-speed rail route, but Eau Claire certainly has had their efforts as well,” said La Crosse Area Chamber of Commerce President Dick Granchalek.
The essentially parallel routes are referred to in the plan as “project alternatives … to be determined during environmental and engineering studies.”
The studies have been done, argued Bob Fisher, a member of the Wisconsin Association of Rail Passengers. There’s a time for studies and there’s a time for moving dirt with a shovel, he added.
“The truth is the Midwest has a plan that was done 15 years ago, went through a whole scenario of economic studies and determined the route that Amtrak was currently operating on, and still does, was the most feasible route,” Fisher said. “This is the route that should logically be chosen.”
La Crosse has the infrastructure, the rail culture, the potential passenger load that should give it the edge, he added.
U.S. Rep. Ron Kind, D-La Crosse, whose district includes both La Crosse and Eau Claire, said it shouldn’t be an either-or proposition. Kind said the La Crosse route makes the most sense for the first connection and then the Chippewa Valley route could be brought in.
by jboullion | Jul 24, 2009 | Uncategorized
From a letter to the editor of the River Falls Journal by River Falls mayor Don Richards:
Congratulations to James Freeman, a progressive Main Street building owner in River Falls.
Mr. Freeman has received a grant from Wisconsin Focus on Energy to help him put solar panels on the roof of the Whole Earth Grocery. He is the first building owner in downtown River Falls to do his part to join the switch to clean, renewable energy.
He also has secured a revolving loan from the city in this effort.
The panels will produce electricity that will be purchased by WPPI:Energy and will reduce his utility bill. The payback on his investment will be approximately 5-6 years.
We need other businesses to step forward in the same manner. It is only when solar panels are manufactured in great numbers because of great demand that economies of scale will drop the cost so it is competitive with that of coal, now commonly used to produce electricity (and carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas).
And just as was the case with computers and microchips, the efficiency of the panels will increase as research, spurred by demand, will develop improved versions of the panels.
Mr. Freeman, is helping the city “Lead By Example,” as we were asked to do by WPPI Energy.
by jboullion | Jul 24, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article in the West Salem Coulee News:
MADISON – Gov. Jim Doyle recently announced the creation of a new nonprofit organization, the Wisconsin Climate Change Action Initiative to build on Wisconsin’s strong efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Formation of the nonprofit organization was recommended in the report from Doyle’s Task Force on Global Warming as a way to build upon Wisconsin’s national leadership on climate change.
“The Wisconsin Climate Change Action Initiative brings together leaders of business, government, non-governmental advocacy organizations and the research community to increase voluntary conservation practices that will save money and have positive environmental impacts,” Doyle said. “As we continue to move forward on the recommendations of my Global Warming Task Force we will be building our economy with clean and renewable energy, growing green jobs and finding savings through energy conservation.”
WCCAI will focus on providing education, practical advice and expertise to residents, communities and businesses on simple, effective steps to reduce our carbon footprint, without affecting comfort or productivity.
This effort will complement existing programs like the Focus on Energy Schools and Government Program and the Wisconsin Energy Independent Community Partnership, which are designed to achieve Doyle’s goal of getting 25 percent of our electricity and 25 percent of our transportation fuels from renewable sources by 2025.
by jboullion | Jul 23, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article by Stefanie Scott in Wauwatosa Now:
From commercial products to restaurant menus and government grants, campaigns of all kinds are using the ubiquitous phrase “going green.”
But several local groups are embracing the concept at a deeper level, taking on projects that can help Wauwatosa residents live more environmentally friendly lives.
Energy conservation at home
Wauwatosa resident John Bahr [a member of RENEW Wisconisn’s board of directors] is leading an effort to get neighborhoods citywide to reduce energy consumption. He is the home energy efficiency chairman for the city’s Energy Committee, formed this year.
He is working with neighborhood associations to help them make their members aware of how household and daily activities impact the environment and local resources that can assist them in sustainable living.
Bahr is recruiting people in each association to form neighborhood energy conservation groups this fall, but Tosa East Towne will be the pilot group.
Bahr’s subcommittee is creating course material for five sessions on topics including reducing trash and greenhouse gas emissions, conserving and protecting water and choosing healthy, sustainable foods. Participants will be given handouts with assignments and checklists they can use to mark off accomplished activities.
“They see what they can do within their own house using this course material and have to report back to their peers on what worked and what didn’t,” he said.
by jboullion | Jul 22, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article by Steve Schultze of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
A renewed effort aimed at pressuring Gov. Jim Doyle and state legislators to agree to sales tax funding for transit in the greater Milwaukee area was launched Wednesday with a new panel of regional government and business leaders.
The Milwaukee County Committee on Long-Range Transportation Planning, with representatives from six southeastern Wisconsin counties, was named by Milwaukee County Board Chairman Lee Holloway to keep the sales tax idea alive this year, Holloway said.
Legislators included authority for a 0.065% sales tax for transit and public safety for Milwaukee County in the new state budget bill, but Doyle vetoed the provision, saying he wanted a regional solution for transit.
Holloway has been harshly critical of Doyle for the veto, but the County Board chairman said Wednesday he’s hoping for a local transit sales tax recommendation from the panel can be delivered to Doyle and legislators by September, for action in the fall session.
by jboullion | Jul 22, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an editorial in the Wausau Daily Herald:
Ever since Lee Sherman Dreyfus came up with the term “ruralplex” to describe the way Marshfield, Stevens Point, Wausau and Wisconsin Rapids could work together, it’s been apparent that central Wisconsin can be more than the sum of its parts.
Over the years, we’ve consistently been in favor of initiatives to connect central Wisconsin’s cities, whether that meant establishing Central Wisconsin Airport as the region’s hub, encouraging University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point to expand its offerings throughout the area, or even exploring the possibility of a regional jail.
But one of the most fundamental ways for the cities of central Wisconsin to be connected is simply to make it easier for people to get from one city to another.
Several area mayors have begun exploring options for creating a commuter bus line that would connect the area — a loop through the southern cities of Stevens Point, Marshfield and Wisconsin Rapids, heading north to CWA, Wausau, Marathon and Merrill. This is a project with the long-term potential to spur economic growth, and strengthen the cultural capital of central Wisconsin as a whole.
