 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Photograph of the Week "Viking half time on Lake Washburn" - photo by Bill Pudwell, Outing, MN Department of Commerce concludes that Line 3 Pipeline is not needed in MinnesotaOn September 11, 2017 the Department of Commerce submitted testimony to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission concluding that Enbridge has not established a need for the proposed Line 3 pipeline in Minnesota as required under state rules. The testimony states that “in light of the serious risks and effects on the natural and socioeconomic environments of the existing Line 3 and the limited benefit that the existing Line 3 provides to Minnesota refineries, it is reasonable to conclude that Minnesota would be better off if Enbridge proposed to cease operations of the existing Line 3 without any new pipeline being built.” Steve Morse, Executive Director of the Minnesota Environmental Partnership, said, “We commend the Department of Commerce for taking a hard look at the data and carefully considering the criteria that are in law for this type of project. The Department found that this pipeline is not needed for Minnesota, that it does not benefit Minnesota, and is not good for Minnesota.” Full Story Mid-Minnesota Women’s Center continues work despite funding setbacksIn 2016, at least 21 Minnesotans were killed due to violence from a current or former intimate partner. At least 14 minor children were left motherless due to domestic violence murders. And, according to the Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women (MCBW), 2015 was even worse. That year saw 34 people die due to domestic violence. The annual number of deaths in the state has been as low as 12 and as high as 47 since the MCBW started tracking statistics. In Crow Wing County The Mid- Minnesota Women’s Center has been quietly and effectively helping women, and some men in need for 39 years. But dwindling government funding sources have created significant financial challenges for the Center that also operates the Alex and Brandon Child Safety Center, both located in Brainerd. There was a time when state funds covered almost all of the Center’s budget. But today, those funds account for only 70 percent of the Center’s $1,084,200 budget. That has radically changed the focus of the position of Executive Director from just directing the staff of 24 and developing Center programs to finding ways to raise the $324,000 needed to balance the annual budget. In recent years, the Center has had to tap its reserves to break even during the past four or five years even as the need for services has increased. The shelter has served over 100,000 women and children since housing its first family in 1978. The average length of stay at the shelter is 20 days, but there is no limit to how long anyone may stay. Full Story  Download your free copy of the Summer Fun Guide! |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Northland Press | P.O. Box 145 | Outing, MN 56662 | (218) 692-5842 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
