For Friday, March 19, 2021

…audio…

1 – Close to 700,000 acres are protected by Michigan’s land conservancies, according to a survey. More than 32,000 acres have been added since the last count in 2017. 

The survey was done by Heart of the Lakes, a Bay City-based statewide association for Michigan’s land conservancies and friends.

The Heart of the Lakes’ survey looked at land conservancy successes by a suite of protection tools, including the acquisition of nature preserves or conservation easements, assists or transfers of lands to local governments or the state, and the management or stewardship of lands held by others.

Total acres protected were 672,967 as of December 2020, with the vast majority protected by the association’s 27 member organizations. 

Those include the Saginaw Basin Land Conservancy in Bay City, with 603 acres in preserve or sanctuary and nine preserves, and the Little Forks Conservancy in Midland, with 856 acres in preserve or sanctuary and seven preserves. 

Find more information at HeartOfTheLakes.org.

2 – Michigan’s environmental agency is highlighting water and energy conservation as part of Fix a Leak Week. 

The state Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy says saving water and energy can help reduce utility bills and is beneficial to the environment. 

More than half of indoor water use occurs in the bathroom, where you can replace older toilets with new ones that bear the WaterSense label. 

Also, avoid in-tank toilet cleaners that may decrease the life of your toilet flapper. 

In the kitchen, chill drinking water in the fridge instead of waiting for cool water to arrive from the tap. 

And when purchasing new appliances, seek out the Energy Star logo. 

3 – When you get outside and start gardening and landscaping this spring, use approved pesticides and certified applicators. 

That’s a message from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, which says pesticides are an effective tool when used correctly to help control, destroy and repel destructive pests. 

If applying pesticides, you should always read and follow the label directions and use the recommended personal protective equipment.

If you’re hiring someone to do the work, choose a licensed firm. Their training and experience will help prevent accidental pesticide misuse and harm from occurring to humans, pets, livestock and the environment.

See Michigan.gov/MDARD for more information.

– Mr. Great Lakes is heard Friday mornings in Bay City, Michigan, on Delta College Public Radio 90.1 FM (listen). Follow @jeffkart on Twitter #MrGreatLakes

-30-