The lake and its shoreline communities are experiencing a series of climate
impacts that run queasily parallel to the problems of saltwater coasts that have
become familiar in recent decades.
Great recent reads on disrupted river transport nationwide, a long history of
trying to make the Mississippi behave, and the ongoing crisis in getting barges
through New Orleans.
Contrary to what you may have heard, Minnesota’s Environmental Quality Board
requires full environmental impact statements for only a handful of projects
each year.
The study finds an overall decline in sustainable fish catch of 4.1 percent
worldwide. It represents an annual loss in seafood production of about 1.4
million metric tons, or a bit over 3 billion pounds.
Our collective choices undermine security, too: Of 6,000 plant species
cultivated for food, just nine account for two-thirds of global crop production.
An example of the coming unpredictability is Madison’s iconic Lake Mendota,
where ice used to form early and last all season; this winter it has reopened
and refrozen twice so far.