Michigan’s largest wind farm

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Spread over acres and acres of farmland, Michigan’s largest wind farm is welcome change. This time no one will think the sprawling area of the wind farm to be the shore of Lake Michigan.
The wind farm is located in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. Called the Invenergy Wind Farm, it is placed in Gratiot county. At this place heavy winds blow across all the time. So it made sense to have a wind farm here that tapped into the energy that wind gives.
At this place, the state’s largest wind farm started to evolve. From what was before a field of corns, is now a sea of tall towers, and rotating blades.
Gigantic wind turbines will dot the horizon soon. In the first phase, more than one hundred and fifty people will start work on the wind farm. Around one hundred and thirty three wind turbines are being planned.
Local people feel that this development in Michigan is similar to what happened when the railroad came in 1800. There was a lot of novelty and reason behind the developments. The same applies here too.
Unlike other states in the United States of America, Michigan has been slow in adopting wind energy. This project will give a new boost to the energy needs of the state.
More than fifty thousand homes will be powered by wind energy next year. This roughly translates into two hundred megawatts of electric power.
Invenergy is a Chicago-based renewable energy company. It supplies technology for renewable wind energy development which can be used by public energy utilities.

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Prescription drugs killing Michigan residents

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Spread across the U.S, the issue of prescription drugs fatally harming people is affecting people in Michigan too. For even the slightest discomfort, people are taking to prescription drugs. Be it a small headache, backache, tooth pain, common cold, and other minor health issues, prescription drugs are seen as a fast and easy way of getting temporal relief.
Prescription drugs are taken indiscriminately. Such a condition is abusive in nature, because it is taken when it might not be needed. The people in Michigan are affected by their own prescription abuse behavior. Statistics indicate a higher death rate because of prescription abuse, than narcotics abuse.
What could be the reason behind this? Health officials say it is the accessibility of people to drugs that creates this situation. Doctors too add to the situation by giving out prescriptions for any small health illness. People are now relying less on their body’s immune system, and more on prescription drugs.
Young adults, and teenagers use prescription drugs as a legal way to abuse it and seek stimulation pleasure. They get replacement sensuousness which might be not the same as narcotics, but somewhere close to it. College going students use huge amounts of prescription drugs for sensory pleasures.
The chief culprit are painkillers. Taken for anything, painkillers become a bane after some time. Indiscriminate use of painkillers result in addiction, and eventually abuse of prescription drugs.
Something needs to be done fast. Health officials have to build a system around the accessibility of prescription drugs.

 

 

 

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Delta Air Lines to Abandon Flights to Five Michigan Airports

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Delta Air Lines has expressed its disinterest in operating service to five airports in Michigan. As per Delta Air Lines, there is not much profit in operating these flights. It wants more money if it has to retain the services to the five airports. This is a clear indication that the cost of operation and the income generated might not be seeing eye-to-eye.

Delta recently conveyed the message to the Federal government. Not just five airports, a lot of cities are affected by this too. Some of the cities are: Sault Ste. Marie, Iron Mountain, Pellston, Escanaba and Alpena.

Some airport officials are hopeful that the government will increase its help to Delta by way of subsidizing the cost of operations. Delta’s absence from the airports might hit the consumers hard. A lot of transportation is at stake. Delta has a sizeable amount of people preferring its airlines.

The cities to which Delta has dropped services are under the federal Essential Air Service program. This program is concerned with subsidizing the cost of operations of airline operators in certain cities which would have been otherwise overlooked by commercial airline operators.

Delta’s announcement comes in the wake of fourteen millions dollars in losses. Almost all the losses were incurred by operating the flights to the twenty four locations. The government will either have to sit down with Delta and fix a deal, or otherwise for an alternate carrier.

Delta’s company spokesperson has said that it was not Delta’s intention to abandon these routes. It was just that it needed a financial lift.

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Ranch Owners Hit Back ? Talks Of 5000 Pigs Running Wild In Michigan Is Absurd

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The current problem related to pigs running wild in the state of Michigan is, according to game ranch owners, over exaggerated. The Department of Natural Resources speaks of 5000 wild pigs running around in the State. The owners of the game ranches point out that the total number of pigs in all the ranches put together will not exceed 5000. Since these ranch owners have been criticized for allowing the pigs to escape, they face the burden of punishment and penalty including the threat of litigation.

The game ranch owners have pointed out the absurdity of stating that 5000 pigs may be running around and have threatened with litigation of their own if a ban takes place. The owners have stated that they would not accept an outright ban on any individual rearing pigs in private in the state of Michigan.

According to them, the total number of pigs in the wild will not exceed 200 and that this number is not a sufficient threat to speak of a statewide emergency and an outright ban. The ranch owners admit that they lost control of the pigs and this led to the problem. They are prepared to submit to regulations, inspections and other formalities that will help them do that they are taking good care of the pigs.

However, the ranch owners point out that an outright ban is only going to affect the economy in a big manner because the sport of hunting pigs is very popular in the state of Michigan and ranches depend on this for their income along with the sport of hunting elks.

 

 

 

 

 

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MSU Students To Pay More For Their College Degree As University Hikes Fees

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The Michigan state university has decided to hike its fees by 6.9%. The annual increase in fees for student is around $778. The raise in fees is just below the 7% limit that would have resulted in a drastic reduction in the amount of financial aid received from the state government. However, the University is still facing a shortfall of $18 million despite raising fees.

Michigan is popular amongst students for its research oriented approach and the chance to participate in international projects. Quality of education is high and the University attracts the best students from all over the world. However, critics have pointed out that the increase in fees raises the overall fees and overall cost of education to a very high level. There are fears that the popularity of the University may take a hit as students find that cost of education is far too high despite excellent quality.

The Board has also announced an increase of 10 % in its contribution to student financial aid. In theory, this should ensure that the students deserving of financial aid do not have to pay the excessively high fees. However, there is the risk of the students falling through the gap.

The extra money will be used to spruce up infrastructure and ensure that the quality of education and research remains high as has been the reputation of the university. The Board of Trustees of the University complained of helplessness because of the significant reduction in financial aid that they are receiving from the government. They are now forced to rely on external donors to run the University.

 

 

 

 

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Problem Of Wild Pigs Threatening Crops In Michigan Assumes Grave Proportions

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Michigan is the facing the problem of wild pigs destroying valuable crops in the State. The problem has been reported in more than 60 of the 83 counties in the State. This makes it a statewide problem which must be tackled as early as possible.

The state government has been on this issue for quite some time now. The government decided to permit individuals to shoot pigs found roaming on public land without any risk or fear of penalty. However, this has failed to tackle the issue. For starters, these wild pigs have a very big home range. Hence, it is difficult to pin them down to a specific area or region. It is possible for a pig to have home range as big as the county. In such a scenario, the chances of the wild pig escaping the vigil of those trying to protect their farms are significantly high.

The problem arises primarily due to the escape of wild pigs from game ranches that have been set up to enable people to hunt these as a sport. The ranches are not in a position to control the pigs and maintain them within a specific area. As number of pigs in the wild increases, the chances of State of being hit rises significantly.

The issue has reached such a level that the government is contemplating making it illegal for any individual to hold wild pigs in private. This is going to affect the game ranches in a significant manner as they depend on this sport for a significant chunk of their income. There is also the question whether a ban will help overcome the problem.

 

 

 

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High Demand for Physician’s Assistants in Michigan

With the whole country screaming for more jobs, there is one question everyone has on their minds: How can I recession-proof my career? The key is to think about services and or products that people will always need. Health care is one of those industries that will always have plenty of clients. One of the fastest growing fields in Michigan today is that of physician’s assistants. It is reported that 30,000 more physician’s assistants will be needed in the United States by the year 2018. Statistics like this make it clear that health care is the best employment arena in Michigan.

The next best thing to doctors, physician assistants work under doctor supervision. They perform physical exams, diagnose conditions, treat minor ailments and even prescribe medication. In a nutshell, physician assistants handle routine care of patients, allowing doctors to focus on serious health issues. This helps the health care system run smoothly and decrease wait times at health care facilities.

Jobs in this field require at least an associate degree. If you are wondering “where can I earn my degree?” there are at least five training programs located in Michigan and of course there are many colleges and online schools that have the necessary degree programs to get you started. Classes in subjects such as anatomy, pharmacology and medical ethics will prepare you for supervised clinical training in an actual medical practice.

The average yearly salary for physician’s assistants is over $80,000. This proves that working in the medical field is a great way to cushion the blow of a recession.

 

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High-Need Schools Get Math and Science Teachers

With a master’s degree fellowship offering up to $30,000 in paid tuition stipend in exchange for 3 years of paid work in high-need educational posts, Michigan math and science teachers are quickly increasing in number. A new program by the Kellogg Foundation brought $18 million to Michigan in 2009 in an effort to recruit more teachers of the so-called ”STEM” subjects: science, technology, engineering and math. The program had already demonstrated a high level of success in other states such as Indiana and has since been brought to Michigan.

By partnering with colleges and universities across the state, these fellowships are offered to teachers wishing to pursue higher education. In return, the teachers commit to spending at least 3 years in certain schools and districts where teacher shortages in these fields are the most extreme, including the Grand Rapids, Godfrey-Lee, Detroit and Battle Creek school districts. The universities that are participating in the program are Grand Valley State, Michigan State, University of Michigan, Wayne State, and both Western and Eastern Michigan Universities.

This cooperation between elementary, secondary and higher education facilities creates more opportunities for students and teachers alike. Also, the program is able to match teacher specialties with the areas that are most in need. There are already nearly 200 fellows working in the state of Michigan, and the most recent program is bringing in almost 100 more. While the teachers will be working toward post-graduate degrees while holding full-time teaching jobs, they will have 3 years to complete their master’s degrees, making the goal completely attainable.

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GM Plans Positive Announcement

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An announcement of sorts, itself, General Motors’ public relations department conveyed a message to the Flint Journal stating that a ”positive news announcement” was being planned for a press conference on Friday, May 13, at the Flint Engine plant. Due to the problems within the automotive industry over the last few years, some good news would definitely be appreciated; not just by GM employees, but by the entire state of Michigan.

GM was forced to file Chapter 11 in June, 2009, prompting a reorganization of its more than 200,000 global employees. Headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, GM posted its first profitable quarter since 2004 earlier this year. That turn around of business has had a huge effect on the moral of its employees and the residents in the areas surrounding GM facilities.

The two Chevrolet models that this announcement may impact are the Cruze, a compact sedan listing for approximately $16,000; and the Volt, Chevrolet’s gasoline / electric hybrid with a similar size and style for roughly double the price. Other Chevy models include the Aveo, Camaro, Impala and a selection of pickup trucks and SUVs. Other GM brands include Cadillac, Buick and GMC; the Pontiac make of cars was discontinued at the end of 2010 so that GM could focus on its core brands.

Friday’s announcement is rumored to release news of an investment of $100 million in GM’s Engine and Components plants. Additionally, GM has said that it plans to ramp up total investments this year into the $2billion range which also might bode well for Michigan.

 

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Mitt Romney Visits Ann Arbor

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Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney appeared in Ann Arbor on Thursday, May 12, 2010, to talk about his proposed health care plan. In this address, Romney detailed certain specifics including the avoidance of new taxes to pay for health care and a complete repeal of the ObamaCare policy.

Romney, who announced his presidential candidacy on April 30, has been dealing with several issues that could adversely affect his run at the top spot. While his Mormon faith is one of those issues, by far the more pressing in Michigan is the fact that his home state health care plan was strikingly similar to that of Obama’s–the health care plan he is now denigrating.

Attendees expect Romney’s speech to introduce the idea of a state-by-state solution to the health care problem along with a plan to restore more power to the individual states. While few would argue with the proposed cap on malpractice suit awards and opening insurance trade across state lines, his statement toward using the existing tax code toward health care expenses has caught the Democrats’ attention.

Michigan holds a crucial spot in Romney’s campaign and only his ability to convince local conservatives can secure the state. Previous attempts to defend and explain away his Massachusetts plan have been largely ineffective, and it’s not yet known how much of this newest speech will actually contain new information for voters. If the answer to that is ”very little,” he might as well give Michigan a miss.

 

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