News

MARK A. S.

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources denies requests for an EIS and dam safety permit for Mile Post 7 tailings dam expansion The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) denied requests by WaterLegacy, tribes, other environmental organizations, and hundreds of Minnesotans for an environmental impact statement (EIS) for expansion of the Mile Post 7 Class 1 hazard level tailings dam to contain Northshore Mine tailings waste located above the town of Silver Bay and just three miles from Lake Superior. Although the proposed tailings dam length would increase by more than two miles and new tailings would cover an additional 650 acres, DNR denied that there was any expansion of the dam or any potential for significant environmental effects.

The Arrowhead Eagles Aviation Organization (AEAO) will provide a $2,500 scholarship to anyone that aspires to a career in the aviation industry or wishes to pursue flight training leading to a pilot’s license. This will be the 6th aviation scholarship awarded by the Eagles, a Cook County based non-profit with a mission to provide support to aviation in our community. The scholarship is made possible by funds raised through the annual Fly-In Pancake Breakfast and personal donations to the Eagles. The scholarship winner will be announced at the Eagles annual meeting, Saturday, May 18th at Skyport Lodge.

On March 1, 2024, St. Luke’s announced it had officially completed its affiliation with Wausau, Wisconsin-based Aspirus Health. The expanded health system now operates 19 hospitals and 130 outpatient locations with nearly 14,000 team members, including 1,300 employed physicians and advanced practice clinicians across northeastern Minnesota, northern and central Wisconsin, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The system will operate headquarters in Wausau and maintain a corporate office in Duluth.

“If something is not done before next year, somebody is going to get killed. With more queer students coming into our school every year, they would probably not feel safe with the way it currently is on campus” That quote is from a student at Cook County High School (CCHS) who has been subjected to gender and sexuality- based violence from their peers. Not a month after this student shared these concerns came news of the death of Nex Benedict, a 16 year old Two Spirit student, following a transphobic assault on an Oklahoma high school campus. At the same time the world is grieving Nex, who was attacked in a school bathroom, transphobic complaints about the CCHS’s trans-inclusive bathroom/locker room policies were published in a Letter to the Editor in last week’s CC News Herald. All of this is in the context of 460 anti-LGBTQ bills entered into the 2024 legislature nationwide - 14 of which are in Minnesota (ACLU). So, the Cook County Pride Committee has entered the chat (as the kids say).

Spoken exclusively in the Native American voice To improve lung cancer survival on reservations, A Breath of Hope Lung Foundation is pleased to announce the release of two free storytelling resources spoken exclusively in the Native American voice. Lung cancer is a leading cause of death in Native American communities and is usually caught late when it is difficult to treat.