The Leading Outdoor Enthusiast Marketplace Teams With 12 Survivors to Create A World Class Survival Kit 50% Off Retail Pricing
The Woodlands, Texas – Everest.com, the nation’s first outdoor lifestyle-focused, multi-merchant marketplace announced today that the company has teamed with 12 Survivors to create and offer a top-notch survival package to Everest Caliber members, with free shipping, at an almost $100 discount.
The Personal Survival Package features all the innovative gear you need to get you through an unexpected adventure or a last-minute overnight expedition. Each package comes equipped with supplies by 12 Survivors including an Ignite-110 Headlamp, 20F Sleeping Bag, Ultra Mini First Aid Kit, a Sharp & Spark fire starter and Pocket Water Purifier. Read more
DNR partners with Circle Power to repurpose former mine sites as large-scale solar power operations
Circle Power of Royal Oak has been awarded a 5-year land lease agreement with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to develop large-scale solar arrays on two former mine sites.
“Enabling opportunities for cost-effective, renewable energy is good for the environment, for Michigan’s beautiful outdoor spaces, and for the people of Michigan,” said DNR Director Dan Eichinger.
“Our department is entrusted with taking the best possible care of the state’s natural resources and creating quality outdoor experiences. It is just as important that we do our part to foster the development of renewable energy sources that will provide new sources of power for northern Michigan, increase local tax bases and repurpose old mining sites for greater public benefit.”
The two sites to be developed for solar power include the Groveland Mine in Dickinson County, a former 347-acre iron mine tailings site gifted to the state and 7 Mile Pit in Crawford County, a 169-acre property previously use for sand and gravel mining the state acquired through tax reversion.
The two projects will be developed through Circle Power’s affiliate, Copper Country Power I, LLC. Circle Power is backed by Amber Infrastructure and its U.S. parent, Hunt Companies, Inc.
The energy produced at these sites would supplement, or help to replace, current nonrenewable forms of energy generation, like oil, gas and other fossil fuels. The projects would continue Michigan’s progress in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and lowering energy costs by moving to renewable energy sources.
“We look forward to working with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources on the 7 Mile Pit and Groveland Mine projects,” said Jordan Roberts, managing partner at Circle Power. “This is an important opportunity to provide low-cost power to Michigan residents while supporting the state’s renewable energy goals.”
At this early stage in the development process, it is unclear how long it would be before construction of the arrays would be completed.
Both these sites are located on land used by industry and left in a degraded condition. Building large-scale solar arrays on these properties is one means of revitalizing these underused places.
Criteria for establishing these sites included open lands with minimal forest cover, no conflicts with rare, threatened and endangered species or sensitive ecosystems, and consistent with local zoning plans and ordinances.
In June, the DNR put out a request for proposals, with Utopian Power, LLC of South Lyon and Telamon Enterprise Ventures, LLC of Carmel, Indiana responding, in addition to Copper Country Power I, LLC.
A DNR joint evaluation committee reviewed the proposals. Award recommendation was made based on which bidder offered the best value to the state of Michigan.
“An installed project could provide $50,000-$100,000 per year in lease payments to the DNR in addition to generating state and local revenue through property taxes,” Roberts said.
Michigan Energy Options, an East Lansing non-profit organization under contract with the DNR, worked on evaluating the proposal. The firm has assisted the DNR with the technical aspects of understanding solar energy.
“The potential development of two former mining sites for large-scale solar power, in my opinion, checks all the boxes,” said John A. Kinch, executive director of Michigan Energy Options. “The siting doesn’t negatively affect the natural lands and waters the DNR manages and, further, it is a great reuse of industrial legacy properties. It doesn’t affect private landholdings. What the project does do is to drive the creation of more clean, renewable energy in Michigan, with the DNR leading by example. My nonprofit is excited to be working on these and future projects with the DNR.”
NEWTOWN, Conn. – NSSF®, the trade association for the firearm industry, tonight expressed its strong support for President Donald Trump’s nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit to become an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.
“We are pleased to lend our support to President Trump’s nomination of Judge Barrett to the Supreme Court and urge the Senate to approve her nomination as expeditiously as possible,” said Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel. “We are confident Judge Barrett will serve our nation with distinction as an Associate Justice of our nation’s highest court and her service will reaffirm the importance of originalist jurists when protecting the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans.”
About NSSF
NSSF is the trade association for the firearm industry. Its mission is to promote, protect and preserve hunting and the shooting sports. Formed in 1961, NSSF has a membership of thousands of manufacturers, distributors, firearms retailers, shooting ranges, sportsmen’s organizations and publishers nationwide. For more information, log on to www.nssf.org.
The Trump administration announced yesterday that it would restrict the import of certain products from the Xinjiang region of China due to forced labor and human rights concerns.
Acting Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Mark Morgan announced the issuance of Withhold Release Orders (WROs) to detain imports suspected of being made with forced labor from the following entities in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR) of China:
Xinjiang Junggar Cotton and Linen Co. and its subsidiaries – Cotton
Hefei Bitland Information Technology Co. – Computer parts
Yili Zhuowan Garment Manufacturing Co. – Apparel products
Baoding LYSZD Trade and Business Co. – Apparel products
Lop County No. 4 Vocational Skills Education and Training Center – All products
Lop County Hair Product Industrial Park – Hair products
This action is the latest in the administration’s effort to combat forced labor and other human rights violations in the Xinjiang region, home to China’s Muslim Uyghur community. In July, the administration listed the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC) as a specially designated national (SDN) under U.S. sanctions laws enforced by the Office of Foreign Asset Controls (OFAC) by the Treasury Department; this bars all transactions that benefit the XPCC or its subsidiaries and affiliates with a 50-percent-or-greater controlling share by XPCC. The Commerce Department has also placed companies connected to the Xinjiang region on its Entity List subject to technology export controls. Read more
Charter Member Professional Outdoor Media Association
Attracting and holding wildlife requires a few basic ingredients: food, cover, and water. Fortunately, most Michigan deer hunters have little trouble locating habitat that produces at least one of these necessities, and therefore, whitetail deer. However, if one wants an edge, food plots can tip the scales. In the process of establishing these magnetic environments, things don’t always go as planned.
To minimize the use of herbicides is a worthy goal for many reasons; to do so takes work. Herbicides, such as glyphosate, have the ability to cut time afield, as opposed to tilling repeatedly from spring to planting time in August for fall food plots. Applying only one spray before planting would mean I’d have to count on my 72 year-old Ford 8n tractor to do its part.
The work began in early spring before the weeds were able to fight back. The old tractor has a weak battery that should have been replaced long ago, but my innate cheapness coaxes it to cooperate with the assistance of a trickle charger. Two of the tires need a shot of air. Check, check.
Out to the field where the 6-foot disk harrow would chop, cut, and pummel the weeds into oblivion – at least for a little while. The process would be repeated numerous times through spring and summer before the weeds gained an upper hand. Along the way, fertilizer and lime were broadcast
1956 Allis Chalmers IB with rigged spreader
and allowed to break down well in advance of planting time.
Unfortunately, my ATV is temporarily out of commission, so I called on another old tractor to step up. My 1956 Allis Chalmers IB is an industrial tractor, not typically suited for field use, but I’d have to give it a go to keep on schedule. After all, it’s the only machine I have that can power the electric motor of the spreader with its 12-volt configuration. With a bit of redneck engineering, it worked as planned – not counting the soft soil where the turf tires almost failed to plod through.
To seed the first part of August means a certain amount of management is in order to pull it off.
A look at turnip seed inside the hand spreader
One last disk operation in July followed by some finer grooming with drag implements made to “fit” the field were successful.
Then, it was time to wait for the weeds to germinate, so they could be zapped with the glyphosate. The idea was to get the field as “clean” as possible. Again, the old Allis was rigged with a sprayer sitting atop a carrier attached to the receiver. To make the sprayer fan out properly, it had to be at the correct height. Success was gained again and the job was complete on August 1st.
Once the spray was dry, I became the motor for a broadcast seed spreader strapped onto my shoulders and walked the plots and cranked the handle. Then, before the pending rain washed out our plans, my pal, Joe, pulled an 8-foot cultipacker behind the old Ford and pushed the seed into the soil.
The timing couldn’t have been better, as Mother Nature pitched in with the missing ingredient: rain. Although we’ve had some hot and dry weather since, enough of the precious liquid from above has made this attempt at farming a success, as evidenced by the healthy brassicas. Believe it or not, the seed had begun germinating in less than 48 hours and nothing will stop it now – except those nibbling deer. But, that’s the whole idea.
Brassica foliage trimmed by deer. Plants less than one month old.
Known for its quiet serenity, scenic lake, 5-mile walking trail, bird-watching opportunities and many other draws, Watkins Lake State Park and County Preserve in Brooklyn, Michigan, now also will be recognized for its connection to the Underground Railroad.
The National Park Service recently accepted Watkins Lake State Park and County Preserve into the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom. Such designation is aimed at the places with significant ties to the Underground Railroad, the effort of enslaved African Americans to become free by flight from their bondage.
The Watkins Farm was owned by early settler Royal Watkins (1788-1876), who was fervently opposed to slavery. From the time the farm was established in 1834, Royal Watkins and his wife Sally employed African and Native Americans. One employee was John White, formerly known as Felix White, who had escaped enslavement in Kentucky and was the target of an unsuccessful kidnapping attempt.
The plot to capture John Felix White began in the fall of 1847. Kentucky slave-trader George Brasher assembled seven men to help locate and capture White. They had been told they’d find White working at the Watkins Farm. Instead, with the help of the area’s most prominent Underground Railroad activist Laura Smith Haviland, John White escaped capture. The man the Kentuckians found working in the field was a white field hand sent out in disguise. When confronted, Royal Watkins said, “I suppose he is in Canada, as I took him, with his trunk, to the depot, yesterday, for that country.” Read more
Michigan is home to 13,000-plus miles of diverse, state-managed trails, plus thousands of miles of local, county and federally managed trails and pathways. Trail veterans and newcomers can help make every mile count by tracking mileage spent on any nonmotorized trail in the state during these eight days.
“Michigan Trails Week is the perfect time to get out and explore Michigan’s amazing network of trails,” said Ron Olson, chief of the DNR Parks and Recreation Division. “Whether it’s on your first trail, your favorite trail or one brand new to you, the Michigan Trails Week Challenge is for anyone and everyone who wants to get out of the house and connect with nature.
“Explore Michigan and report your mileage; it’s that easy. Participants earn badges for completing miles – any distance counts. Every badge earned is another entry in a drawing for cool outdoor gear and Michigan branded prizes.” Read more
(Honolulu) – The dropping of the Formosa’s anchor on coral in Kailua Bay on Hawai‘i island in October 2018 has resulted in the luxury yacht owners being ordered to pay $100,000 to the DLNR Division of Aquatic Resources (DAR), which will go to supporting coral reef management and restoration in West Hawai‘i.
The State Board of Land and Natural Resources (BLNR) voted last Friday to approve the settlement agreement with the Formosa Wealth Management Group (FWM), owners of the 197-foot luxury yacht. DAR informed the board that a prosecution against FWM could provide difficult because it operates under a foreign flag.
DAR’s submittal to the BLNR showed the vessel violated Hawai?i Administrative Rules by breaking and damaging approximately 431 coral colonies of stony coral and approximately 150-square feet of live rock, when the Formosa dropped anchor in the Kailua Bay Zone of the Kona Coast Fishery Management Area. Read more
Michigan Department of Natural Resources Conservation Officer Robert Slick was the first emergency responder to arrive at the scene of a burning mobile home in Spring Lake Wednesday afternoon.
While off-duty, Slick was out jogging around 5:30 p.m. when he saw smoke in the distance. The smoke became thicker and turned black as Slick continued running along 148th Avenue.
At the corner of Greenspire Drive and Kelowna Court, in the Country Estates Mobile Home Park, Slick saw the front of a mobile home engulfed in flames, with several people gathered, watching from a safe distance.
One person told Slick that he called 911 and firefighters were on their way.
Slick approached the burning mobile home cautiously to look through the windows for any people or pets, when an individual told him there was an elderly disabled woman stuck inside.
Slick went to the back of the burning home and found a neighbor there, trying to open a jammed door. Together, the two men opened the door and entered the smoke-filled mobile home where they found the woman, who was alert and talking.
Her walker was unable to fit through the door frame, trapping her inside the laundry room. The two men picked the woman up and carried her outside.
Slick then carried the woman to a nearby porch. He waited with her there until emergency medical personnel arrived to evaluate her. Read more
MEAT! Unites MEAT-I-VORES
Makes Bold Statement with Meat-Processing Web Video Series
COLUMBIA, MO – MEAT!, the new direct-to-consumer brand in commercial grade food processing equipment, has launched a series of web videos aimed at hunters, anglers, butchers, chefs and anyone else with a passion for turning noble beasts into hearty feasts. MEAT! plans to revolutionize home-based meat processing by promoting the benefits of living untethered to the plastic-wrapped, mass-market proteins typically found on supermarket shelves.
MEAT! welcomes folks with a deep and abiding love for all wild creatures, especially those wild creatures with grill marks. In this video series, Chuck Skinner, the face of the MEAT! campaign, delivers a balance of patented humor alongside valuable industry insight as he walks viewers through the MEAT! story. Videos are available on the MEAT! Your Maker YouTube channel, their social media accounts: @MadeWithMeat, and on the company’s website: MeatYourMaker.com. Read more
