Whitmer Asks Power Companies to Do a Better Job Handling Outages

Power outages have been a real hardship for many Michigan families this year and the state government is calling on utility companies to come up with a plan to help Michigan families deal with the inconvenience. Over 750,000 households have lost power at some point this summer.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer said, “This summer, Michiganders have been dealing with extreme weather events that led to lengthy power outages and repeated flooding.”

Whitmer said that the outages have caused spoiled food, interfered with life-saving medical equipment, disrupted the workday, and exacerbated the dangers of unmitigated hot weather. The outages occurred on some of the hottest days of the year.

Calling for credits paid to those who lost power, Whitmer said, “We need tangible, immediate action from Michigan’s three largest utility companies to ensure the production and delivery of affordable, reliable energy to every family, community, and small business.” 

Whitmer also wants trees trimmed, power grids made more secure and reliable, and emergency plans tightened up to avoid these long outages in the future. She has made requests to DTE Energy, Consumers Energy, and Indiana Michigan Power to take immediate action.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

County Asks for Gypsy Moth Reports in Survey

2021 was the year of the gypsy moth in many parts of St. Clair County as massive numbers of the hungry gypsy moth caterpillars invaded properties in late spring and early summer.

Some property-owners placed blame on local government for getting caught off guard and not taking action, like spraying trees with an insecticide treatment, while neighboring counties had programs in place to combat the destructive pests.

The Board of Commissioners heard the complaints and action is being taken to identify the extent of the problem. Residents can fill out an online survey to report where the gypsy moth caterpillars were found this year and the extent of the damage.

There is a natural treatment of a fungus that is effective in killing the larvae, but it has to be applied at the right time in the right places. Rainfall was sufficient for most trees to recover from the early defoliation this year.

The County has not released any specific plan for treatment; they are just gathering data right now.

A link to the gypsy moth survey can be found below. A representative from the county may contact residents to inspect properties where high numbers of gypsy moths in any life stage have been reported.

http://www.stclaircounty.org/Caterpillars/CaterpillarsSurvey.aspx?fbclid=IwAR0Luhryjy6MsDT2pj54Sswwfh_ImQvr1TZKFC7vSqLb0FXKHBmC0hvd7h4

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

T-Mobile Data Breach Initiates Consumer Alert

T-Mobile confirmed a data breach that affects more that 50 million customers in the United States. Hackers accessed customer’s personal information including social security numbers and driver’s license numbers.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel reissued a consumer alert after the company reported last Friday that identifying numbers associated with mobile phones, IMEI and IMSI numbers, were also compromised.

Nessel said, “My Corporate Oversight Division is closely monitoring this developing situation and working to gather more information on the cause, impact to Michigan customers, and response. Unfortunately, this widespread data breach is an example of the lengths hackers will go to steal personal data that can then be sold to bad actors looking to commit fraud.”

T- Mobile is contacting affected customers directly, but Nessel is encouraging people to take advantage of their free, weekly credit reports available during the pandemic from all three national credit bureaus.

Reports are available from AnnualCreditReport.com which is the only truly free source for consumer credit reports.

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

Detroit Jazz Festival Moves to Livestream

The Detroit Jazz Festival is a tradition for people from the entire region who look forward to the sweet sounds of live jazz in Hart Plaza in Downtown Detroit. Everything was looking good for the tradition to continue this year, outdoors and in-person, but the Festival has now changed course and moved to virtual.

The Festival will be livestreamed from September 3rd through 6th. The construction of Detroit’s Hart Plaza is not quite done, and keeping large crowds safe amidst a pandemic was getting to be too much for the planners.

Chris Collins, Detroit Jazz Festival Foundation president and artistic director explained the switch, saying, “This is a winning solution that preserves the legacy of the Detroit Jazz Festival while bringing amazing performances into a virtual format.” Collins said the 2022 Detroit Jazz Festival will be “even better” at the revamped Hart Plaza next Labor Day weekend.

The Detroit Jazz Festival is the largest festival of its kind in the world. The livestream will have no replays or “on-demand” capabilities. The performances will be held on sound stages in the Renaissance Center with no live audiences.

Jazz enthusiasts will be able to view or listen to performances for free in a number of ways including: The Festival’s social media channels and web page; on public radio and television stations; and on the DetroitJazzFest LIVE! App

https://www.detroitjazzfest.org/

Reporting for WGRT- Jennie McClelland

DNR Will Pay for Red Pine Cones

Squirrels messing around with your birdfeeder or wreaking havoc on your lawn? The Michigan Department of Natural Resources has a crafty way to exact revenge on those rodents and make a few bucks to boot.

The DNR will pay $75 for a bushel of red pine cones, to be used for reforestation, and its ok to steal from a squirrel’s cache. Just make sure they are recently gathered pine cones, not last year’s stash. The pine cones can also be taken from standing pines, logging sites, and state forestlands.

Harvesters should make sure they are red pine cones. Red pines have craggy, reddish bark. The needles grow in pairs. Cones are best picked right from the tree, by you or a helpful squirrel. Cones that have been sitting on the ground for long are probably too old or wet. Cone scales should be closed, with a bit of green or purple, not old brown cones.

The DNR will process the pine cones to extract the valuable seeds and use them to replenish the seed supply. Red pines are in high demand.

To make an appointment to drop off the bushel of pine cones, harvesters will need to register as a vendor with the DNR. A link to more information:

https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/MIDNR/bulletins/2ec52c8

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

State AGs Want Flavored Vapes and Other Products Banned

Youth nicotine use has not gone away, even with decades of campaigning to educate kids about the dangers of addiction. In fact, there is an ongoing surge in the use of e-cigarettes, or “vaping”.

A coalition of Attorneys General, including Michigan’s, are asking the Food and Drug Administration to regulate the industry and stop allowing flavors that appeal to kids and to stop selling things like nicotine pouches, gum, and lozenges. They also want to tighten up marketing restrictions and age verification measures.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said, “The youth nicotine epidemic is an urgent public health matter and it is on us to ensure that the health and safety of our youth is not jeopardized. I urge the FDA to take immediate action and use its regulatory powers to impose restrictions on these products that are harming our young people.” 

The marketing that the AGs are trying to stop seems to be very successful. Vaping has gone up from 1.5 percent of high schoolers in 2011 to 27.5 percent in 2019. Eighty percent of young people who use e-cigarettes choose candy, mint, or fruit flavors.

The FDA could rule on September 9th of this year as to the future of flavored vapes and other high-nicotine products.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland