michigan – Page 6 – Shamskm: A site to exchange knowledge and solutions

Landscape Change Leads to Increased Insecticide Use in U.S. Midwest

By Guest PostJuly 19, 2011Environmentagricultural landscapes, annual insecticide application, bioenergy crops, claudio gratton, connecticut, crop diversity, cropland, doug landis, entomologis, great lakes bioenergy research center, insecticide, landscape ecologist, landscape simplification, long term ecological research, lter, michigan, midwest, nancy huntly, national science foundation, natural habitat, nsf, switchgrass, tim meehan, university of wisconsin-madison

*Growth of cropland, loss of natural habitat to blame*

The continued growth of cropland and loss of natural habitat have increasingly simplified agricultural landscapes in the Midwest.

In a study supported in part by the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Kellogg Biological Station Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) site in Michigan–one of 26 such NSF LTER sites around the world–scientists concluded that this simplification is associated with increased crop pest abundance and insecticide use. (more…)

Spurring Sweet Success

By Guest PostJune 1, 2011Environmentcrop health, diseases, farmers, farming, michigan, michigan state university, michigan sugar beet advancement program, michigan sugar co, nematodes, parasitic worms, paul pfenninger, plants, poindexter, roots, sugar beet, sugar beet industry, sugar quality, sweet partnership, tillage practices

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Thanks to Michigan State University, a sweet partnership has helped resurrect Michigan’s $444 million sugar beet industry.

In 1996 the industry was in peril. Yields hit an all-time low due to pest, disease and production issues that greatly reduced crop health. Farmers were looking to get out of sugar beet farming and switch to more profitable crops. Industry representatives reached out to MSU to help solve the problem. (more…)

Invasive Mussels Causing Massive Ecological Changes in Great Lakes

By Guest PostApril 23, 2011Environmentalgal production, diporeia, donald scavia, ecosystem, food web, gary fahnenstiel, great lakes, great lakes food web, huron, lake huron, lake michigan, lake superior, mary anne evans, michigan, mussels, non native mussels, quagga, silica levels, university of michigan, zebra, zebra mussels

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The ongoing spread of non-native mussels in the Great Lakes has caused “massive, ecosystem-wide changes” throughout lakes Michigan and Huron, two of the planet’s largest freshwater lakes, according to a new University of Michigan-led study.

The blitzkrieg advance of two closely related species of mussels—the zebra and quagga—is stripping the lakes of their life-supporting algae, resulting in a remarkable ecological transformation and threatening the multibillion-dollar U.S. commercial and recreational Great Lakes fisheries. (more…)

Growing Biofuel Crops in Unusual Places

By Guest PostJanuary 29, 2011Environmentairport property, biodiesel, biofuel, biofuel crops, biofuels crop production, canola, cellulosic and oilseed biofuel crops, crops, dennis pennington, ethanol, farmland, freeways to fuels, highway, homegrown bioenergy feedstocks, michigan, michigan economy, natural gas, nontraditional land, oil, oilseed crops, oriental mustard, pennycress, petroleum, renewable fuels, switchgrass, terri novak, vacant urban land

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Michigan State University researchers are finding new locations to grow crops used for biofuel.

The land they’ve identified might surprise some because it’s right next to where the fuel is being used. (more…)

Personal Solar Panel Could Make Electricity More Accessible in the Developing World

By Guest PostJanuary 27, 2011Environmentabdrahamane traoré, amin and traoré, developers, dim light, emerald, engineering, june energy, kerosene, kerosene lamp, Mali, michigan, shanhoor amin, smartphone, solar panel, techarb

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— As a child in Mali, Abdrahamane Traoré often did his homework by the sooty, dim light of a kerosene lamp.

As an adult in Michigan, he sometimes has a tough time reaching his family back home. Traoré’s mother must walk to a neighboring village to keep a cell phone charged. (more…)

Tag Archives: michigan

Landscape Change Leads to Increased Insecticide Use in U.S. Midwest

Spurring Sweet Success

Invasive Mussels Causing Massive Ecological Changes in Great Lakes

Growing Biofuel Crops in Unusual Places

Personal Solar Panel Could Make Electricity More Accessible in the Developing World