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Stories from June 1, 2023

Warm, humid into the weekend; scattered showers, thunderstorms

Warm, humid into the weekend; scattered showers, thunderstorms

Steamy weather will continue through the weekend. We’ll see many rain-free hours and some scattered showers and thunderstorms from time to time. We take a look at whether our current hot weather indicates a warm summer ahead.
by Ron Trenda

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State regulators approve 9 percent electric rate increase for Xcel Energy

State regulators approve 9 percent electric rate increase for Xcel Energy

Xcel has said it needs the increase to cover the costs of replacing an aging electrical system as it transitions to more renewable energy. But it comes at a time when many Minnesotans are struggling to pay their rising utility costs.
by Kirsti Marohn

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Massive building program is about to be turned loose with new state bonding bill

Massive building program is about to be turned loose with new state bonding bill and felons start registering to vote. This is an evening update from MPR News, hosted by Tim Nelson. Music by Gary Meister.

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Cambridge-Isanti athletes can now compete after coach's error

Cambridge-Isanti athletes can now compete after coach's error

An error by the team’s coach accidentally left all the female shot put athletes from Cambridge-Isanti High School off the roster for Friday’s competition. The Minnesota State High School League reversed their decision and now says they can compete.
by Matt Mikus

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Rainbow Scandinavia: Duluth artist Kirsten Aune puts a kaleidoscopic spin on textile folk art 

Rainbow Scandinavia: Duluth artist Kirsten Aune puts a kaleidoscopic spin on textile folk art 

Kirsten Aune, a textile artist in Duluth, showcases her vibrant Scandinavian-inspired works in her colorful showroom, combining stenciling and silkscreen-printing techniques and preparing for an upcoming group show
by Alex V. Cipolle

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Dams are an often overlooked source of greenhouse gas emissions

Dams are an often overlooked source of greenhouse gas emissions

It turns out dams emit greenhouse gas — a lot of it. Just how much do they emit and why are some rivers better off left to flow naturally? Steven Hawley, author of “Cracked: The Future of Dams in a Hot, Chaotic World,” discusses what a world without dams could bring.
by Paul Huttner and Ngoc Bui

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Law restoring voting rights to thousands kicks in as sign-ups start

Law restoring voting rights to thousands kicks in as sign-ups start

A law change makes people no longer incarcerated immediately eligible to vote in Minnesota rather than having rights held back until parole or probation are completed.
by Brian Bakst

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Corrections dept. to move trans woman to Shakopee prison next week

Corrections dept. to move trans woman to Shakopee prison next week

For the first time, the Minnesota Department of Corrections will transfer a trans person to a facility that aligns with their gender identity. The move is a result of a settlement between the DOC and an incarcerated woman at a Moose Lake facility.
by Michelle Wiley

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Lynx face Connecticut, Twins v. Cleveland: What's ahead in Minnesota sports

Lynx face Connecticut, Twins v. Cleveland: What's ahead in Minnesota sports

The Lynx are still looking for the first win of their season. The Minnesota Aurora pre-professional women’s soccer team has had a dazzling start to theirs. The Twins? They’re doing okay.
by Cathy Wurzer and Ellen Finn

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Minnesota's former education leader aims to give kids a healthier planet

Minnesota's former education leader aims to give kids a healthier planet

MPR News host Angela Davis speaks with Brenda Cassellius about her inspiring story of growing up in poverty and then becoming a leader in education. Now she’s shaping Minnesota’s climate policy.
by Angela Davis and Danelle Cloutier

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Windom braces for impact as HyLife plans to close hog slaughtering plant

More than a thousand workers at the Windom hog slaughtering plant, Hylife, face their last day of work Friday. MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer talked with Gabby Nelson and Maria Guerrero, who are helping workers affected by the Windom Hylife plant layoffs.
by Cathy Wurzer and Ellen Finn

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Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara on his first six months on the job and what's next

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara on his first six months on the job and what's next

As the first chief appointed after George Floyd died under a Minneapolis police officer's knee, O'Hara is entrusted with changing the culture within MPD as the world watches.
by Cathy Wurzer and Gretchen Brown

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Lavender Magazine's First Military Recruitment Ad

It has been over a decade since Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was repealed. The policy was issued under President Clinton in 1993, and it prohibited openly gay, lesbian and bisexual recruits from serving in the military. MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer talked with Lavender CEO Stephen Rocheford and Major General Shawn Manke about the first national guard recruitment ad to be printed in a publication for the LGTBQ+ community.
by Cathy Wurzer and Britt Aamodt

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St. Paul's Como Zoo has a too-cute new snow leopard cub

St. Paul's Como Zoo has a too-cute new snow leopard cub

A new furball arrived at St. Paul’s Como Zoo in recent weeks: a cub born to snow leopards Alya and Moutig. It’s a second cub for the pair, who are part of national effort to preserve and bolster the vulnerable, iconic species.
by Tim Nelson

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Hot, muggy with more late-day spotty storms; spring wrap-up

Hot, muggy with more late-day spotty storms; spring wrap-up

It’ll be another hot and muggy day Thursday with more late day thunder possible. Friday and Saturday bring much of the same. Meteorological summer is here, how did spring stack up?
by Sven Sundgaard

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Another hot day with late day thunderstorms again possible

Another hot day with late day thunderstorms again possible

We’ll see another hot day with highs well into the 80s, low 90s south Thursday. We’ll also see the chance of at least some thunderstorms popping up late afternoon and evening after morning activity fizzles north.
by Sven Sundgaard

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DNR to rewrite mining rules to prevent noise and light pollution in Boundary Waters

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources says it intends to rewrite its mining rules to better protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area from noise and light pollution, by expanding a mining buffer zone around the wilderness. This is an MPR News morning update, hosted by Cathy Wurzer. Music by Gary Meister.

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Train carrying hazardous material derails in NW Minnesota; no injuries or evacuations reported

Train carrying hazardous material derails in NW Minnesota; no injuries or evacuations reported

Canadian Pacific Kansas City railway said some of the cars that derailed near Lancaster, Minn., were carrying hazardous materials, but said “the initial assessment by first responders on the scene is that there are no leaks from the rail cars.”
by Andrew Krueger

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For 25 years, program has created brotherhood for Black high school seniors

For 25 years, program has created brotherhood for Black high school seniors

Nine Twin Cities high school students began a “voyage to manhood” six months ago through Rites of Passage, a leadership program under African American-led nonprofit Jack and Jill of America.
by Nicole Ki

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More LGBTQ+ people can now give blood, but Minnesota donation centers say the change could take months

More LGBTQ+ people can now give blood, but Minnesota donation centers say the change could take months

While the FDA’s new guidance means that more people could give blood, it hasn't yet been implemented at donation centers in Minnesota, and across the country. Experts say that it could take months to implement the new guidance. 
by Michelle Wiley

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Inequality even in death: Mankato project finds racial covenants in a cemetery and beyond

Inequality even in death: Mankato project finds racial covenants in a cemetery and beyond

A Mankato project found racial covenants in seven neighborhoods and a cemetery. The city council recently voted to condemn racial covenants and now is pursuing the discharge of discriminatory language from property deeds.
by Hannah Yang

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DNR to rewrite mining rules to prevent noise and light pollution in Boundary Waters 

DNR to rewrite mining rules to prevent noise and light pollution in Boundary Waters 

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources says it intends to rewrite its mining rules to better protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area from noise and light pollution, by expanding a mining buffer zone around the wilderness.
by Dan Kraker

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Facebook, Instagram to block news stories in California if bill passes

Facebook, Instagram to block news stories in California if bill passes

From Australia to Canada, Big Tech has resisted lawmakers' efforts to force them to pay news publishers for carrying their articles. Now, that battle is playing out in California.
by Bobby Allyn

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