Weekend Roundup: Scientists, Tribal Members Combine Research On Wild Rice Decline 

Local wild rice populations in Wisconsin have been declining for years.

To get to the root of the decline, scientists and tribal members have teamed up to research.

Joe Graveen is a wild rice technician with the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. He told WXPR that wild rice is the reason Ojibwe tribes came to the Great Lakes region. He noted that in 2020, about 60 pounds of rice was collected — two times less than what was collected two years prior.

Crystal Ng is a researcher with the University of Minnesota. She said her focus has been investigating water levels in regions of wild rice.

“Maybe it’s water levels interacting with nutrients and sediments,” she said. “How is that going to change when infrastructure changes? How is that going to change with climate change and forests changing around wild rice lakes?”

Such questions are things scientists hadn’t thought much about before partnering with tribal members like Graveen.

Wisconsin DHS: COVID-19 Weekly Recap

The seven-day average for new COVID-19 cases in Wisconsin is 2,227 as of Friday. That figure has seen a significant jump in the past week — the average was 1,510 cases on Sept. 11.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services has confirmed 7,827 total deaths from the disease.

Nearly 53 percent of Wisconsinites are fully vaccinated — 83.2 percent of people age 65 and older and 39.3 percent of children age 12-15.

Bird’s-Eye Views To Catch This Fall

Some of the best fall views in Wisconsin come from up above — ones that you may not be able to catch on a usual hike.

This rundown from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel mentions the best overlook spots in the Northwoods, Door County, Great River Road and the southeast region of the state.

NEW Top Dog 2022 Registration Open

For the second year in a row, Top Dog will be holding a charity dog contest to raise money for children and pets in northeast Wisconsin.

There are two rounds of the competition — one local, followed by a championship. In the local round, six animal shelters from the area will be showcasing dogs.

Registration for the contest opened Friday. The contest runs from Sept. 18 until Oct. 16.

From the website: “Is your dog the cutest, cuddliest, goofiest, coolest dog around? If you answered yes, you’re going to love NEW Top Dog! With over $15,000 in prizes up for grabs and a chance to name a beer after your furry friend, this contest is every dog (and beer!) lover’s dream!”

Municipalities Navigate ‘Dark Store Loophole’

Wisconsin communities are being encouraged by the League of Wisconsin Municipalities to challenge big box retailers — such as Lowe’s or Walmart — that use the strategy known as the “dark store loophole.”

These big box retailers file lawsuits that challenge their property assessments across Wisconsin, many of which request refunds of hundreds of thousands of dollars in property taxes.

But recently, three state municipalities have won cases against big box retailers by pointing out that the companies cannot argue their retail space could be converted into other kinds of facilities.

“Big box retailers like Lowe’s have said there could be other, more valuable uses for the properties and therefore things such as income and activity should not be a factor. As a result, the stores claim, only vacant properties that have sold recently should factor into their stores’ values,” the Green Bay Press Gazette reports. “… The judges sided with municipalities’ experts who said the properties were best used as they currently were, as home improvement stores. The Lowe’s expert valued the building as if it was vacant and its best use was redevelopment, without factoring in the building costs for other uses.”

Zebras Spotted In Northeast Wisconsin

On Tuesday, officers with the Outagamie County Sheriff’s Office ran into a pair of zebras near Seymour.

(That’s right, zebras).

“They were off in the distance, as I got closer, they looked like horses, and I got closer and I happened to be talking to somebody on my headset and I’m like ‘I think I see zebras’ and they were like, ‘No way,’ I’m like, ‘Nope those are Zebras,’” said David Haupt, who saw the zebras on the corner of County Highway G and Maass Rd.

Officials with the Sheriff’s Office say the zebras are owned by some nearby neighbors, who promptly retrieved them.

Madison Man Pleads Guilty To Entering US Capitol On Jan. 6

A Madison-area man had pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge in connection with the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Twenty-nine-year old Brandon Nelson appeared by video conference Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. on a charge of parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building. He faces six months in federal prison.

Prosecutors say Nelson traveled from Madison with Abram Markofski, an Army National Guard member from La Crosse, to attend the rally. The Wisconsin State Journal says both men have agreed to pay $500 in restitution for damage done to the Capitol, estimated at nearly $1.5 million.

UN ‘So Far Off Track’ From Greenhouse Emissions Goal

In 2015, the United Nations signed the Paris Agreement, in which each country must submit their plans to cut greenhouse gases and their progress. Under the agreement, the goal is to maintain average global temperatures from hitting above 3.8 degrees Fahrenheit, reports NPR.

However, a report released Friday by the UN shows that countries are making the opposite of progress toward that goal. Greenhouse gas emissions are on track to be 16 percent higher in 2030 than they were in 2010.

“It’s a sobering, sobering summary,” said Rachel Cleetus, policy director for the Climate and Energy Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists. “We are so far off track from where we need to be.”

Editor’s note: The Associated Press contributed to this report.