Welcome to KickTime - News of the Kickapoo Valley, WI

A Driftless Regional web space for Kickapoo Valley news, events and local commerce (like recycling, ride sharing, eating from local sources, buying and supporting local entrepreneurs.)

Visit our Kickapedia site for links to local businesses, farms and services. This is a community wiki (like Wikipedia only smaller) that can be updated by anyone who logs in. The more you join in the better the information and quicker the updates. Don't be shy--if you make a mistake an old version can be restored.

Also try the link to the KickTime_Calendar. We try to keep it as complete, up-to-date and accurate as possible. Please forgive any errors and use the contact information provided for events to double check times and dates.

KickTime is a community project--you are encouraged to submit material. The first step is to create a login account. After logging in, submit your story and it will be reviewed and pushed to the front page within a day or two. See the FAQ for more details about posting material here. If you are totally flummoxed, email the story to admins[at]kicktime[dot]org.

So what do we look for? Events notices are common submissions, but a local view on issues would be a nice change of pace.

Please don't submit a reprint of a news story. Instead provide a new perspective or added insight;
Bring several views together to create a new way to imagine an issue;
Be clever, funny, original;
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If you wish to pass literary or artistic judgment, or discuss the merits or demerits of someone or something, do it with subtlety and intelligence;
The more voices here the better!

Too much to ask? Well would you want to spend your precious time reading anything less?

Hills and Valleys

Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters Meeting 8/26

By borges, Section Hills and Valleys
Posted on Mon Aug 18, 2008 at 09:16:26 PM CST

It's time to pick the Conservation Priorities for 2009-2010. In order to get YOUR FEEDBACK, we will be holding 11 Conservation Listening Sessions around the state in August and September. If you are a member of a conservation organization, involved in a local group, or simply concerned about conservation, we encourage you to attend and share YOUR OPINION!

La Crosse
Tuesday, August 26
6:30-8:00 pm, LaCrosse Public Library, 800 Main St, Auditorium A
RSVP to jennifer@conservationvoters.org.

River Alliance Talk about Gays Mills Dam--8/7

By borges, Section Hills and Valleys
Posted on Wed Aug 06, 2008 at 04:56:30 AM CST

Denny Caneff, Executive Director of the River Alliance of Wisconsin will make a presentation on the future of the Gays Mills Kickapoo River Dam. "The First and Last Dam on the Kickapoo: Run-of-River at Gays Mills" is a free presentation scheduled for Thursday, August 7th at 7:00pm at the Gays Mills Community Room. The event is open to the public and is being sponsored by Driftless Speakers.

VSN's own Gary Thompson, Water Quality Monitoring Program Coordinator, will provide a brief introduction. Please see the attached presentation flyer for more information.

Thanks,
Jessica Luhning
Projects Coordinator
Valley Stewardship Network
124 1/2 S. Main Street
Viroqua, Wisconsin 54665
637-3615
www.kickapoovsn.org

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VSN "Friendraising" Celebration 8/9

By borges, Section Hills and Valleys
Posted on Tue Jul 22, 2008 at 06:05:16 AM CST

The VSN "Friendraiser" Celebration will take place at the Kickapoo Valley Reserve Visitor Center at 6:30pm and will wrap-up around 9:30pm.

* Chef Macon Luhning will provide a wonderful assortment of local, seasonal fare for your tastebud's delight.
* Music will be provided by Harpist Ruth Kittleson.
* Theatrical entertainment will provided by the Two Busy to Play Players

Invite your neighbors and your friends and join us for a fun-filled evening of great food & drink, laughs and conversation!

Please RSVP by August 1st to Michelle at the VSN Office: michellevsn@frontiernet.net or 637-3615. The cost is $10.00 per adult.

I look forward to seeing you Saturday, August 9th!

Cheers,
Jessica Luhning
Projects Coordinator
Valley Stewardship Network

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TU Hands-on Workshop at Trout Run

By borges, Section Hills and Valleys
Posted on Thu Jul 17, 2008 at 10:38:17 AM CST

Hands-on workshop for conservationist, volunteers, anyone wanting to do stream restoration, July 19-20--questions - call Jeff Hastings 608 area code 606-4158 or jhastings[At}tu[dot]org

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Dairyland Ash Landfill going forward

By borges, Section Hills and Valleys
Posted on Wed Jul 16, 2008 at 05:41:09 AM CST

The news of a Federal Court decision to limit the authority of EPA to control industrial air pollution was thought to be the end of the Dairyland Power stack scrubber and landfill project, but it seems this is not accurate. A La_Crosse_Trib_article quotes a Dairyland spokesperson who indicated their plans are not changing. I think as the story unfolds we may find that State law requires air emission clean up, and so Dairyland will continue to pursue their plans to develop the landfill.

So a protest song is still relevant for all those depressed activists out there. Look for it this Saturday on the KickTime Saturday Night Music, courtesy of Tom Neilson who visited earlier in the month and worked with locals on this original composition--Kiss Your Ashes Goodbye.

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Will Federal Court Decision Affect Plans for the Dairyland Ash Pit?

By borges, Section Hills and Valleys
Posted on Sat Jul 12, 2008 at 07:03:09 AM CST

In a strange turn-about, HOPE and ARCH environmentalists might be cheered by the news of a Federal Court decision to limit the authority of EPA to control industrial air pollution. The New York Times reports:

In the morning, a federal appeals court struck down the cornerstone of the administration's strategy to control industrial air pollution by agreeing with arguments by the utility industry that the E.P.A. had exceeded its authority when it established the Clean Air Interstate Rule in 2005. The court, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, said the rule, which set new requirements for major pollutants, had "fatal flaws."

These recent decisions and EPA actions as reported in the full NYTimes article are leaving industry with questions:

"Right now we find ourselves in the twilight zone," Mr. Dorsey, of Entergy, said. "How do you proceed now? Do we continue to buy emissions allowances? Do we work on putting scrubbers on, or what?"

And what will Dairyland Power do with their plans to install scrubbers in the Genoa Plant and the resulting need for an ash landfill in Vernon County? Keep tuned into KickTime for the latest.

The NYTimes also provided an interesting podcast with a reporter on the story.

(1 comment) Comments >>

Clean Wisconsin meeting in Viroqua 7/9

By borges, Section Hills and Valleys
Posted on Wed Jul 09, 2008 at 05:52:12 AM CST

Clean Wisconsin meeting with candidate for State Assembly tonight to discuss issues of the environment. Details below...

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Guerrilla Gardeners in LA

By borges, Section Hills and Valleys
Posted on Tue Jun 24, 2008 at 07:06:00 AM CST

[Interesting article about the great lengths some people go to in order to have a garden...Los Angeles Times, by Joe Robinson, Special to The Times, May 29, 2008]

Scott planted the garden on the median early in the morning to avoid detection. He continues to weed and clean. Residents encourage his work. Stealth growers seed or plant on land that doesn't belong to them. The result? Plants that beautify or yield crops in otherwise neglected or vacant spaces.

BRIMMING with lime-hued succulents and a lush collection of agaves, one shooting spiky leaves 10 feet into the air, it's a head-turning garden smack in the middle of Long Beach's asphalt jungle. But the gardener who designed it doesn't want you to know his last name, since his handiwork isn't exactly legit. It's on a traffic island he commandeered. "The city wasn't doing anything with it, and I had a bunch of extra plants," says Scott, as we tour the garden, cars whooshing by on both sides of Loynes Drive.

Scott is a guerrilla gardener, a member of a burgeoning movement of green enthusiasts who plant without approval on land that's not theirs.