Madilynn Kirby wears gloves and a face mask as she bags customers’ groceries in the Marquette Econofoods. (Journal photo by Trinity Carey)

By CHRISTIE MASTRIC

Journal Staff Writer

MARQUETTE — The COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect the local community.

The Harley-Davidson Raffle for Bay Cliff Health Camp, which was scheduled for July 18 in Little Lake, has been postponed. All tickets have been refunded and donated back to Bay Cliff, which is based in Big Bay. However, donations still can be made to Bay Cliff at www.baycliff.org. The donations will not provide a raffle ticket, but will help offset the loss of revenue due to the fundraiser’s postponement.

“As the annual fundraiser is over 30 years old, this was not an easy decision to make, but we all believe it to be in the best interest of both our cherished supporters and the community at large,” Bay Cliff said in a statement.

An employee at the Freedom Gas Station in downtown Marquette is seen behind a hanging piece of plexiglass meant to act as a barrier between employees and customers. (Journal photo by Trinity Carey)

MUCC to file lawsuit

The Michigan United Conservation Clubs Executive Board has voted to file a lawsuit challenging Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s Executive Order 2020-42 as applied to motorized boating.

MUCC said members of the conservation organization expressed concern over two issues: the interpretation and subsequent enforcement that motorboating is not allowed due to the order, and the language surrounding shooting ranges and how it applies to sportsmen’s clubs across the state. MUCC said it is unclear whether they are allowed to remain open, as most are volunteer-based and not staffed.

“MUCC and its members fully understand the risks that areas like the Detroit River, Tippy Dam and Saginaw Bay boat launches have posted,” it said in a news release. “In the spring, these areas are flooded with anglers from all over Michigan and out of state.

“We support measures to mitigate risks in these highly frequented locations. However, these are only a few small examples of the thousands of public and private successes we have throughout Michigan that are infrequently visited by people with motorboats and could be vital to Michiganders’ mental health and well-being during this time.”

However, MUCC recommends anglers abide by all social distancing protocols and health best practices per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention while recreating.

reconnected

The State of Michigan Emergency Operations Center announced that more than 1,500 residences in the state had water service reconnected or avoided planned shutoffs as a result of Whitmer’s Executive Order 2020-28, which requires public water supplies to restore water service to occupied residences where service had been terminated due to nonpayment.

The reconnection of water services was ordered to facilitate handwashing and other critical personal hygiene measures vital to preventing the spread of COVID-19 during the current state of emergency.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy has compiled a list of more than 200 public water systems that reported reconnection information as required under the order. The order also requires systems that have used shutoffs for nonpayment in the last year to report back on their efforts to identify and restore services, including the number of residences that do not have water as a result of shutoffs, the number that don’t have water services for other reasons, and an explanation of the system’s best efforts to locate and restore water services.

Attorneys general

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and 13 other attorneys general joined together in a letter to US Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler in response to a March 26 memorandum announcing a nationwide policy on limiting the civil enforcement of federal environmental laws during the COVID-19 crisis.

The coalition said in a statement that they are concerned by the EPA’s announcement of a policy “significantly curtailing” enforcement of the country’s “bedrock” environmental and public health laws.

“Although it is appropriate for the EPA to consider whether safeguards against the coronavirus impact the ability of industry to comply, the agency cannot — in the midst of a public health crisis — lose sight of its mission to protect public health and the environment,” the statement read.

According to Nessel’s office, the EPA states in the policy that it does not intend to take enforcement action against companies that, for example, violate existing reporting and monitoring requirements provided that the companies draw a connection between COVID-19 and their noncompliance, without a requirement for the EPA to justify or explain the impact of the noncompliance.

It said the policy also ignores the connection between air pollution and its impact on health conditions, such as asthma, which might increase the risk of serious harm and premature death for people who contract COVID-19.

The attorneys general requested the EPA rescind the policy.

Virtual food drive

donations urged

A virtual food drive organized by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Aging and Adult Services Agency and the Food Bank Council of Michigan is raising money to provide food boxes to seniors who stay home to protect themselves during the pandemic.

Michigan residents may donate at fbcmich.org. A donation of $28 pays for one box, which is filled with 33 food items that provide for 22 meals.

Christie Mastric can be reached at cbleck@miningjournal.net.