Tom Henry
The Toledo Blade
Toledo, OH, United States
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Past articles by Tom:
Pioneer mayor unsure if Michindoh Aquifer even exists
PIONEER, Ohio — In a bizarre series of events Monday, Pioneer Mayor Ed Kidston — whose company, Artesian of Pioneer, has been trying to sell Michindoh Aquifer water to several Toledo-area communities and others east of Williams County for months — told 75 people at a public meeting he’s not even sure if the nine-county aquifer exists. The mayor dropped his bombshell of an announcement while… → Read More
Fate of western Lake Erie under new governors uncertain
For now, it’s unclear what will happen to western Lake Erie once Gretchen Whitmer and Mike DeWine are sworn in as governors of Michigan and Ohio, respectively. But those who track algal blooms see great potential for a fresh start and the chance for more bipartisan cooperation. Gone will be the shadows of the Flint water crisis that have hung over Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, a Republican who took… → Read More
2018 algal bloom roared in like a lion, went out like a lamb
Western Lake Erie’s 2018 algal bloom was the 10th most severe on record since the modern era of aerial surveillance began in 2002 and fell short of all scientific predictions, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in its seasonal wrap-up issued this morning. NOAA, the federal government lead agency for seasonal algae predictions and analysis, had predicted a bloom with a… → Read More
New BGSU center will study fresh water, human health
BOWLING GREEN — A new Bowling Green State University research center aims to greatly expand how scientists investigate harmful algal blooms that cost Americans an estimated $2 billion a year in costs ranging from lost recreation to more expensive water treatment. The Lake Erie Center for Fresh Waters and Human Health will receive millions in federal funding to research the causes and possible… → Read More
Northern Michigan scene of latest fight over pipelines
STRAITS OF MACKINAC, Mich. — Thousands of tourists who drive deep into northern Michigan this time of year see dense stands of maple, hemlock, birch, beech, and aspen; trees showing off their dazzling array of fall colors against a backdrop of beautiful evergreens. The fall foliage symbolizes change in a part of the country where seasons — especially winter — come on hard and fast. But not far… → Read More
Young, old, Democrat or Republican: Great Lakes residents hate Asian carp
If there’s one thing people in the Great Lakes region seem united about in these politically divisive times, it’s their hatred of Asian carp. A new poll shows more than 90 percent of residents in Ohio, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin want the federal government to form a stronger blockade in the Chicago area to keep northerly migrating silver and bighead Asian carp from getting into… → Read More
Fayette council takes no action against proposed sale of water to Toledo suburbs
FAYETTE, Ohio — Several members of the Williams County Alliance who oppose Pioneer Mayor Ed Kidston’s plan to sell Michindoh Aquifer water to Perrysburg, Maumee, Sylvania, and other Toledo-area communities got nowhere Wednesday night with a request to have the Fayette Village Council sign on in opposition. Fayette Mayor David Borer and village councilmen told them they had no interest in passing… → Read More
Sunrise, sunset: Moments of zen on Gibraltar Island
GIBRALTAR ISLAND — With autumn officially beginning this weekend, what better time to share my moment of zen? With apologies to humorist Jon Stewart, I’m not talking about the hilarious comedy bits he made popular on The Daily Show. No, I’m talking about those ever-so-brief moments we have — our respites from reality — when the world seems to stop and we get a chance to exhale and reinvigorate… → Read More
Seneca Wind moves a step closer to gaining final approval
TIFFIN — Seneca Wind, one of two commercial-scale wind farms planned southeast of the Toledo area, has been certified by the state of Ohio as a qualified energy project. Dan Williamson, a spokesman for the developer, sPower, said that’s not the final approval but is an important step forward for a project that’s expected to generate $56 million in revenue for Seneca County, several townships,… → Read More
Metroparks asking for thoughts on bridge designs for East Toledo
Here’s your chance to play architect: Metroparks Toledo wants a consensus on the type of land-based bridge that should be built over Main Street in East Toledo to connect its future Metropark along the Maumee River with Toledo’s existing International Park. Sharon Gerschutz, right, an East Toledo resident and Block Watch leader for the Birmingham neighborhood, and Tracey Britt, a Toledo police… → Read More
Scientists, others hear farmers’ perspective at algae conference
After having a federal scientist take them on a visual tour of algae outbreaks around the world, some 300 people attending a major Toledo-based conference on the subject settled in for a day full of presentations by farmers and other agricultural experts trying to find ways to cooperatively address the public health nemesis. Ohio Sea Grant and OSU Stone Laboratory director Chris Winslow at… → Read More
Michindoh study to be complex, costly
BRYAN — Officials in nine Ohio, Michigan, and Indiana counties have learned it will cost about $100,000 just to have the U.S. Geological Survey fully characterize how big the Michindoh Aquifer is and what makes it produce water differently in some areas. That would take about 16 months. But to really understand how much water it holds and gets returned to it from rainfall will take a commitment… → Read More
Farm groups encourage state's highest court to side with elections board
Ten major farm groups are supporting the Lucas County Board of Elections in its quest to keep the Lake Erie Bill of Rights off the Nov. 6 ballot. A joint brief in support of the board’s controversial Aug. 28 decision was filed with the Ohio Supreme Court on Friday by the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation, the Lucas County Farm Bureau, the Ohio Soybean Association, the Ohio Corn & Wheat Growers… → Read More
Jazz festival kicks off Friday in Perrysburg
Richard “Ragtime Rick” Grafing is happy with the direction Grugelfest is headed at the Holiday Inn French Quarter in Perrysburg. Last year, Grafing moved the long-running ragtime and Dixieland jazz festival there from downtown Toledo, where it’d been since 2012. For 25 years before that, it’d been in the Cleveland suburb of Strongsville, Ohio. The festival, which begins at 5:30 p.m. Friday,… → Read More
Prosecutor's office: Elections board was right to reject Lake Erie Bill of Rights
The controversy over the citizen-led initiative known as the Lake Erie Bill of Rights has drawn another rebuke from the Lucas County prosecutor’s office. In a new filing with the Ohio Supreme Court on Thursday, the prosecutor’s office continued to assert the county elections board acted within its right to keep the proposal off the Nov. 6 ballot. The 22-page response, made by county Prosecutor… → Read More
Fungus continues to plague Lake Erie water snakes
PUT-IN-BAY, Ohio — Although the nonvenomous Lake Erie water snake continues to be one of the Great Lakes region’s best comeback stories, a fungus in nature that can kill those and other snakes has scientists worried about their future. Of 240 Lake Erie water snakes tested for the fungus in 2017, 180 of them — a whopping 75 percent — tested positive for it, said Kristin Stanford, an education and… → Read More
Elections board sued in Ohio Supreme Court over Lake Erie Bill of Rights, downtown jail ballot initiatives
Two activist groups have filed separate lawsuits challenging the controversial decisions made by the Lucas County Board of Elections this past Tuesday to prevent their citizen-led initiatives from being placed on the Nov. 6 ballot. On Thursday, Toledoans for Safe Water filed a lawsuit with the Ohio Supreme Court against the elections board for denying the group’s request to have its proposed… → Read More
FirstEnergy plans to close remaining coal-fired power plants by mid-2022
FirstEnergy Solutions Corp. will shut down its remaining coal-fired power plants by June 1, 2022, including its massive W.H. Sammis plant along the Ohio River near Steubenville, Ohio. The Sammis plant at one time was America’s second-largest emitter of lung-damaging sulfur dioxide and was the subject of a landmark lawsuit over air pollution less than 20 years ago. It underwent $1.7 billion of… → Read More
Toledo Zoo announces sponsorships for sturgeon tag program in Maumee River
The Toledo Zoo has just announced how to become a sponsor of Ohio’s first attempt to reintroduce iconic lake sturgeon into the Maumee River. One option is to attend a big sturgeon release party from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 6 at the city of Toledo Boat Launch along Broadway Street near Walbridge Park. Sponsors can also go to www.toledozoo.org, scroll down to “Sturgeon Tag Program” and click on… → Read More
Metroparks Toledo looks to reinvent dormant foundation
A Metroparks Toledo horticulturalist uses pine needles to fertilize a tree at Wildwood Preserve Metropark. Metroparks Toledo is hoping to get more people engaged with nature by offering a wider range of unconventional recreational programs with the help of a nonprofit foundation that has been rejuvenated, reshaped, and given a new purpose. Metroparks Toledo Foundation, formerly known as Citizens… → Read More