Letters and email from our readers

A BIRD'S EYE VIEW

Loves to plant trees

To the Editor:
Saturday when I was one of hundreds planting trees in the Gunflint Green Up, it reminded me of a retired farmer I encountered 20+ years ago when I was a Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Forestry Silvaculturist in Aitkin County.  I was supervising an out-of-state contracted tree planting crew and this 6'4", 65-year-old retired farmer from the Midwest was part of the 20-person crew.  One day I personally witnessed him plant 4,000 trees. 
When he swung his hoedad the ground just shook and sweat beaded off the tip of his nose.  I asked him, "Why do you do this?" 
Being a man of few words, he replied in his Kansas accent, "I just love to plant trees!" 
Saturday I felt the ground shake.  I saw the sweat beading off.  I saw hundreds of people just "loving to plant trees." 
My 37-year-old tree-planting hat off to the Gunflint Green Up Committee, the US Forest Service crew and all those that contributed and participated. 
I just love to plant trees!
Ranger Bob Maki
Grand Marais

Who ordered an ore boat?

To the Editor:
Only in a small town does a big lake freighter anchored east of town, close to shore, draw so much attention and interest. Many people went out east of town by Kadunce River on Friday to see the big freighter and everyone wondered why it was at anchor.
Of course no one knew. so people gave the reason themselves.
1) They ran out of gas!
2) They were fishing/smelting!
3) They broke down and needed repairs.
4) Someone was sick.
5) They were waiting to get into port.
But the best of all was because Donna Lunke told Orvis that she wanted a big ore boat and he went out and bought her one!
Donna Wilson
Grand Marais

Ski hill contributes to Poplar River problems

To the editor:
According to the study conducted for the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by several engineering firms, the Lutsen Mountain Corporation ski hill complex (LMC) is the largest contributor of sediment that causes turbidity in the Lower Poplar River.
Contrary to Poplar River Management Board (PRMB) officer and LMC co-owner Tom Rider's statements in the Cook County Star May 5 article titled PRMB weighs issues, the ski hill complex, LMC, is the largest contributor to the problem, providing 33 percent of the sediment that causes turbidity in the lower Poplar River, an estimated 661 tons per year. Another portion of the EPA study, the Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP) computer model predicts that on average 65% of the upland sediment load originates from ski runs; 285 from forest lands; 5% from slumps; and 3% from developed and golf course areas.
The EPA also states that sediment levels increase six-fold over the river's last two miles and phosphorus levels, traced to human causes such as fertilizer and sewage, double. Local, state, federal resource officials indicate that the problem isn't necessarily natural or common, and the Poplar's erosion problem is worse than almost all other North Shore streams.
LMC is by far the largest landowner along both sides of the last two miles of the Poplar River.
Clean your own mess, LMC.
Paul D. Quinn
Lutsen

(Editors note: Letters are not neccesarily the opinion of the Cook County Star. Please include name, address and phone number and keep letters under 350 words. (Only name and hometown will be published.) We post stories, photos and classified ads to the internet each Friday.)