Nick Woltman writes in the Pioneer Press: “St. Paul city employees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by the end of the year. Mayor Melvin Carter announced the new vaccine mandate Thursday afternoon in a video address that was sent to all of the city’s roughly 4,000 workers, according to a spokesman for the mayor’s office. City employees have until Dec. 31 to receive a complete vaccine series, and they must provide proof of vaccination by Jan. 14, Carter said in the video. … Unlike the vaccine mandate covering municipal employees in Minneapolis, St. Paul’s does not offer the option of regular testing in lieu of a jab, setting up a potential clash with the city’s unionized workforce.”
The AP reports: “Members of Minnesota’s teachers union are calling on school leaders to do more to protect students and staff after the state Department of Health reported the first student death from COVID-19 this school year. Health officials said the student and two staff members died last week. That increased the total number of school fatalities since the start of the pandemic to two students and 13 school employees, including five workers this year.”
In the Star Tribune, Andy Mannix writes: “Hennepin Healthcare doctors failed to comply with federal safety laws in experimental drug research on members of the public comparing ketamine and other powerful sedatives, the FDA informed the hospital in two warning letters the agency made public this week. An FDA investigator who visited the hospital in 2019 discovered ‘objectionable conditions’ on studies led by Dr. Jon Cole and Dr. Lauren Klein, both of whom ignored FDA regulations and used practices that subjected patients to ‘significantly increased risk,’ according to the letters. … The letters, sent to the doctors in May, gave Hennepin Healthcare 15 business days to reply with actions it will take to prevent similar violations in the future.”
For Bring Me The News, Joe Nelson writes: “By gawd something more reliable than a farmer with an almanac has released a winter prediction. Behold, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Climate Prediction Center is calling for the December-February period to be influenced by La Niña. In a classic La Niña pattern, Minnesota sits in a zone of equal chances for above-, near- and below-normal temperatures and precipitation. Areas to the east, including Wisconsin and Michigan, sit in the zone that commonly gets warmer than normal temps and more precipitation than usual during a La Niña winter.”
Also in the Star Tribune, this from Tony Kennedy: The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is investigating whether Minnesota’s Department of Natural Resources properly reviewed environmental issues associated with a taxpayer-funded motorized trails project that the agency desires for outdoor recreation. The proposed off-highway vehicle complex has divided the Driftless Region town of Houston while giving new life to criticism that DNR is ducking its environmental responsibilities as it shepherds unprecedented growth in trails for four-wheelers, side-by-sides, and off-roading trucks and jeeps.
MPR’s Paul Huttner writes: “The University of Minnesota and 3M hosted Finnish Foreign Trade Minister Ville Skinnari Thursday. The visits followed a meeting with Gov. Tim Walz Wednesday, when the pair signed a letter of understanding, pledging that Minnesota and Finland would collaborate on the development of sustainable technology across academia, government and business. … Noting his country’s big-name electronics company Nokia, Skinnari said he sees a lot of potential for the partnership to develop software for electric vehicles and charging stations. He also touted Finland’s use of wood pulp to create more sustainable fabrics.”
Todd Richmond of the AP writes: “A judge appeared on the verge Thursday of granting wildlife advocates’ request to halt the Wisconsin fall wolf season after hearing arguments that the hunt is illegal. Dane County Circuit Judge Jacob Frost said it appears that the season is unconstitutional because the state Department of Natural Resources never enacted permanent regulations establishing season parameters, instead relying on emergency rules put in place shortly after then-Gov. Scott Walker signed a law in 2011 authorizing an annual season. The judge said that following the rule-making process is crucial to protecting against state agencies seizing too much power from the Legislature.”
Also from Wisconsin, Kyle Jones for Channel 3000 in Madison reports: “The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources says bull elk have been observed in southern parts of the state.The animals were driven out of Wisconsin in the 1880s, but efforts to restore the population in the Black River Falls area began in 2015. Officials say it is common for young male elk to leave their home ranges during the fall breeding season. These bulls are searching for unoccupied territory where competition for female elk is not as stiff.”
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