Wisconsin's Green Fire: Voices for Conservation

06/12/2026

A conservation victory for the Gile Flowage--a place often compared to Minnesota's Boundary Waters--and for public access to lands and waters in Iron County! Conserving this place helps protect habitat, treaty rights, and so much more.

Kudos especially to Cat Techtmann, a WGF member, for her role in conserving these 1,100 acres. As Danielle Kaeding writes in the article: "Cathy Techtmann, president of the nonprofit group Friends of the Gile Flowage, said the purchase includes around 20 islands.

“We have wildlife corridors that are preserved, fish habitat areas that are preserved along the shoreline, because of the continuity that this creates,” Techtmann said."

https://www.wpr.org/news/iron-county-celebrates-acre-land-purchase-gile-flowage-northern-wisconsin

Iron County officials held a ceremony Thursday that capped off a yearslong conservation effort to purchase roughly 1,100 acres surrounding the Gile Flowage in northern Wisconsin.

06/11/2026

Yesterday, June 10, 2026, members of the US Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources voted on an amendment that could repeal the 2001 Roadless Rule without any chance for public input.

That means your chance is NOW.

- You can contact your Senators before the vote comes to the full Senate floor.
- Call the Capitol Switchboard today at (202) 224-3121 to be connected to any Senator’s office.

https://wigreenfire.org/opportunity-for-action-us-senate-and-the-roadless-rule/

06/11/2026

Rather than continue with the regulatory process on repealing the Roadless Rule (which would include a public comment period), the Senate is going the legislative route. If you still want your voice heard, start making calls to Congress.

As described by the Sierra Club: on June 10th, "Republican members of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee voted in favor of an amendment which would sell off our public lands by nullifying the Roadless Rule and put 45 million acres of national forests at risk."

Consider contacting your Senators before this gets a vote on the floor. Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 to be connected to any Senator’s office.

This morning, all Republican members of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee voted in favor of an amendment which would sell off our public lands by nullifying the Roadless Rule and put 45 million acres of national forests at risk.

The Trump Administration is currently pursuing the same repeal, despite the fact that millions of Americans have weighed in during public comment periods to demand forests remain protected. By moving this legislation forward, Congressional Republicans are ignoring the voices of the American people and putting extractive industry profits above recreation, wildlife habitat, and watershed health.

Feeling outraged by these votes against our public lands?

Contact these Senators and let them know: Sen Mike Lee (R-UT), Sen John Barrasso (R-WY), Sen James Risch (R-ID), Sen Steve Daines (R-MT), Sen Tom Cotton (R-AR), Sen David McCormick (R-PA), Sen Jim Justice (R-WV), Sen Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Sen Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Sen Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Sen John Hoeven (R-ND).

Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 to be connected to any Senator’s office.

06/11/2026

WJFW Newswatch 12 covered our June 4th Public Town Hall in Rhinelander, and interviewed WGF Ambassador and former chief of the US Forest Service Dr. Mike Dombeck for this story.

https://www.wjfw.com/news/local/town-hall-debates-roadless-rule-repeal-impacts-and-motivations/article_69cc52d0-f678-4e31-9afd-b88b0aa4ec8e.html

As Koji Taylor reports, "Former Chief of the U.S. Forest Service Michael Dombeck was instrumental in designing the Roadless Rule during the Clinton Administration. He called the rule 'probably one of the most conservative policies you could have.'

Dombeck said: 'Number one: it doesn’t cost taxpayers money, in fact, it saves taxpayers money; number two: it doesn’t create a liability by building a road, then that year, after year, after year requires maintenance and costs money to keep up; and number three: it keeps options open for future generations.'

Of about 100 attendees, around 20 raised concerns about wasting public funds and protecting rare, old-growth forests."

It's not too late to make your voice for conservation heard. Contact your representatives and senators in Congress about the roadless rule and our national forests!

Environmental Law & Policy Center Sierra Club Wisconsin

06/10/2026

We're excited for Nitrate Pollution Awareness Week coming up July 26 - Aug 1, 2026 with Save Our Streams and Izaak Walton League of America! This week will be full of opportunities to learn more about and .

It will also be a great time to sample your well water or local surface waters for nitrate levels. Remember that a zero result is still important data! Learn more at https://iwla.org/nitrate-pollution-awareness-week/

💧🌱Nitrate pollution is an invisible contaminant with serious impacts on our environment and public health.

That’s why the Izaak Walton League of America is launching the first ever Nitrate Pollution Awareness Week! During the last week in July, the Izaak Walton League of America is inviting everyone to get involved in learning more about nitrate pollution, monitoring their water, and advocating for solutions. These are vital first steps toward securing a future free from harmful nitrate pollution.

Request a free Nitrate Watch test kit in the lead up to the event so that you’re ready to go! Sponsorship opportunities are also available. 💙🌱

Learn more and get involved at www.iwla.org/nitrateawareness.

06/09/2026

Milwaukee Riverkeeper is hiring for four Americorps positions starting in September!

06/08/2026

Job opportunity leading Golden Sands Resource Conservation & Development Council, Inc.!

We are seeking an Executive Director to provide strategic leadership and oversee the organization's programs, partnerships, fundraising, and daily operations.

This position serves as the primary representative of the organization, building relationships with community partners, funders, government agencies, and the public to advance natural resource conservation and organizational goals.

https://www.goldensandsrcd.org/employment

For full consideration, submit your cover letter, resume, and 3 professional references by 11:59 PM on June 23rd as PDF files to [email protected].

06/08/2026

As we approach America's 250th birthday, we're reflecting on conservation history and the roles of science in democracy. What a treat to see this short profile of Aldo Leopold in Smithsonian Magazine! Leopold's conservation legacy and land ethic is a deep wellspring for our work (and our namesake) at Wisconsin's Green Fire.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/early-1900s-member-forestry-service-shot-wolf-watched-life-leave-its-eyes-that-changed-position-convservation-forever-180988809/

"Standing over the fading wolf, Leopold watched a “fierce green fire” die in her eyes. “There was something new to me in those eyes,” he wrote—an epiphany that would forever change his perspective on nature, and our own.

America has been graced with plenty of environmental prophets, yet Leopold’s work has arguably had the greatest influence on conservation."

What keeps the green fire burning in you?

Aldo Leopold’s writing reconsidered the place of humans in the natural world and challenged people to be less conquerors of the land and more citizens of it

06/08/2026

Interested in what will happen to the funding from the Tyco / JCI and State of Wisconsin agreement? Attend the DNR Listening Session June 19th 11:30-12:30. Registration is required and you can also submit questions or feedback without attending.
Check out the link for more info and to register.
https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/PFAS/PFASLaws.html

PFAS Law Implementation Acts 200 and 201 together create and fund new grant programs to help Wisconsin's communities address PFAS contamination, especially in drinking water. Some of the newly created opportunities include sampling drinking water at schools and daycares that use their own well and s...

06/05/2026

Big thanks to everyone who attended our Public Town Hall on the Roadless Rule last night in Rhinelander! About 100 Wisconsinites turned out and used their voices for conservation to share their views on the future of our national forests.

Appreciate the reporters at News 9 WAOW for interviewing our featured speaker (and WGF Ambassador) Mike Dombeck, former chief of the US Forest Service, leading up to the event.

https://www.waow.com/news/reversing-the-roadless-conservation-rule/article_dda435d7-83be-4ef3-9f6c-b4f2a1ba7839.html

Sierra Club Wisconsin, Environmental Law & Policy Center, Wisconsin Wildlife Federation, League of Women Voters Northwoods

RHINELANDER, Wis. (WAOW) - The US Department of Agriculture announced last June that they are pursuing a reversal of their 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule. The discussions of reversing the