Description
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Iron and Water provides important information about Minnesota’s early environmental movement from someone who not only talked the talk but walked the walk. Grant J. Merritt’s involvement as a citizen activist, an environmental attorney, and the head of a state environmental agency offers significant insights into the efforts to protect the natural resources that have shaped Minnesota today."—Kevin Proescholdt, author of Glimpses of Wilderness
"In this beautifully told and often dramatic story, Grant J. Merritt’s singular voice narrates both a memorable family history and key battles to protect Lake Superior and other resources. Iron and Water is a monumental addition to our environmental literature."—Dave Dempsey, author and senior advisor at FLOW (For Love of Water)
"Iron and Water is really about the passionate commitment and valiant effort of a man and his concerned colleagues to ensure that Minnesota’s environment is protected. In that respect, Grant Merritt’s enthralling story is a model for activists everywhere."—Foreword Reviews
"Iron and Water is a short book, but it is a wealth of history that many younger Minnesotans might not be aware of. For folks who lived through the stories, it’s a reminder of how things have changed, as Merritt would say, some for the better, some not."—Bulletin
"Merritt has a unique perspective."—The Star Tribune
"Iron and Water is the absorbing and genial story of a champion of Minnesota’s natural resources. It’s is engaging, funny in spots, frustrating at times, and ultimately inspiring."—Agate Magazine
Table of ContentsContents
Prologue
The Merritt Family and the Mesabi Iron Range
The Mesabi Iron Range
The Merritts Build into Duluth
“What Rockefeller Did to Us”
My Early Years in Duluth
Entering Politics in the Sixties
Environmentalism and the Reserve Mining Controversy
What Is Being Dumped in Lake Superior?
The Stoddard Report
An Old Fashioned with Robert Traver
The First Earth Day
Minnesota DFL Politics
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
Taconite Tailings
Establishing Environmental Policies
I’m in Trouble with the Law
Reserve Mining and Asbestos
The Minnesota Experimental City
We Defeat Reserve Mining and Save Lake Superior
Citizen Activist
From Public Servant to Private Practice
Battling for the Environment in the Suburbs
Fighting a Virus in Lake Superior
Parks and Trails
Recognizing Progress—and Staying Alert
A Lifetime of Change on Isle Royale
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index
