Midland Conservation District election ruled invalid by agency

via Midland Daily News

The December 2011 election of three new directors for the Midland Conservation District has been ruled invalid by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development. In a letter dated Feb. 16, 2012, MDARD Regional Coordinator Chris Savona informed the MCD that they had “failed to comply with election law.” As a result, the people elected to the MCD in December will not be allowed to hold office. The letter was addressed to Karol Hermans, chairperson of the MCD. According to the letter, the district failed to meet the election requirements by not supplying candidates’ election petitions to the MDARD within the specified 60 day time frame.

Read the full story here!

Midland County second in Michigan for bath salts calls to poison control in 2011

After asking stores to pull products from their shelves and arresting a local distributor last fall, the Midland Police Department has seen a decline in bath salt use since the new designer drug began to pop up in 2011, but current laws limit what they can do to stop its use. In 2011, about 14 percent of the 162 complaints about bath salts to the Michigan Poison Control Center came from Midland County. There were 162 total calls in Michigan, with Marquette at the top of the list with 27, followed by Midland (23), Wayne (13) and Dickinson (10). 6,137 bath salt products were reported to poison control centers in the United States in 2011. In Midland, Police Community Relations Officer Chris Wenzel said the department had its first call involving bath salts during a suicide attempt in April of 2011. Other calls involving bath salts continued through the summer, some including violent and unusual behavior.

Read the full story here!

Dow Chemical Co. chief health officer recognized by Institute for Health and Productivity Management

Dr. Catherine Baase, chief health officer of The Dow Chemical Co., this week received the 10th Annual President's Award from the 12th Annual International Health & Productivity Management Conference. “Dr. Baase is a visible and vocal leader of the international corporate community in promoting the value of investing in employee health as a human capital asset that produces a measurable return in lower medical costs and improved productivity,” said Sean Sullivan, president and chief executive officer of International Health & Productivity Management. The award formerly was given to an organization that was helping to develop the new field of health and productivity management. Recently, it has been given to an individual who has demonstrated outstanding leadership and innovation in advancing this field.

Read the full story here!

Dow Chemical to cut jobs

Dow Chemical will cut 900 jobs and shutter plants on three continents because of weakness in Europe, which may soon tip back into recession if it has not done so already. Dow spokeswoman Rebecca Bentley said the layoffs are primarily focused on Western Europe and Brazil. She could not say whether there would be any layoffs in Michigan. The company expects that a little less than 375 of its 25,000 employees in North America will be affected. Dow was ravaged during the global and economic crisis that struck four years ago, cutting more than 10,000 positions then. CEO Andrew Liveris has aggressively sought to keep the company, the nation's largest chemical maker, agile despite its size. "These actions, while difficult, are in full alignment with our commitment to continually manage our portfolio to adapt to changing and volatile economic conditions, as we are seeing particularly in Western Europe," Liveris said.

Read the full story here!

Michigan Mega Millions: $250,000 prize winner credits his 'itchy' hand

The Michigan Lottery has announced a couple winners in recent Mega Millions drawings. They are winners who came close -- matching 5 of the numbers, but missing the Mega Ball -- walking away with $250,000.
A $250,000 winner of the March 20 drawing says it was an "itchy" hand that led him to buy a ticket at the Next Door Food store in Midland. "There is an old wives tale that says an itching hand means you’ll come into money," according to a release from the Michigan Lottery. Well, for a couple of days, Paul Walker’s hand would not stop itching, the release added.

Read the full story here!

Dow Chemical To Close Plants, Cut 900 Jobs On Europe Weakness

Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) said Monday that it will close certain manufacturing plants in Europe, North America as well as Latin America and cut about 900 jobs worldwide, citing continued weakness in the European economy. The maker of chemical products will also cancel certain capital projects. Accordingly, Dow will take charges totaling about $350 million in the first quarter for asset impairments and write-offs, severance and other costs related to these measures.

Read the full story here!

UM President Mary Sue Coleman serves as keynote for Midland Chamber

The Midland Area Chamber of Commerce will host Dr. Mary Sue Coleman, President of the University of Michigan as keynote speaker at its second quarter membership luncheon Monday. Dr. Coleman will be discussing partnerships between business and education. The luncheon begins at 11:30 a.m. and ends at 1 p.m. at the H Hotel in downtown Midland. The program will also feature Customer Service Award Winners, the Chamber Member of the Quarter and other Chamber updates. The Midland Area Chamber of Commerce, which serves approximately 950 members, is a past two-time recipient of the "Outstanding Chamber of the Year Award" by the Michigan Association of Chamber Professionals.

Read the full story here!