Replicas of Christopher Columbus’ ships, the Nina and Pinta, will be in Winona through Friday, August 2. The Nina was built by hand and without the use of power tools and considered to be the most historically correct Columbus replica ever built. The Pinta was recently built in Brazil and is a larger version of the archetypal caravel.  For more information visit www.thenina.com

A researcher from the University of Maryland believes that development and global warming could have a tremendous impact on stream and river ecosystems. The new study shows that U.S. rivers have warmed up, with big cities being a major cause, since they shed warm water into rivers.
Records from 40 U.S. rivers found annual mean water temperatures rising by up to 14 hundredths of a degree Fahrenheit every year. That’s one degree every seven years. Data goes back to the mid-1900s, though some is from as early as 1908. The study focused on rivers in the East and West, and includes Mississippi tributaries, but no the Mississippi itself.
Sujay Kaushal, the lead author of the study, said long-term temperature increases affect “biodiversity, biological productivity and cycling of contaminants through the ecosystem.” The largest increases are seen in the most highly urbanized areas.
To counter the heat which lingers in buildings, roads, concrete and asphalt, the authors suggest that cities should conserve riverside forests, limit use of impervious surfaces (like asphalt parking lots) and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions in order to help cool rivers.
– Big River magazine

Riders in the Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa, better known as RAGBRAI, rode 472  miles across Iowa, ending at the Mississippi River in Dubuque on July 31. One of the shortest and flattest rides in the tour’s 38-year history, riders started at Sioux City on July 25 and passed through Storm Lake, Algona, Clear Lake and Waterloo. The ride draws about 10,000 riders every year.
– Big River maagazine

A new vessel made from recycled plastic water and sofa bottles will begin a voyage to Australia near the Gold Gate Bridge in San Francisco. The 10,000-nautical-mile journey will spread its environmental message.
The 60-foot catamaran was developed and fabricated by engineers, designers, marine architects, institutions and sustainability experts. The vessel, Plastiki, will spend 100 days traveling to Australia and sharing the effects of global warming and waste on ecosystems and the earth’s inhabitants. They hope to heighten global awareness of the issues the oceans face from pollution and human debris.
Adventure Ecology was founded by David de Rothschild, the driving force behind expeditions to some of the world’s most dangerous and environmentally challenged regions.
For more information on Adventure Ecology or to follow the ongoing voyage of the Plastiki and her crew, visit www.theplastiki.com.    

Monday through Friday – Every half hour starting at 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., 4 p.m., 5:30 p.m. Then every half hour from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Midnight to 8 a.m. opening requires two-hour notice.
Weekends and holidays – When marine traffic is present, the bridge will open at 8 a.m., 8:30 a.m., 9 a.m.; hourly on the hour until 8 p.m.; then every half hour between 8 p.m. and midnight.
The bridge lift schedule will be in effect until about October 15.
For statewide traffic, construction and travel information visit www.511mn.org.