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The state of Wisconsin has settled a complaint over manure spills in two trout streams.    Sue Danielson reports…

A work zone crash happened every three-and-a-half hours on average in Wisconsin last year. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation says construction season is starting up and drivers will notice more crews performing highway and bridge work. The department is reminding drivers to slow down in work zones and watch for workers.

The first-ever equity, diversity and inclusion coordinator will start soon in Eau Claire. The City announced Dr. Jeneise Briggs was selected after a national search for the new position in Eau Claire. Dr. Briggs will work for both the city and the county starting Monday, May 17th.

Third graders are being called upon to create a new electrical safety poster for the Eau Clarie Energy Cooperative and a chance to win a Google Chromebook. The co-op says third graders can submit an original poster by May 17th for the chance to win a 25-dollar gift card. The top three posters across the state will be entered into the grand prize drawing. First place wins the Chromebook. The rules are posted on the Eau Claire Energy Cooperative Facebook

 Wisconsin added just enough people to not lose a seat in Congress in the latest Census. Here’s more with Trent Rice: The state now has just over five-point-six-million people and is the 20th largest state in the country. Wisconsin will keep its eight seats in Congress. That’s better than some of Wisconsin’s neighbors. Both Illinois and Michigan lost people in the Census, and both will lose a seat in Congress.

Eau Claire is writing-off 600-thousand-dollars in uncollectable debt this year, with the vast majority of it being unpaid ambulance bills. City Finance Director Jay Winzenz says the state and federal government reimburse only so much for ambulance rides. Eau Claire is left holding the bag on 550-thousand-dollars in unpaid ambulance bills from last year. Winzenz says the rest of the debt is parking tickets and property tax bills that have gone unpaid, and that a collections agency cannot collect on.

It’s likely going to cost more to take a shower or wash the dishes in Eau Claire. The state’s Public Service Commission is supporting a proposal to raise water bills in the city by over eight dollars. The money is earmarked for Eau Claire’s water treatment plant on Riverview Drive. Eau Claire hasn’t raised water prices since 2014. Water bills in the city are sent out every three months.

The people most at risk from the coronavirus are the most vaccinated in Wisconsin. The state’s Department of Health Services yesterday said 80-percent of people 65 and older have gotten one dose of the vaccine. Nearly 60-percent of people between 55 and 64 have gotten a shot as well. The vaccine numbers shrink as you go down the age chart. DHS says two-point-four-million people in the state have gotten one dose of the vaccine, and another one-point-eight-million have gotten both doses.

UW-Eau Claire’s new supercomputer is being touted as the next step toward a much stronger research wing at the school. The university unveiled the computer yesterday. Hewlett Packard Enterprise helped pay for the new 733-thousand-dollar computer. UW-Eau Claire’s Rahul Gomes says the new computer is 10 times more powerful than the old supercomputer and will make Eau Claire a regional hub for research.

Recently the Eau Claire County Sheriff’s Office, Marshfield Clinic, Department of Justice and the Alliance for Substance Abuse Prevention participated in the National Drug Take Back initiative, with the ultimate goal of reducing the amount of un-needed, expired and un-used prescription drugs being accessible in our community. As a result of the recent drug take back event and the permanent drop locations, the Eau Claire County Sheriff’s Office turned over approximately 890 lbs. of unwanted, unused or expired medication to