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• Enbridge ready to expand pipeline; court fight possible
• Wisconsin National Guard trains Iraqis to run prisons

MINONG -- The Enbridge Company of Canada wants to expand an oil pipeline project that crosses two Indian reservations in northern Minnesota, and part of northern Wisconsin.

But a coalition of tribal, environmental and farm groups say they'll fight it in court.

When finished, the new pipeline will transport oil across many waterways in northwestern Wisconsin, something that troubles Tony Podgarok.

He's a retired farmer in Minong whose property is on the pipeline route.

And other opponents worry that a leak could threaten a tribal food staple as well as the ecosystem.

Marty Cobenais is with the Indigenous Environmental Network. He says the Fond du Lac and Leech Lake tribal governments approved the expansion, which should have been put to a popular vote.

He says he and other opponents will file an injunction against the project, and then petition tribal courts to let reservation residents approve its development on tribal land.

But Frank Bibeau of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe's legal department says there were many open meetings for community input before the council made its decision and leaders worked out a deal with Enbridge.

Bibeau adds Enbridge already has another pipeline going through the same route, and he's not aware of any dangerous spills tied to its pipeline development.

Brian Bull, Wisconsin Public Radio

BAGHDAD, IRAQ -- Prison reform was a hot topic in this year's state budget debate in Wisconsin. But it's even more of an issue in Iraq, where Wisconsin National Guard troops are training Iraqis to run detention facilities.

The United States is preparing to hand over the detention facilities it's been running since soon after the war began to the sovereign Iraqi government.

Accomplishing this transition is one of the several missions Wisconsin National Guard soldiers are tasked with.

The guard battalion in charge of this important step in the U.S. military withdrawal from Iraq includes soldiers who have worked or are on leave from working as correctional officers in Wisconsin prisons.

Lt. Col. Lee Ward of the first battalion 128th Infantry from Eau Claire commands the guard troops working with future Iraqi prison guards.

Ward said the top priority for this transition mission is to train Iraqi guards to commit themselves to three principles to guide the way they treat the suspected insurgents under their care: Humane care, responsible custody, and control with dignity and respect.

The academy is located next to the Baghdad international airport.

The 128th will train Iraqi prison guards until they return home in mid-January.

In addition to training guards, the troops are also providing military escort for detainees being moved from prison to Iraqi courts, where they are being tried for crimes against the national security.

Gil Halsted, Wisconsin Public Radio