Legalectric

Mikey Bull’s been busy… he was promoting this last night, though earlier he’d said it would be a while before something came out in writing.  Well, wait no longer…

Here it is, warm off the press:

Cover Letter to Senate and House Energy Chairs

Preliminary Climate Change Action Plan

Here’s what jumps out at me that sucks (yes, Mikey, to critique is to live, it is my job):

Remove the barriers to and encourage development of Combined Heat and Power (CHP) projects.

Repeal the state’s moratorium on new nuclear energy facilities.

Reduce regulatory barriers by eliminating the Certificate of Need requirement for generation and transmission facilities needed to meet the renewable energy standard.

Create renewable energy “zones” and “corridors” to streamline the regulatory, environmental and siting review process for new renewable energy generation facilities and transmission lines.

Support the creation of incentives aimed at bioenergy facilities that use biomass as an energy feedstock to lower their carbon footprint.

Define wastwater sludge and byproducts as biomass and define wastewater sludge and the organic portion of solid waste and organic byproducts of each as renewable fuels.

Cap and Trade Implementation – SHOULD BE CAP AND TAX!

Advance Coal and Carbon Capture and Storage — the Midwest Regional Commitment on coal use for electricity generation is that by 2020, all new coal gasification and coal combustion plants will capture and store CO2 emissions.

And the best thing, I guess the only thing that excites me about this plan, is recycling increase, although I’d previously heard it was 75%, not 50%:

• Expand waste reduction, recycling, composting and management efforts:

• Increase further recycling and source reduction rates in Minnesota. Minnesota has reduced GHG emissions from the solid waste sector by 14% since 1990 by having the second highest recycling rates in the country and landfill gas emissions controls.

• Support increased source reduction and the interim goal of achieving a 50% statewiderecycling rate by January 2011, through efforts including:

– Recycle More Minnesota Campaign
– Office paper and junk mail reduction
– Waste reduction in the grocery sector
– Electronics recycling
– Telephone book reductions
– Increased beverage container recycling

OK, folks, comments???