Legalectric

How did I forget to put this up???

Here’s the Order: order-on-motion-for-sd-mcgp.pdf

mncoalgasplant.com filed a Summary Judgment (Summary Disposition) Motion that was heard earlier this month. We lost — Motion Denied — essentially the ALJ said that neither he nor the Commission has jurisdiction to address whether the IRR’s certification of the site was false or fraudulent and whether the West Site is an Innovative Energy Project under the statute. That the IRR Commissioner must “designate” the site and it doresn’t really matter whether it’s a false or fraudulent designation, “the authority to review the IRR Commissioner’s designation of the West Range Site must reside, if at all, in some court of competent jurisdiction in the Judicial Branch.
Once more with feeling… Here’s the IRR Commissioner Certification: irrrb-nov-7-2005.pdf

Here’s the site — this is the greatest infrastructure photo I’ve ever seen:

And this, viewing from a long ways away, only accessible by 4 wheeler and foot:

And here’s the SEH map of just the road infrastructure that is needed:

OK, fine, whatever… we can do this…

Professor Burton Abrams has this to say about the Mesaba coal gasification project:

Itasca County should focus on recreation
Grand Rapids Herald-Review

Editor:
As a part-time resident of Itasca County, I recently received a brochure from the Citizens Against the Mesaba Project (CAMP). If the allegations made by CAMP are true, it is apparent that Excelsior Energyâ??s project is contrary to the long-run interests of the county. For nearly 60 years, I have enjoyed the pristine lakes of northern Itasca County, but I have been dismayed at the countyâ??s ability to never miss an opportunity to permit environmental damage. In 2001, Itasca County ranked third in Minnesota in sulfur dioxide emissions, an important source for acid rain.

My grandfather told of beautiful Trout Lake alongside Coleraine and a short walk from Bovey that teemed with gigantic lake trout. The nearby iron mine was permitted to dump its tailings into the lake, silting over the lakeâ??s gravel spawning beds. The trout and most of the mining jobs are gone, but the environmental damage remains and may grow. One of the abandoned pit mines, now a lake complete with hazardous embankments, threatens to overflow and flood parts of Bovey.

The demographic trends in the United States and the characteristics of Itasca County indicate that Itasca Countyâ??s comparative advantage is not power generation. Itasca County is first and foremost a recreational paradise whose value will only grow with the graying of America. To subsidize Excelsior Energy with the privilege of eminent domain to increase acid rain and to contaminate ground water strikes me as a dangerous job-creation strategy. If jobs are needed, letâ??s subsidize fish hatcheries to return our lakes to world-class fish production. The jobs created by the increase in tourism and retirement-related services would better serve the county. In the final analysis, bragging rights in Itasca County will focus on tons of fish harvested, not on tons of pollutants released into its air and water.

Professor Burton A. Abrams
Acting Chairman
Department of Economics
University of Delaware
Newark, DE

More on Excelsior’s Mesaba Project:

Think of consequences with Mesaba Energy project
Herald-Review
Last Updated: Thursday, October 12th, 2006 03:28:09 PM

Editor:

To the people of Itasca and St. Louis counties and the state of Minnesota. Wake up!

Do you realize what the consequences the Excelsior Energy coal gasification plant to be located near the town of Taconite is going to be to our state?

After recently attending a CAMP (Concerned Citizens against the Mesaba Project) meeting at Cloverdale north of Nashwauk, I came away knowing our area is in danger of pollution to not only ourselves but to the animals, fish and habitat. Did you know that 720 lakes and an area of 340 kilometers would be affected by this pollution? Are we willing to sacrifice this for the sake of electrical power that will not be provided to us in the immediate area, but to people in the Cities, Rochester, LaCrosse, Wis., and points further?

Do the people of Minnesota care about our plight? The majority does not know of it as they think it does not concern them. Well, if they hunt, fish, or have property in this northern area of the state, they better be concerned. Remember the winds blow west to east and north to south.

Sure politicians will argue that this will bring jobs to the area. What more can help them in an election year but the promise of more jobs. Their reelection is critical to them. Many have already promised money for this project. In the end there will be approximately 110 permanent jobs that will require a college education and job experience. Yes, during the construction phase of the plant there will be a lot of jobs, but that will be only for a few years. There is a possibility that more plants will be built across the Iron Range. Is our sacrifice of clean air, water and land worth it?

Itasca County does not have a huge population. That is one of the reasons for the plant being built in the Taconite area.

For additional information please go to mncoalgasplant.com. Or follow developments on Web site camp-site info. If you would like to receive updates or find out how you can help CAMP, please e-mail camp@northic.com.

Again, are we willing to make this sacrifice for our children and ourselves?

Joanne Gangl
Nashwauk

And here’s a letter from Crowe again, stumping for Excelsior:

Mesaba Energy is working toward the good of the area’s future

Herald-Review
Last Updated: Thursday, October 12th, 2006 03:29:03 PM

Editor:

Complements to Dave Johnson on his well thought out letter on the Mesaba Energy project and invitation to the proponents of other forms of electric production to alter their lifestyles to fit their favorite type.

It is interesting that we hear the same arguments from the detractors of the project, most proven untrue long ago but still regurgitated over and over again. The remainder are generally irrelevant to the case, just thrown in to pollute the argument.

In my opinion, Gary Burt, of Taconite, to use his own analysis, makes some vacuous assumptions in his crude attempt to counter Mr. Johnson. The first assumption is that since no one has asked Wind Logic to test the Iron Range for its wind generation potential, then wind generation must be a viable alternative to the Mesaba Energy project. The second assumption is that this first assumption is correct. He then blithely goes on to advocate for the construction of windmills instead of the coal gasification plant, why let the facts influence anything?

The real fact about wind energy is that even though it is clean, it is unreliable in the best of circumstances. Given the choice, people choose reliable energy.

Another argument I’ve seen that I believe is similarly vacuous is this: “If we don’t use it here, we don’t need to generate it here.” Let’s apply this standard to all the other activities going on around the area. We send all the taconite we mine and refine to other places, we don’t use that here so let’s end all taconite production. Thousands of jobs lost. We don’t use all the paper we produce here so let’s end paper production. Hundreds of jobs lost. We don’t use all the ASV’s we produce here, we send them nationwide, let’s shut that down, hundreds of jobs lost. We don’t use all the OSB here so end all OSB production. Oops, I guess that is shut down, temporarily, I hope, a hundred and fifty families with greatly reduced income, maybe those jobs are already lost.

I know the people who are trying to build a clean coal gasification plant are looking at the big picture, a good future for the people who want to live in this area and have their children live here. The future looks pretty bleak if you follow the arguments of the detractors to their ultimate end.

Robert Crowe
Hill City

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The Power Purchase Agreement docket for Excelsior’s Mesaba Project is ramping up to a delightfully warm level. Yesterday, our Rebuttal Testimony was due, and I got it done with a couple hours to spare, finally managed to get in on the discount rate at the local copy shop, left for the airport Post Office before dark, and got a couple hours of sleep the night before even — hey, life is good!

mncoalgasplant.com has been blessed with two great witnesses, Ed Anderson, M.D., and Ronald R. Rich, and here’s what they have to say:

Ed Anderson, M.D.

mcgpandersonrebuttal.pdf

anderson-exhibit-2-price-of-pollution.pdf

anderson-exhibit-3-environmentalcostsofdiseasesdisabilities-davies.pdf

anderson-exhibit-4-environmental-pollutants-and-disease-in-american-children.PDF

anderson-exhibit-5-hg-impaired-waters-tmdl-um-biotox-06.pdf

Ronald R. Rich

mcgprichrebuttal.pdf

Exhibits are too big — will link to them

Ex. 5 – Environmental Footprints and Costs of Coal-Based Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle and Pulverized Coal Technologies

Ex. 6 – The Economics of CO2 Storage

Ex. 7 – Carbon Dioxide Capture and Geologic Storage

Ex. 8 – richrebuttal-exhibit8arguscoaldaily.pdf

Ed and Ron are a treat to work with, and it means so much more when they not only are the perfect witnesses in their areas, but they literally have a stake in the geographical area in question. This community means a lot to them and they are playing an important part of making sure the record is built about the impacts of this proposed project. Ed is one of the Co-Presidents of CAMP, Citizens Against the Mesaba Project, and Ron, of Atmosphere Recovery, Inc. fame, is an active member of the Swan Lake Association. Both have contributed comments and testimony for the DOE Scoping process and the “agency formerly known as the EQB” (maybe a glyph contest is in order here, this mutant agency needs it!), and Ed was on the Citizens Advisory Task Force, as perverted a public process as I’ve ever seen. Those who were part of real task forces in the past wouldn’t recognize it as a Task Force! Anyway, they’re both actively part of this PPA docket, and will be testifying in November’s hearing. We’re so fortunate to have them drop out of the sky, the right people at the right time.

As for the rest of the testimony, I’ll get that posted next. It is real kick-ass stuff, Xcel and Minnesota Power and even Commerce — NO Ed Garvey testimony this time! Given where it’s at now, I cannot imagine a scenario where this would be approved. Yeah, yesterday a good time was had by all, except Excelsior, I imagine. Great Testimony. So sit there on the edge of your chairs… naaaaaah, get comfortable, because it may be a while. And if you’re looking for the latest testimony in the enviro’s case, well, don’t hold your breath, MCEA, Fresh Energy, and the Waltons didn’t file any. And they didn’t file any Dispositive Motion, didn’t file any response to either of our Summary Judgment Miotions that were made, and didn’t bother to show up at the hearing to argue them. So next time you see them, ask them what they’re doing to STOP Mesaba…

I guess the best we can hope for is that they keep out of the way. I mean really, we’re the ones who entered “The Price of Pollution” into the record — this is a cost docket after all, an appropriate place for it! Is something wrong with this picture?

Today rebuttal testimony is due on Mesaba, so it’s been a long day… that’ll be posted here later, maybe tomorrow. In the meantime, here’s the latest Letter to the Editor in the Grand Rapids Herald Review:

Health consequences should be considered with Mesaba Energy

Editor:

Mesaba Energy. I’m reminded of people who smoke. When they start, they donâ??t think about possible consequences 10, 15, 20 years down the road. Their focus is the instant gratification of the nicotine hit. Their focus is on thinking they are acting like an adult, an idea sold by tobacco companies They don’t consider the long term consequences.

As with most things, a person’s decisions will be based on the information they choose to focus on. If their priority is instant gratification, only the information that validates instant gratification will seem correct. Among the many ironies is that people start smoking because they were conditioned to think it was the adult thing to do. They stop smoking, with a large amount of pain and effort, because it is the adult thing to do.

The irony of Dave Johnsonâ??s comment on NIMBY is that the people in power of the Mesaba project are also guilty of NIMBY. They never considered building the power plant in their back yard. Dave also mentions the sequestering of carbon dioxide, but fails to mention the carbon dioxide continually created to build the plant, mine the coal, and transport the coal and other elements needed to keep the plant running.

He also mentions all the time, energy, and money needed to clean the exhaust at Clay Boswell. He fails to mention that there are no pollutants or byproducts created with a wind generator once its operable. Now that’s truly sensational.

Wind Logic is a company, with an office in Grand Rapids, that tests places worldwide for the potential of wind-generated power. When I last spoke with the company, I was told that none of the towns on the Iron Range has ever been tested for their potential to generate electricity using wind. Wouldn’t it be wiser to consider all possible alternatives before committing to an industry that makes and keeps us dependent on so many people and natural resources, and creates so much pollution and waste in the process.
If consumers had a choice between clean, non-polluting wind energy, and Mesaba, how many would choose wind power? I believe Mr. Johnson’s logic regarding the use of wind-generated power is specious because we donâ??t have that choice. I also suspect the executives of Mesaba Energy want to keep it that way. They want us dependent on them for jobs and money, as it will ensure their fortunes.

Has anyone in power ever considered how much wind power would cost and how much money and jobs it would generate long term if we had available the money that Mesaba wants to get and has gotten. Has anyone in power ever considered how much less dependent we would all be using wind power? Are the people in power so focused on instant gratification, that they can’t consider the possible long term consequences of their decisions? If that is the case, arenâ??t we leaving our children with a legacy of dependency and pollution?

Gary Burt
Taconite