Environmental Review meetings this week!
November 25th, 2012
Starts in Rochester on Tuesday MORNING at 9:30 a.m. Whose brilliant idea was that, who can show up at 9:30 a.m. on a Tuesday?
How did this slashing of environmental review, started under Gov. Pawlenty, continue under Gov. Mark Dayton? It started right after Dayton got into office, with Executive Order 11-04, gutting and muzzling the MPCA and DNR:
That E.O. pushed the MPCA and DNR to ram through permits through FAST (and delay has NOT been a demonstrable problem, because the delays have been caused by applicants not providing required information) as if that “improves” environmental review.
And then comes Gov. Dayton’s Executive Order 11-32, which started this round:
Executive Order 11-32
He’s pushing for “streamlining” and those words are just so wrongheaded. And they way he’s doing it, all this activity at the EQB making recommendations on “improving environmental review” and “governance and coordination” BEFORE they have the public meetings and this “Environmental Congress.” So tell me, how is it that the fix isn’t in, and we’re now going through the motions after it’s already a done deal? Do tell, how are these “oh-so-proud we’re DFL” Democrats any better than the “strip-the-funding-until-regulation-collapses” Republicans? It’s bad news any way you look at it.
But yes, let’s look at it.
Here’s what the EQB released last week. Deputy Commissioner Bill Grant (Settlement Agreement – ME3(Fresh Energy), Izaak Walton League, Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, North American Water Office) now in charge of Energy Facilities Permitting, and Matt Langan (who now works for Xcel, so two different sources have said, way to go Matt… sigh… after blowing environmental review on CapX Hampton-La Crosse, omitting transmission where there’s a HUGE corridor, and saying there’s transmission where there is none, GOOD JOB!) were to do the “Report Card.” They have no business doing any such thing, are uniquely disqualified. But Matt left, leaving Bill Grant… that environmental review is in any way in his hands is disturbing.
- Evaluation and Recommendations for Improving Environmental Review
- Recommendations for Environmental Governance and Coordination
- Minnesota Environment and Energy Report Card
Reading the Evaluation and Recommendations for Improving Environmental Review, maybe the Comments got through to some extent. The ultimate recommendations are better than the draft, for sure.
OH MY! The Recommendations for Environmental Governance and Coordination are even better, recommending no changes to recognizing that there isn’t sufficient staff to do the work. The MPCA part could still be a problem, as it recommends MPCA address how to change, so keep on it!
Some of the meetings are this week, starting Tuesday at TOO EARLY O’CLOCK! It looks to me that Ellen Anderson is doing for Dayton what Mike Bull did for Pawlenty (well, among other things), these dog and pony shows across the state. I’ve been passing out handouts about this hoping to get folks to turn out and give them a piece of their mind about what “improvement” of environmental review should mean. Handout – RW Forum
November 27 – Rochester, Wood Lake Meeting Center 9:30am – 12:00pm
Delaware Audubon to give Alan Muller its Conservation Award
November 21st, 2012
Delaware Audubon Society will give Alan Muller its Conservation Award at its Annual Dinner, coming up on December 7, 2012. Alan doesn’t like to toot his own horn, but that’s part of what I’ve got a blog for! Please join us at the Annual Meeting and Dinner!
205 N. Market Street, Wilmington, DE
If the link doesn’t work, go to the Annual Dinner site!
What’s the Conservation Award? Well, in this case, maybe it’s a thank you, maybe it’s a send-off, maybe they’re just glad to see Alan spending so much time in Minnesota, but whatever it is, it’s recognition of all that he’s done in Delaware.
Special thanks to Matt Del Pizzo and Linda Whaley who are working so hard to pull this together. Alan and Matt got a lot done back when Matt was head of Audubon not so long ago, and appreciated their ability to work together to make a difference in Delaware.
As a recipient of the Conservation Award, Alan’s in interesting company — we’re especially partial to 1988’s Jake Kreshtool, he’s pretty much adopted us and is the best mentor of activism we could hope to find in Delaware, an attorney who was on the Steering Committee of Green Delaware, and way way back, he fought the big transmission line crossing the Delaware River at New Castle. Here’s their list of past recipients:
|
Past Honorees:
|
|
| 2011 | Howard P. Brokaw |
| 2010 | Andy Ednie |
| 2009 | Chad Tolman |
| 2008 | Citizens for Clean Power |
| 2007 | Debbie Heaton |
| 2006 | Andy Urquhart |
| 2005 | Richard and Lorraine Fleming |
| 2004 | Warren Lauder |
| 2003 | Albert S. Matlack |
| 2002 | Ann Rydgren |
| 2001 | Thomas Sharp |
| 2000 | Lynn Williams |
| 1999 | Edward W. Cooch, Jr. |
| 1998 | Dorothy Miller |
| 1997 | Grace Pierce-Beck |
| 1996 | Russell Peterson |
| 1995 | Winston Wayne |
| 1994 | Joseph R. Biden, Jr. |
| 1993 | Ruth Ann Minner |
| 1992 | Leah Roedel |
| 1991 | Barbara Lundberg |
| 1990 | Don Sharpe |
| 1989 | Til Purnell |
| 1988 | Jacob Kreshtool |
| 1987 | Rick West |
| 1986 | Gwynne Smith |
| 1985 | Lynne Frink |
| 1984 | Peggy Jahn |
Here are two profiles of Muller:
The Eco-Activists – Alan Muller Profile
A Profile of Alan Muller of Port Penn: An Environmental Activist and Director of Green Delaware
A look at the work of Muller and Green Delaware shows how much he’s gotten done in a difficult environment, particularly Alan’s favorite accomplishment, Delaware’s legislative ban of incineration.
www.greendel.org
Alan speaking at Macalaster for Neighbors Against the Burner:
Alan officing at Itasca State Park:
Alan at the raw sewage outlet (where’s that photo of him in his jailbird suit behind these bars?):
Goodhue Wind Project – Force de Manure
November 19th, 2012
The Public Utilities Commission has been trying to get information out of “New Era Wind Farm, LLC” about the Goodhue Wind Project. Search Legalectric for “Goodhue” and you’ll find a LOT about it.
Here are the latest PUC Information Requests:
And today, Peter Mastic … hmmmmmm… in the summer, would we call him “Tan Mastic” and is that the key to how he it all holds together?
Anyway, Peter Mastic filed responses last week, probably from his new Goodhue, Minnesota office…
… and the PUC eFiled them today:
New Era Response to PUC Information Requests – Nov 19 2012
Some of the responses are VERRRRRRRRRRY INTERESTING…
Here’s the final response and the most interesting one, raising Force d’ Manure (click for larger view, or download the info request responses and scroll down to the end):
December, 2011, that’s when Trishe Wind bought National Wind, and Trishe didn’t take on the Goodhue Wind project, wanted nothing to do with it. So when exactly did that happen? Likely in December, 2011, when Trishe Wind bought National Wind, and if so, well, that was nearly a year ago. We’d just found out about Trishe in what, September? And we find out about this Force de Manure notice now and the notice was given to Xcel Energy last December? Ummmmm… I’d think this is something the Commission should have received notice on… and the public too, of course.
I’m going to print these out and read them as I make some bread — the oven’s fixed now and I’m not about to start buying bread anytime soon!
And for those looking to remove Mastic, here’s just the folks to do it:
They note that “When flooring is removed often there is one or many layers of “sticky stuff” aka…mastic, that needs to be removed. Complete floor mastic removal is always best.” Mastic removal? OK, let’s get to it!
Notice Plan – “Not-so-Great” Northern Transmission Line
November 19th, 2012
Today Comments were due on Minnesota Power’s Great Northern Transmission Line. I’m sorry, but I just can’t bring myself to call a transmission line “Great” and that’s just how it is… Anyway, Minnesota Power is getting ready to file a Certificate of Need application, this is the lead up, what they have to do to provide notice to people when they actually file. So here’s their draft plan:
Minnesota Power’s Notice Plan for Great Northern Transmission Line
Comments on that plan were due today. Here’s what I filed:
Here’s what Commerce filed earlier today:
Haven’t gotten word on any others.
To keep an eye on what’s going on in this docket, go HERE and search for docket 12-1163.
A little sidebar here — while looking for a logo, some things popped out — did you know that Minnesota Power sponsors, with the Lignite Energy Council, a “Teachers Seminar” on coal? It’s the only teacher workshop listed, though there are multiple listings under “School Programs” and “Educational Materials.”
OH MY! Check their “Electricity 101” pdf:
p. 7:
1929—Stock market crash revealed that many holding companies were over-leveraged
–As a result, federal and state governments strengthened utility regulation.
There are some interesting charts and graphs in Electricity 101 that are interesting and that I’d like to see updated. Hear that, MP!?!?!
Red Wing 2020 on frac sand
November 16th, 2012
Last night, “Red Wing 20/20” had a “Community Forum” about frac sand mining. Red Wing 20/20 is an entity formed by the Red Wing Port Authority, and from its Red Wing page:
“Promote economic growth.” That’s a phrase I don’t like because it usually means “promote economic growth” no matter what the impacts are.
The program was introduced by Pam Gorman, she’s the chair of Red Wing 20/20, and that gets my red flags up given she’s Xcel Energy,. Mayor Dennis Eagan played a part as well, members of Red Wing 20/20 are appointed by the Mayor, and he’s a lobbyist for some pretty nefarious entitites (google “Altria”). Oh my!
Presenters:
Frac Sand Operations in Minnesota—History and Outlook—Heather Arends, DNR Applicable State Regulations—Environmental Permits—Wendi Turri, MPCA Transport Issues—Dave Christianson, MnDOT Frac Sand Operations: Public Health Concerns—Silica Toxicity—Hillary Carpenter, MDH Other Tools for Addressing New Operations—Environmental Review—Bob Patton, EQB
I had a flyer to pass, because I want those concerned with frac sand issues to weigh in on the gutting of the EQB, started by Pawlenty and gang, and which Gov. Dayton joined with his E.O. 11-32. There was an EQB meeting recently about this, with a frac sand agenda item afterwards, and the frac sand people who were there just sat there, didn’t say a peep, as the EQB heard public comments on their plans! Come on, folks, this affects you and your project! Show up before it’s too late!
Here’s my flyer, urging people to attend the public meetings and Environmental Congress, to contact Gov. Dayton (click here!), and to contact legislators.
We missed the introduction, Heather Arends, DNR, and Wendi Turri from MPCA.
It was weird, mostly because the guy from the DOT, Dave Christianson, who was speaking when we got there, he was to talk about “Transport Issues” instead was in promotional mode, and even said that sand isn’t a health problem. WHAT??? That went far beyond his area. But he also said that he’s a friend of a guy who has a frac sand mine on his land in Wisconsin… hmmmmm…
Hillary Carpenter, from the Dept. of Health, was excellent, clearly knew what he was talking about, openly noting that this was something there wasn’t a lot of information about, but that it IS a health hazard.
Bob Patton, EQB. explained Environmental Review, pretty realistically, the purpose, scope and limits and also about Generic EIS and how that works (Other Tools for Addressing New Operations??? EH? Should have been in the “Applicable State Regulations” part. It’s not separate, and it’s applicable regulation.) Patton brought up the Environmental Congress as something people should participate in. YEAAAA! The EQB once was a working entity, but now it’s been gutted so severely, with duties shuffled elsewhere, worst case was power plant siting going over to Commerce, what does Commerce have to do with environmental review for transmission? So that helped lend some oomph to my flyers, which the organizers didn’t want me to pass out during the program, said I had to wait until they called a break because they were running behind, I declined, “I’m not going to be delaying anything!” and passed them out during speaker changes. I know, it’s such revolutionary stuff, info about the Environmental Congress and the meeting schedule.
With the Governor’s push to redefine the intent of environmental review, and with the budget cuts that have neutered agencies, I’m not feeling hopeful that frac sand will get the vetting it needs.
Now’s the time to weigh in on the importance of ROBUST and THOROUGH environmental review! Public Meetings soon:
More on the Environmental Congress page.
