Legalectric

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Prairie Island nuclear plant, right here in my front yard. This is the best photo I’ve seen of the plant site, it’s stolen from Joseph Gonyeau’s Nuclear Tourist, a must see (and must argue with) site. Check the “about author” section and you’ll see he’s into not only nuclear, but dioxin/furans too!

Anyway, Sen. Steve Murphy is at it again, stumping for nuclear and garbage burning, which is to be expected because afterall, Xcel is his employer, those are the generator units here in Red Wing. But with such limited vision, he loses credibility when he says things like:

I strongly support the use of renewable sources of energy, but I still believe the expansion of nuclear energy has to be a part of the power mix. As a state, we need to encourage the expanded use of renewable energy resources that have been proven clean, like nuclear and biomass.

My home, his home too, is in Red Wing, and Red Wing is home to electric generation from nuclear and “biomass.” The “biomass” he refers to there is the Red Wing garbage burner, hardly “biomass” and hardly “renewable.” There’re really two incinerators in Red Wing, the NSP one right along Hwy. 61, and the city incinerator on Co. Rd. 1. Both spew lots of highly toxic stuff we should not be breathing. Here’s a report hot off the wire today from my favorite muller:

Health Effects of Waste Incinerators

Steve Murphy — you should know better… take the time to read this report.

Column: Flexible standard boosts clean energy

Steve Murphy, Minnesota District 28 Senator, The Republican Eagle

Published Friday, April 06, 2007

Clean, renewable energy has been a high priority for the Minnesota Legislature this year.

The first major bill passed this session was the Renewable Energy Standard. Under this standard, most energy utilities will be required to produce 25 percent of their energy mix from renewable sources by 2025. Xcel Energy, which provides half of the electricity for the state, will be required to produce 30 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2020.

The standard is flexible in cases where a utility company cannot meet the standard without significantly increasing customer rates or compromising the reliability of energy delivery.

The Renewable Energy Standard was the result of long negotiations between members of the Senate, the Governor’s Office, utility companies, Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, and environmental organizations.

Through this collaborative effort, Minnesota now has the strongest energy standard in the country, while ensuring utility companies will have enough time to build the needed transmission lines and facilities to deliver reliable energy at a reasonable cost to customers.

Also this session, eight Senate and House committees on the environment, energy and transportation met to learn about the potential consequences of global warming. We heard from arctic explorer Will Steger, ecologists, and faith leaders. Steger told us the Earth’s atmosphere is warming at a startling rate and we need to curb the rate at which people are producing greenhouse gases. We heard about melting ice caps, melting permafrost, polar bears dying and ice shelves caving in.

The profound effect of the presentation led to other legislative initiatives that would require utilities to reach energy-savings goals and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

I came on board with the global warming issue later than most and was not convinced of its great impact until a personal meeting with Steger. He is known worldwide for his exploration endeavors and his promotion of environmental protection, so I was honored when he requested a meeting with me to talk about global warming.

The depth and breadth of his knowledge made a lasting impression on me. I challenge people to listen to him speak and not be affected.

I strongly support the use of renewable sources of energy, but I still believe the expansion of nuclear energy has to be a part of the power mix. As a state, we need to encourage the expanded use of renewable energy resources that have been proven clean, like nuclear and biomass.

We also need to promote cleaner technology, as well as hybrid and fuel-efficient automobiles.

We’ve made a great start toward clean energy here in Minnesota, and I am optimistic that bipartisan cooperation on this important issue will continue beyond this session.

Steve Murphy can be reached at sen.steve.murphy@senate.mn