Legalectric

…then you say you don’t, and then you do,
you’re undecided now, so what are you going to doooooo…

Yeah, it’s backwards, but that’s how absurd this Mesaba coal gasification case is!!! Obviously they’ve got a plan… SNORT…

We’ve been straightforward. If we were a bunch of liars we’d have never got this project to where it is today.

— Tom Micheletti, Grand Rapids Herald Review, Nov. 20, 2006.

Uh-huh…

Here’s the map that all the experts paid to study potential CO2 sequestration locations say the potential CO2 sequestration sites are — and look closely at Minnesota for the nearest potential CO2 sequestration location to Excelsior’s preferred site for Mesaba — at least 600 miles, eh? Pretty costly, eh? Cost prohibitive, obviously, eh?

So now what? Quick start bailing and where’s the bondo, we’re takin’ on water…

OK, put on your life preserver and seat belt and get out your barf bag… at the 11:59th hour, Excelsior submits a “Supplemental Response to MCGP’s First Interrogatories and Document Requests No. 21(#2), written by a not-long licensed ATTORNEY providing hearsay “evidence” about sequestration:

On November 13, 2006, Excelsior discussed potential caron sinks in the Upper Midwest with Julio Friedmann, the Associate Program Leader of the Carbon Management Program at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Harvey Thorleifson, Director of the Minnesota Geological Survey. Based on those discussions, Excelsior concludes that prospects do exist in Minnesota for geologic formations that may be appropriate for sequestration. At present, the geological understanding of these formations is limited and further study is necessary to determine their suitability for carbon sequestration…

…Because of the lack of oil and gas exploration in the area, the Midcontinent Rift in Minnesota has not been characterized to the degree of other identified and confirmed sinks. Excelsior is exploring ways to facilitate this research. However, until this occurs, the potential to sequester carbon in Minnesota can neither be confirmed nor denied.

Uh-huh, right… here’s their “map” produced Tuesday (note the quality):

There’s been some snorting and chortling about what that MidContinent Drift Formation resembles… and this gambit is about as effective!

Here’s the full Excelsior missive.
Excelsior Supplemental Response re: CO2 Sequestration

Let’s see, they’ve had how many highly paid big name witnesses submit testimony about sequestration??? Daniel Schrag, Douglas Cortez, Dick Stone, Ed Steadman and even Bob Evans is in the mix and suddenly this Precambrian basement, embedded in older Archean gneiss-migmatite terrane, Archean granite-greenstone terrane, Proterozoic cratonic cover, Early Proterozoic igneous comlex, Sioux Quartzite, Early Proterozoic quartzites and 1500-Myr-old Wolf River Batholith that composes the Midcontinent Rift System is a potential site for CO2 sequestration?

Oh, give me a fuckin’ break…

Just for yucks, let’s look at a real map, one that’s more legible than the Exelsior one:

Now for shits and giggles, let’s check out this map:

And this one of the MidContinent Rift around Lake Superior:

Yup, this possibility just suddenly appears… I wonder what Paul Witherspoon would think of this theory?