“Our” nuclear plant is shut down?!?!
January 14th, 2024
I know I’ve been preoccupied, struggling to keep up and not doing a very good job of it, but how did I not know that the Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant was shut down for the winter and the river has completely frozen over?? Granted this is proof positive that we don’t “NEED” this generation, but what does it mean for the river and those dependent on that open water? Fish, eagles, other wildlife??? Maybe the plant closure is why the 2024 nuclear notice came out late (no calendar)?
That’s from MPR on November 22, 2023 about this shutdown on October 19, 2023, over a month later:
Electrical trouble shuts down Prairie Island reactor
Odd, it took the STrib that long too, November 22, 2023. Guess Xcel belatedly sent out a press release?
Xcel’s Prairie Island nuclear plant will be out of commission until January
So something between generator and substation? Something similar may have happened to Unit 2 last May:
Nuclear reactor at Xcel’s Prairie Island plant remains offline after ‘unusual event’ reported Saturday
Turned out it wasn’t “just” a transformer — there was a problem with the “main feed water pump” that had to be fixed too: “The licensee determined that the fire alarms were caused by the electrical transient which occurred due to the fault on the Unit 2 main transformer” and then:
From NRC reports:
And here’s the Notification:
More info needed. It’s a cold winter Sunday, good for googling.
PUC Oath of Office & Hwikwon Ham!
January 4th, 2024
What a meeting that was (hmmmm, won’t ebed), the “Permitting Reform Stakeholders Report” starts at 30:30, and whew, at 1:36 !!!:
And look who’s been appointed to the Commission — Hwikwon Ham! They couldn’t have made a better choice, he knows transmission and the electric industry, the technicalities, the economics, the background and reality.
Here’s the Governor’s press release:
Governor Walz, Lieutenant Governor Flanagan Announce Appointment to the Public Utilities Commission
January 3, 2024
“We are excited to have Hwikwon Ham join the PUC,” said Lieutenant Governor Flanagan. “His institutional knowledge and dedication to the commission will be key to ensuring the future of Minnesota energy is strong.”
Hwikwon Ham is a supervisor for the regional energy program within the PUC. He previously served as energy facilities planning director with the commission. Prior to his tenure with the PUC, he was an energy rates analyst with the Minnesota Department of Commerce. He earned an M.A. in economics from the University of Minnesota, and a B.A. from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
“Fresh Energy congratulates Hwikwon Ham on his appointment,” said Dr. Brenda Casselius, executive director of Fresh Energy. “With his extensive experience serving the public interest in multiple state agency roles, Ham brings a deep technical understanding of utility markets, economics, and planning to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission—all of which will be key assets for the commission as it takes critical steps to equitably usher in Minnesota’s 100% clean electricity standard and statewide greenhouse gas reduction goals.”
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Thoughts on a cool January day:
Lipschultz’s “Permitting Reform Stakeholder Report”
January 2nd, 2024
The meeting is tomorrow, beginning at 10 a.m. at the PUC, though transmission projects is up first.
Webcast here: https://minnesotapuc.granicus.com/player/event/3521?&redirect=true
Here’s the report from the “stakeholder” meetings held on October 6 and 30, and November 20th. Not one of the “stakeholders” has intervened in a transmission or other siting proceeding challenging a project. Where’s the public interest in this?
Not one of the “stakeholders” has intervened in any transmission proceeding challenging the project:
Some of the brilliant ideas: — here’s the WORST:
“Special” PUC Planning Meeting Wednesday!
December 31st, 2023
It’s Wednesday, January 3rd, and you can listen live, STARTS AT 10 A.M. JANUARY 3rd:
CLICK FOR WEBCAST
Yes, folks, this is indeed a “Special” PUC planning meeting, featuring “Permitting Reform” — a “stakeholder” process held behind closed doors:
And here’s what they’ve made public, a “presentation” from Grid North Partners before the “Permitting Reform” streamlining effort:
And this?
MIA – Nothing posted yet.. though the report of Dan Lipschultz, “facilitator” is due sometime today.
Again, the link to the WEBCAST!
Clear-cutting in Red Wing!
December 29th, 2023
Taking Alan to and from Mayo, I’ve been seeing activity on the east and south side of Featherstone, essentially all the land from “Ryan & Gordy’s Glass” on the right, following Featherstone, and down to the bottom of this screenshot, along the bottom to the trees with lots there, Creekview Court, up along the row of houses along the Hillside Drive cul de sac, over “to the point of beginning:
And closer view — the guy who owns that land, it’s a permitted sand pit, where there’s not been ongoing sand mining for ages. The platted cul de sac is named after him, and he owns 3 or 4 lots in there, along Hillside Drive, particularly on the left hand side and the far end. And on the County GIS, you can see he’s using two of those lots to access the hill below — and note, he did NOT cut his big tree down, going around it, and it’s the only one left standing!
And a larger view, you can see the lot lines, the bottom parcel and the one to the left along Featherstone are lots that were mowed without permission, and note the Creekview residential lot lines on the very bottom, and lot lines going up the Hillside Drive cul de sac — it’s bare earth now to the north and west behind those lots! I’ll bet those homeowners are not pleased!
This area here, where Featherstone heads west, looking east, was this:
Now, it’s TOTALLY NUDE! This photo was taken in that little “driveway” parking area, facing the same way:
Looking straight on from Featherstone:
And all that brush and stuff you can see is down to bare earth:
Except where there were big trees yanked out, where there are 2-3 foot stumps that are 2-3 feet across — OLD trees were removed. Where the bulldozer is is bare ground, that’s what caught my attention, thinking of erosion, and the shame of clear-cutting. Anyway, here’s what it looks like, close up (I’ve not captured the big stumps, will get that later today):
Here’s what it looks like from the Mayo back parking lot:
Turns out the plot thickens going beyond those two landowners, the “mower” and “mowee.” See that row of homes up there straight ahead and to the right? Hillside Drive and Creekview Court? They’ve been directing their storm water down there, which wasn’t cool, but wasn’t as much of a problem, but now??? E-R-O-S-I-O-N, and they’re going to have to do something different. Rain barrels, channel into pond, whatever, just not run it down the hill.
Looks to me like the City needs to get on the “mower” about it, and the owner of the land who did NOT give permission for all that destruction on his land should get a tree appraiser and a land appraiser, and calculate the damages, figure out what it would take to restore to original condition, and how, with 20-30 years for growth, to address that. This will be very hard to “fix.” I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around it, how someone could just go and do this, not only to his own land, but to another’s land.