Legalectric

For all of you planning to comment on the Freeborn Wind application, whether at the meeting Thursday (September 20) in Albert Lea or in writing, here is the Application and appendices to review.  Remember that for your comments to carry any weight, they need to be specific about what is and is not in the application and what Commerce needs to address in its Draft Site Permit.  Focus!!!

Siting_Initial Filing_Application_Narrative_20176-132804-01

Siting_Initial Filng_Figures1-17_20176-132804-02

Siting_Initial Filing_App A_Agency Correspondence

Siting_Initial Filing_App B_Noise analysis20176-132804-04

Siting_Initial Filing_App C_ShadowFlickerAnalysis_20176-132804-05

Siting_Initial Filing_App D_TelecomReports_20176-132804-06

Siting_Initial Filing_App E_MarketImpactAnalysis_20176-132804-07-1

Siting_Initial FIling_App F_Tier3WildlifeStudies_20176-132804-08

Siting_Initia lFIling_App G_Tier1&2_20176-132804-09

Siting_Initia lFiling_App H_AvianBatPPDraft_20176-132804-10

The Minnesota part of the Freeborn County wind project is the site in red, above.

The Association of Freeborn County Landowners has been granted intervention, we’re a party!!!

Order-Intervention-AFCL_20179-135455-01

And a footnote for those wonks interested in Minnesota Rules and OAH and Public Utilities Commission procedure:

For more information about this docket, the application and the filings thus far, go HERE and search for Public Utilities Commission docket 17-410.

Here are Comments filed on behalf of Association of Freeborn County Landowners:

Association of Freeborn CountyLandowners_Petition & Initial Comments – Filed July 6, 2017

Association of Freeborn County Landowners — Add to Service List

Process Issue – Timing of Request for Contested Case

Reply CommentsCompleteness – Association of Freeborn County Landowners

James McIntyre was shot outside an open house for a dam project, “Site C” for the dam.  You know, those open houses they hold to tell the public what they’re going to do before they do it… There was an investigation of the shooting by Canada’s “Independent Investigations Office,” and I’d had an alert and checked now and then, particularly a year after the shooting, but didn’t find the articles on the IIO’s November release of information until yesterday!  Here’s the report from the IIO:

07-16-2015-Dawson-Creek-Firearm-Death-2015-000104

Here are some press write ups:

Police ‘begged’ Site C activist to put down knife before shooting him, witness says

IIO clears RCMP in shooting of James McIntyre

RCMP officers cleared in shooting death of Site C protester in Dawson Creek

Look at the way the press framed this article:

RCMP officer cleared in shooting death of B.C. activist that sparked Anonymous revenge campaign

This shooting of McIntyre hit home for me because of my routine of going to the open houses and hanging out at the door, and I know so well how angry people get when there’s infrastructure proposed in their community, on their land.  They published my LTE about this in the Alaska Highway News:

Trump’s energy agenda, vague as it is, has been essentially to promote “clean coal,” nuclear and to deny climate change and dismantle federal climate change and “renewable” energy programs, of course with no move to eliminate subsidies for coal and nuclear.  The “transition team” sent a big laundry list of questions to the Department of Energy, and it’s pretty broad.  It’s also something that would be both telling and intimidating to receive.  Looking at this, there’s no doubt where they’re headed.

Here’s the document — read it and see what you think… and note how many of these questions are “Can you provide…” which are easily answered with just a “Yes” or “No” and that’s the end of it!

DOE – Trump Transition’s Questions

But wait… there’s another version (similar, but different order, etc.):

DOE – Trump Transition Question #2

I think Trump needs somebody to write his questions for him, somebody new that is.  He obviously didn’t come up with this, but his staff person who did, well, if they worked for me, “YOU’RE FIRED!”