Legalectric

Here’s Excelsior’s Tom Micheletti and CAMP’s Charlotte Neigh!

From the Hibbing Daily Tribune (article not available online):

TACONITE â?? A group of concerned residents have joined together and formed a nonprofit corporation with one main purpose â?? to stand in opposition to the Mesaba Energy project, a proposed coal gasification power generation facility to be located in Taconite.
The group called Citizens Against the Mesaba Project (CAMP), which is co-chaired by Charlotte Neigh and Ed Anderson, was formed earlier this year in response to Excelsior Energyâ??s proposal for the project.

â??CAMPâ??s task is to inform local residents about what this project will cost them and to let people know that it can be stopped,â? said Neigh. â??We need to encourage them to speak out about their concerns to their elected officials and to the government agencies involved in approving the applications.â?

There is no membership costs for being a part of the group; five people serve on the board of directors.

â??The requirement for membership is you support our mission,â? said Neigh. The group formed after the proposed site for the project changed from Hoyt Lakes to Taconite, and a presentation on the project was given in Trout Lake Township by representatives of Excelsior Energy. Neigh said a group of people had questions and concerns so they talked about what could be done and formally
organized.

After a few meetings, the group developed a mission statement which includes five main points as to why it opposes the construction of the 600 megawatt power plant. The mission statement details reasons behind their opposition, including:

â?¢ Diminishing recreational lake country near the scenic highway; exacerbating global warming, and polluting water and air;
â?¢ Large amounts of diesel fuel will be burned to mine and transport coal to generate electricity that is not needed and will require new transmission lines to the Twin Cities;
â?¢ Electrical transmission lines, railroads, pipelines and roads for water and natural gas shouldnâ??t be pushed on private property owners through eminent domain to benefit a private corporation;
â?¢ Without the more than $50 million in public funding and $800 million needed in federal loans, the financial risk is too high for the private sector to take on;
â?¢ And with only 107 permanent jobs, it does not offset the environmental and financial costs.

â??We developed these five points that everyone agreed were accurate and showed the various priorities that different people had,â? said Neigh. â??That was a starting point for the group, which has evolved as more information has been available.â?

While outlining their main concerns, Neigh said the primary role of coal gasification is the ability to capture and remove carbon dioxide. â??It is undisputed that carbon dioxide cannot be sequestered at this site,â? she explained. â??Thus this benefit is lost, and all of the other pollutants from combusting coal negatively affect the environment and health locally.â?

Neigh said another concern is possible contamination of Canisteo Lake due to the discharge water from the plant, which would close it to recreational activity.

â??Canisteo is currently a popular recreational lake with water so clean that it has about 50 feet of visibility and has been stocked with trout,â? she said. â??The current plan for the excess Canisteo water is to gradually flush out Trout Lake, which would benefit from improved water quality. The contaminated water may infiltrate the aquifer and contaminate the wells used to supply water to the
residents of Bovey and Coleraine.�

Cost are another bother. Officials are seeking approximately $55 million for infrastructure including a service road, railroad, natural gas pipeline and sewer, and water service for the project.
â??Although some of this might be paid with state bonding funds, Itasca County and the cities of Taconite and Nashwauk are planning to provide these services, likely incurring debt to do so,â? noted Neigh. â??If the project fails and defaults on its obligations, the property taxpayers would have to pay off any remaining debt.â?

While outlining another concern of CAMP, Neigh said the plan is to send the electricity produced by the first two units to NSP/Xcel Energy for use in the Twin Cities, which she added has no direct local benefit.

â??The existing transmission grid cannot accommodate this power without major upgrades and/or additional lines, which will cost hundreds of millions of dollars,â? she stated. â??This additional cost, which will eventually be paid by electric customers, is not included in the scope of the project.â?

She said the infrastructure directly supporting the project and the transmission lines will require that private property, mostly likely to be taken through eminent domain.

Another worry of CAMP, according to Neigh, is that the plant has been exempted from the utility personal property tax. The project has also been granted other tax breaks by the state and is seeking more, according to Neigh.

â??These costs, both financial and otherwise, will be borne by the public,â? she said. â??The relatively few jobs that will be created for local residents do not offset these costs. Any profits will belong exclusively to a for-profit corporation.â?

Neigh said CAMP is trying to provide information about the project to people in the region with the main message that â??this project is not in the best interest of Itasca County and the people who live there â?? and it should and can be stopped.â?

â??As we go around talking to people we find that they have a vague concern about it and they donâ??t know very much about it,â? said Neigh. â??They also believe it is already a done deal, and there is no point of paying attention because you canâ??t do anything about it anyway. We need to make it understood there are things that need to be done about it and give them the reasons things need to be done about it.â?

Neigh said they are trying to get information out to the general public, as well as the elected officials, about what the project will cost and to let them know it can be stopped.

â??This is a tremendously complex project,â? she noted. â??We find that many people are uneasy about it, but are too busy to study it well enough to understand its flaws and its serious ramifications. Public opinion matters. Elected officials will respond if they know that a significant portion of their constituents share a position.â?

The Department of Commerce will hold a public hearing regarding environmental issues at 7 p.m. Aug. 22 at Taconite City Hall and on Aug. 23 in Hoyt Lakes.

He may be my former neighbor from Prestigeous East Phillips, but I remember the co-op war, the CO takeover. I’m astounded at the public enabling of Deano “down the draino” Zimmerperson. Doug Grow admits his bias, he may be getting it… finally… maybe those embarrasingly supportive columns will end… aaaaargh, all the folks joining in “the love train…” give me a break…
But then, how could/why would anyone buy something this lame (from Jury expected to get Zimmerman case today):

Another controversy erupted when defense attorney Dan Scott introduced as evidence a credit card check that Zimmermann said he wrote for $5,000 to a committee supporting the redistricting suit.

Scott said Zimmermann found the check in his home office over the weekend.

The check was dated July 19, 2005, and signed by Zimmermann with a notation in the memo section indicating that it was a donation from Gary Carlson. The defense wanted it entered as evidence showing that Zimmermann didn’t intend to keep the cash for himself or to hide it as the prosecution alleges.

Oh, please… but the jury didn’t buy it. I’m glad to see the editorial: Dean Zimmerman’s casual dishonestyÂ

If a politican is handed an envelope of cash, is there any response that’s appropriate other than standing up, hand on envelope so it doesn’t disappear, and yelling “Help! Someone call 911. I’m an elected official and this guy just handed me a big envelope of cash! Call the cops! Block the door — don’t let this guy get away!”

“Money, money, money…” but is he so narcissistic that he doesn’t concern himself with the magnifying glass of public scrutiny, or the law? Doesn’t he care about the supporters rallying behind him, a guy who’s at least $7G’s worth of Guilty and who doesn’t seem to have a clue that it’s a problem?

The guy who convinced me to begrudgingly believe in electoral politics has died.  Services will be at 10 a.m. Aug. 19 at the Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church, 511 Groveland Ave., Minneapolis. Visitation will be held from noon to 8 p.m. Thursday.

In the STrib: W. Harry Davis dead at 83

Photos from Davis’s Overcoming. (I wonder what that girl with the attitude is doing these days!)

Harry Davis, who ran for Mayor of Minneapolis in 1971 died today. 35 years ago, I was in homeroom at Central High with his son Ricky, didn’t know him well, he was a jock and I was a “maggot” hanging out in the front yard (thank Dog for independent studies). Harry Davis was on the School Board then, and the School Board was dancing around desegration. Our Central Magnet School was an attempt to desegregate the school district and avoid a suit, though the suit went forward and the district ended up in a consent agreement (odd, but segregation at that time was a school more than 30 or 35% minority — a 100% white school was not viewed as segregated!). Anyway, Harry’s run got me fired up, and I worked on his campaign, grunt work, did mailings, lit drops and doorknocking, and I remember some people’s vile responses with a queasy gut, and when the Davis signs kept disappearing from our front yard, even my Republican father got upset!

This is Harry Davis filing for the mayoral race.

During his campaign, he was threatened repeatedly, to the point that he was assigned first a police officer and then an FBI guard. Then two furry ones too, pictured here with his grandson!

He tells of doorknocking in hostile Nordeast, and then Bob Short, Don Fraser and Hubert Humphrey throwing in with him, and when he was on the street:

...a car pulled up alongside me. Out of it jumped Hubert Humphrey and Don Fraser, who said ‘Harry, we’re coming to give you some help.’ They offered to go with me and introduce me at each door as their choice for mayor. They spent the rest of that afternoon with me and the next day too, doing just that…

They were pounding the pavement and doors for two days across Northeast Minneapolis. They also made appearances with him, their efforts Davis called “the nicest gesture I ever witnessed in political life.”

Overcoming is well worth reading, though it’s so damn depressing to be reminded of how hard it was for him to run. He rated the debate at my parent’s church, Mayflower, as “lively” and it was one of only two that Stenvig agreed to. I remember the room was packed and I remember feeling very nervous about the palpable heat in the room. I don’t remember one thing about content, nothing at all, only the overwhelming angst and disgust over the opposition’s behavior and the fear I felt, immediate and also fear for our culture — he reports that Stenvig supporters spit at him on his way out the door.

How far have we come? We’re fortunate he had the courage to run for office. Lines have morphed some, but the battles are still there…

An Xcel coal plant in Denver

Because of my work against the Mesaba Project, I’ve been loosely tracking other projects. What concerns me most is that Xcel, or is it Public Service Company of Colorado, is maneuvering to get the legislative perks that could make it happen, and I don’t see that happening elsewhere.

Xcel characterizes its IGCC proposal as an example of its “environmental leadership.” IGCC is incorporated into its assumptions for its Integrated Resource Planning Strategist model. And they’re publicizing it openly – Xcel pushing higher-tech coal plant. But they’re pretty consistent in saying/cautioning that it’s “demonstration” technology – that it’s not something ready for the regular market.

Here’s a power point from Xcel called “Colorado IGCC Demonstration Project” that’s on the PSC-WI site! Â xcel-colorado-igcc-demonstration-project-march2006.ppt

And here’s an Apollo Alliance blurb showing union support for IGCC (but I would imagine it’s the jobs, jobs, jobs theory, and it’s a matter of finding another project! And I sure hope they’re not overstating “jobs” out there the way they did here while ramming the bill through!) Here’s what the Apollo Alliance site has to say in a legislative wrap up:

 4. Construction of a high-technology â??clean coalâ? IGCC power plant in Colorado to be built with local project labor agreement

Apollo Alliance members joined with Xcel Energy to support legislation promoting a demonstration project for an integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power plant with carbon sequestration. Championed by Rep. Buescher and Senate Majority Leader Ken Gordon, House Bill 1281 directs the PUC to consider proposals for a demonstration gasified coal plant which would include an experiment of sequestering CO2. This new type of plant would also use coal more efficiently and emit substantially fewer pollutants. Though no specific project labor agreement requirement is included in the bill, Apolloâ??s labor partners have a good history working with Xcel Energy. The bill passed through the legislature overwhelmingly and was signed by the Governor.

* Final Status: HB06-1281 â?? Passed both chambers, Signed by Governor.

So it looks to me like they’re using the Mesaba model there. Does anyone out there know how this is faring with the public? Is anyone paying attention to this proposal?
Next time I’ve got a few minutes, I’ll check out what’s going on in Ohio!

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I forgot to check the “Opinions” section, and look! Letters from Darrell White (he’s going to have a pipeline and transmission line cross his property) and Amanda Nesheim.

Water supply is vulnerable

Herald-Review
Last Updated: Wednesday, August 09th, 2006 11:31:31 AMbr /> Editor:

When new industry moves into an area, there are always spin-off businesses created. One that hasn’t been mentioned in relation to the coal gasification plant proposed for the Scenic Highway area is bottled water.

In addition to the 54 pounds (their number) of air borne mercury per year going into our lakes and streams from the stacks of Mesaba One and Mesaba Two, the plant would be putting many water treatment chemicals into the cooling water which would be drawn down and returned to the Canisteo mine pit.

On page 116, Section 2 of the Mesaba Energy Project Environmental Supplement, it states that â?? The cities of Bovey, Calumet, Coleraine, Marble and Taconite rely on ground water resources for public water supplies.â? It further states that â??Due to the close proximity of these public water supply wells to surface water bodies, a hydrologic connection may exist between the ground water captured by the wells and local surface waters.â? They state that the source water aquifers are â??more sensitive to land surface activities and more vulnerable to potential contamination.â?

When these facts were brought up to an Excelsior Energy representative, he said not to worry-they would be monitoring the wells. In other words, when they tell us the wells are contaminated, a new industry is born. Jobs, jobs, jobs.

Darrell White
Bovey

Become informed on energy projects

Herald-Review
Last Updated: Wednesday, August 09th, 2006 11:32:02 AM
Editor:

To the Northland community:

I attended a community meeting on July 25 put on by the Citizens Against the Mesaba Project (CAMP) at the Grand Rapids Area Library. I urge everyone in the northland to visit their Web site, www.camp-site.info. They have worked very hard to find out facts concerning the two proposed coal-gasification power plants to be built at a site in Taconite.

I also attended a community informational gathering on July 26 put on by Excelsior Energy Inc., the organization proposing to build these plants. There are a total of six power plants slated to be built. Hoyt Lakes is another site continuing to be looked at.

Please become informed. These energy projects will affect us all.

Amanda Nesheim
Bigfork