Freeborn Wind permit (and standard language in all permits) has noise limits, the state standard (Minn. R. 7030.0040) and permit condition limits:

Xcel’s conslutant’s noise monitoring report (2 parts):

And then Commerce-EERA wants to review and “analyze” it and here’s the result, released yesterday:

Despite documented noise exceedences, they craft it to this result:

… sigh… it starts out promising:

What it looks like is that the measurements of noise monitoring aren’t taken seriously, and that “binning” is used to obfuscate and dismiss testing and monitoring results that show noise levels above those permitted.

Remember the ALJ’s recommendation for this project, that the permit be denied because Freeborn had not demonstrated it could comply with noise standards?

OAH+80-2500-34633+Final+Order

WE WON!!! ALJ Recommend Freeborn Permit be DENIED, or… May 14th, 2018

And then the PUC bends over and gives Freeborn/Xcel what it wants:

Freeborn? PUC upends ALJ’s Freeborn Wind Recommendation September 21st, 2018

To challenge this, hiring a noise expert is necessary, and then it’s time to sue their collective asses. It becomes the responsibility of those affected by the wind project’s incursion on their land to raise the objections and foot the bill. Fair? Equity? Justice? In what world…

Investigation into the City of Minneapolis and the Minneapolis Police Department: Findings from the Minnesota Department of Human Rights

It’s pretty damning, documents the systemic racism and maltreatment. Not news really, to anyone who’s paying attention. This should be hard for the City and MPD to ignore.

Years ago, early 2017 to be precise, I was so disgusted with the Executive Orders being rammed through, particularly about immigration, that I started up a website to track them and the many lawsuits challenging them. Not long into the administration, I gave up on tracking, it was beyond a full time job. About the same time, the White House phone comment line closed (I’d been leaving comments often) and the switchboard would not forward any calls to anyone or take a message, and then the White House website dropped the entire section on Executive Orders. GONE!

Recently someone wrote saying that a link I’d posted wasn’t working, well DUH, it was from when there was a White House Executive Actions page, with Orders and Memoranda. But I looked, and of course the Federal Register page is still there, but there’s now an Archive preserving the Executive Orders!

TRUMP PRESIDENTIAL ACTIONS ARCHIVE

Note the caveat at the top — this is just ONE of the EOs that were disappeared:

The “person” who let me know that the link I had posted didn’t work I think was a bot or ? trying to get me to click on something malevolent. Just no… stick to the Federal Register.

Grant Merritt in the STrib:

Counterpoint: Case still powerful against nuclear energy

It would be unsafe and costly for Minnesota to reverse the moratorium. 

By Grant J. Merritt April 13, 2022

In response to “Times change. Minnesota nuclear moratorium must end” (Opinion Exchange, April 11), there are five reasons to retain Minnesota’s moratorium on building any more fission nuclear power plants.

The first is that ever since the Atomic Energy Commission began promoting them back in the post-World War II days, and over the ensuing 75 years, no acceptable storage locations have been found for the radioactive wastes.

The second reason is that these plants are prone to accidents, such as we had at the Monticello NSP nuclear plant on Nov. 19, 1971, when 50,000 gallons of radioactive water flowed into the Mississippi River. This caused the commissioner of the Minnesota Health Department to close the water intakes in the metro due to the threat to human health. That catapulted the accident into national news. Serious accidents occurred at the Three Mile Island nuclear plant followed by the Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear plants.

The third reason to oppose any more of these plants here or elsewhere in the U.S. is the threat of terrorism, now being experienced at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine.

The fourth reason is that licensing nukes is difficult due to opposition by many people, even though the U.S. government has preempted state regulation of potential exposure to water discharges. Thanks to action by former Gov. Wendell Anderson when he was a U.S. senator, air emissions are not preempted, so the state can hold hearings on air emission permits, which would no doubt be hotly opposed.

The final reason for continuing the moratorium is that building nuclear power plants is so excessively costly that the nuclear plant that was well underway to being built on the Savannah River in South Carolina was abandoned by voters.

For these reasons the Minnesota Legislature should not reverse the nuclear moratorium.

Grant J. Merritt, of New Hope, is a retired attorney. He was executive director of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, 1971-75.

I first learned of this project when a friend in the neighborhood send a flyer and talking points from a meeting held up there in 2019, so I looked into it then, and there wasn’t much available:

Tamarack copper-nickel exploration? November 13th, 2019

This was the map of the site then:

DNR? Find a summary report and associated map of the proposed exploration related activities at the DNR’s exploration plan webpage. Their “exploration plan” was submitted on March 8, 2022 and approved on March ? … page was just updated, says now it was approved April 12, 2022. TODAY?!?!

Per the DNR page:

Here’s the latest map, published by DNR last month, with the Summary Report and Associated Map (DNR Source)  PDF . Note it was “Talon Metals” a while ago, and now on the DNR docs it’s “Talon Nickel LLC.”

And earlier there was these psychedelic maps that reminded me of knee surgery! Check it out:

Talon Metals near Tamarack? January 28th, 2021

Here’s what they claim for “resources” at the site:

Talon Metals is based in the Virgin Islands, c/o Craigmuir Chambers, P.O Box 71, Road Town, Tortola
British Virgin Islands, and the P.O. Box reminds me of Goodhue Wind’s office in the Goodhue Post Office!

Talon Metals does have a page for this project:

Tamarack Mine – Nickel Copper Cobalt – Talon Metals Corp

But when the Center of the American Experiment locks onto something, that’s a sign to pay attention:

Tamarack nickel mine could begin mining by 2026

Dream on…

Anyway, another email about this appeared recently, and there was a reference to:

www.tamarackwateralliance.org – with ZERO info on who the heck this is, what orgs are involved, no information whatsoever. That’s a big red flag for me.

There is this on that page, but again, no entities, individuals, no identification whatsoever:

Tamarack Water Alliance Consolidated Community Meeting Presentation

Inquiring minds want to know… I really don’t give credibility to anonymous info and sites out there on the interwebs.

This Talon project must be challenged, and STOPPED!

Found this, at the DNR’s News and Public Notices page:

March 15, 2022 – Plan submitted to explore on state nonferrous metallic minerals lease

Talon Nickel (USA) LLC (Talon) submitted a proposed plan to continue exploring for metallic mineral deposits in Aitkin County. Exploration will occur on leased state mineral rights in an area north of Tamarack, Minnesota. Kennecott Exploration Company (Kennecott) and Talon have explored in this area since the early 2000s.

Talon’s exploration plan proposes drilling exploratory borings using the diamond core method at up to 25 drill sites. Talon notes the possibility of multiple borings at each site. Talon plans to use existing access to drill sites. The company may need to construct new trails to reach some areas. Drilling activity, including sealing, will follow regulations set by the Department of Health.

Talon’s proposed plan includes downhole geophysical surveys in newly drilled borings and borings that are temporarily sealed. Talon’s proposal includes plans to use a drill rig to clear any blocked borings. The new exploration plan indicates that surveyors may conduct geophysical surveys on foot within the boundaries of the leased state mineral rights. When conducting ground-based geophysical surveys, surveyors may need to cut small amounts of brush to make room for the portable survey equipment, but surveyors will not cut lines or grids. Talon will place signs when conducting geophysical surveys.

Kennecott, which designated Talon as the operator for the proposed exploration activity, holds the state leases. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has approved the operating agreement between Kennecott and Talon.

Upon DNR approval, Talon has the right to explore state-owned lands consistent with the exploration plan, any stipulations, and applicable laws and rules.

Find a summary report and associated map of the proposed exploration related activities at the DNR’s exploration plan webpage.