Racist extremists charged today!
November 30th, 2015
Thanks to the STrib’s Libor Jany for posting the Statement of Probable Cause for Allen Scarsella. The four are Scarsella, Joseph Backman, Nathan Gustavsson, and Daniel Macey. Hennepin Co. Atty. Freeman’s press conference starts soon.
It looks like all four will be charged. I’m very glad to see the County Attorney handling this quickly. I believe they’re also looking at whether to charge this as a hate crime. Given all the video and online threads, it’d be pretty hard to show it wasn’t a hate crime.
From Reuters:
This is progress, a start.
From the press conference (close, but not necessarily verbatim):
“These are sick people…”
“These four have been in custody… we believe there may be another, and that’s why this is ongoing.”
“If you’re a racist, you’re a racist, and that’s just not acceptable.”
“For people to talk about about their fellow human beings in that manner is simply not acceptable.”
“First appearance is tomorrow, we’ve asked for half a million dollars for Scarsella, and for a quarter million for the others.”
Tuesday 12/1 – PPSA Annual Hearing
November 29th, 2015
Here we go again, this year’s Power Plant Siting Act Annual Hearing.
Public Utilities Commission (PUC) Docket Number: E999/M-15-785
Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) Docket Number: 60-2500-32901
Date: Tuesday, December 1, 2015
Time: 9:30 a.m.
Location: Minnesota Public Utilities Commission, Large Hearing Room, 121 7th Place East, Suite 350, Saint Paul, MN 55101
Bad weather? Find out if a meeting is canceled. Call (toll-free) 1-855-731-6208 or 651-201-2213 or visit mn.gov/puc
Here are some prior dockets (to access the entire docket, individual comments, etc., go to :
2006 Report to PUC – Docket 06-1733
2007 Report to PUC – Docket 07-1579
2008 Report to PUC – Docket 08-1426
2009 Report to PUC – Docket 09-1351
2010 Report to PUC – Docket 10-222
2011 Report to PUC – Docket 11-324
2012 Report to PUC – Docket 12-360
2013 Report to PUC – Docket 13-965
2014 Summary Comments– Docket 14-887
Rulemaking Ch. 7829 at PUC tomorrow
November 18th, 2015
Tomorrow, the Chapter 7829 Rulemaking is going to the Commission, for approval of the FINAL rules. This rulemaking has been going on formally for over two years now in Docket 13-24 (go to NEW SEARCH and search for this docket).
Overland 7829 Comment Nov 18 2015
And some history… I’ve been concerned about this chapter for a long while, and submitted a Petition for Rulemaking over FOUR YEARS ago. Apparently that was filed in the trash:
And prior posts:
Ch. 7829 Rulemaking Comments July 20th, 2015
Stealth rulemaking — PUC’s Minn. R. Ch. 7829 July 10th, 2014
PUC’s Stealth 7829 Rulemaking Docket June 4th, 2013
PUC requests Comments on 7829 rules August 8th, 2013
Minn. R. 7829 marches on… September 9th, 2013
Hell Creek State Park (Montana) – Comments due 11/25
November 16th, 2015
Hell Creek State Park, Montana, circa 1966
Comments on the Hell Creek State Park Master Site & Management Plan – Draft_10-28-15 are due November 25, 2015. They’re looking at choices to address the serious overcapacity use of the park, and to determine what to do when the “no-cost lease agreement” with the Army Corps of Engineers expires in 2021. At this point, they’re wanting to address site infrastructure needs, make priority improvements and continue management of site and concession facility under a new contract with USACE. Send Comments, labeled as “Hell Creek State Park – Comments” to:
Montana State Parks1420 East 6th AvePO Box 200701Helena, MT 59620-0701
or online: http://stateparks.mt.gov/news/publicNotices/board/pn_0012.html Decades ago on a family camping trip, we went to Hell Creek State Park, and it was stunning in its vast austerity. It was on the bank of the Fort Peck Reservoir, the dam being part of our infrastructure tour that summer, and it was so bleak, hot, and dry, I wondered how people survived out there. Here’s the one campsite now with a tree!
We had to drive this intensely bumpy dirt road from Jordan, the nearest town, about 26 miles away, and it took a LONG time. When we got there, we were the only campers, and were warmly greeted by the ranger, who showed us around, warned us about the cactus and said to be careful what shoes we wore because those spines could come right up through flimsy tennis shoes! He also displayed his day’s work, he’d been out shooting rattlesnakes that day, and had half a flour sack full of dead rattlesnakes. I don’t remember a beach, though there must have been a designated swimming area, and for sure there would have been a boat launch. What I do remember of the reservoir, other than the dam, was an old wagon, the wooden kind, with a bench seat, the bench sticking up out of the water, which reminded me of what was probably lurking underneath the water, whatever was left when they flooded the river valley. I’ve wanted to go back there, and now with the camper, it’s on the agenda (let’s hear it for online reservations with photos!). And in looking at the park, I found this Plan, and it presents some interesting issues, ranging from dealing with outfitters who direct clients to the park and use it as a base; moving to increased online reservations and a reservation only system; dealing with water and sewage issues, fish cleaning waste; and campground improvements to water, sanitary sewer system, electrical and cell service (there is NO cell service in the area). If you’re a camper, fisher, hunter, check out this plan and let them know what you think!
EIS “Record of Decision” soon?
November 9th, 2015
Last week there was a large info dump from the DOE. Environmental Impact Statements are rolling through the Dept. of Energy’s Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability, one for the Plains & Eastern Clean Line (see BLOCK Clean Line) and its ; another for the Great Northern Transmission Line (see Not-so-Great Northern Transmission Line) They’re in different departments at this office, “Clean Line” is a “Section 1222” review and the “Not-so-Great Northern” is a Presidential Permit application.
Here’s the Record of Decision schedule (click for larger version):
And the full DOE EIS schedule (they’ve not yet released the November schedule):
- Record of Decision expected 1/16/2016. The Clean Line project has no associated state permitting and review process, because the applicant was rejected by the State of Arkansas as a utility, and because they’re not a utility, they’re not eligible for a state permit. To make things more complicated, the Section 1222 review is something new, there are no rules, and it’s a financing law, and that is all (though Clean Line wants it to be so much more!). The DOE held scoping meetings and hearings in Texas and Tennessee, and in multiple locations across Oklahoma and Arkansas, but these were only about environmental review, and not the Section 1222 issues or anything else. They’ve not scheduled hearings, there’s no evidentiary hearing, nothing, despite a specific request. Comment letters are in Appendix Q, and there are THREE of them! They listed on the comments the FEIS sections where comments are addressed. What a pain to go back and forth, where the sections are not clearly identified on the links.
- Record of Decision “uncertain.” What does that mean? The “Not-so-Great” Northern Transmission Project is before the DOE because the applicants Minnesota Power and Manitoba Hydro (in the U.S., it’s just Minnesota Power, doing the lifting for both) have applied for a Presidential Permit, essentially permission to market power between Canada and the US. In tandem with this DOE Presidential Permit, MP has applied for a state Certificate of Need and Routing Permit. Hearings are over, briefs are in (there are NO intervenors in this docket), and now we’re waiting for the ALJ Recommendation. Then exceptions to the Recommendation, and on the the PUC. that’s probably why the RoD date is “uncertain,” because there’s the state agency that they’re dealing with.
So there are procedural differences, timing differences. But it sure is a lot to wade through. Plus the PolyMet FEIS just came out.