Legalectric

It’s my old neighborhood, and I just had to put my $0.02 in:

Overland Comments – Hiawatha DEIS

Exhibit A – NM-SPG – July 24, 2008

Exhibit B – NSP Petition for CFSR

Exhibit C – NSP/Taylors Falls/St. Croix Falls Agreement

Exhibit D – Chisago County Resolution re: Facilities Surcharge Rider

Exhibit E – Comments of Power Line Task Force – Docket 99-799

Exhibit F – Conductor Specs – from PUC Docket 01-1958, Ex 35 Application, Appendix 7

Exhibit G – Edison Institute – Transmission Property Values Report

Exhibits D and E, oh my, time flies… I’d completely forgotten about those.  And the utilities keep singing the same old tired songs…

Today’s the day that the Legislative Energy Commission meets to hear about MOES Resource Assessment Study.  Focus is on the horse’s ASS of Assessment, it is deserving of one of these guys:

Here it is:

Minnesota Resource Assessment

The LEC meeting starts in 10 minutes — hammer down!

FRIDAY, October 23, 2009
12:30 PM
Room: 200 State Office Building

And when you get there, hammer on them, there’s no excuse for a report like this.  Look at their forecasts, they admit the system peak was 2006, folks, it’s been downhill from there, that’s more than a “blip” and when you add in the 1.5% conservation mandate, where are we?  They’ve not addressed this.

If you look at where Xcel thought we’d be, in their 2004 forecasts for Blue Lake, we’re below where they said we’d be in 2004.  Hmmmmmmmmm, take a look at Xcel’s forecast:

And Xcel’s peak demand reality:

And very graphically:

We’re down at least 2-2.5% in 2009 from SEC filings.  At this rate, how long before we’re at the 2004 forecasted 9,100MW?  MOES, how stupid do you think we are?  If I were on the LEC, I’d be outraged!  I’m not on the LEC so I’m just … just… lacking in words…  If I produced something like this, I’d be fired.

Xcel’s Hiawatha Transmission Project, through the heart of the Phillips neighborhood in Minneapolis, was on the PUC’s agenda last Thursday.  I had some deadline or other and couldn’t go, but here’s what happened:

MOES – Comment on Application, Task Force, etc.

Of course MOES thought everything was just ducky…

Midtown Greenway filed a Comment:

Midtown Greenway – Letter

Midtown Greenway – Resolution

There was no Petition for a Contested Case filed, but a Contested Case was ordered because Xcel has taken the mandatory Contested Case route.  There were no Petitions to Intervene… There was only ONE comment filed…

Here’s the PUC’s Order:

PUC Order – May 26, 2009

Here’s the Dept. of Commerce’s view of Scoping for the full-blown Environmental Impact Statement:

Draft Scoping Document

So there we are… Bill Storm of MOES is assuming that it’s an EIS we’re doing, that’s a good thing.  Check the DRAFT scope, though, and note how narrow it is.

There’s a public meeting for scoping (hmmmm… I wonder if I got notice… $50 says no — Bill says yes, and where’s the $50, but, “It would be WRONG,” she says, speaking into the lampshade…):

DOE-MOES – Notice of EIS Scoping Meeting

Thursday, June 18, 2009 – 6:oo p.m.

Midtown Global Market

920 East Lake St.

Mpls, MN

Comments accepted until July 10, 2009

Send to:

Bill Storm, Project Manager

MN Dept of Commerce

85 – 7th Place East, Suite 500

St. Paul, MN  55101

or

bill.storm@state.mn.us

OK, folks, get to work!

• Now’s the time to read the application (Xcel’s Hiawatha Project Page HERE) and draft a Comment about what should be included in the EIS.
  
• Now’s the time to put in your requests to be on the Citizens Advisory Task Force
• Now’s the time to Petition to Intervene! (well, it’s not to late… YET…)
  

It’s all about this short section of the Chisago Transmission Project.  This is a cropped portion of a map in the DoC’s Environmental Assessment, Map 4 to be precise.

To look at the entire docket, go to:

www.puc.state.mn.us

then to “eDockets” and search for 06-1677

A little light reading:

Taylors Falls & St Croix Falls Permit Amendment Request

Notice of Permit Amendment Request & Comment Period\

And the Comment period ends TODAY!  ENDED!  It’s history…  Some Comments received — in alpha order:

Comment – Neuman Affidavit

Comment – Overland

Comment – Xcel f/k/a NSP

My big question, which OAH couldn’t answer, was whether THE Agreement was filed in that OAH docket way back in 2000,  was it filed in the EQB docket, filed in any docket???

I’ve heard he’s at Xcel, which given Pawlenty and WOW would not be that much of a change, but can it really be?

Yes, it is true, Mike Bull now works at Xcel Energy, confirmed by two independent sources and then confirmed by Mikey himself!  All I can say is, “Oh… my…” and shake my head in amazement.

I preferred speculating about what he might be doing:

Maybe he’s trying to get Pawlenty’s energy program on track?

Maybe he’s on maternity leave?

Maybe he’s at MISO with cohort Ed Garvey?

Maybe he’s high-tailed it to Costa Rica where they’ve got sensible energy policy?

Maybe he’s in the klink for corruption?

Maybe he’s at Commerce again trying to fix that hopeless Dogforsaken mess?

Maybe he’s out east to knock some “sense” into those transmission negative-nellies?

Maybe he’s in a cabin in the mountains writing the scandalous tell-all?

Maybe he’s at Briggs & Morgan selling/redeeming his soul?

Maybe he’s home house-training their new puppy?

Working for WOW made no sense at all, but now what?

Xcel????  Into the bowels of the devil itself, hard to get worse than WOW but … oh… my… this is worse…

… pass the barf bag…