Un-plastic-bagging Minneapolis and Minnesota

By on March 21, 2016 in Uncategorized

Discouraging single-use (“carryout”) plastic shopping bags is increasingly common around the world, for rather obvious reasons.

Reducing combustible trash helps fight garbage incineration!

According to the new media outlet MinnyApple (http://www.minnyapple.com/2016/03/18/plastic/#comment-1457):

“Minnesotans throw away 87,000 tons of plastic bags every year. Less than 5% of plastic bags are recycled nationally. Plastic bags frequently clog machinery at single-sort recycling facilities. Some plastic bags end up as litter in our environment, breaking down into smaller pieces of plastic, that leech chemicals into soil and water. In Minneapolis, most plastic bags that are thrown away end up in the downtown incinerator.”

Plastic bags are mostly made out of polyethylene which is mostly made out of natural gas (background on PE here: http://www.britannica.com/science/polyethylene )

So it is not surprising that may powerful interests are lobbying against this change–oil and gas people, plastics manufacturers, and especially the mega-evil Grocery Manufacturers Association (also a big opponent of GMO labeling).

One important reason for change is to keep plastic bags and other combustible stuff out of garbage incinerators.  Burning plastic is just burning petroleum-once-removed and contributes to air pollution and climate change.  And the burners need the “heat value” of the plastic,   So one may expect Minnesota’s politically powerful garbage incinerator industry to be against limiting plastic bags.  Note that 87,000 tons above!

Minneapolis City Council Member Cam Gordon, Chair of the Health, Environment & Community Engagement Committee of the Council, has scheduled a public hearing for 1:30 on March 21,2016 on a draft ordinance.

“Carry out bags in retail establishments” ordinance (Bring your own bag) http://www.minneapolismn.gov/meetings/legislation/WCMSP-175529

This ordinance was first announced to the City Council on August 7, 2016 (procedural history here: http://www.minneapolismn.gov/meetings/legislation/WCMS1Q-079203 )

Only two of the 13 council members (Gordon, Ward 2 and Warsame, Ward 6) are listed as sponsors of this ordinance, in spite of it’s no-brainer nature. Where are the other 11 council members???? (http://www.minneapolismn.gov/council/)

A cynic could suggest that the Council leadership has assigned the areas it doesn’t really care much about (Health, Environment & Community Engagement ) to its most greenie-weenie member, a sort of ghetto of the most important, to be ignored as much as possible.

Regardless, Cam Gordon deserves support on this good-for-the-public-interest ordinance:

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Public hearing at1:30 on March 21,2016 (agenda Item #1, http://www.minneapolismn.gov/meetings/hece/WCMSP-175147 )

“How to have your voice heard:” http://www.minneapolismn.gov/council/engage/WCMS1Q-074472

You can email all Council Members with one group email address:

citycouncilmembers@minneapolismn.gov

Individual contact info below:

“Ward office keep tally sheets on policy proposals, controversial topics, and other matters that are then provided to the Council Member. Aides generally lump calls into “pro” and “con” categories, giving their Council Member an instant poll on a particular topic.”

Ward Council Member Phone

1Kevin Reich(612) 673-2201
2Cam Gordon(612) 673-2202
3Jacob Frey(612) 673-2203
4Barbara A. Johnson(612) 673-2204
5Blong Yang(612) 673-2205
6Abdi Warsame(612) 673-2206
7Lisa Goodman(612) 673-2207
8Elizabeth Glidden(612) 673-2208
9Alondra Cano(612) 673-2209
10Lisa Bender(612) 673-2210
11John Quincy(612) 673-2211
12Andrew Johnson(612) 673-2212
13Linea Palmisano(612) 673-2213

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For those not connected to Minneapolis, please use Gordon’s ordinance as a model for similar action from YOUR local government and from you state Senator and Representative.

So, speak up!

Alan Muller

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Another utility-only, public-gagged Energy Commission meeting March 3rd

By on March 3, 2016 in Uncategorized

In February I posted a piece: “Minnesota: A wholly owned subsidiary of Xcel Energy? #1 in a series.” about how Xcel and other Minnesota electric utilities are getting unjustified rate increases because they control the systems that are supposed to be regulating them. Continue Reading →

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Updates on the Jordan Kushner prosecution

By on March 3, 2016 in Uncategorized

I posted about this in January (below) and there is a still-valid action alert here.

I wrote to the President of the University of Minnesota, who responded (below) and Mayor Hodges, who did not.

President Eric Kaler’s response: Continue Reading →

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“A Scientist-Lawmaker’s Case for GMO Labeling”

By on February 24, 2016 in GMOs

Minnesota state Representative Phyllis Kahn has authored this article which appears in Governing (Magazine):

http://www.governing.com/gov-institute/voices/col-scientist-lawmaker-case-gmo-labeling.html

There are real health and environmental concerns, and labeling is a reasonable response to them.
by | February 18, 2016

As one of roughly a dozen Ph.D. scientists serving in state legislatures, I make a point of following policy issues with a scientific component, particularly when they concern my field of specialization, DNA replication and recombination.

One such issue is whether to require food produced from crops grown from seeds that have been genetically modified to be labeled as such. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are usually created by transferring genetic material from one organism to another using techniques that go beyond the usual plant or animal breeding. Continue Reading →

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Minnesota: A wholly owned subsidiary of Xcel Energy? #1 in a series.

By on February 17, 2016 in Minnesota energy policy, Minnesota Legislature, Minnesota Power, MN Public Utilities Commission, Solar, Uncategorized, Xcel Energy

Utilities do it everywhere….

It’s in the nature of electric utilities to accumulate too much economic and political power.  They provide essential services, they have almost unlimited resources compared to potential opponents, and they send hundreds of thousands of mailings to all the households in their service areas.  Most are corporations whose management works for stockholders, not customers, but they often get people to forget that.  They almost always have undue influence on the commissions that are supposed to regulate them.

But “NSP” is something special

The chokehold that Xcel Energy (Northern States Power Company) has on the state of Minnesota feels unusual even by utility standards.  The obedience that Xcel seems able to extract from most of our public and private institutions in Minnesota–including the media–is extraordinary, and ramping up very aggressively from this already excessive level. Continue Reading →

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Action Alert: Object to arrest and prosecution of Jordan Kushner

By on January 22, 2016 in Uncategorized

Jordan S. Kushner is one of the most distinguished lawyers in Minnesota.  An online search makes immediately clear that he has a long history of standing up for democracy and freedom of speech.

Kushner was arrested by University of Minnesota police at the U of M School of Law on  the afternoon of November 3, 2015.   The arrests were apparently in retaliation for Kushner’s taking video of officers ejecting protesters from a meeting.  Filming cops is legal but often resented.  I haven’t seen them yet, but reportedly there are subsequent and false police reports claiming that Kushner was yelling and screaming in the meeting.  These claims are refuted by witnesses and video.  Reportedly, the arresting officers, lead by University of Minnesota Police Lieutenant Troy Butha, were somewhat violent.  While Kushner says he suffered no permanent injuries, he easily could have.

A story on this was posted on CityPages on January 20, 2016: “Jordan Kushner, crusading civil rights lawyer, on trial for filming police.”

Kushner is facing misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct, trespass, and obstruction of legal process (resisting arrest).  His next court date is a hearing on pretrial motions, January 22, 2016 at 1:30 pm, Hennepin County Government Center, courtroom 755.  The case number is 27-CR-15-31387, the judge assigned: Marta M. Chou.  The prosecution is by the City of Minneapolis, which has prosecutorial jurisdiction over misdemeanors.  The prosecutor is listed as Matt Wilcox, (612) 673.2005.  The Minneapolis City Attorney is Susan Segal.  When Mayor Betsy Hodges retained Segal, there were many objections from people citing Segal’s poor record on civil liberties.

ACTION:

Contact Eric W. Kaler, President of the University of Minnesota, asking that the prosecution of Jordan Kushner be stopped with apologies to Mr. Kushner. (612) 626-1616, upres@umn.edu

Contact the Mayor of Minneapolis, Betsy Hodges, asking the same:  (612) 673-2100, http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/mayor/contact/index.htm (contact form), Betsy.Hodges@ci.minneapolis.mn.us

Below are the notes I sent:

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Eric W. Kaler, President, University of Minnesota

Dear Mr. Kaler:

Regarding: Arrest of Jordan Kushner by University of Minnesota Police

I object to the Nov 3, 2015 arrest of Jordan Kushner at the U of M Law School.  The irony of arresting a prominent civil liberties lawyer at the Law School should not escape you.  In addition, there are credible allegations that the University of Minnesota police officers behaved violently, and subsequently placed false information in reports.  This situation seems to bring additional disgrace and dishonor on the University of Minnesota, which already has enough of both.  It appears to me that the charges against Mr. Kushner should be dropped immediately, with apologies, and Mr. Kushner should be compensated for any expenses, injuries, and loss of income that he may have incurred as a result of this event.  I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours very truly,

Alan Muller
1110 West Avenue
Red Wing, MN, 55066
302.299.6783

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Betsy Hodges, Mayor of Minneapolis

Dear Mayor Hodges:

Regarding:  Shameful prosecution of Jordan Kushner by Minneapolis City Attorney

I urge you to halt the prosecution of Jordan Kushner.  Mr. Kushner is charged with several misdemeanors he apparently did not commit, and is being prosecuted by the City Attorney.  The irony of the arrest of a prominent civil liberties lawyer at the University of Minnesota Law School should be apparent even to the University of Minnesota and the Minneapolis City Attorney.  It seems worth recalling that when you announced your decision to retain Ms. Segal as City Attorney, various people objected, citing what they considered to be her poor record on civil liberties.  I hope you will act promptly on this matter.

Yours very truly,

Alan Muller
Red Wing, MN
Port Penn, DE
302.299.6783
alan@greendel.org

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“An air pollution health advisory alert has been issued” by the MPCA

By on January 21, 2016 in Uncategorized

Code Yellow bad air is forecast from Wednesday through Sunday in the Twin Cities, and from Wednesday through Friday for Rochester.   But, the current conditions map shows bad air throughout Minnesota.  For reasons that are unclear, forecasts are issued only for the Twin Cities and Rochester. Continue Reading →

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Action Alert: Minnesota Public Utilities Commission: Withdraw funding for increased garbage incineration!

By on January 12, 2016 in "biomass", air pollution, City of Red Wing (Minnesota), Energy, Garbage Incineration, Goodhue County, Minnesota, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, MN Public Utilities Commission, Nuclear Power, Xcel Energy

If you want, skip the gory details and go directly to the action items lower down!

As someone with a longstanding interest in energy and environmental issues, Minnesota can be a little strange.  The state, or at least the central part of it, often seems like a wholly owned subsidiary of Xcel Energy (Northern States Power Company).  I’m appalled by the ease with which Xcel seems able to impose its will, and the lack of dignity and self-respect with which officials and self-proclaimed energy/environmental advocates kowtow, grin and shuffle, for Xcel.  Worse, I’m living in Red Wing, blessed with two Xcel nuclear reactors, Prairie Island 1 and 2, two Xcel garbage incinerators ( an old convertedcoal plant) and an Xcel nuclear waste parking lot, all within the city limits.  As far as what Xcel has to offer, Red Wing has it all!

There are so many interlocking scams going on, involving so many entities and so many moral and intellectual failures, that it can look and feel overwhelming.  I’m going to focus on one here and ask for your help: Continue Reading →

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From the Mankato Free Press: “Role of Wilmarth waste burning plant still contentious”

By on January 11, 2016 in Uncategorized

http://www.mankatofreepress.com/news/role-of-wilmarth-waste-burning-plant-still-contentious/article_97663e2c-9cf0-11e5-a3b1-7f64fe0aefad.html

Veteran reporter Tim Krohn did an extensive story on this.

MANKATO — Since the late 1980s the Wilmarth plant in Mankato has been burning processed waste from counties in the Twin Cities and the region.

Before the plant was approved, local environmentalists fought bitterly against it, arguing the toxins from emissions would endanger people’s health. But over the decades the plant has operated at near capacity, largely without notice and hasn’t had any serious violations of its permit.

Now, as Rasmsey and Washington counties prepare to increase the amount of garbage that is processed and burned, Xcel Energy says the Wilmarth plant and another they operate in Red Wing play a key role in reducing the amount of waste going into landfills and producing electricity, with the Mankato plant’s two turbines making 20 megawatts of power.

But a Red Wing activist who’s long opposed the amount of waste being burned says Xcel shouldn’t be in the business of incineration and that the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is misguided in pushing for waste incineration and doesn’t put strict enough limits on stack pollution.

Continue Reading →

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Xcel Energy garbage burners belch out pollutants in Red Wing, Mankato, and La Crosse.

By on January 8, 2016 in Uncategorized

 

This is Xcel’s Red Wing “steam plant”:  Two 1940s coal burners converted in the 1980s to burn ground-up garbage.  Electricity output is small, around 26 megaWatts.  Emissions are high.

Some partial emissions numbers from the MPCA for these Red Wing burners:

Carbon monoxide  121,399 pounds

Lead                                    69 pounds

NOx                        1,212,168 pounds

PM10                      21,046 pounds

Sulfur dioxide        101,949 pounds

Ammonia                        149 pounds

Hydrochloric

acid                        16,040 pounds

Chromium                     18.11 pounds

Manganese                     20.22 pounds

Red Wing Total                                             1,472,958 pounds

Rough total Mankato                                  1,791,161 pounds

Combined total:  3,264,119  Well over three million pounds of health damaging air pollutants.  Numbers for Xcel’sLa Crosse, WI burner upcoming.

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