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on July 25, 2019
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DFL Legislators Want to Halt PolyMet, Urge Governor To Cancel Permits

Written by Isaac Orr
in Energy

According to the Star Tribune, eighteen liberal Democratic lawmakers from the Metro area are calling for Governor Tim Walz to suspend all state permits for PolyMet's proposed copper-nickel mine in northern Minnesota. The legislators claim the suspension is needed to make sure that "the permits were not rigged." It's interesting to note that not a single DFL lawmaker from the Iron Range, where the mine would actually be located, signed on to the letter. This makes sense, because no project in Minnesota history has been studied more extensively than the PolyMet project, which has been under regulatory review for more than...

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on April 05, 2019
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Isaac Orr: Lower Electricity Costs From Going Carbon-Free? Wanna Bet, Gov. Walz?

Written by Isaac Orr
in Energy

The following article originally appeared in the St. Paul Pioneer Press: Gov. Tim Walz recently announced his plan to make Minnesota’s electricity 100 percent carbon-free by 2050, and while the governor claims his plan will reduce energy costs for Minnesota families due to improvements in energy efficiency, I could not disagree more with his assessment. Therefore, I am willing to bet the governor a month’s salary that his claim is incorrect and that electricity costs will skyrocket under his plan. Increasing quantities of renewable energy result in increasing electricity prices because they are more expensive than conventional sources of electricity, like coal....

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on March 20, 2019
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Statewide View: Skyrocketing Electricity Prices Threaten Minnesota Mining

Written by Isaac Orr
in Energy

Renewable-energy advocates often cite increasing demand for steel, copper, nickel, and cobalt as a reason why Minnesotans on the Iron Range should support more renewable-energy mandates. There is no doubt that doubling the renewable-energy mandate would increase Minnesota's demand for these metals, but we won't be able to afford to mine them here....

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on October 30, 2018
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Anti-Mining PAC Endorses Walz, Ellison, and a Slew of Other DFL Candidates

Written by Isaac Orr
in Energy

A group that opposes the proposed Twin Metals copper nickel mine in northern Minnesota has released a new ad endorsing Tim Walz for Governor. This doesn't necessarily mean Walz opposes the Twin Metals project, but if anti-mining groups are endorsing him, it does raise the possibility that they know something we don't about his feeling toward copper nickel mining in our state....

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