on June 06, 2019

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This D-Day Anniversary, Remember the Soldiers, and Remember Minnesota’s Iron Miners

Written by Isaac Orr

in Environment, Greater Minnesota, Mining, Minnesota Economy

Today marks the 75th anniversary of D-Day, when more than 160,000 Allied troops landed along a 50-mile stretch of heavily-fortified French coastline, to fight Nazi Germany on the beaches of Normandy, France. The United States could not have prevailed in World War II without the soldiers who stormed those beaches. Likewise, America could not have won the war without Minnesota's miners, who labored tirelessly to produce the iron ore that became the ships, aircraft, and rifles used achieve that feat....

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on June 03, 2019

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Duluth News Tribune: In Response: Judging Twin Metals Now is Premature, Purely Speculative

Written by Isaac Orr

in Environment, Mining, Minnesota Economy

Last weekend the Duluth News Tribune ran an editorial from Dean DeBeltz of Twin Metals which argued that anti-mining groups who say Twin Metals cannot operate responsibly are basing these claims on speculation and not science. He could not be more correct. Twin Metals has yet to submit a mining plan, which means anyone who opposes the mine now is not objecting to any potential technical shortcoming in the design of the project, but rather they are opposed to mining in general, and are projecting this opposition onto the Twin Metals project. Unfortunately, this is par for the course. Anti-mining groups like Friends...

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on May 29, 2019

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Great News! PolyMet Wins First Round of Court Challenges!

Written by Isaac Orr

in Environment, Greater Minnesota, Mining, Minnesota Economy

Minnesota is one step closer to opening its first copper-nickel mine, as the State Court of Appeals has rejected a lawsuit from anti-mining groups who had hoped to force PolyMet to conduct a new environmental review. This suit is the first of several court challenges that are making their way through the courts. The PolyMet project would bring a massive boost to the economy of Northeastern Minnesota. The company expects to create 360 direct jobs in mining and for business professionals ranging from engineers, mechanics, shovel operators, accountants, technicians and information technology specialists, and 600 more jobs will be supported by...

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on May 07, 2019

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Minnesota Now Fifth-Largest Mining State, It Could Have Been Number Two

Written by Isaac Orr

in Environment, Mining, Minnesota Economy

According to the United States Geological Survey, Minnesota mined $4.05 billion in non-fuel minerals in 2018, making it the fifth-largest state for mining, in terms of the value of minerals sold (excluding coal, oil, natural gas, and uranium). This is after Minnesota was in sixth place last year. Few people in the Twin Cities metro realize just how important mining is to Minnesota's economy, and to the nation's security. In 2018, mines in Minnesota and Michigan shipped 98% of the usable iron ore products in the United States with an estimated value of $4.1 billion. Minnesota has traditionally accounted for approximately...

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on May 06, 2019

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Refuting “Local View: Minnesota Must Aggressively Move to Less-Costly Renewables”

Written by Isaac Orr

in Climate, Energy, Environment, Minnesota Economy

My piece in the Duluth News Tribune detailing how a 50 percent renewable energy mandate would harm the mining industry has generated quite the controversy, with at least three counterpoints from renewable energy special interest groups. Today, I'm refuting a member of the Citizen's Climate Lobby....

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on May 05, 2019

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Presidential Orders Seek to Kickstart Mining Industry Revival

Written by Isaac Orr

in Environment, Mining, Minnesota Economy

The following article as written by Duggan Flanakin at CFACT.org: History was made in March when federal officials gave the green light for construction and operation of copper mines in Arizona and Minnesota, in both cases after decades-long permitting processes that overcame huge legal challenges by environmentalists. Since 2000, the U.S. has seen only 14 major metal mines start up production – all after permitting battles that lasted a whopping 6 to 23 years (not including the pre-permitting exploration, environmental baseline studies, and feasibility studies that add another 10 to 15 years to the timeline). The Army Corps of Engineers and Forest...

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on April 22, 2019

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Updating Prosperity: New Data Show Benefits of Non-Ferrous Mining Could Be Even Bigger, If We Don’t Screw It Up

Written by Isaac Orr

in Energy, Environment, Mining, Minnesota Economy

Earth Day is the perfect day to inform our readers that new data show the benefits of non-ferrous mining could be even bigger than our report indicated last summer, if we don't screw it up with bad energy policy...

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on April 19, 2019

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American Experiment Receives Warm Welcome at Minnesota Mining Meeting

Written by Isaac Orr

in Mining, Minnesota Economy

On Wednesday, I gave a presentation to the Society of of Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME) chapter for Minnesota in Duluth, and it was one of the best speaking experiences I've ever been a part of. The title of my talk was Promoting Prosperity: Building Public Support for Non-Ferrous Mining in Minnesota. I started my talk by asking, by show of hands, who was familiar with our report, Unearthing Prosperity: How Environmentally Responsible Mining Will Boost Minnesota's Economy, and nearly everyone in a room of about 200 people raised their hands. That's when I knew I was going to have fun up...

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on April 12, 2019

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Minnesota Citizen’s Utility Board Harms Ratepayers By Advocating For Bad Policy

Written by Isaac Orr

in Energy, Environment, Minnesota Economy

It is clear that the Citizens Utility Board is either unwilling or unable to advocate for the policies that will actually reduce costs for consumers. Center of the American Experiment is the leading advocate for energy consumers in Minnesota, and we can say that utilizing Minnesota's existing coal-fired power plants for the foreseeable future is the single-best way to keep our energy bills low, not adding unreliable and expensive sources like wind and solar. ...

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on April 11, 2019

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The Dirty Little Secret Behind Clean Energy Jobs

Written by Isaac Orr

in Climate, Energy, Environment, Minnesota Economy

The Clean Energy Economy Minnesota jobs report will likely draw favorable media coverage, but a deeper look at the numbers exposes the fact that these numbers are artificially inflated by including workers who are only tangentially related to energy efficiency, and that only 2.2 percent of the wind and solar jobs are non-temporary construction jobs....

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