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on January 09, 2020
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In Response: Dairy Farm Expansion Will Have Zero Significant Impact on Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Written by Isaac Orr
in Agriculture, Climate, Environment, Minnesota Economy

In a recent AgriNews editorial entitled "Significant Environmental Impacts Must Be Identified," Vance and Bonnie Haugen claimed my article detailing how regulating greenhouse gas emissions from a dairy farm in Minnesota would produce zero measurable environmental benefits was baseless, irresponsible, and disingenuous, but never once did the authors offer a shred evidence to support their claim. The authors stared by calling my article a distraction from the current issues farmers face, but my article was not a distraction, it was a warning that this list of challenges will only get longer if groups like the Land Stewardship Project (LSP) and the...

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on October 31, 2019
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Xcel Energy Sponsors Gala for Anti-Mining, Anti-Farming, Pro-Wind and Solar Green Group To Help Them Pad Their Profits

Written by Isaac Orr
in Agriculture, Climate, Energy, Environment, Greater Minnesota, Minnesota Economy

Minnesota families saw their electricity bills reach a new all-time high in 2018 due to an increasing reliance on expensive and unreliable wind and solar power. Despite the fact that Minnesota is already on track to meet current renewable energy mandates, Xcel Energy wants exceed these regulations by building 3,000 to 4,000 megawatts (MW) of solar, a massive amount, and shutting down their existing coal plants, which produce some of the lowest cost electricity in the state. It appears Xcel is enlisting the help of the Minnesota Center For Environmental Advocacy (MCEA) to help gain public approval for this plan by...

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on October 30, 2019
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Good News on Polymet! Minnesota Court of Appeals Rules Environmental Groups Can’t Move the Goalposts

Written by Isaac Orr
in Climate, Energy, Environment, Greater Minnesota, Minnesota Economy

There is good news on the Minnesota mining front, as the Minnesota Court of Appeals has rejected a challenge by anti-mining groups seeking to invalidate Minnesota's rules for non-ferrous mining. This is a big deal, because anti-mining groups, including the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, were trying to overturn the entire regulatory framework for how Minnesota's Department of Natural Resources evaluates and regulates mines that produce copper, nickel, platinum, cobalt, and other metals we depend upon every single day. Had this challenge succeeded, it would have been a massive blow to Minnesota's economic future, and a loss for the environment, as well. Minnesota...

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on October 23, 2019
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Why Are Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith Sponsoring Minnesota Anti-Mining Legislation?

Written by Isaac Orr
in Environment, Mining, Minnesota Economy

Mainstream news outlets in Minnesota rarely tell the tale of how the Obama Administration incorrectly broke decades of protocol by cancelling mineral leases of Twin Metals Minnesota and sought a 20 year moratorium on mineral exploration in the Superior National Forest during his lame duck session. The inappropriate actions of the Obama Administration were reversed  by President Trump, but unfortunately, Minnesota Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith are supporting an action that would force the National Forest Service to prevent any action that would advance mining in this area, according to documents obtained by Mining Minnesota, pictured below. While Senator Smith's position...

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on October 15, 2019
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Cows in the Crosshairs: Environmental Groups Take Aim at Minnesota Farmers

Written by Isaac Orr
in Agriculture, Energy, Environment, Greater Minnesota, Minnesota Economy

After "farting cows" were identified as a climate risk to the planet in a document released by the office of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez addressing frequently asked questions about the Green New Deal, many people in Minnesota were quick to dismiss the idea that the state would begin to regulate farms based on their greenhouse gas emissions. However, it turns out that that is exactly what some Minnesota environmental groups want the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) to do. The Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy (MCEA), a known anti-mining group and recipient of $530,000 from the McKnight Foundation in 2018, sued...

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on September 15, 2018
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The United States is Now the Largest Global Crude Oil Producer

Written by Isaac Orr
in Energy, Environment, Mining, Minnesota Economy

The federal government estimates the United States likely surpassed Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the world’s largest crude oil producer.  In February, U.S. crude oil production exceeded that of Saudi Arabia for the first time in more than two decades. In June and August, the United States surpassed Russia in crude oil production for the first time since February 1999. Ten short years after all the so-called "smart money" was on Peak Oil Theory, which posited the world was running out of oil and global chaos would ensue as countries were plunged into economic turmoil and conflict as we waged war...

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