on June 04, 2020

Sticky

By Delaying Line 3 Replacement, Again, The Walz Administration is Flagrantly Ignoring “The Science”

Written by Isaac Orr

Governor Walz loves to pretend that scientific evidence is the primary driver for the decisions he makes in St. Paul, but his actions show otherwise. In reality, Walz's mantra of "following the science"is just a thinly-veiled smokescreen for doing whatever he wanted to do anyway to serve his own purposes. Line 3 is a perfect example....

0 Comments

on May 27, 2020

Sticky

Michael Moore’s Planet of the Humans Removed Due to Alleged Copyright Infringment

Written by Isaac Orr

in Energy, Environment

Michael Moore's documentary, Planet of the Humans, was removed from YouTube yesterday amidst allegations that some of the footage shown in the film infringed on copyrights. At the time of it's removal, the film had garnered more than 8 million views. The renewable energy industry has been calling for the film to be removed from the platform since the day it was released. These groups made several inaccurate claims about the contents of the film, and while there were some errors in Planet of the Humans, by and large it did a good job of articulating the fact that wind and solar also have impacts...

0 Comments

on April 17, 2020

Sticky

Keystone XL and Line 3 Transportation Capacity Would Exceed OPEC Imports

Written by Isaac Orr

in Energy, Environment

Most people don't realize how important the Line 3 replacement project in Minnesota truly is. Not only would it reduce the chances of an oil spill by replacing an aging, corroded pipeline with a safer, state-of-the art new pipeline, but it would also allow this pipeline to transport more oil into the United States than we currently purchase from Saudi Arabia. Add this to the extra pipeline capacity that would be brought online thanks to the Keystone XL pipeline, and it would be the equivalent of replacing all of OPEC, as you can see in the graph below which uses oil...

0 Comments

on April 10, 2020

Sticky

Forbes: To Fight The Coronavirus, The World Returns To Fossil Fuels

Written by Isaac Orr

in Coronavirus, Energy, Environment

The article below appeared in Forbes, and it does a good job of summarizing how many of the policies advocated by environmental activists harm human safety in times like the Coronavirus outbreak. Ideas like banning single-use plastic bags in favor of forcing people to use resusable bags may sound good on a bumper sticker, but the science, indicates these policies leave people at greater health risks by facilitating the spread of pathogens. Ditto for energy. Even putting cost aside, which is an enormous aside, the idea that wind, solar, and battery storage alone will be able to deliver the same degree of reliability that...

0 Comments

on April 02, 2020

Sticky

Walz Wisely Designates Oil and Natural Gas Pipelines as “Essential Operations” During COVID-19 Shutdown

Written by Isaac Orr

in Coronavirus, Energy, Environment

COVID-19 continues to dominate the state and national conversation, and more jurisdictions are issuing Shelter in Place orders to try and slow the spread of the virus to buy time for healthcare providers to prepare for the peak caseload. These orders have required the closure of businesses that have been deemed non-essential. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz is to be commended for recognizing the importance that oil and natural gas pipelines play in the everyday lives of all Minnesotans, and all Americans, by deeming them to be essential. The map below shows the extensive network of energy pipelines operating in the state....

0 Comments

on March 30, 2020

Sticky

Gas Prices Will Soon Be Under $1 As a Result of COVID-19 Lockdowns, Saudi and Russian Price War

Written by Isaac Orr

in Coronavirus, Energy, Environment

Minnesota drivers might have noticed falling prices at the pump over the weekend, and prices are about to fall below a dollar per gallon of gasoline, at least that's my prediction based on the fact that crude oil prices have now fallen to a 17-year low. Prices are falling because many people are no longer commuting to work and businesses are closed to help slow the spread of the COVID-19, and because a price war is being waged by Saudi Arabia and Russia, the second- and third-largest producers of oil in the world, behind the United States. Demand Drops from COVID-19 According to...

0 Comments

on March 19, 2020

Sticky

What Would a Joe Biden Fracking Ban Look Like? Part Two: Devastating Economic Impacts

Written by Isaac Orr

in Energy, Environment

During the Democrat debate on Sunday, March 15, 2020, between Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and former Vice-President Joe Biden, Vice-President Biden stated that he would allow "no new fracking," and touted his role in spending $90 billion on the solar industry as part of the Obama administration's stimulus package. As I explained in Part One of this series, banning "new fracking" is essentially the same thing as banning all fracking. Such a bad policy would have devastating economic impacts for the entire country. According to a 2016 study conducted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce entitled "What if Hydraulic Fracturing Was Banned?"...

0 Comments

on March 18, 2020

Sticky

What Would a Joe Biden Fracking Ban Look Like? Part One: What is Fracking?

Written by Isaac Orr

in Energy, Environment

During the Democrat debate on Sunday, March 15, 2020, between Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and former Vice-President Joe Biden, Vice-President Biden stated that he would allow "no new fracking," and touted his role in spending $90 billion on the solar industry as part of the Obama administration's stimulus package. While the Biden campaign is reportedly trying to walk back this claim, stating that the former Vice-President misspoke, no one can know for sure what Mr. Biden meant, but we can know a fracking ban would have a devastating impact on the American economy, increase the cost of energy, reduce our national...

0 Comments

on March 17, 2020

Sticky

What Would a Joe Biden Fracking Ban Look Like? A Series

Written by Isaac Orr

in Energy

During the Democrat debate on Sunday, March 15, 2020, between Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and former Vice-President Joe Biden, Vice-President Biden stated that he would allow "no new fracking," and touted his role in spending $90 billion on the solar industry as part of the Obama administration's stimulus package. While the Biden campaign is reportedly trying to walk back this claim, stating that the former Vice-President misspoke, no one can know for sure what Mr. Biden meant, but we can know a fracking ban would have a devastating impact on the American economy, increase the cost of energy, reduce our national...

0 Comments

on February 05, 2020

Sticky

Federal Data Show Walz’s Line 3 Delay Has Been an Anti-Science Charade

Written by Isaac Orr

in Climate, Energy, Environment

On Monday, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) voted in favor of three key approvals for the Line 3 oil pipeline replacement project, a revised environmental review, a certificate of need, and a route permit by a three to one margin. Although this is very good news that should allow the replacement of the aging pipeline to begin this year, federal data from the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) show the delay should have never happened in the first place. During the Gubernatorial campaign, Tim Walz expressed his support for replacing the aging Line 3 pipeline, which transports crude...

Latest Posts