Tag Archives: coal

Minnkota Power Cooperative's Milton R. Young Station, near Center, N.D., burns lignite coal to generate electricity for customers in eastern North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota. In 2017, North Dakota coal-fired power plants produced 2.7 million tons of coal ash, which must be properly disposed of and monitored. Special to The Forum

Environmental Activists Promote Fake News About Coal Ash

- March 12, 2019 - ,

Environmental Activists Promote Fake News About Coal Ash

- March 12, 2019 - ,

This week a headline about coal ash contaminating groundwater in North Dakota and other states probably caught your attention. And for good reason. Even the most ardent supporter of coal mining and coal-fired energy is no doubt opposed to a byproduct of that process contaminating our water. But one didn’t need to read too far…

The Great River Energy Coal Creek Station coal plant near the Falkirk mine outside of Underwood, N.D., is the largest power plant in North Dakota Michael Vosburg / Forum Photo Editor

Jason Bohrer: Coal Kept the Heat and Lights on During the Polar Vortex

- January 31, 2019 - ,

This guest post was submitted by Jason Bohrer, President and CEO of the Lignite Energy Council. During the Polar Vortex 2019, otherwise known in North Dakota as a “cold snap”, it’s a great time to talk about three concepts: reliability, dispatchability and resilience. Reliability is related to the ability of a power source to be…

The Great River Energy Coal Creek Station coal plant near the Falkirk mine outside of Underwood, N.D., is the largest power plant in North Dakota. Forum file photo.

Trump Replaces Obama’s Ideological Attack on Coal Power With Something More Pragmatic

- August 21, 2018 - ,

The Obama administration hated coal power. The former president’s detractors referred to his policy agenda in this policy area as a “war on coal,” and that wasn’t an exaggeration. The so-called Clean Power Plan, among other policies, seemed organized more around an ideological objection to coal energy from coal than any desire for workable regulations…

Renè Heredia Nieves, environmental scientist with the North Dakota Department of Health, uses a FLIR camera to inspect a well site north of Killdeer, N.D., on Thursday, May 5, 2016. Photo courtesy of Department of Health

Air Pollution in North Dakota, an Oil and Coal State, Is Down 25 Percent Over the Last Five Years

- February 16, 2018 - ,

To hear some environmental activists put it, you’d think North Dakota were an industrial wasteland where energy industry titans are allowed to pollute the land and air with impunity. Those of us who actually live here can see that lie for what it is with our own eyes. Our state has a proud tradition, stretching…

Minnkota Power Cooperative's Milton Young Station, located near Center, N.D.

Jason Bohrer: The Clean Power Plan No Longer Threatens North Dakota’s Economy

- October 13, 2017 - ,

Scott Pruitt, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator, did a big favor for states like ours that use coal to generate electricity. His recent decision to repeal the Clean Power Plan lifted a massive regulation from our state’s economy, sparing our industries and households the effects from a weakened power grid, higher power prices and the…

Wind turbines generating electricity

Audio: Berkeley Scholar Calls Wind Energy Subsidies “Completely Perverse”

- October 12, 2017 - ,

Steven Hayward, a Senior Resident Scholar at Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies, has produced a report for Minnesota’s Center of the American Experiment which finds that power sources like wind and solar aren’t really accomplishing what their supporters say they are. This despite what Hayward described as “completely perverse” subsidies so massive they sometimes allow renewable…

Great River Energy's Coal Creek Station on Wednesday, August 19, 2015, in Underwood, N.D. (Logan Werlinger/Grand Forks Herald)

Shortages Are What Happens When the Government Tries to Dictate Outcomes in the Marketplace

- July 10, 2017 - ,

The politicians always think they know best. Energy policy is no departure from this simple truth. The politicians use all manner of policy – from tariffs to regulatory red tape to subsidies and mandates – to dictate where we get our power. In Australia, much like here in America, public policy aimed at pushing that…

North Dakota Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem asks for the NDGOP endorsement for governor during the during the NDGOP convention Saturday, April 2, 2016 in Fargo. Michael Vosburg / Forum Photo Editor

Stenehjem Joins North Dakota to Group of 13 States Threatening to Sue California Over Coal Divestment Initiative

- June 21, 2017 - ,

UPDATE: ND Insurance Commissioner Jon Godfread has signed on to a similar effort opposing California’s push. You can read his press release here, and the letter here. In California, Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has begun what he’s calling the Climate Risk Carbon Initiative. Arguing that because of climate change investments in fossil fuel energy production are…

Jeremy Rham: North Dakota Needs Wind Energy

- May 22, 2017 - ,

Sayanythingblog.com and AgWeek recently published Connie Krapp’s op-ed entitled “Before Permitting Another Wind Mill North Dakota’s PSC Must Publicize Costs for Taxpayers and Energy Consumers.” The op-ed specifically referred to Otter Tail Power Company’s involvement with EDF Renewable Energy’s Merricourt Wind Farm near Ellendale. Ms. Krapp’s op-ed was decidedly negative. However, our company’s upcoming proceedings…

Great River Energy's Coal Creek Station on August 19, 2015, in Underwood, N.D. (Logan Werlinger/Grand Forks Herald)

All of a Sudden North Dakota and the EPA Are Getting Along

- May 9, 2017 - ,

In years past, when I’d talk with colleagues and others from out of state, I’d joke that North Dakota’s official pastime is suing the federal government. Because our state does it a lot, and regulations implemented by the Environmental Protection Agency have always been a frequent target. But of late, under the Trump administration, there…

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