Wind Power News: Minnesota
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch. They are the products of and owned by the organizations or individuals noted and are shared here according to “fair use” and “fair dealing” provisions of copyright law.
‘Cross The Line’: Controversial transmission line in Iowa trying to survive
A case study for the national renewable energy debate is happening right now in northeast Iowa. “I think everybody likes the idea of renewable energy. I certainly do. But there’s more to it than just the wind blows on turbines and makes power,” Mike Deutmeyer said, a dairy farmer in the right of way of the Cardinal-Hickory Creek transmission line. The Cardinal-Hickory Creek Transmission Line plans to go from the Hickory Creek Substation in rural Dubuque County, to the Cardinal . . . Complete story »
Dickinson Co. Supervisors hear another update on Three Waters wind project
(Spirit Lake)– Dickinson County Supervisors this (Tues.) morning heard another update on the Three Waters Wind Farm project. It’s an expansion of an operation previously owned by Scout Clean Energy, which Three Waters has since purchased. The latest project extends into Jackson county. A representative with Three Waters told the supervisors this (Tues.) morning plans for the expansion are still quite fluid…Three Waters Update “So currently we’re working on securing additional land for the project as well as some preliminary . . . Complete story »
A clean energy proposal near a sacred Indigenous site divides a Minnesota community
Sitting among a sea of prairie grass in southern Minnesota is a 900-foot-long outcrop of red quartzite rocks covered in thousands of carvings – bison, turtles, and hunting tools – made by Indigenous peoples as far back as 7,000 years ago. It’s the largest group of Indigenous rock carvings in the Midwest. And the site, Jeffers Petroglyphs, is still used today by local native people as a sacred spiritual site for ceremony and prayer. But just down the road from the petroglyphs, . . . Complete story »
SW Minn. wind-solar hybrid project brings renewable hope, cultural concerns
A proposed wind and solar farm in southern Minnesota is vying to be the first of its kind in the state, if approved. But the project’s proximity to a cultural site that is sacred to many Native Americans has historic preservation officials and tribal leaders anxious about its impacts. The Apex Clean Energy company’s proposal would install about 55 turbines for the Big Bend wind project and solar panels on more than 480 acres of nearby land for the Red . . . Complete story »
Indigenous, historic preservation groups object to wind project near Jeffers Petroglyphs
The Big Bend project planned for southern Minnesota would be one of the state’s biggest wind farms, and paired with a large solar plant, would be different from any other power project in the state. But Big Bend’s proximity to the Jeffers Petroglyphs site – sacred to Indigenous people – has alarmed the state’s historic preservation office and the Lower Sioux Indian Community. “I just want to emphasize that to the Lower Sioux this project is considered a high priority,” Cheyanne St. . . . Complete story »
Minnesota lawmakers begin work on renewable energy bill
Minnesota lawmakers are beginning work on clean energy legislation that would require utilities to generate 100% of their electricity from carbon-free resources by 2040, as a renewed focus on climate change ramps up with a new administration in the White House. The Minnesota bill, authored by Rep. Jamie Long, an environmental lawyer who chairs the House climate committee, would raise the requirement for the share of a utility’s retail electric sales generated by renewable energy sources to 40% by 2025 . . . Complete story »
Gov. Tim Walz pushes again for carbon-free electricity in Minnesota to avert climate crisis
Gov. Tim Walz is again pushing for zero-emission clean electricity – and setting tougher goals this time – after an earlier effort fizzled in the Minnesota Legislature amid Republican opposition. The governor’s call for 100% carbon-free electricity by 2040 is the focus of a set of climate change proposals his office issued Thursday as it works to get Minnesota on track to hit its targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions. The state’s latest inventory of emissions shows that as a whole, Minnesota . . . Complete story »
Xcel looking to upgrade Grand Meadow wind farm
Xcel Energy is hoping a proposed upgrade to its wind towers near Grand Meadow will move the wind farm further into the future. The company held a virtual open house Thursday night about the project that would extend the life of the farm to 2048 and produce at least 10 percent more energy. “As a national leader in wind energy for more than a decade, repowered wind projects like Grand Meadow will help us reduce carbon emissions, keep bills affordable . . . Complete story »
Renewable-energy tax credits extended under pandemic stimulus package
Minnesota renewable-energy developers are welcoming the latest federal pandemic stimulus package, which will extend critical tax credits. Signed into law at December’s end, the $900 billion stimulus bill – meant to stem the economic effects of the coronavirus – extends by two years the terms of solar-energy investment tax credits available in 2020. Now, new solar projects also will get a 26% investment tax credit in 2021 and 2022. That credit will decline to 23% and then 10% in the following two . . . Complete story »
Minnesota regulators approve $750M Xcel wind-power project
Minnesota regulators on Wednesday approved Xcel Energy’s $750 million wind farm “repowering” project, one of several proposals from the utility to help speed up the state’s economic recovery from COVID-19. Xcel, the state’s largest utility, said its plan to retool several existing wind farms will save ratepayers $160 million through efficiency gains. The Public Utilities Commission (PUC) unanimously agreed, though the Minnesota Department of Commerce opposed Xcel’s plan. “I believe the record shows this will lead to substantial customer savings . . . Complete story »
