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Twin Town High (vol. 8) |
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Letters to the Editor
Wednesday 18 December @ 09:47:04 |
 Re: Manitoba Hydro on Trial, Pulse 10.30.02 (x2)
Editor's Note
Re: Manitoba Hydro on Trial, Pulse 10.30.02
Once again, your readers are not getting an accurate story about ManitobaHydro. Elaine Klaassen's October 29 article was misleading on several fronts. Here are the facts that were ignored or overlooked in the story:
• No new hydro developments are needed to satisfy the 500-MW contract with Xcel Energy.
• The environmental groups listed in the story were not the only parties to submit comments to the Public Utilities Commission (PUC); the Minnesota Department of Commerce filed a brief recommending the PUC approve the contract and reject the request by Pimicikamak Cree Nation (PCN) for a contested hearing because it would not be in the public interest.
• Manitoba Hydro continues to work with the PCN to implement the Northern Flood Agreement, to date Manitoba Hydro has spent more than $60 million on programs to remedy, mitigate and/or compensate for damages caused by our past projects.
• Amicable agreements have been reached with the other impacted First Nations; the agreements included total cash settlements ranging from $24 million to $62 million, plus land exchanges in the order of 14 new acres of land for every one acre affected by the hydro projects. These agreements do not preclude future claims or absolve Manitoba Hydro from its environmental responsibilities.
• New hydro projects currently being considered in Manitoba would be built in partnership with Manitoba First Nations and must pass rigorous environmental review and design standards before they are approved. These possible developments have no bearing on Manitoba Hydro's existing trade relationships with U.S. utilities.
There is no question that PCN and other northern Manitoba First Nations were affected adversely by our hydro projects built nearly 30 years ago. But its important that your readers understand that Manitoba Hydro continues to address the impacts of our developments. We're meeting our responsibilities to the First Nations and to the environment. We've learned from the past, and we're committed to moving forward in a new spirit of cooperation and understanding with Manitoba First Nations.
Yours truly,
Glenn Schneider
Division Manager, Public Affairs, Manitoba Hydro
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Re: Manitoba Hydro on Trial, Pulse 10.30.02
I've been involved in the Manitoba Hydro controversy since November 1999, and I would like to commend Pulse on its coverage of this problem. Minnesota's problem with Manitoba Hydro has been underreported in the large, mainstream media until very recently. Thanks for covering this while larger outlets have ignored or given very small attention to it. God bless you for having the willpower to examine a news story in-depth over many months' time.
I wish to correct a factual error in the October 30 article, “Hydropower on Trial,” by Elaine Klaassen. It states that the pending contract between Xcel and Manitoba Hydro will cause more dams to be constructed in Manitoba. The contract itself does not stipulate more dam construction will be undertaken to supply the 500 megawatts to Minnesota. However, we anti-Manitoba Hydro Advocates believe that a usual business practice is certain to come into play if this contract is approved by our state regulators. Manitoba Hydro is likely to follow the practice of using a solid contract for ten years' worth of steady income--which is what the deal with Xcel provides--as a financial assurance to big lenders to give the company loans for the construction of new dams.
New dams are planned by Manitoba Hydro. A prime example is Nelson House Cree Nation--this impoverished Nation made a deal to put up one-third of the construction costs on the proposed Wuskwatim dam on their Reserve. In exchange, Manitoba Hydro promises one-third of the profits from the dam to be paid to this Nation. Pimicikamak Cree Nation of Cross Lake, Manitoba, tells me that the Wuskwatim dam will have negative effects on the Pimicikamak Reserve. I believe their evaluation, and the Minnesota eye witnesses who have seen, first-hand, the devastation imposed upon Pimicikamak territory by the operation of Manitoba Hydro's dams. Manitoba Hydro keeps preaching how it is “working with” Pimicikamak Cree Nation to “address” the issues and come to a “resolution.” But what kind of deal is it that Nelson House Cree Nation, already saddled with poverty issues, must put up money on a future speculation for a pay-off? Why doesn't Manitoba Hydro immediately begin paying that community a cut of the profits it presently reaps from their land and rivers? I applaud Pimicikamak Cree Nation for refusing to “address” a problem with Manitoba Hydro by accepting a deal which puts them in a worse situation than the one they already face! However many dollars are spent “addressing” issues with Pimicikamak Cree Nation, Manitoba Hydro can't claim it has done true justice and expect clear-minded Minnesotans to swallow that.
Diane J. Peterson
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Editor’s Note:
The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission must approve the renewal of the Xcel/Manitoba Hydro contract in order for it to go into effect. Before the approval takes place, Pimicikamak Cree Nation has asked for a “contested case hearing, “a trial presided over by a Minnesota State Administrative Law Judge. It's hoped that such a hearing will establish all
the facts of the situation which the PUC has not yet fully considered. Not only may the PUC deny a contested case hearing, it also has the power to immediately approve the Manitoba Hydro contract. Dec. 19 is the last day in 2002 the PUC will make any decisions about energy utility matters.
The meeting begins at 9:30 a.m. and takes place at the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission, 121 7th Place East, St. Paul, 651-296-0406. Send Comments to Dr. Burl Haar, the Executive Secretary of the Minnesota PUC via fax, 651-297-7073 or e-mail burl.haar@state.mn.us. A meeting agenda is available at http://www.puc.state.mn.us/calendar/index.htm.
Everyone who opposes the contract and/or supports Pimicikamak Cree Nation should try to attend or send a statement to be read to the Commissioners by a volunteer.
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