by jboullion | Aug 25, 2010 | Uncategorized
From a news release issued by the Department of Workforce Development:
PARK FALLS – Department of Workforce Development (DWD) Secretary Roberta Gassman today announced a $463,488 Wisconsin Industry Partnership grant to train workers for biofuel production in Northern Wisconsin, further advancing Governor Doyle’s agenda to grow the state’s clean energy economy.
“This training grant is another example of Governor Doyle’s strategic investments to help Wisconsin create jobs and seize the opportunity to be a leader in the clean energy economy,” Secretary Gassman said. “These funds will help ensure that workers will be job ready as the biofuels industry expands in northern Wisconsin.”
Secretary Gassman awarded the grant to the Northwest Wisconsin Workforce Investment Board, DWD’s regional partner that proposed the Bio-Energy Sector Training project. The board worked with 15 employers in the biofuel, logging and paper production sector, including Flambeau River Papers, which will be powered by the new Flambeau River BioFuels bio-refinery plant once it is operational in 2013.
Through the grant, current employees and unemployed or underemployed workers will receive training in technology covering areas such as biomass harvesting and management. Chemical plant and system operators, chemists and first-line supervisors are among the jobs that will be supported through the 12-month grant project. With over $490,000 in local matching resources, total funding for the training project will surpass $900,000.
by jboullion | Jul 26, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an editorial in the Wausau Daily Herald:
The debate about the proposed Rothschild biomass plant has at times been a heated one. The proposal would pair a biomass-fueled We Energies electric plant with the existing Domtar paper mill in Rothschild.
The citizens’ group that opposes building that plant, Save Our Air Resources, or SOAR, has at times been openly confrontational toward those its members perceive as wanting to stifle that debate — or those who simply disagree with them.
But SOAR has forced a public conversation about the plant, and that is a good thing.
That conversation continues in today’s Wausau Daily Herald, which includes an in-depth look at the questions raised by biomass opponents, as well as a discussion of the projected benefits — economic and environmental — of the plant.
The Daily Herald’s Editorial Board has met with representatives from We Energies, Domtar and SOAR. We have editorialized in favor of a thorough study of the plant’s environmental impact. We’re proud that the paper has provided a thorough look at the pros and cons of the project.
On balance, we continue to see the substantial, concrete benefits of this project as outweighing the costs, at least some of which seem to have been overstated by biomass opponents.
by jboullion | Jul 23, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Kathleen Foody in the Wausau Daily Herald:
ROTHSCHILD — The mood at the open house hosted by We Energies on Thursday about a proposed biomass plant in Rothschild was calm, though discussion about the project has become heated.
About 110 residents attended the sessions, one each in the afternoon and evening, at the Holiday Inn in Rothschild. Staff from We Energies and Domtar stood near displays and video monitors, explaining the plant plan and its effects on the community.
The proposal to burn woody biomass as fuel to create electricity for sale by the Milwaukee energy company and steam to power the Domtar paper mill is pending before the Wisconsin Public Service Commission. Since the plant was proposed in September 2009, We Energies has tried to get ahead of critics with direct mailings, community meetings and door-to-door consultations.
Many residents who attended the Thursday meetings said they were undecided or in favor of the $250 million project and felt satisfied with answers to their questions about air quality, jobs and traffic around the plant.
“I want to make sure it’s safe. My grandkids attend (Rothschild Elementary School) across the street (from the mill),” Andy Champine of Weston said. “I walked in neutral to get the facts.”
Barry McNulty, a spokesman for We Energies at the event, said the company was pleased with turnout and the questions posed.
“No one particular issue stood out,” he said. “Residents asked very similar questions (as at the February open house), and we tried to give them a better understanding of what we do and how we do it.”
Rob Hughes, a member of Save Our Air Resources, a citizen group that has opposed the plant, said he applauded the open house events. But he’s not satisfied with We Energies’ responses to his requests for specific information on air quality if the plant is constructed.
by jboullion | Jun 30, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Kathleen Foody in the Wausau Daily Herald:
ROTHSCHILD — An environmental advocacy giant has entered the fray surrounding a proposed biomass power plant in Rothschild.
The Sierra Club’s Wisconsin Clean Energy Campaign and the Clean Wisconsin advocacy group this week asked the state’s Public Service Commission to complete an assessment of all the ways the plant could affect the local environment, from noise to potential air or water pollutants.
The biomass plant was proposed by Milwaukee-based We Energies and the Domtar paper mill, where the plant would be built. The $250 million project isn’t subject to an automatic environmental impact statement under state statute, but the Sierra Club and Clean Wisconsin argued in their request that the commission should perform a study anyway.
Jennifer Feyerherm, director of the campaign, said the organization isn’t taking a position for or against the plant, but said a study will provide useful information about the project.
“If we’re going to make decisions about how we create the energy we use, we need as much information as possible,” Feyerherm said.
The Public Service Commission still is in the process of conducting its own environmental evaluation to determine whether a formal study is necessary.
Requests for a study before the commission’s own review is completed are premature, Brian Manthey, spokesman for We Energies, said.
“We continue to provide whatever the commission needs for their environmental assessment,” Manthey said.
by jboullion | Jun 9, 2010 | Uncategorized
From an article by Kevin Murphy in the Wausau Daily Herald:
MADISON — D.C. Everest Area School District wants to be more involved in decision-making on a proposed $250 million biomass power plant planned in Rothschild.
In a letter to the Wisconsin Public Service Commission dated Monday, Milwaukee attorney William Mulligan asked that the district be granted “intervenor” status, which would allow district representatives to see all communications in the case.
In her affidavit filed with the PSC, Superintendent Kristine Gilmore said the district should be involved in the case because it is obligated to protect the health and safety of its 5,702 students, 720 teachers and staff in 11 schools.
“Rothschild Elementary School is within one half mile and D.C. Everest Junior High School is within one mile of the site of the biomass-fired cogeneration plant Wisconsin Electric Power Company proposes to build in Rothschild,” she wrote in the affidavit.
