tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58584577862418597452024-02-06T22:53:36.323-06:00Contested LandscapesAn anthropologist documenting the social, economic, and environmental impacts of frac sand minesAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-64997990607140577072018-05-10T10:02:00.002-05:002018-05-10T10:09:23.972-05:00How Fracking’s Appetite for Sand Is Devouring Rural CommunitiesLast week I published an essay in SAPIENS titled "How Fracking’s Appetite for Sand Is Devouring Rural Communities." It draws on material <a href="https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/when-the-hills-are-gone">from my book</a> and describes how frac sand mining has upended some people's lives in Dovre, Wisconsin.<br />
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Their stories highlight the deep emotional distress that occurs when connections to place and community are suddenly ruptured.<br />
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The essay is accompanied by a photo slideshow. You can find it here:<br />
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Thomas W. Pearson, "<a href="https://www.sapiens.org/culture/fracking-rural-wisconsin/">How Fracking’s Appetite for Sand Is Devouring Rural Communities</a>," SAPIENS, May 4, 2018.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi89BCu7xpPhYfN6e0rGjARjBun78-MDVIcDfRkX9bS_OynaE8h9Y5kUViNWlLoT0C3V2tHzFiTs_bl7s0sYzAaesS18K4-uCQD6j8j9Hk7Ta15_uIhm93PNC0ftPQ8qt4wPT1zk-0Szo8/s1600/screenshot-www.sapiens.org+2018.05.10+09-59-22.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="922" data-original-width="1243" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi89BCu7xpPhYfN6e0rGjARjBun78-MDVIcDfRkX9bS_OynaE8h9Y5kUViNWlLoT0C3V2tHzFiTs_bl7s0sYzAaesS18K4-uCQD6j8j9Hk7Ta15_uIhm93PNC0ftPQ8qt4wPT1zk-0Szo8/s400/screenshot-www.sapiens.org+2018.05.10+09-59-22.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #0000ee;"><u>https://www.sapiens.org/culture/fracking-rural-wisconsin/</u></span></td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-47164423585732921372018-02-05T10:45:00.000-06:002018-02-05T10:45:03.670-06:00Spring '18 Book Discussions & Presentations Now that <i><a href="https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/when-the-hills-are-gone">When the Hills Are Gone</a></i> is officially making its way out into the world, I'm honored to have the opportunity to give a few presentations and participate in some discussions about the book. Here's a list of some of the events lined up between now and early April.<br />
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<b>Events</b><br />
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February 22 - <a href="https://liveuwstout.sharepoint.com/sites/2022/068/PublishingImages/Pages/Calendar-of-Events/2018%20Feb%20-%20Tom%20Pearson%20Public.pdf?slrid=dd8e479e-f01d-5000-3eec-54240833f90c">Book presentation and discussion</a> @ University of Wisconsin-Stout, Jarvis Hall Science Wing room 112, starting at 7pm, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/879768495516759/">sponsored by the Honors College</a>. Event is free and open to the public.<br />
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February 28 - Presentation, "Wisconsin's Sand Mining Wars: Confronting Corporate Power Along the Fracking Commodity Chain," Department of Sociology and Anthropology, West Virginia University, 12:00pm, Mountainlair.<br />
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March 5 - Book presentation and discussion @ <a href="http://www.chippewafallslibrary.org/node/633">Chippewa Falls Public Library</a>, 105 West Central Street, starting at 7pm. Event is <a href="https://volumeone.org/events/2018/03/05/255385_booktalk_with_thomas_w_pearson_when_the_hills_are">free and open to the public</a>.<br />
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March 22 - Presentation at the Wisconsin County Code Administrators Spring Conference, Stoney Creek Inn, Mosinee, WI, starting at 12:30pm.<br />
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April 6 - Participant on round table discussion, "Extraction: Narratives and Action," <a href="https://www.sfaa.net/annual-meeting/">Society for Applied Anthropology annual conference</a>, Philadelphia, 3:30-5:20pm.<br />
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April 13 - Invited to deliver the 2018 <a href="http://dces.wisc.edu/news/slesinger/">Doris P. Slesinger Lecture</a>, Department of Community & Environmental Sociology, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Details TBA.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-21984836504161992802018-01-26T12:13:00.000-06:002018-01-29T16:19:52.758-06:00Interviews and book publicity The November 2017 publication of <i>When the Hills Are Gone </i>garnered some media attention locally and beyond, and I've had the pleasure of giving a few interviews about the book.<br />
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Prior to the book's publication, I was interviewed by Erik Ness for the story "<a href="http://progressive.org/magazine/communities-take-the-lead-in-battling-frac-sand-mines/">Communities Take the Lead in Battling Frac Sand Mines</a>," which was published in The Progressive (May 23, 2017).<br />
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Also before publication, I spoke about my research and book in <a href="http://cultureandagriculture.americananthro.org/2017/06/menagerie-post-three/">an interview with Culture and Agriculture</a> (June 18, 2017), which sponsors the academic journal that published my first article about frac sand mining.<br />
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Not long after the book came out, I spent an hour talking with Jerry Poling from UW-Stout's University Communications. He wrote an excellent article titled "<a href="http://www.uwstout.edu/spotlight/Professors-book-goes-inside-the-fight-against-Wisconsin-sand-mines.cfm">Frac-tured hills: Professor's book goes inside the fight against Wisconsin sand mines</a>." It was carried by several local and west-central Wisconsin newspapers, including the <a href="http://cvpost.org/Communitysupportedjournalism/when-the-hills-are-gone/">CVPost.org</a> (Nov. 22, 2017), the <a href="http://chippewa.com/news/local/frac-tured-hills-professor-s-book-goes-inside-the-fight/article_b2296d14-b850-5e75-a397-35e012ea1892.html">Dunn County News</a> (Chippewa Herald) (Nov. 25-26, 2017), the <a href="http://www.chetekalert.com/news/community_news/article_8a65856a-d511-11e7-9f4d-bb466e634719.html">Chetek Alert</a> (Nov. 29, 2017), the Leader-Telegram (Dec. 3, 2017), the <a href="http://www.apg-wi.com/spooner_advocate/free/uw-professor-s-book-goes-inside-the-fight-against-wisconsin/article_a8b6aa42-da95-11e7-ab2b-a7aa5f306ac3.html">Spooner Advocate</a> (Dec. 6, 2017), and possibly others.<br />
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In addition to local newspapers, I had my one minute of fame on the evening television news. I was interviewed by Emma Wheeler for News 18 WQOW Eau Claire, and <a href="http://www.wqow.com/story/37020943/2017/12/Thursday/uw-stout-professor-highlights-social-impact-of-chippewa-valley-frac-sand-mines">a brief segment</a> aired on December 7, 2017 (unfortunately, the video is no longer posted).<br />
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Beyond western Wisconsin, I was invited to be a guest on Wisconsin Public Radio's The Morning Show (Dec. 11, 2017), and <a href="https://www.wpr.org/shows/frac-sand-mining-and-struggle-community">spent the 8am hour discussing frac sand mining</a> with host Kate Archer Kent and callers.<br />
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Lastly (so far?), I was interviewed by Jason Zasky for <a href="http://failuremag.com/article/when-the-hills-are-gone">a feature in the online publication Failure Magazine</a> (Jan 19, 2018).<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-13580427888904401472017-11-06T14:27:00.001-06:002017-11-06T14:33:00.566-06:00It's out! When the Hills Are GoneYes, it's finally here! After a long and sometimes intense process, <a href="https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/when-the-hills-are-gone" target="_blank">When the Hills Are Gone</a> was released in print last week.<br />
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When all is said and done, this book project lasted over five years from the start of research to the end product. Research began in early 2012 and I started putting pen to paper while the fieldwork was ongoing, publishing an article in 2013. I drafted a formal book proposal and three sample chapters in early 2015. After positive feedback from three university presses all interested in the project, I signed a contract with the University of Minnesota Press in September 2015. I then delivered a full manuscript by June of 2016 and a final manuscript by October of last year. I went through the copy edits in March and April of 2017, and then the final page proofs this past June and July. And now here it is:<br />
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<b>An overlooked part of fracking’s environmental impact becomes a window into the activists and industrial interests fighting for the future of energy production—and the fate of rural communities </b><br />
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WHEN THE HILLS ARE GONE: Frac Sand Mining and the Struggle for Community<br />
By Thomas W. Pearson<br />
University of Minnesota Press - November 2017<br />
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When the Hills Are Gone tells the story of Wisconsin’s sand mining wars. Providing on-the-ground accounts from both the mining industry and the concerned citizens who fought back, Thomas W. Pearson blends social theory, ethnography, stirring journalism, and his own passionate point of view to offer an essential chapter of Wisconsin’s history and an important episode in the national environmental movement.<br />
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<b>PRAISE FOR <i>WHEN THE HILLS ARE GONE</i>:</b><br />
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“Thomas W. Pearson takes us to the front lines of one of the great under-reported environmental issues in America today—how the fracking industry’s hunger for sand is impacting rural Wisconsin. His deep research and intimate portraits of people on all sides of the controversy make this an important and timely read for anyone concerned about our country’s environment, natural resources, and what happens when the needs of big business collide with those of ordinary citizens.” —Vince Beiser, journalist<br />
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"<i>When the Hills Are Gone</i> is a riveting, sobering story about local democracy at the whipped-around tail-end of the frack-driven oil and gas boom that has rocked the United States since the turn of the millennium. The writing is lively and reflective—deftly portraying the many micro-tactics through which local democracy can be undercut and the many kinds of people working against this in rural Wisconsin. This is critical reading for understanding contemporary politics on the ground."—Kim Fortun, University of California, Irvine<br />
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“A masterful blend of stories and scholarship that will be the definitive account of a major environmental justice issue. Thomas W. Pearson is fair-minded and unflinching as he traces the erasure of place and the scramble to salvage community and democracy.” —Adam Briggle, author of <i>A Field Philosopher’s Guide to Fracking</i><br />
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“The churning engine of the global energy economy always touches down in local places, sometimes to brutal effect. Thomas W. Pearson provides a compelling and deeply personal story of one such place, the sand hills of Wisconsin. Both an ethnography and a study of state and local politics, <i>When the Hills Are Gone</i> richly describes community divisions and sudden activism in places where disruptive environmental change is ongoing.” —Paul Robbins, director, Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison<br />
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<b>ABOUT THE AUTHOR:</b><br />
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Thomas W. Pearson is associate professor of anthropology and assistant director of the Honors College at the University of Wisconsin-Stout. His research has been published in American Anthropologist, Cultural Anthropology, American Ethnologist, Human Organization, and other academic journals. He lives in Menomonie, Wisconsin.<br />
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For more information, including the table of contents, <a href="https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/when-the-hills-are-gone" target="_blank">visit the book's webpage</a>:<br />
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<a href="https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/when-the-hills-are-gone">https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/when-the-hills-are-gone</a><br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-83384184929773693072017-10-09T08:42:00.000-05:002017-10-09T08:42:51.519-05:00STHA 2017 Annual Meeting<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;">
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<b>Effective Communication and Civic Engagement: </b></div>
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<b>Strategies, Techniques & Importance</b></div>
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<b><a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B4vKfC8KCXUCa0pBT1NwR3FneW1oVGhjVFhGcmVNZTFDVHln" target="_blank">Save the Hills Alliance 2017 Annual Meeting</a></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><span class="aBn" data-term="goog_224213940" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;"><br /></span></span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><span class="aBn" data-term="goog_224213940" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;">Saturday, October 21, 2017</span></span> – 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 9pt;">Roger Marten Community Center</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 9pt;">120 S. Franklin Street, Mondovi, WI</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 9pt;"> (Just South of US-10 in the City of Mondovi)</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Speaker, <b>LeAnn R. Ralph</b>, is a staff writer for the <i>Colfax Messenger</i> and the <i>Glenwood City Tribune Press Reporter.</i> She has been writing for newspapers for 20 years and also has written for the <i>Dunn County News</i>, the <i>Country Today</i> and the <i>Janesville Gazette</i>. LeAnn earned an undergraduate degree in English with a writing emphasis from UW-Whitewater, and she earned a Master of Arts in Teaching from UW-Whitewater. LeAnn is the author of five books of true stories about growing up on a small family dairy farm in West Central Wisconsin. She has been covering frac sand mines since the first mine in this area was proposed by Fairmount Minerals near Menomonie in 2006 and has written about proposals for sand mines, reclamation permits, environmental impacts, public hearings, conditional use permits, mine licensing agreements, the state Supreme Court decision regarding the Town of Cooks Valley, and boreholes. LeAnn also serves as a supervisor on the Otter Creek Town Board in Dunn County.</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Presentation:</span></i><span style="font-size: 10pt;"> <b>Communicating in a Democracy: Letters to the Editor and speaking to elected officials</b>. The four strands of the language arts — reading, writing, speaking and listening — are an important component of a participatory democracy. Writing Letters to the Editor for local newspapers, speaking during public comments sections of county boards, town boards, village boards and city councils and contacting state representatives and senators are an essential part of civic engagement. If you do not let elected officials know what you are thinking about a particular issue, such as frac sand mining, and how it will impact the environment, and your communities and neighborhoods, including roads and property values, they will not know their constituents’ positions. During this presentation you will learn more about communicating effectively through Letters to the Editor and will work on writing a letter. Editors love to publish letters from local residents on issues that will affect the community — with an emphasis on local, because they know their readers enjoy reading Letters to the Editor. Broadcasting a more generic Letter to the Editor to all 400+ newspapers in the state is not nearly as effective. During this presentation you will also learn more about communicating with elected officials — how to go about it, what to say and when to say it, and you will work on your own set of talking points that you can take to your next town board meeting, county board meeting or listening session of a state legislator. Let your voice be heard. Speak up!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"> Speaker, <b>Ken Tschumper</b>, is a retired dairy farmer who lives with his wife, Robin, near La Crescent, Minnesota on a farm his great grandparents homesteaded in 1867. He graduated from Winona State University in 1972 with a Degree in Biology. A life-long progressive Democrat, Ken has been involved in politics since the Vietnam War. He has served on the Governor’s Dairy Task Force, an Advisory Board to the Land Stewardship Project, and on the La Crescent Town Board. In 2006, Ken was elected to a term in the Minnesota Legislature. Among other committees, he served on the Health and Human Services Committee and was the chief author of the Minnesota Single Payer Healthcare bill, convincing 30 other members of the House to sign on as co-sponsors. He passed an update of the State Groundwater Protection Bill and was the only freshman legislator appointed to the Conference Committee for the Clean Indoor Air Act which eliminated smoking in public places and exposure to second hand smoke. In the last five years Ken and his wife, Robin, have spent their time and energy working to stop frac sand mining in southeastern Minnesota.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"> <i>Presentation: </i><b>We Need to Think Faster, Smarter and Bigger</b>. Ken’s presentation will focus on techniques for better communications to and for individuals, groups and the public, especially using some aspects of current technology. He feels strongly that the anti-frac sand mining movement and other progressive movements, as well, have the potential to be much more effective and produce much more positive results.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B4vKfC8KCXUCa0pBT1NwR3FneW1oVGhjVFhGcmVNZTFDVHln" target="_blank">Presented by Save the Hills Alliance (STHA), Inc.</a> </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-79544943630652993582017-10-04T14:53:00.002-05:002017-11-06T14:31:47.627-06:00CAFE InterviewOver four years ago I published "<a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cuag.12003/full" target="_blank">Frac Sand Mining in Wisconsin: Understanding Emerging Conflicts and Community Organizing</a>" in an academic journal called CAFE, which is sponsored by the <a href="http://cultureandagriculture.americananthro.org/about/" target="_blank">Culture and Agriculture</a> section of the <a href="http://www.americananthro.org/" target="_blank">American Anthropological Association</a>. The journal recently invited me to talk about what's been going on with my research since publication of the article. I was quite honored to do this and it was neat to reflect on how my work has evolved over the years, leading, ultimately, to <a href="https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/when-the-hills-are-gone" target="_blank">my book on frac sand mining</a>, which is set to come out next month.<br />
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The <a href="http://cultureandagriculture.americananthro.org/2017/06/menagerie-post-three/" target="_blank">interview is now on the Culture and Agriculture blog</a>. Here's my favorite line from the interview, which pretty much captures my vision for the book too: "I wrote this article with a general audience in mind and sought to minimize the theory sloganeering and nonsensical scholarly dribble that spoils so much of academic anthropology today."<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://cultureandagriculture.americananthro.org/2017/06/menagerie-post-three/" target="_blank">Full interview is available on the Culture and Agriculture blog</a></td></tr>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-52604947004919569042017-07-31T14:25:00.000-05:002017-08-01T12:01:27.265-05:00Sand mining growth in TexasA recent <a href="http://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/energy/article/Has-fracking-reached-peak-sand-11419968.php" target="_blank">Houston Chronicle report</a> explains that booming Permian Basin oil production in Texas is fueling demand for frac sand. It claims that the "largest wells now consume up to 25,000 tons" of sand, or 50 million pounds each, up from 1,500 tons several years ago. More sand has typically meant more productivity when a well is fracked.<br />
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Availability of sand, however, is temporarily limited. Due to high transportation costs, companies such as Fairmount Santrol, Hi-Crush, Smart Sand, Preferred Sand, U.S. Silica, and Emerge Energy -- all active in recent years in western Wisconsin -- are opening new mines or expanding existing operations in Texas.<br />
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Although "northern white sand" from Wisconsin is considered to be higher quality, "Texas brown sand" is "cheaper and closer."<br />
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Energy companies such as Halliburton also claim they are "developing injection chemicals that can help increase the oil flow from wells as opposed to simply blasting more sand."<br />
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The report quotes industry analysts, however, who believe that fracking will still require increasing amounts of sand.<br />
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See <a href="http://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/energy/article/Has-fracking-reached-peak-sand-11419968.php" target="_blank">Jordan</a> <a href="http://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/energy/article/Has-fracking-reached-peak-sand-11419968.php" target="_blank">Blum, "Has fracking reached peak sand?," Houston Chronicle, July 25, 2017.</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-27334295096137575252017-07-12T16:27:00.001-05:002017-07-14T09:17:09.058-05:00Glenn Stoddard, 1958-2017<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I was very saddened to learn that Glenn Stoddard passed away last month after a recurrence of Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. Stoddard was an environmental and civil rights lawyer who represented many citizens and grassroots groups fighting against the expansion of frac sand mining in their communities.<br />
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Prior to opening Stoddard Law Office in 2005 in Eau Claire, Stoddard practiced law in Madison with <a href="http://journaltimes.com/news/local/ed-garvey-lawyer-who-led-nfl-players-union-dies-at/article_c6435234-95aa-5196-aa01-bf8ec2007bfe.html" target="_blank">Ed Garvey</a>, who was known, among other things, as the founder of Fighting Bob Fest, an annual event celebrating Wisconsin's progressive political traditions. For many years, Garvey and Stoddard, S.C. was one of the most influential civil rights and environmental law firms in Wisconsin.<br />
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As frac sand mining emerged and matured as an issue, Stoddard spoke frequently at public forums and helped educate concerned citizens and local officials about the tools available to regulate or deter frac sand mining. At at time when many area law firms cultivated ties to the ballooning frac sand industry, Stoddard was viewed as an independent, trustworthy community advocate and defender of the environment.<br />
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In relation to frac sand mining, Stoddard was probably best known for developing a nonmetallic mining licensing ordinance for Cooks Valley in 2008, an unzoned township in Chippewa County. After drafting what was then an innovative ordinance, he assisted in defending the town when it was sued by mining interests. In the 2012 landmark decision of <a href="https://www.wicourts.gov/sc/opinion/DisplayDocument.pdf?content=pdf&seqNo=77767" target="_blank">Zwiefelhofer v. Town of Cooks Valley</a>, the Wisconsin Supreme Court upheld the right of towns to regulate frac sand mining through such licensing ordinances. The ruling was a significant juncture in what remains an ongoing battle over the rights of local communities when confronting harmful land-use practices introduced by powerful corporate interests.<br />
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In addition to his work on frac sand mining issues, Stoddard also formed part of the legal team opposing the Gogebic Taconite Mine in the Penokees and he was involved in <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LxIX4kAXoWE0hJDw89vaadUbUaKULq0njXu-XadfmGtXqxMFy4gjMfzKCCS-3vxWsuNRz9Rd_xR2KQ2t/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">many other prominent environmental cases</a>. Stoddard's obituary, which he wrote in his final days, was published in the <a href="http://www.apg-wi.com/ashland_daily_press/obituaries/glenn-mcdonald-mac-stoddard/article_bdbcacc4-5ba2-11e7-af96-af115ed38f56.html" target="_blank">Ashland Daily Press</a> and the <a href="http://ecweb.libercus.net/obituaries/2017/06/28/Glenn-Stoddard.html" target="_blank">Eau Claire Leader-Telegram</a>.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-32319032513904330012017-04-28T08:35:00.002-05:002017-04-29T01:07:40.665-05:00Coming soon: When the Hills Are GoneI'm very excited to announce the forthcoming publication of my book on grassroots activism and frac sand mining in Wisconsin! Titled "<a href="https://www.upress.umn.edu/book-division/books/when-the-hills-are-gone" target="_blank">When the Hills Are Gone: Frac Sand Mining and the Struggle for Community</a>," it will be published by the University of Minnesota Press in November 2017. It is now listed on their webpage.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-5965129813946747732016-12-13T09:01:00.000-06:002016-12-14T11:31:10.911-06:00Winona County, MN, frac sand banEven with the recent lull in the regional frac sand market, Winona County, in Minnesota, recently adopted an ordinance that bans further development of industrial sand mining operations.<br />
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<li>Karen Zamora and Josephine Marcotty, "<a href="http://www.startribune.com/winona-county-passes-frac-sand-ban-first-in-the-state-to-take-such-a-stand/402569295/" target="_blank">Winona County passes frac sand ban, first in the state to take such a stand</a>," StarTribune, November 22, 2016. </li>
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Frac sand mining has been a contentious issue in Winona for several years and the ban represents an assertion of local control. Members of the Land Stewardship Project (LSP), a Minnesota-based non-profit, had pushed for the ban since June of 2015. According to <a href="http://landstewardshipproject.org/posts/897" target="_blank">a statement by the LSP</a>:<br />
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"The County Board passed the ban by a 3-2 vote in the form of an amendment to Winona County’s existing zoning ordinance. It prohibits any new operations for the production of industrial minerals, including the silica sand used in hydraulic fracturing."<br />
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The ban comes amid signs that frac sand mining may begin to intensify once again following a two-year downturn.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-46509655464902399652016-12-06T08:46:00.005-06:002016-12-06T08:47:49.417-06:00Sand Mines ReopeningHere's another report from last week on the expected rebound of demand for frac sand. According to the article, "Wisconsin frac sand producers say they are poised for another sand boom after an agonizing two-year lull." Some industry folk anticipate returning to 2014 production levels next year.<br />
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However, not all observers are so optimistic.<br />
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"Oil industry analytical firm IHS is a little more guarded in its predictions for the frac sand market in 2017. Managing Director Samir Nangia expects demand to grow by 15 percent per year. The most recent IHS ProppantIQ report states there are around 20 idled sand mines in the U.S., most of them in Wisconsin, accounting for 26 million tons of idled frac sand production capacity."<br />
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See the full article: Rich Kremer, "<a href="http://www.wpr.org/wisconsin-frac-sand-producers-bullish-about-market-rebound" target="_blank">Wisconsin Frac Sand Producers Bullish About Market Rebound</a>," WPR, December 1, 2016.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-30951887242660320892016-12-05T09:36:00.000-06:002016-12-06T08:47:58.108-06:00Signs of a come back? Stock for frac sand companies appears to have risen in value following indications that OPEC intends to cut production, thereby triggering increased demand for U.S. fracking. Is this the dawn of a new phase of frac sand mining development in Wisconsin?<br />
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As one observer notes, "Frack sand could be a very interesting industry as we head into 2017 and beyond. Many of the advances in shale drilling in recent years -- drilling longer horizontal portions of wells, doing more fracking stages per linear foot of horizontal well, and using more sand per individual fracking stage -- all point to sand volumes growing at a pace much faster than overall drilling activity."</div>
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For the full discussion, see:<br />
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<li>Tyler Crowe, "<a href="http://www.fool.com/investing/2016/11/30/shares-of-frack-sand-suppliers-explode-after-today.aspx" target="_blank">Shares of Frack Sand Suppliers Explode After Today's OPEC Announcement</a>," The Motley Fool, November 30, 2016. </li>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-25725166588444801012016-10-05T11:03:00.000-05:002016-10-05T11:04:19.833-05:00Save the Hills Alliance, Annual Meeting - Oct. 29, 2016<b style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;">Fifth Annual Meeting Event Announcement - <span class="aBn" data-term="goog_766291658" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;">Sat., October 29, 2016</span></span></b><br />
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<b>1</b><b>:00 p.m. to <span class="aBn" data-term="goog_766291659" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;">3:30 p.m.</span></span> - Veteran's Center - Menomonie, WI</b><br />
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<b>Save The Hills Alliance, Inc. - <a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B4vKfC8KCXUCNk9GQ3VaQWpXMV9VUzNaQnpfMUxqeDRvMGtZ" target="_blank">FLYER ATTACHED</a></b></div>
<b><br /></b><i>This year's program will concentrate on the social impacts of frac sand mining and quality of life, as well as the role that citizens play in public policy as it relates to regulatory oversight and protection of their communities.</i><br />
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<i>Speakers - THOMAS W. PEARSON, Associate Professor of Anthropology in the Social Science Department at the University of Wisconsin-Stout in Menomonie, WI, and KIMBERLEE WRIGHT, Attorney and Executive Director of Midwest Environmental Advocates in Madison, WI.</i><br />
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Speaker, Thomas W. Pearson, received his PhD from the State University of New York at Binghamton and has conducted extensive research in Central America on environmental activism. He has been researching the social dimensions of frac sand mining in the area for the past four years, particularly grassroots activism and community-level conflicts. He is currently working on a book, tentatively titled, <i>When the Hills Are Gone: Frac Sand Mining and the Struggle for Place, Community, and Democracy, </i>which will be published in 2017 by the University of Minnesota Press.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt; line-height: 17.6333px;"></span>Speaker, Kimberlee Wright, received her law degree and a BS in rural sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and she has worked statewide in the public interest on issues ranging from elder law, environmental protection, conservation, and support for people affected by family violence. She has served as the director of conservation programs for The Nature Conservancy and executive director for Domestic Abuse Intervention Services, and she has managed a statewide grant program for land trusts working in partnership with the DNR to protect critical habitat and natural areas. </div>
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Our speakers will be introduced by Dave Carlson. Dave is known from his long running TV series, "Northland Adventures" and "Northland Outdoors." Dave has received many awards for his conservation journalism. He will also moderate a period of questions and answers.<br />
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We will also present a short preview of Jim Tittle's upcoming documentary, "Promise in the Sand," which will take a look at what really happened after the frac sand boom hit Minnesota and Wisconsin as depicted in his 2013 documentary, "The Price of Sand."</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-37860405977839968282016-03-01T09:11:00.002-06:002016-03-01T09:15:45.057-06:00Frac Sand Mining and the Disruption of Place, Landscape, and Community in WisconsinI'm very pleased to share an article which was just published by <i>Human Organization</i>, a peer-reviewed journal of the Society for Applied Anthropology. The article is based on in-depth interviews and examines the impact of frac sand mining on people's sense of community, quality of life, and place. Please feel free to contact me if you would like a PDF copy of the article or if you have any comments.<br />
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<i>Article Citation:</i><br />
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Thomas W. Pearson (2016) <a href="https://www.academia.edu/21740285/Frac_Sand_Mining_and_the_Disruption_of_Place_Community_and_Landscape_in_Wisconsin" target="_blank">Frac Sand Mining and the Disruption of Place, Landscape, and Community in Wisconsin</a>. <a href="http://sfaajournals.net/doi/abs/10.17730/0018-7259-75.1.47" target="_blank">Human Organization</a>: Spring 2016, Vol. 75, No. 1, pp. 47-58.<br />
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<i>Abstract:</i><br />
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Driven by hydraulic fracturing, sand mining has expanded rapidly in western Wisconsin, with hundreds of mining operations appearing over the past several years. Silica sand is extracted from hills and then shipped by rail around the country, where it is pumped under high pressure with water and chemicals into oil and gas wells. An often overlooked dimension of America's unconventional energy boom, the growth of sand mining in Wisconsin has been incredibly divisive, generating wealth for some lucky landowners while creating new environmental hazards for others. This article documents how people experience mining-related changes and conflicts, drawing on ethnographic interviews with residents living next to mines, processing plants, and hauling routes. While not everyone experiences mining equally, I argue that people grappling with a sudden influx of mining activity suffer significant disruptions that erode their sense of place and belonging. These experiences, however, are rarely taken into account by policymakers, local officials, or others seeking to evaluate the costs and benefits of frac sand mining. This omission underscores the need for ethnographic research to deepen our understanding of how people are impacted by new resource extraction industries.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-15593616077270153582016-02-11T16:39:00.001-06:002016-02-11T16:40:19.342-06:00Health Impact Assessment The Institute for Wisconsin's Health, Inc. (IWHI), a non-profit, recently released a "<a href="http://www.instituteforwihealth.org/hia.html" target="_blank">Health Impact Assessment of Industrial Sand Mining in Western Wisconsin</a>." The report was produced in collaboration with 15 local and tribal health departments and summarizes existing research addressing air quality, water resources, land reclamation, and quality of life. <br />
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It was quickly noted by local media that the report <a href="http://www.postbulletin.com/news/local/report-downplays-frac-sand-link-to-health-troubles/article_b3023c6c-fe74-5028-a7a4-6238fa035eaa.html" target="_blank">downplays health concerns related to silica dust</a>, one of the more contentious environmental health issues raised by frac sand mining. The report concludes that as currently regulated it is unlikely that people living near frac sand operations will be exposed to respirable crystalline silica.<br />
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<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCQWNDMjVjdURHdklIcGdJMmZuQk5qR3NOSnhN/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Midwest Environmental Advocates (MEA)</a>, an organization that has advocated for stricter regulations of frac sand mining, <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCNWFkTGtHTllxLTJ2T0FJYUlNZVpXc1F1LVRZ/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">criticized the IWHI report</a> for relying on industry-sponsored studies that focus primarily on larger PM10 particles. Findings from a study being conducted by Dr. Crispin Pierce, director of UW-Eau Claire's environmental public health program, were not addressed in the IWHI report. Pierce's study, recently published in the Journal of Environmental Quality, focuses on smaller PM2.5 particles. His study has found elevated levels of PM2.5 particles near frac sand operations. MEA also criticized the IWHI report for ignoring the potentially higher risk presented in localized settings where multiple frac sand operations are clustered.<br />
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While the issue of air quality has received significant attention, the IWHI report also suggests that frac sand mining is likely to affect people's quality of life, disrupting their sense of place and cultural heritage. The report is rather vague in its findings, however.<br />
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The impact of frac sand mining on quality of life and sense of place is a question addressed in my own research, which, coincidentally, I discuss in an article that will be published in the next few weeks entitled "Frac Sand Mining and the Disruption of Place, Landscape, and Community in Wisconsin," <i>Human Organization</i>, 75(1). I will be sure to post that article when it finally appears in print.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-86953934531485677412015-11-04T06:06:00.000-06:002015-11-04T06:15:30.169-06:00Save the Hills Alliance: Event on Reclamation<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">
<b style="font-size: x-large;">Perspectives on Prairie, Forest, and Farmland</b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Reclamation, Restoration, and Mitigation</b></span></div>
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Saturday, November 7, 2015 – 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.</div>
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Veteran’s Center of Menomonie</div>
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E4710 Co. Rd. BB, Menomonie, WI</div>
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(1 mile North of I-94 on State Hwy. 25)</div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">Speaker, <b>Dan Masterpole</b>, is the County Conservationist and the Dept. Director of the Chippewa County, Wisconsin, Department of Land Conservation & Forest Management. Dan holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Urban and Regional Studies from Minnesota State University-Mankato, and graduate degrees in Water Resources Management and Soil Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dan will lay out the basic rules and regulations of local and state laws related to reclamation standards.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">Our <i>Keynote Speaker</i>,<b> Katherine Denning, </b>is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Kansas. She has conducted research in the fields of plant </span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">conservation, plant evolution, and plant and insect ecology. Kathy will discuss her current work, which </span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">focuses on assessing the extent to which tall grass prairie habitat reconstruction can restore communities of native insect pollinators.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">Speaker, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Katie Himanga</span>, has a degree in forest resources from the University of Minnesota and is a </span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">Certified Forester. She served as mayor of the City of Lake City, Minnesota, from 2004-2008 and recently </span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">served on the Minnesota Silica Sand Rule-Making Advisory Panel. Katie will focus on rehabilitating </span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">mining sites, what you need to know about reclamation plans, natural and cultural resources, what to </span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">advocate for during the permitting process, and what to watch for once mining is underway. Katie will </span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">explain how modern, science-based rehabilitation goes beyond stable and green slopes and considers </span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">restoration of ecological function and landscape character.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">A question and answer session will follow with the presenters.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">This year’s program will be a science-based course on the pros and cons of prairie, forest, and farmland </span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">reclamation and restoration.</span></span></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-34866294072697068892014-11-07T07:57:00.004-06:002014-11-07T15:21:27.196-06:00What's $80,000 to a frac sand mine? For some people, it's a house. For others, it's a car... or two. Or maybe student loan debt. For some frac sand mines, it's a few hours, if that.<br />
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Last month Alpine Sand, operating near Arcadia, in Trempealeau County, was <a href="http://www.jsonline.com/news/wisconsin/sand-mining-company-fined-80000-for-violating-storm-water-laws-b99374631z1-279809662.html">fined $80,000 for violating storm water regulations</a>. Their facility was originally cited by the DNR in October 2012 for mismanaging storm water. Then sand and sediment washed into a tributary of Newcomb Valley Creek on multiple occasions in 2013.<br />
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What does $80,000 mean to a frac sand mine?<br />
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According to <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/corporate-intelligence/2014/04/30/fracking-sends-sand-sales-soaring/">the Wall Street Journal</a>, in April the going rate for frac sand was $56 per ton (not including transportation or handling costs). We know that Alpine Sand is <a href="http://www.tremplocounty.com/landmanagement/MineInfo_Pub.htm">permitted to haul 180 loads a day</a> from this particular mine. If we assume that one truckload typically carries about 20 tons (a figure I have heard for other operations), then we might estimate that Alpine Sand moves about 3,600 tons per day.<br />
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That means they move about $201,600 worth of sand, daily. If they operate every day, that's $1,411,200 per week. Eighty grand doesn't seem to represent a very big dent in their revenue stream.<br />
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What does such a modest fine mean for frac sand mining in general? Well, the Wall Street Journal recently boasted about a Texas-based investment firm <a href="http://online.wsj.com/articles/small-firm-strikes-it-rich-with-fracking-sand-1410801465">striking it rich with Wisconsin frac sand</a>, scoring gains of $1.4 billion on a $91 million investment. Read that again. $1.4 billion. Billion.<br />
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I wonder if an $80,000 fine will really encourage these out-of-state billionaires to take environmental standards seriously?<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-20271179518185269522014-07-18T16:06:00.001-05:002014-07-19T06:27:12.958-05:00Flying Kites and Photographing Mines with Public Lab<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3bmRsbRt-wmLYqGJ3HOd9deyS9gT1KVX1FBZ3ifELW5vpBV3pzEthXVlo1fkWtyoDh9CFIIguEBmpHL3nXn1ydyihjxT4j_QzTn3UTdsqThxjABR1bZBBvGvh_jvVQ9NgowvWYPofDNA/s1600/IMG_2572_panorama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3bmRsbRt-wmLYqGJ3HOd9deyS9gT1KVX1FBZ3ifELW5vpBV3pzEthXVlo1fkWtyoDh9CFIIguEBmpHL3nXn1ydyihjxT4j_QzTn3UTdsqThxjABR1bZBBvGvh_jvVQ9NgowvWYPofDNA/s1600/IMG_2572_panorama.jpg" height="290" width="400" /></a></div>
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Last month we flew a kite and took aerial photographs of the Hi-Crush frac sand operation in Augusta, WI, using techniques developed by <a href="http://publiclab.org/">Public Lab</a>. The Public Laboratory for Open Technology and Science (Public Lab) is a community -- supported by a 501(c)3 non-profit -- which develops and applies open-source tools to environmental exploration and investigation. The tools allow ordinary citizens to engage in monitoring and research. Using kites or balloons, Public Lab has developed a easy-to-use system for taking aerial photographs, which has been utilized by communities in Peru to produce maps to support land tenure claims and by environmentalists and citizens in Louisiana to monitor the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill.<br />
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In brief, the technology entails rigging up a small digital camera to <a href="http://store.publiclab.org/collections/mapping">a kite or weather balloon</a> and then flying it over the site that you wish to photograph. Online, <a href="http://mapknitter.org/">open-source software</a> is available from Public Lab to stitch the photographs into an aerial map. A student and I decided to explore how this technology might be applied by citizens concerned about the rapid growth of frac sand mining. We collaborated with the Concerned Citizens of Bridge Creek and the Citizens for Environmental Stewardship, both based out of the Augusta area, and we were joined by two members of Public Lab who were touring the region to learn more about frac sand mining.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
We ended up spending the afternoon at a farm near the Hi-Crush operation. It was a very windy day, making it ideal for a kite (I also couldn't find helium to rent anywhere in the region, which ruled out the weather balloon... it may have been too windy for a balloon anyway). Our local contacts had already discussed our plans with several landowners in the area. Pesky wind conditions prevented us from launching the kite in a way to fly directly over the mine, so our Public Lab kite expert Matt Lippincott rigged up a camera for oblique shots. He has written about the more technical aspects of our experience on the <a href="http://publiclab.org/notes/mathew/06-25-2014/off-wind-kite-flying-redstone-rigging-in-augusta-wi">Public Lab blog</a>. The oblique perspective meant we couldn't use the photographs to construct an aerial map, but it still produced some impressive images.<br />
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As we flew the kite, curious Amish farmers and their children watched with great interest and chatted with us about their experiences living next to the Hi-Crush frac sand operation. The Amish community settled there over 35 years ago, drawn to the remote rural countryside. The <a href="http://www.wqow.com/story/20263015/2012/12/05/high-hopes-for-new-frac-sand-mining-facility">industrial frac sand mine opened two years ago</a> and includes a mine, conveyor belt, processing plant, and rail spur that produces over 1.5 million tons of sand per year. The mine operates all night long and generates a disturbing amount of light pollution. The conveyor belt, about fifty yards from several homes, runs nonstop and sounds like an idling semi tractor-trailer. Fugitive dust and small mounds of spilled sand accumulate below the conveyor every several feet. The blasting, which can occur weekly, sometimes rattles local homes. Hi-Crush has over a 1,000 acres of property and plans to operate for around thirty years.<br />
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Public Lab's balloon or kite photography technique is relatively inexpensive, is easy to learn, and can be deployed quickly. Among other applications, concerned citizens might utilize this technique to document the expansion of frac sand operations, to ensure compliance with land use or other regulations, or to monitor for potential hazards.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWYPxa0q3aidIMpACKMG_hh9gAgCa-rph9HfFZkEuJavYLfywlDQtRsl_dp6EZ02n7gqqSo9erwa40yRYjykVwrFoQDviejLxhnS70kwUmhtpzR3q5l2hWjq9Wj6a7vOq7XfKGy59O3rg/s1600/2014-06-18+13.33.40.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWYPxa0q3aidIMpACKMG_hh9gAgCa-rph9HfFZkEuJavYLfywlDQtRsl_dp6EZ02n7gqqSo9erwa40yRYjykVwrFoQDviejLxhnS70kwUmhtpzR3q5l2hWjq9Wj6a7vOq7XfKGy59O3rg/s1600/2014-06-18+13.33.40.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>UW-Stout Applied Social Science major Stephanie Hintz connects the camera rig to the kite string with Public Lab founder Matt Lippincott. Public Lab staff member Stevie Lewis snapped this picture.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhbSW76fyx7UnEVxiwqkJyw60SFlEIkBCNTCjZOyoh0MHarvWoPrGSu_L_bsCNHdUTGnZNRnBBJbhJf4YlJblFnatS7lYpv0FKFe-k2oMQgMXvhwGUpE4aVWPkwqcEB-0gA1lJ4UNH1KE/s1600/Group+at+Amish+farm+LR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhbSW76fyx7UnEVxiwqkJyw60SFlEIkBCNTCjZOyoh0MHarvWoPrGSu_L_bsCNHdUTGnZNRnBBJbhJf4YlJblFnatS7lYpv0FKFe-k2oMQgMXvhwGUpE4aVWPkwqcEB-0gA1lJ4UNH1KE/s1600/Group+at+Amish+farm+LR.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Public Lab staff member Stevie Lewis steps in to help Matt and Stephanie attach the camera rig to the kite string. This photograph was taken by UW-Eau Claire professor Jyl Kelley, who accompanied us for the day. </i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVhJ24WpNoCtMyYIeVG_fJzwO__EVnfTwd_tmU_4dVSiJtZUkUMmJQAqjhC2ycawCSd55Hd3FCMTkur213gUdZQ0_HTujlOw51EMmMBNwGUxKfMkeaj_PurACRvjtWIJgCIqxF1-lur4Q/s1600/kite+and+camera.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVhJ24WpNoCtMyYIeVG_fJzwO__EVnfTwd_tmU_4dVSiJtZUkUMmJQAqjhC2ycawCSd55Hd3FCMTkur213gUdZQ0_HTujlOw51EMmMBNwGUxKfMkeaj_PurACRvjtWIJgCIqxF1-lur4Q/s1600/kite+and+camera.png" height="357" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The kite with camera rig attached. Photo by Stevie Lewis.</i></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5hLlWq6GIcKiqftgnCO7pBpCM7CnUTravQlvc93lhyphenhyphen8vo_wV2I5YUrRrHOvZtrOd1jxAqxU-aC_hyphenhyphenQBPsB3FBY10GOztP_fsPtheEtU615m3AGuppeZ5JFC7Acrg5UO_lVVgjdhGadNg/s1600/IMG_2222.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5hLlWq6GIcKiqftgnCO7pBpCM7CnUTravQlvc93lhyphenhyphen8vo_wV2I5YUrRrHOvZtrOd1jxAqxU-aC_hyphenhyphenQBPsB3FBY10GOztP_fsPtheEtU615m3AGuppeZ5JFC7Acrg5UO_lVVgjdhGadNg/s1600/IMG_2222.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSAG8Do1j6d9P9fqIueEnPruVf8h2FCz2Mn4ZBImxJKXZ2lmCloyqAifnNOQcA3pkSdVQQ2FJ2RnR8-lDpS2QNOKxtq6Lgp2SWRcI7q95EEOtAynVSBNPnsoEx19WKH94i3a0oxD7CHnQ/s1600/IMG_2450.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSAG8Do1j6d9P9fqIueEnPruVf8h2FCz2Mn4ZBImxJKXZ2lmCloyqAifnNOQcA3pkSdVQQ2FJ2RnR8-lDpS2QNOKxtq6Lgp2SWRcI7q95EEOtAynVSBNPnsoEx19WKH94i3a0oxD7CHnQ/s1600/IMG_2450.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFRyspsbaAEVxv6b4xv2Tz9sjd4nx0LNNmfocHgmWueFhBm5dRdDzB1PNA5BRz6XbvB_xXnfJFAkQhjyCwknHOYxsuEVz715irhVzzx8cFrumvFsphqKOm6YP6auW5Ap47o6B3jMRzMPc/s1600/IMG_3240.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFRyspsbaAEVxv6b4xv2Tz9sjd4nx0LNNmfocHgmWueFhBm5dRdDzB1PNA5BRz6XbvB_xXnfJFAkQhjyCwknHOYxsuEVz715irhVzzx8cFrumvFsphqKOm6YP6auW5Ap47o6B3jMRzMPc/s1600/IMG_3240.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The digital camera was set to continuous shooting and snapped thousands of photographs. The three samples above show the Hi-Crush sand conveyor leading to the mine site. Photos taken by the Public Lab rainbow kite, June 18, 2014.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Later that evening, Matt quickly cut and paste some of the photos into a stunning panorama. Thanks, Matt! </i></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The day began with severe thunderstorms (not good for flying kites!), but by the afternoon the sun blasted through the clouds. Most of us took refuge in the shade as Stephanie and Matt, wisely sporting hats and sunglasses, expertly flew the kite. Photo by Stevie Lewis.</i></td></tr>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-43379496694180892602014-03-05T13:11:00.000-06:002014-03-07T17:02:01.595-06:00Resources for Understanding SB 632 / AB 816State lawmakers are once again discussing a proposed bill that would undermine local regulation of frac sand mining. On February 26, Senator Tiffany and Representative Ballweg introduced <a href="https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2013/related/proposals/sb632">Senate Bill 632</a> and Assembly Bill 816, which would restrict local governments from applying new regulations to existing frac sand operations. Legislators have moved quickly, holding a joint <a href="http://www.wiseye.org/Programming/VideoArchive/EventDetail.aspx?evhdid=8554">committee meeting days later</a> to gather testimony on the bill. Concerned citizens and others had less than a week to study the bill and raise questions, but dozens still appeared in Madison for a contentious committee hearing on Monday, March 3 (see reports on the hearing by <a href="http://www.thedailypage.com/daily/article.php?article=42197&sid=3d280bbc070ee5b1b7e6f1bb55c6a280">Isthmus </a>and <a href="http://www.wisconsinwatch.org/2014/03/03/new-frac-sand-bill-still-divides/">Wisconsin Watch</a>). The committee held a vote on Wednesday, March 5, <a href="http://www.leadertelegram.com/news/daily_updates/article_fbf5b7b9-9ae1-52c7-95ec-cb75fa58590f.html">approving the bill</a> and passing it on to the full senate.<br />
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Tiffany and Ballweg had also cosponsored SB 349 in October of 2013, which sought to eliminate the ability of local governments to pass ordinances to regulate frac sand mining as part of town police powers upheld by a 2012 Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling in the case <i>Zwiefelhofer v. Town of Cooks Valley</i>. SB 349 was met with fierce opposition and was not advanced.<br />
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The new legislation is more narrowly focused than SB 349. The recent SB 632 seeks to shield existing frac sand operations from new ordinances or license requirements, as long as they had been operating any time within the previous year. It also prohibits local governments from imposing new, more restrictive zoning ordinances on existing operations, and mine expansion would also be exempt from new ordinances. In addition, if landowners register their property as containing "marketable nonmetallic mineral deposits," then future ordinances cannot interfere with eventual mining activities.<br />
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<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCMEdCTUlfQTI1Tms0S2p3TV9Qa1hFdWVMeWxB/edit?usp=sharing">The lawmakers framed</a> SB 632 as "preserving property rights and protecting jobs." "I see this country as having two pillars that have really supported the great prosperity we have," <a href="http://www.leadertelegram.com/news/daily_updates/article_fbf5b7b9-9ae1-52c7-95ec-cb75fa58590f.html">Tiffany has said</a>. "One is the rule of law. The other is the right of private property. This is a very simple bill. It protects existing rights that people have." Proponents also argue that local ordinances amount to a patchwork of inconsistent regulations, and that state laws are needed to provide a predictable regulatory environment for industry.<br />
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Opponents argue that SB 632 is a gift to industry, merely another attempt to undermine local democratic control over nonmetallic mining and to restrict the ability of local government to protect people from a rapidly expanding industry. While the industry routinely claims that sand mining is "highly regulated," others worry about unknown environmental health risks and various other impacts. In a statement issued after the passage of the bill in committee, <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCZUZTZVhGZDdqRW8/edit">Senator Jauch wrote</a> that "sand mining industry leaders claimed the bill was necessary to give mining companies some assurances 'beyond the next local election.' Instead of proving why this bill is necessary, their comments only served to raise serious questions about why this industry is so fearful of democratic elections."<br />
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Over the last several days, numerous interpretations of the bill and statements about its implications have been circulating. Here are some resources that are critical of SB 632:<br />
<ul>
<li>"<a href="http://wisconsin.sierraclub.org/About/2.27.2014SB632PressRelease.asp">Sierra Club Opposes Tiffany's Latest Frac-Sand Mining Favors</a>." Press release, Sierra Club John Muir Chapter, February 27, 2014. </li>
<li>"<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCamJxZXNIQlJIbHBVZ1hXX212WWhvMWI5LTU4/edit?usp=sharing">Stop the Frac Sand Free-For-All, Oppose SB 632, the Eat My Dust Bill</a>." Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters, Talking Points, February 27, 2014.</li>
<li><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCR0c3bEVFMUVRR3RPWDUwck5QdUktSHZlYnZN/edit?usp=sharing">Written testimony from attorney Glen M. Stoddard</a>, to the Wisconsin State Senate Committee on Workforce Development, Forestry, Mining, and Revenue and the Assembly Committee on Jobs, Economy and Mining, February 27, 2014. </li>
<li><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCc1RDaVdYaGtnZjg/edit?usp=sharing">Letter from William Mavity</a>, Pepin County Board District 12 Supervisor, to the Senate and Assembly committees on mining, February 28, 2014. </li>
<li><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCU2w4VTlOV3NRUzA/edit?usp=sharing">Letter from Elizabeth A. Feil</a>, attorney at law and Trempealeau County resident, to the citizens of Wisconsin counties impacted by industrial sand mining, March 3, 2014. </li>
<li><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCUDlBLUI2Wjc3MmdKajBHaTdraUo1Z2QzSU0w/edit?usp=sharing">Written statement by Forest Jahnke</a>, Crawford Stewardship Project, to the Wisconsin Senate Committee on Workforce Development, Forestry, Mining, and Revenue, and the Assembly Committee on Jobs, Economy, and Mining, March 3, 2014. </li>
<li>"<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCNWxWNjdWMExSNkE/edit?usp=sharing">SB 632 Frac Sand Mining with Unregulated Greenlight combined with Local Government Usurpation</a>," statement by Susan Michetti, representing the South Western Wisconsin Area Progressives. </li>
<li>Vinehout, Kathleen. <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCZUs2N0RjSzBNV1NaZjNmLU01VGlJX2ZkY1ow/edit?usp=sharing">Testimony to the Joint Public Hearing</a> of the Senate Committee on Workforce Development, Forestry, Mining and Revenue & Assembly Committee on Jobs, Economy and Mining, March 3, 2014. </li>
<li><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCNEVhaGt2dW9yWWs/edit?usp=sharing">Letter from Richard J. Stadelman, Executive Director of the Wisconsin Towns Association</a>, to the Wisconsin State Senate Committee on Workforce Development, Forestry, Mining, and Revenue and the Assembly Committee on Jobs, Economy and Mining, March 4, 2014. </li>
<li>"<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4vKfC8KCXUCZUZTZVhGZDdqRW8/edit?usp=sharing">Statement from Senator Jauch on Committee Passage of Sand Mining Bill.</a>" Press release, March 5, 2014. </li>
<li>Vinehout, Kathleen. "<a href="http://www.winonadailynews.com/news/opinion/columnists/local/kathleen-vinehout-sand-mine-bill-takes-away-state-s-right/article_7c48c1dd-3693-57ac-aa81-87a8829d2a7a.html">Sand mine bill takes away communities' right to say 'no'.</a>" Winona Daily News, March 5, 2014. </li>
</ul>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-82841389885694878612014-01-23T11:07:00.000-06:002014-01-23T11:13:47.554-06:00Defense of local democracy: An evolving regional grassroots response to frac sand mining<div class="MsoNormal">
Over the past few years, dozens of local groups have formed
in response to frac sand mining. Many of these groups are simply neighbors who
began meeting in someone's kitchen, garage, or basement to study the impacts of
frac sand mining and to find ways to express their concerns. In countless
communities dealing with complex questions raised by mining, we've seen that
concerned citizens help to strengthen and defend local democratic
decision-making processes. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When organized, citizens have helped to stop proposed
operations that are viewed as incompatible with community well-being, such as
mining operations near schools, residences, or sensitive nature
reserves. Citizens have also played an important role in monitoring frac sand
operations, pressuring local officials to create new ordinances or
enforce existing regulations, and calling out local conflicts of interest. As with any grassroots effort, however, the
longevity, size, organizational capacity, values, and influence of the groups
vary widely and evolve over time. Some groups rise and fall quickly, especially
as controversial proposals or operations fade from the public eye, while others
might achieve an enduring presence in their community.<br />
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<a name='more'></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Although many groups first form in response to local proposals or operations,
the last few years have seen various efforts to coordinate on a regional scale,
both in Wisconsin and across state lines in Minnesota, Iowa, and recently
northern Illinois. Some of these efforts have occurred from within local groups,
as concerned citizens routinely reach out to each other to share information
and learn from people's prior experiences. Social media sites such as
Facebook have facilitated a substantial amount of information exchange and
networking, as have traditional social networks such as family connections and
friendships. Some citizens-turned-activists are routinely invited to speak
at meetings and other events in communities throughout the region. The Save the
Hills Alliance, for instance, which evolved from the Concerned Chippewa
Citizens, consults with many local groups and held annual meetings in 2012 and
2013 that drew regional audiences.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
Other regional efforts have been launched by longstanding, multi-issue
organizations or networks that have recently put frac sand mining on their
agendas, and they have helped to mobilize resources and offer some
organizational stability and longevity. This is especially important when local
groups, consisting of volunteers donating money and countless hours of scarce
free time, may struggle to maintain momentum or avoid getting burnt out. In
late 2011 and early 2012, the Wisconsin Farmers Union (WFU) co-organized with
the Wisconsin Towns Association two conferences entitled "Frac Sand
Mining in Wisconsin Towns" and helped assemble a <a href="http://www.wisconsinfarmersunion.com/webfiles/fnitools/documents/frac_sand_mining_in_wi_towns_toolbox.pdf">toolkit
for local decision-makers</a>. The WFU has also
sponsored independent research on the <a href="http://www.wisconsinfarmersunion.com/webfiles/fnitools/documents/2013_10_18_fracsandmining.pdf">economic
costs and benefits</a> of frac sand mining. In June of 2013,
the <a href="http://www.wisconsingrassroots.net/">Wisconsin Grassroots
Network</a> sponsored a regional conference titled "Standing Against
the Sandstorm." Several months later in January of 2014, the <a href="http://landstewardshipproject.org/">Land Stewardship Project</a> of
Minnesota organized a "<a href="http://www.kaaltv.com/article/stories/S3288434.shtml">Citizens' Frac Sand
Summit</a>" that drew hundreds of participants from throughout the region
to listen to speakers and participate in workshops to facilitate grassroots
organizing. Also in January, the <a href="http://www.wnpj.org/">Wisconsin
Network for Peace and Justice</a> passed <a href="http://www.wnpj.org/pdf/FracSandResolution.pdf">a resolution calling for
statewide ban on frac sand mining</a>. The resolution, signed by nearly fifty
Wisconsin-based groups, was in response to recent moves in the state
legislature to <a href="http://ecowatch.com/2014/01/21/ban-frac-sand-mining-wisconsin/">eliminate
local democratic control</a> over the licensing and regulation of frac
sand operations. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As this suggests, the unfortunate <a href="https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2013/proposals/sb349">efforts in the state legislature</a> to remove the ability of local governments to regulate frac
sand mining will likely spur further regional organizing. While concerned
citizens often work intensely in their own communities, statewide and regional
organizing will be needed to push back against the interests seeking to use
state government to bypass local democratic decision-making and controls.
Existing organizations with paid staff and other resources will play an
especially important role in linking up the many local groups that have organized
throughout the region and in reactivating groups that have gone dormant. The
protection of local democracy is a goal that will likely draw widespread
support and help create new alliances, even among groups working on
different issues or operating from diverse ideological standpoints. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-78306860431520942692013-10-05T12:30:00.001-05:002013-10-06T13:13:18.990-05:00Price of Sand, Film Screening & Discussion, Oct. 17, UW-StoutJim Tittle will be visiting UW-Stout in a couple weeks to show his film <a href="http://thepriceofsand.com/">The Price of Sand</a>, followed by an open discussion.<br />
<br />
The Price of Sand is a documentary about the frac sand mining boom in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Due to a rapid increase in demand, pure silica sand has become a valuable commodity, and mines are opening here at a rapid rate. The film examines the local impacts of sand mining and the challenges faced by small towns in the region.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0ssuriA4IT_NLwNUmI5kvXFBumWpshLpNJtbDnmBj7RTlO987JQ2En_zm-A4LcuK4nTExhW_IH3vUdJXjIOWZAsO_R4_yRE7MUUfuPlqIj6h8jLft45oM4JhXuZkWdEVUVBX6lsr6cJQ/s1600/price+of+sand.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0ssuriA4IT_NLwNUmI5kvXFBumWpshLpNJtbDnmBj7RTlO987JQ2En_zm-A4LcuK4nTExhW_IH3vUdJXjIOWZAsO_R4_yRE7MUUfuPlqIj6h8jLft45oM4JhXuZkWdEVUVBX6lsr6cJQ/s1600/price+of+sand.jpg" height="231" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
The event is free and open to the public, and refreshments will be served prior to the screening! Come watch the film and discuss its significance with the filmmaker himself.<br />
<br />
Details:<br />
<ul>
<li>Thursday, October 17, starting at 6:30pm</li>
<li>The Terrace, <a href="http://www.uwstout.edu/studentcenter/">Memorial Student Center (MSC)</a>, <a href="http://www.uwstout.edu/guide/index.cfm">University of Wisconsin-Stout</a></li>
<li>Free and open to the public </li>
</ul>
The event is organized by the <a href="http://www.uwstout.edu/socsci/speakers-series.cfm">Social Science Speaker Series</a>, which is part of the Social Science Department at UW-Stout, and is co-sponsored by several university groups. An event page has been set up at the Facebook site of UW-Stout's <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/574338509311555/?ref=22">Applied Social Science Program</a>.<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-10988714297378245842013-08-21T14:17:00.001-05:002014-04-06T15:25:30.687-05:00How frac sand gains local political support: Notes from Trempealeau CountySince the early days of the frac sand boom, many observers have been troubled by the close connections that the industry sometimes cultivates with local town and county officials. These connections underscore how the mining industry relies on both economic and political influence to achieve its goals. In some cases, the relationship between a public official and a private industry would appear to represent a conflict of interest, such as when a town supervisor or a supervisor's family members get into the frac sand business by leasing their land. In other cases, the connections are subtle and indirect, but still effective, such as when deeply rooted allegiances between old friends or distant family member are activated in support of a specific proposal. Whether overt or subtle, the entanglement of political and economic interests creates a decision-making climate that facilitates growth of the frac-sand industry. How does the mining industry secure the support of local elected officials and public employees? How do they cultivate a decision-making climate in which local officials sometimes feel they have no choice but to accommodate the interests of a controversial industry?<br />
<br />
<div>
<b>Questions in Trempealeau County, WI</b><br />
<br />
Trempealeau County recently <a href="http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/health/220292371.html">passed a one year moratorium</a> on the permitting of new sand mining operations in order to study the industry's health impacts. Over the past few years, the county has permitted at least 26 frac sand operations, including mines, processing plants, and rail transload facilities, representing the largest concentration of permitted frac sand operations in Wisconsin.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0-mE2OYQMzdXm3AC_B-76NeUSBb9mWIcCVpMpqgqGzoHApChf7wMuHYdctHirKeZ5ewRR6MgV4Cxa8bxQHTkd7RYjoH0AFdc2I2fhVQIgoUDDxlA7G2GlY_5WbX-HB5mQZlkteyE8eAM/s1600/Industrial_Mines+Tremp+County+August+13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0-mE2OYQMzdXm3AC_B-76NeUSBb9mWIcCVpMpqgqGzoHApChf7wMuHYdctHirKeZ5ewRR6MgV4Cxa8bxQHTkd7RYjoH0AFdc2I2fhVQIgoUDDxlA7G2GlY_5WbX-HB5mQZlkteyE8eAM/s1600/Industrial_Mines+Tremp+County+August+13.jpg" height="400" width="306" /></a></div>
<br />
Several factors account for the rapid growth of the industry in Trempealeau County, including regional geology and access to coveted transportation infrastructure such as rail lines. But another key factor appears to be a local political environment that accommodates and advances the interests of frac sand mining. Frac sand interests have been able to influence local politics through at least three channels: outspoken industry advocates on key committees, elected officials who enjoy financial ties to mining, and hiring local experts away from government positions.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
First, pro-industry elected officials dominate key committees that have the power to determine permit outcomes. Members of the county Environment and Land Use Committee (ELU), which considers applications for new sand mines, have been overwhelmingly supportive of frac sand development. ELU chair Tom Bice routinely defends the mining industry during public meetings, maintaining that government should not impede industrial progress or prevent people from making money from their land. During the August 19th county board meeting to discuss the moratorium, for example, he dismissed concerns about health impacts and, recognizing that a moratorium enjoyed broad support, unsuccessfully lobbied to push the moratorium's start date to November 1, arguing that people who invested time and money in developing mine proposals should be afforded ample opportunity to submit their applications to the county. Similarly, the vice chair of the ELU committee, Jay Low, has expressed the same attitude, saying in reference to mining that "people should be able to sell their capital. This is America" (<a href="http://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/trempealeau-county-oks--acre-frac-sand-facility/article_7478224c-9819-11e2-9cbb-001a4bcf887a.html">Rodriquez 2013</a>).<br />
<br />
Second, some former and current local officials at the town and county levels have financial interests in frac sand mining. One former member of the influential ELU committee, David Quarne, was given approval to develop a frac sand rail loading facility near Blair. During the process, Quarne abstained from voting on frac sand permits but remained in the meetings (<a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/184771921.html">Kennedy 2012</a>). Beyond the ELU committee, it was recently discovered that County Supervisor David Suchla is a partner in Sand Tran, a local frac sand company. County Supervisor Sally Miller has filed a formal ethics violations complaint against Suchla, accusing him of seeking to benefit economically from his elected position and of pressuring other county officials (<a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/east/220065011.html?page=all&prepage=2&c=y#continue">Kennedy 2013a</a>). Like Quarne did when he was on the ELU committee, Suchla has taken to recusing himself from votes dealing with frac sand mining, such as the recent moratorium decision. By stepping away from these crucial votes, they avoid the narrow legal definition of a conflict of interest. But from an ethical perspective, this raises serious questions, especially given that they have financial interests in promoting the growth of a controversial industry with still poorly understood impacts. In addition to county officials, town officials have also been linked to the burgeoning industry. Early on, Robert Tenneson, town chairman of Preston Township, supported Trempealeau County's first frac sand mine, which was sited in his township (<a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/184771921.html">Kennedy 2012</a>). Then in early 2013, the ELU Committee approved a frac sand mine for Tenneson himself. Similarly, in Arcadia, town supervisor Ivan Pronschinske had opposed one proposed frac sand mine, but then partnered with the same company, Kaw Valley, on a sand mining proposal on his own land (<a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/186401861.html?refer=y">Kennedy 2013c</a>).<br />
<br />
Third, industry has sought to hire county zoning officials, giving them access to crucial local expertise and personal connections in the region. County frac sand specialist Kimarie Estenson was hired by Ottawa Sand Co., now Arcadia Sand, in June 2011, shortly after it received a permit to operate a mine and processing plant (<a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/184771921.html">Kennedy 2012</a>). Director of land management Kevin Lien has turned down multiple offers to work for frac sand companies. In part, he is concerned that the sand industry is seeking to gut regulators and undermine the capacity of local regulation by hiring away experienced public employees and zoning specialists. Star Tribune investigative journalist Tony Kennedy writes that "Lien said he personally has turned away four companies with job overtures. He considered one but dropped out when the company balked at his demand for a multi-year guarantee. That made him wonder if the suitor had an ulterior motive to 'pull me out of my county position'" (<a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/176069041.html">Kennedy 2012</a>).<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Other Examples in the Region</b><br />
<br />
It is often difficult to find the "smoking gun" that directly connects an elected official or public employee to frac sand mining in a way that might be deemed "corrupt." Officials are generally not stupid. They avoid abusing their position in obvious ways, such as by taking votes that would directly benefit their personal business interests. However, from the perspective of industry, valuable political influence is gained through subtle, roundabout means. And this influence is not limited to Trempealeau County. In many parts of the region, the interweaving of political officials with the interests of frac sand mining advances the industry in a way that is indirect but increasingly systematic. Here are some other examples that have been in the news:<br />
<ul>
<li>In Buffalo County, WI, the chairman of Montana Township, Dennis Bork, joined with six other farmers in a bid to develop a $15 million frac sand operation with Glacier Sands. The proposal was denied by the county Board of Adjustment, which determined that the township's land-use plan was incompatible with industrial sand mining. Bork then had the township considering changes to its land-use plan while he and others sued the Board of Adjustment (<a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/184771921.html">Kennedy 2012</a>).</li>
<li>Paul Van Eijl, former zoning administrator in Buffalo County, WI, was hired by Superior Sand Systems in early 2012 after Superior received the first conditional-use permit for a frac sand mine ever issued by the Buffalo County Board of Adjustment (<a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/184771921.html">Kennedy 2012</a>).</li>
<li>Buffalo County also lost its part-time zoning technician, now said to be "moonlighting as a consultant to frac sand companies" (<a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/184771921.html">Kennedy 2012</a>).</li>
<li>While serving as an elected state representative, lawyer Mark Radcliffe (D-Black River falls) also represented, through his private practice, the mining company High Country Sand in a January 2012 lawsuit against Eau Claire County, challenging the county's moratorium on sand mining (<a href="http://www.thedailypage.com/daily/article.php?article=35737">Lueders 2012</a>). </li>
<li>Gordon Steinhauer, an Eau Claire County supervisor who chaired the county's Planning and Development Commission, is the retired head of Steinhauer Enterprises, an excavating company now run by his son Joel. In 2012 the company was hauling silica sand from a mine in Chippewa County (<a href="http://www.thedailypage.com/daily/article.php?article=35737">Lueders 2012</a>).</li>
<li>Red Wing Mayor Dennis Egan was hired in February 2013 to run a new lobbying and trade group for the frac sand industry in Minnesota (<a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/189946441.html">Kennedy 2013b</a>). While he initially refused to resign as mayor, <a href="http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2013/02/25/red-wing-mayor-to-step-down-over-frac-sand-controversy/">he eventually stepped down</a> after considerable outcry. </li>
<li>When Canadian Sand and Proppant (later EOG) was seeking permits in 2008 for a controversial sand processing plant in the City of Chippewa Falls, WI and a mine in the nearby town of Howard, mayor Dan Hedrington resigned to take a job with SEH, an engineering firm routinely hired by the city and then under contract with Canadian Sand and Proppant (<a href="http://chippewa.com/news/chippewa-falls-mayor-dan-hedrington-resigns/article_11fef281-47a8-5acf-895c-10179d7bbae0.html">Chippewa Herald 2008</a>). </li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<b>Consequences</b><br />
<br />
As the frac sand industry matures it will be important to better understand how mining interests influence local decision-making processes and with what consequences. In Wisconsin, campaign contributions from mining and gas industries to state politicians surged 21-fold from 2007 to 2012, underscoring efforts by industry to gain political influence (WDC 2013). At the county and township level, many mining companies try to cultivate support through donations to local schools and other community organizations. When their interests are in jeopardy, many seek to bully elected officials with veiled or overt threats of lawsuits. In addition to these common tactics, we also need to document and examine how the industry secures influence through the often indirect means described above.<br />
<br />
These various efforts create a climate in which industrial sand mining is viewed as inevitable. Local officials act as if they have no choice but to accommodate the interests of frac sand. Doing so, however, comes at a cost. The environmental health and socio-economic impacts of frac-sand mining remain uncertain, and the costs and benefits of mining are distributed in an uneven and often unfair manner. Elected officials and public employees are expected to act in the public interest, but when their private interests appear to overlap with a controversial industry, people lose trust in government institutions and officials. When public employees are lured into the private sector to work for frac sand companies, or when they consult with them on the side, the capacity of public institutions to regulate or act on behalf of the common good is eroded and undermined.<br />
<br />
Ultimately, the situation in Trempealeau County also illustrates the important role to be played by an involved, educated, and alert community. In other counties, when citizens organize, when they attend public hearings, raise questions, and insist on having a role in the decision-making process, they serve as a crucial counterweight to sand mining interests. In Trempealeau, the mining industry gained an early and powerful foothold and grassroots organizing has faced an uphill battle ever since. But over the last several months, citizens in that county have organized and have achieved some small but important gains, and their efforts clearly helped embolden county officials to support a one-year moratorium, a temporary but relatively momentous achievement in a county where frac sand interests had until then experienced little push-back. </div>
<div>
<br />
<i>References Cited:</i><br />
<br />
Chippewa Herald. 2008. <a href="http://chippewa.com/news/chippewa-falls-mayor-dan-hedrington-resigns/article_11fef281-47a8-5acf-895c-10179d7bbae0.html">Chippewa Falls Mayor Dan Hedrington resigns</a>. The Chippewa Herald, July 20.<br />
<br />
Kennedy, Tony. 2013a. <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/east/220065011.html?page=all&prepage=2&c=y#continue">In Wisconsin, county commissioner is accused of self-dealing over frac sand.</a> Star Tribune, August 17.<br />
<br />
Kenned, Tony. 2013b. <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/189946441.html">Red Wing's mayor gets second job with frac sand lobbying group</a>. Star Tribune, February 6.<br />
<br />
Kennedy, Tony. 2013c. <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/186401861.html?refer=y" target="_blank">Split Wisconsin county OKs 2 more sand mines</a>. Star Tribune, January 10.<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
Kennedy, Tony. 2012. <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/184771921.html" target="_blank">Local officials dealing themselves a piece of frac sand boom</a>. Star Tribune, December 26.<br />
<br />
Lueders, Bill. 2012. <a href="http://www.thedailypage.com/daily/article.php?article=35737" target="_blank">What is the extent of Wisconsin lawmakers' conflict of interest in fracking sand ming rules?</a>. Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, January 18. </div>
<div>
<br />
Rodriquez, Tesla. 2013. <a href="http://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/trempealeau-county-oks--acre-frac-sand-facility/article_7478224c-9819-11e2-9cbb-001a4bcf887a.html">Trempealeau County OKs 716-acre frac sand facility</a>. La Crosse Tribune, March 29.<br />
<br />
WDC. 2013. <a href="http://www.wisdc.org/pr052113.php#tbl1">Frack sand industry support spikes with mines: Natural gas, sand mining contributions grow 21-fold in five years</a>. Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, May 21.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-33229781067323763092013-07-16T12:17:00.003-05:002013-07-16T13:22:12.943-05:00Mine Waste and Pollution ConcernsInvestigative reporter Tony Kennedy recently wrote for the Star Tribune about <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/215335701.html">waste water and pollution concerns</a> involving frac-sand mining in Wisconsin and Minnesota.<br />
<br />
Over the past year, holding ponds at mine sites have failed during heavy rains, releasing sandy sediment and processing water. In some cases, the material has contaminated public waters, threatening to suffocate fish eggs, kill aquatic plants, and otherwise harm fish habitats. Kennedy reports that the WI DNR has cited nearly 20 frac-sand mines for alleged violations of water regulations.<br />
<br />
Speaking on behalf of the Wisconsin Industrial Sand Association, Rich Budinger blames small, inexperienced sand companies and heavy rains, and says existing storm water regulations are sufficient.<br />
<br />
In addition to holding ponds, Kennedy describes how sand mines create waste material consisting of clay and undersized sand, often called "fines." This material is in part generated during the processing or washing of frac sand, which separates fines from the desired product. The murky wash water containing the fines is then treated with flocculants, chemicals "that cause suspended particles to sink so that the water can be reused." Once separated from the water, the fines are piled as waste material, eventually plowed back into the ground during mine reclamation.<br />
<br />
At the Preferred Sands site in Blair, WI, waste piles have absorbed rain water and spilled onto adjacent land on at least two occasions, "trashing the interior of a house, flowing into a garage on another property and fouling a wetland."<br />
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Kennedy also reports that state officials and some frac-sand companies are concerned about the widespread use of polyacrylamide, a chemical in the flocculants. "Polyacrylamide contains residual amounts of acrylamide, a neurotoxin linked to cancer and infertility." While polyacrylamide is thought to degrade safely when stored above ground, concerns emerge when the chemical is improperly buried with mine waste. Polyacrylamide and another flocculant chemical called polydadmac have recently been added to the Health Department's list of "chemicals of emerging concern."<br />
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<i>Source: </i>Kennedy, Tony. 2013. <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/215335701.html">Pollution worries abound in frac sand waste streams</a>. Star Tribune, July 13.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-42481493194619136942013-06-13T17:19:00.001-05:002013-06-13T23:46:29.782-05:00Frac Sand: Emerging Conflicts and Community OrganzingSeveral months ago I was invited to write an article describing my research on frac sand issues for an academic journal called <i>Culture, Agriculture, Food and Environment</i> (CAFE). The article was finally published this month:<br />
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Pearson, Thomas W. 2013. <a href="http://www.academia.edu/3703532/Frac_Sand_Mining_in_Wisconsin_Understanding_Emerging_Conflicts_and_Community_Organizing">Frac Sand Mining in Wisconsin: Understanding Emerging Conflicts and Community Organizing</a>. <i>Culture, Agriculture, Food and Environment</i> 35(1):30-40.<br />
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<li>Abstract: Over the past few years industrial sand mining has expanded rapidly in western Wisconsin, driven largely by the use of sand in hydraulic fracturing, itself a controversial technology widely deployed in natural gas and oil drilling throughout the United States. A unique geological history combined with existing railroad networks has positioned Wisconsin as a major supplier of “frac sand” and thus a key link in a wider hydrocarbon commodity chain. The unprecedented growth of frac sand mining, however, has raised new social and environmental concerns, becoming the target of grassroots organizing. This article reports on ongoing ethnographic research focused on frac sand conflicts, providing an overview of the main areas of contention, the trajectory of community organizing, and the response of the mining industry. </li>
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<a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cuag.2013.35.issue-1/issuetoc">The issue of CAFE</a> in which this article appears includes a few other research reports addressing the social dimensions of hydraulic fracturing and the anthropology of energy.<br />
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I'm always interested in what people think. If you have comments or feedback, feel free to contact me!<br />
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-tpAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14171256615071401381noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5858457786241859745.post-55993310482760230032013-03-17T18:46:00.001-05:002017-08-01T12:11:53.997-05:00Does annexation subvert local controls over frac sand mining?As community involvement in the expansion of frac sand mining has become more organized and influential, it appears that industry has embraced annexation as a tactic to advance controversial frac sand projects.<br />
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Annexation law in Wisconsin allows cities and villages to increase their size through acquisition of contiguous land, a process often initiated at the request of landowners. Cities and villages sometimes view annexation as an economic development strategy that creates an increased tax base. Once a city or village annexes land, it is required to extend public services to its newly expanded jurisdiction.<br />
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Some frac sand operations have recently benefited from annexation, pursued to achieve a "friendlier" regulatory environment or to circumvent local opposition to controversial projects. Whether by intention or not, this tactic appears to subvert local democratic control over the decision-making process involving a contentious and rapidly-expanding industry.<br />
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<b><i>Use of Annexation to Force Industry-friendly Regulations</i></b><br />
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In Trempealeau County, the frac sand industry has used annexation to secure a more lenient regulatory environment. As Tony Kennedy <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/east/189479651.html?refer=y">reports</a>, for example, Trempealeau County issued an operating permit in 2011 for a mine in Preston Township opened by Winn Bay Sands LP of Saskatchewan. The permit limited hours of operation to weekdays, required air monitoring, and mandated periodic inspections of nearby homes. But in January 2012 the mine was sold for $200 million to Pennsylvania-based Preferred Sands. Founded by Michael O'Neill, a former Philadelphia banker and real estate executive, Preferred Sands then sought to have the property annexed to the City of Blair, a small municipality surrounded by Preston Township.<br />
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Annexation of the 500-acre Preferred Sands property, which nearly doubled the City of Blair's land mass, was accompanied by a new permit with lighter restrictions. The new permit grants the mine unlimited hours of operation, reduces the original noise restrictions, is silent on air quality monitoring or inspection of neighboring buildings, is good "into perpetuity," and is transferable to new owners. Preferred Sands said in a statement that it complies diligently with regulations wherever it operates. In addition to losing the ability to regulate the operating conditions, with annexation Preston Township also stands to lose future tax revenues (more than $72,000 in 2012) after a five-year grace period. Bob Tenneson, the longtime chairman of Preston Township, said that "We spent hours trying to see if we could block it. When somebody wants to annex to the city, you can't stop them." (Tenneson himself recently joined the frac sand business, <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/east/189479651.html?refer=y">Kennedy reports</a>, receiving county approval for a new sand mine in Preston Township that is opposed by his neighbors.)<br />
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"The maneuver stands as an example of the way mining companies are leveraging jobs and money to exert their will in the small communities of southeastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin," <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/east/189479651.html?refer=y">writes Kennedy</a>. "It also shows how, in the absence of statewide oversight, local units of government are competing for sand mines at the expense of consistent standards." <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/east/189479651.html?refer=y">Kennedy also reports</a> that Trempealeau County officials have "tempered their regulatory approach" due to the threat of annexation. "They viewed the Blair annexation as a tactic with a clear message to back off on regulations," writes Kennedy, and county officials are reworking the permitting process to facilitate the interests of the frac sand industry.<br />
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<b><i>Use of Annexation to Circumvent Community Opposition</i></b><br />
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Some frac sand companies have also pursued annexation in a seeming attempt get around local opposition. Recently in St. Charles, Minnesota, a proposed sand mine was met with opposition in the township, so the company, Minnesota Proppant LLC, asked the City of St. Charles to annex the land, but <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/197704201.html">the city declined</a>. Soon after that decision, <a href="http://www.leadertelegram.com/news/daily_updates/article_18e0bd4a-8cc0-11e2-8a86-0019bb2963f4.html">some news reports suggested</a> that the company has begun to consider alternative locations in Wisconsin, which it perceives as friendlier to the frac sand industry.<br />
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In another case, the Texas-based company Vista Sand has encountered staunch opposition to two of its projects in Wisconsin, one a proposed mine near Glenwood, in St. Croix county, and another involving a transload facility and rail spur originally proposed for the Town of Menomonie, Dunn County, around 25 miles from the mine. Both projects triggered intense local debate but were approved at the town levels during the summer of 2012. Given that the projects cast a wide regional shadow with miles of trucking routes that affect numerous towns, they were met with significant community opposition, organized through informal grassroots networks linking together multiple rural communities. Hundreds of people attended dozens of public meetings and in overwhelming numbers spoke out against both Vista Sand projects.<br />
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Vista Sand eventually withdrew its request for the mine anticipating that the St. Croix County Board of Adjustment would reject its application, which did not comply with a county ordinance limiting active mining to 20 acres or less. Vista similarly withdrew its request for the rail spur in September 2012 after Dunn county officials began raising questions about the project's environmental and economic impacts. In both St. Croix and Dunn counties, sustained community opposition had put substantial pressure on the company and helped embolden public officials in their scrutiny of the proposals.<br />
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Over the past two months the Vista Sand proposals have resurfaced and the possibility of annexation has been raised as part of both revamped projects. Vista Sand has been negotiating with property owners in the Town of Red Cedar, in Dunn County, as a new site for their transload facility and rail spur. Red Cedar currently has a moratorium on frac sand operations and has been developing a non-metallic mining licensing ordinance. In January, the landowners and Vista Sand approached the neighboring City of Menomonie about annexation, hoping to avoid the permitting process in Red Cedar. City officials said they are not interested. Now Vista is expected to bring their proposal to the Red Cedar town board this spring.<br />
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At the beginning of the year Vista also resubmitted its proposal to develop a 567-acre frac sand mine a mile south of the City of Glenwood, in St. Croix County, about a quarter mile from the Glenwood City public school. In late January St. Croix County officials determined the application to be incomplete and the county is currently gathering more information from Vista. But in February the landowners working with Vista informally approached the City of Glenwood to ask officials if <a href="http://www.leadertelegram.com/news/front_page/article_bb6a758a-80a2-11e2-a780-001a4bcf887a.html">they would consider annexing</a> the property for the proposed mine. While Vista is still pursuing approval at the county level, one of the landowners, Kwik Trip CFO Scott Teigen, <a href="http://www.wivoices.org/2013/03/08/inside-a-town-meeting-about-frac-sand-mining-glenwood-city-wi/">described the annexation proposal</a> as a "plan b." With annexation the mine would be subject to less restrictive city ordinances, <a href="http://www.newrichmond-news.com/event/article/id/38591/">reports the New Richmond News</a>.<br />
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<b><i>Annexation as "spatial fix" </i></b><br />
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It is clear that <a href="http://www.wisconsinwatch.org/2013/03/03/frac-sand-dnr-violations/">some frac sand companies</a> view local ordinances and other regulations -- designed to protect the environment, public health, and community well-being -- as burdensome obstacles to advancing their economic interests. Likewise, organized communities that challenge or assert local control over frac sand development are also viewed as an impediment to profit. Some frac sand interests appear to have embraced annexation as a "spatial fix" to these problems, redirecting their focus geographically from one place to another or pitting municipalities against each other in a competition to accommodate the interests of frac sand companies.<br />
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<i>Sources: </i><br />
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Eau Claire Leader Telegram. <a href="http://www.leadertelegram.com/news/daily_updates/article_18e0bd4a-8cc0-11e2-8a86-0019bb2963f4.html">Frack sand company eyes Wisconsin after Minnesota Vote</a>. March 14, 2013.<br />
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Kennedy, Tony. <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/east/189479651.html?refer=y">Sand mine rules melt under pressure</a>. StarTribune, February 4, 2013.<br />
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Kennedy, Tony. <a href="http://www.startribune.com/local/197704201.html">Mining-hub town of St. Charles says no to major frac sand facility</a>. StarTribune, March 13, 2013.<br />
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Lindfors, Tom. <a href="http://www.newrichmond-news.com/event/article/id/38591/">Glenwood City Council hosts annexation discussion</a>. New Richmond News, March 1, 2013.<br />
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Prengaman, Kate. <a href="http://www.wisconsinwatch.org/2013/03/03/frac-sand-dnr-violations/">Frac sand industry faces DNR violations, warnings</a>. Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, March 3, 2013.<br />
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Swedien, Jon. <a href="http://www.leadertelegram.com/news/front_page/article_bb6a758a-80a2-11e2-a780-001a4bcf887a.html">Sand company seeks annexation</a>. Eau Claire Leader-Telegram, February 27, 2013.<br />
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WIvoices.org. <a href="http://www.wivoices.org/2013/03/08/inside-a-town-meeting-about-frac-sand-mining-glenwood-city-wi/">Inside a Town Meeting on Frac Sand Mining; Glenwood City, WI</a>. March 8, 2013<br />
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