2/20/24

Schweitzer, Tranel: utilities are not your friends

Democrat Brian Schweitzer was governor when this scrivener was living in Montana but after leaving office he chose not to run for the US Senate allowing raving lunatic Steve Daines to sashay into the seat. 

The sometimes bombastic but widely-liked Schweitzer became chairman of the board of Stillwater Mining Company, Montana's largest revenue producer. Schweitzer isn't a progressive by any stretch of the imagination but his populist appeal makes him a regional favorite among Democrats even though he has promoted coal and the Keystone XL pipeline. Recall that in 2009 when he was governor, Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based NorthWestern Energy was responsible for a gas explosion in Bozeman, Montana that killed a person and destroyed several businesses. 

In 2021 Schweitzer raked Montana Republicans after they gave special treatment to NorthWestern Energy calling it "a fine mix of Socialism and Crony Capitalism to match Russian President Vladimir Putin." Also in 2021 the company's devastating decrease in the Madison River flow killed native trout because of its negligence at the Hebgen Dam then one of its power lines caused a wildfire that destroyed most of Denton, Montana. 

NWE thumbed its nose at Montana’s Public Service Commission so without any regulatory approval it began construction of a generating station in Laurel. The company spends millions of dollars every year greasing Republican politicians and poisoning waterways including in Montana where the PRC is comprised of Earth haters. 

Utilities are not your friends so on behalf of Northern Plains Resource Council, the Thiel Road Coalition and the Montana Environmental Information Center, Earthjustice filed suit over zoning jurisdiction of the parcel where the plant is being built but a judge ruled for NWE and Yellowstone County.
Schweitzer, speaking at a forum sponsored by Montana Conservation Voters, said the state Public Service Commission hasn’t acted in the consumers’ interest for several years, seizing on an October decision by the five-member PSC that made residential and small business electric rates the highest in the region for customers of NorthWestern Energy. Northwestern Energy is the state’s largest monopoly utility, with more than 400,000 metered electric customers and 300,000 natural gas customers. Customers of monopolies are legally recognized as “captive,” meaning they lack the free-market choice of shopping around for a better deal. [Schweitzer calls for shakeup of Montana utility regulators]
Monica Tranel is an attorney and candidate for Montana’s western District for US Congress.
NorthWestern’s motive is money. The bigger the kingdom, the bigger the king. NorthWestern’s corporate PAC contributes to Ryan Zinke’s campaign while he voted to cut funding for low-income heating assistance by more than 75%. If our elected officials won’t hold NorthWestern accountable, let’s hold our elected officials accountable. Let’s vote for people who will work for the people, and put the interests of our communities above profits for monopoly corporations. [Time for Accountability]
In 2015 the US Department of Transportation swatted ExxonMobil with a million dollar penalty after the Environmental Protection Agency released an overview of cleanup efforts in the aftermath of the 2011 breach of the Silvertip pipeline that spilled 63,000 gallons of crude oil into the Yellowstone River upstream of Billings near Laurel. 

It’s endless — like wiping yer ass with a hula hoop.

On 16 February the US Environmental Protection Agency announced that crews working on the cleanup of an August, 2023 train derailment have recovered some 236,385 pounds of asphalt from the Yellowstone River just upstream from Laurel.
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