AFTERNOON EDITION

Dayton's DNR choice pleases conservation crowd

Gov. Dayton’s choice of Tom Landwehr of Shoreview to lead the DNR is getting generally good reviews from the notoriously cranky “outdoors” crowd.

Up in Duluth, longtime outdoors News-Tribune writer Sam Cook, likes the choice. “Duluth conservationist David Zentner applauded Dayton’s selection of Landwehr. “It’s wonderful,” said Zentner, who has worked closely with Landwehr for the past eight years on various conservation issues. “I think it washes well to have a leader who has had a significant amount of experience inside the agency, who’s professionally trained and prepared, and then as a citizen to have this outside-the-agency life with two of the most successful non-governmental organizations in the world — Ducks Unlimited and The Nature Conservancy.”

Dennis Anderson of the Strib, writes: “Others in the running included state Sen. Rod Skoe, DFL-Clearbrook, the choice of some lobbyists and legislators in northern Minnesota and northwest Minnesota. Skoe, a rice farmer who has no conservation management experience, was seen by these backers as friendly to logging and mining industries, which are important to the north's economy. But Skoe's selection by Dayton, or anyone seen as a ‘placeholder' for special interests other than the general welfare of the state's lands, waters and forests, would have produced an uproar in the conservation community.”

Anderson adds: “Landwehr likely will face a tough political climate as DNR leader. Not only will certain legislators at times be hostile to the department's interests, tight budgets will force the state's new conservation boss to further consolidate the agency, and perhaps attempt to significantly overhaul it, in combination with the Board of Water and Soil Resources and the Pollution Control Agency.”

MPR’s Bob Kelleher had a good piece up Wednesrday about the challenges the new DNR boss will face with timber and mining interests: “Landwehr, has strong environmental ties. Landwehr, assistant state director for the Nature Conservancy of Minnesota, is a former DNR official. Peggy Ladner, the conservancy's state director, describes Landwehr as someone who is passionate about Minnesota's natural resources and who would lean toward environmental protection — something mining interests might not want to hear."

Kelleher notes: “The new commissioner will play a lead role in permitting new mining projects. PolyMet Mining plans a surface copper-nickel mine northeast of Hoyt Lakes, while Twin Metals hopes to dig copper-nickel and precious metals underground south of Ely. Together they might add hundreds of jobs to this hardscrabble region. Ely Mayor Roger Skraba [who owns a canoe outfitting business] is pushing Dayton to pick someone sympathetic to the projects. In a letter to the governor signed by a handful of regional mayors, Skraba notes the support Dayton received from the region. That might have accounted for his slender margin of victory over Republican Tom Emmer.”

Entirely coincidentally, I’m sure, Tom Webb of the PiPress reports that Cargill is providing “support” for one Range mining interest: “Cargill said today it is partnering with a small firm on Minnesota's Iron Range, called Magnetation, that has found a way to extract valuable iron ore from long-discarded tailings. The technology lets mining operators reprocess the waste rock dumped during decades of open-pit iron mining, and profitably extract a high-grade iron ore concentrate, according to a statement released by Cargill this morning. The process is touted as being so efficient that it's competitive with even the lowest-cost iron mines. Today's agreement gives a stamp of approval to the breakthrough technology, and will allow the process invented in Minnesota to be replicated worldwide. Wayzata-based Cargill now holds the exclusive, worldwide rights to jointly develop and use the technology, the companies said. The deal will also allow production of recovered iron in northern Minnesota to triple from its current 150,000 tons a year.” “Exclusive, worldwide rights.” It’s good to be Cargill.

“It was a challenging year” — that’s the word from Minnesota apple growers. The Winona Daily News’ Steve Cahalan reports: “The growing season began with above-normal temperatures that caused many trees to bloom during the last week in April, the earliest [Fruit Acres GM Ralph] Yates has seen. That was followed by a freeze and frost damage to blossoms. ‘And all through the summer months, we had a lot of rain,’ Yates said. ‘(So) there was a lot of disease pressure. And there was some nasty weather, winds and hail’ that damaged some orchards. A large U.S. apple harvest in 2009 and the recession had caused a downturn in prices. But apple prices recovered in 2010 with an uptick in the economy and a smaller crop, Yates said.” And: “The U.S. Department of Agriculture's forecast Oct. 1 was for a 2010 U.S. apple crop of 9.4 billion pounds, down 5 percent from 9.9 billion pounds in 2009. It estimated Wisconsin's crop at 34.9 million pounds, down 20 percent from 2009. Minnesota's crop was estimated at 18 million pounds, down 22 percent from 2009.”

This Judge Kasarov vs. Judge Kasarov battle has real Denny Hecker farce potential if someone doesn’t cut his or her losses ASAP. Rochelle Olson of the Strib files again on the divorced and bickering adjudicators: “The hearing in front of a three-member panel has thus far been a parade of relatives and friends. [Patricia] Karasov's two daughters testified, essentially backing up their mother's assertion that she maintained a real residence in the county. The judge's former husband, Hennepin County Judge Fred Karasov, and his wife, Cathy, said Patricia Karasov told them she loved living full time in Chisago City. Karasov's Pomeranian and her gardening proclivities or lack thereof have both been at issue in this hearing. Cathy Karasov said the judge showed up at a party in the summer of 2008 with bruschetta made from tomatoes and basil from her own garden. The judge's daughters said their mom never gardens.” “Pomeranians” asnd “bruschetta.” I mean, come on, this is good stuff.

As nearly impossible as it has been to ignore the running circus that is Michele Bachmann, it isn’t going to get any easier now that her office has leaked her  presidential ambitions. Except that according to her today, it’s those dang pesky media that are creating all this fuss. Reuters  reports: “Bachmann, champion-in-chief of the House Tea Party caucus, blames the media for all the recent chatter about her status as a potential presidential candidate. ‘I’m not concerned about my own personal ambition. Right now, too many people in the media are concerned about who will be the nominee in 2012.’ That’s a wee bit odd given that the speculation began after her office announced a trip to the presidential field of frolic known as Iowa, with guidance that a White House run is not off the table. Her denial has a putting-the-country-first sort of ring: ‘What I’m serious about is focusing on the issues.’ Those would be unemployment and rising energy costs. But then that four-digit number pops right back up: ‘I’m speaking about the issues that I believe will be important for 2012. That’s why I’m going to Iowa.’ ”

Here’s NBC News’ Today Show video of Meredith Viera interviewing Bachmann. Also, gotta love the part where Bachmann complains the that the health reform she wants to repeal was “placed before her” without enough time for her to read it. That dang Obama, he snuck that sucker in under the radar.
                                           
Matt Lewis of Politics Daily cornered ex-Gov. Pawlenty on his “book tour” and asked him about Bachmann’s putative candidacy. “ ‘Well, it's a free country. Anyone can run that's over the age of 35. I have respect for Michele Bachmann. I've had a cordial and positive relationship with her.’ " And his favorite musicians? “ ‘U2, Stones, John Mellencamp, Springsteen, Bob Seger.' " Oddly, no Lee Greenwood or Ted Nugent.

And finally, PiPress food critic Kathie Jenkins unloads on local restaurants with a tart list of her complaints as a customer. A sample: “2. Don't correct me. A friend and I were at the bar at Heartland in St. Paul one night, and she ordered the frisee salad, pronouncing it free-ZEE. Our server felt the need to immediately correct her, responding with, ‘Oh, you want the free-ZAY salad’?" I think our server's manners could use a correction.” And: “5. Treat men and women the same. I ate at Aperitif five times in 2010, and only once was I seated in the dining room, and that was when I was with a man. The other times, with girlfriends, we were automatically led to the bar. When a girlfriend and I arrived for lunch at Sushi Tango in Minneapolis, the room was practically empty, yet the hostess sat us at the smallest table in the room.” So there!