06/09/09: This week's Minnesota news from other media

Up to a third of the farm fields in Kittson and Roseau counties in the far northwest corner of Minnesota could end up spending the summer black, as lingering cool, wet weather stymies seeding plans knocked back by the extensive flooding earlier this spring, writes Stephen J. Lee in the Grand Forks Herald.

The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission has dealt another blow to Excelsior Energy's proposed 603 megawatt coal gasification power plant on the Iron Range, Marshall Helmberger reports in the Ely/Cook/Tower Timberjay. He adds that the commission voted 5-0 last week to close its docket on Excelsior Energys efforts to require Xcel Energy to purchase power from Excelsiors Mesaba Energy power station, proposed for construction near Taconite.

After some dismal years in the early part of the decade, Leech Lake's walleyes have come back in a big way, reports Sam Cook in the Rochester Post-Bulletin.

Scott Kleven hasn't yet conducted a survey to come up with an actual percentage, but he maybe doesn't need to because he already knows: Crookston is home to a lot of ash trees, so if the emerald ash borer makes its way to northwestern Minnesota, a lot of trees could be lost locally, writes Mike Christopherson in the Crookston Times.