"What can I do?"

Do you live or work within three miles of 28th Street and Hiawatha? Would you rather not be breathing the mercury, dioxin, formaldehyde, lead, sulfur dioxide and all of the unregulated nanoparticulates that would be pumped out of the new smokestack? Would you rather not see your property values decline? Do you really want to pay more for heath care insurance (and more in taxes) to cover all of the kids who will develop asthma and other respiratory illnesses over the next 40 years if Midtown Eco Energy gets their burner?

Here are some simple steps you can take right now to stop the Midtown burner:

(1) CONTACT THE MINNEAPOLIS CITY COUNCIL AND MAYOR RYBAK

Contacting your city leaders is a good idea because they will need to vote again before the burner project gets the land and the funding. It appears the Council was not presented with all the facts when they initially approved the burner and the $78M in Empowerment Zone bonding. It is extremely important that we voice our concerns about the burner (and the funding) to get them to rethink their votes. Several Councilmembers have indicated that they would like more information on the hazards associated with incineration.

If you live in Lisa Goodman's ward be sure to ask her why she sponsored the Resolutions for the burner given that she co-owns it.

Contact information for the Minneapolis City Council

Contact information for Mayor R.T. Rybak

(2) CONTACT YOUR STATE LEGISLATORS

Contact your Minnesota State Legislators and tell them to oppose any extensions of the State Tax Exemption for Midtown Eco Energy. Not long ago, Midtown Eco Energy sneaked a bill through the State Legislature that essentially gave them and only them a significant tax break. The special tax credits are contained in Minnesota Statute Section 272.02, Subd. 82, in case your legislators are wondering.

Fortunately, the bill is no longer applicable to Midtown Eco Energy. We believe Midtown Eco Energy will be lobbying legislators to extend the tax break. Take a moment of time to email or phone your State Senator and Representative and tell them that you oppose any special tax breaks for Midtown Eco Energy because it is not a green energy source and it will pollute a densely-populated urban area including at least ten schools and three health care facilities within one mile of the smokestack.

You can also tell your legislators that in the future you do not want any more incinerators built in or around places where people live and that you support any legislation that discourages population-centered incineration. In dealing with Minnesota's waste, conservation and reuse should be priority one, followed by recycling. But Minnesota has very few State laws about what to do with the rest of our waste. When deciding what to do with the waste we don't reuse or recycle, burning it near a population center where there are schools and hospitals nearby should be the last option. Burned waste is a "landfill in the sky" and it is extremely harmful to anyone living within a mile or two of the fire.

Click here to find out how to email or phone your Minnesota State Legislator.