Big Sky Cairn

“We’ve been drilling out there for 70 years,” said Schweitzer of the Bakken area. “People there like new oil production. In fact, the city of Sydney [the county seat] wants to build a refinery. Where else in America do you have a community that says, ‘we want to build a refinery in our backyard?’ “

So stated the Governor last week. While he was busy puffing himself up, Montana’s neighbors to the East were busy starting the process for the first new refineries in the US in 30 years.

When it comes to energy development Governor Schweitzer has been asleep at the wheel. First it the State of Montana’s inability to get a bid in on the FutureGen coal project, now this on the refinery development;

“The question of which site to develop first came up,” GNPD consultant Bill Pascoe said. The company decided to first focus on the site in North Dakota for various reasons - better pipeline infrastructure, better power line, gas pipeline on site, to name a few.

“If all the factors were the same, though, we would have still chosen North Dakota,” Pascoe said. “The reason for this is that business and regulations are more hospitable in North Dakota and this has primarily to do with the permitting process.”

What a shocker, when compared to our neighbors, Montana does not have the regulatory tools to compete. In another shocker, I am going to go out on a limb and say a lot of those regulatory hurdles originate at the Governor’s mansion.

A couple things need to be fixed, first, I believe that the MEPA and state constitution language are fundamentally good. However, the ability of environmental obstructionists to sue and appeal any new developments to the point that permits expire needs to stop. Either limit the appeals process, or restructure the permitting so the permit is valid up until 18 months after the final appeal has gone through. Who knows? get create use a combination, but we cannot continue to let far-left environmentalists force this country into energy policy suicide.

Second, we need leadership in this state that will not pack DEQ with environmental fundamentalists. The best example here was what Craig laid out on the Climate Change Advisory Panel.

Governor Schweitzer has made it standard procedure now to talk about Montana’s resources and how great they are, but then he either refuses to act or packs the review boards with anti-development people to ensure projects like Bull Mountain fail.

So do I want a refinery in Richland County? Yeah, it would some stable job growth to the area (union jobs most likely, even better), and it would be a chance for Montana to be part of the energy security solution. I just do not trust this Governor to help my area out, it would require real effort rather than a 10 second sound bite.

FutureGen? Are you refering to the “FutureGen” that the feds pulled the funding on? I bet that if the Gov had bid on FutureGen, you would blame him for DoE’s decision to pull funding. Would BigSky Carin it have preferred it if the state had sunk a couple million dollars to bid on a project that was going nowhere? I bet that if the state had bid on it, you and Roy Brown would call it wasteful spending.

Republicans need to spend less time hanging out at the complaint department. You guys ran the state for 16 years, so where are all the refineries you built when you were in charge?

Yes I am referring to the plant in Illinois. Yes, I am pretty ticked off that the Administration pulled the plug. It was a shortsided move in my opinion.

I am faulting the Governor here because he talks energy development then refuses to act. If Schweitzer wants to tout Sidney’s willingness to house a refinery then help us build it. If Schweitzer wants to talk about how Montana is the Saudi Arabia of coal, then talk some action to develop those resources - as in bidding for FutureGen. The fact of it is this Governor runs as being pro-energy, but his policies have been the opposite.

The fact is simple: Montana has gone from dead last in renewable energy production to top twenty under Governor Schweitzer. The future of Montana energy is clean and gr$$n.

Hey Jackson, let me know when this schweitzerized economy in Montana lowers my gas bill.

Even for someone with a forum handle of “Ayn Rand,” I’m sure you’re smart enough to know Gov. Schweitzer has nothing to do with what you’re paying for energy and fuel.

The fact of the matter is that you guys had 16 years to develop energy in the state–and as Jackson points out–didn’t do a damned thing. Now that Gov. Schweitzer is actually talking about and setting the ball in motion, you attack him for not changing the world overnight. It’s hypocrisy at its pinnacle.

Lamnidae, I am attacking for being a hypocrite. He claims he is pro-coal, pro-oil - but his policies do not match up. That is what I am attacking him for.