Organized Labor Calls On Superior Mayor, Council To Support NTEC

SUPERIOR, Wis. – Organized labor came together inside Superior City Hall Tuesday to debunk what they call false information from Mayor Jim Paine and some city councilors involving the proposed Nemadji Trail Energy Center (NTEC).

Members of the Northern Wisconsin Buildings Trades took to the podium for a press conference Tuesday night.  They’re calling on the community to educate themselves about NTEC.

Labor and Minnesota Power believe the natural gas power plant is an important part of the power company’s goal toward a carbon-free energy supply. They say NTEC would be the reliable power source when the wind isn’t blowing for windmills and the sun isn’t shining for solar power.

“NTEC has gone through an extensive regulatory review process, which has resulted in 14 different regulatory and environmental approvals, along with numerous other challenges from environmental groups. Every single challenge that NTEC has faced — the decision has always been the same, NTEC is safe, said Kyle Bukovich, president of Northern Wisconsin Building and Construction Trades.

“Y’all know where this projects at?  The neighbors is a river, a cemetery, the immediate is a cemetery, and a bunch of one-million gallon floating roof fossil fuel oil tanks.  That’s your neighbors,” said Dan Olson, business manager for Laborers Local 1091.

Olson was referring to the facilities of Enbridge Energy and Cenovus Energy in Superior’s East End.

There are two cemeteries, an Indigenous burial site and the Nemadji River on the other side of the property.

Olson said state and federal regulators have all signed off on any pollution concerns. “There is not going to be any discharge going into the Nemadji River or into Lake Superior. The discharge is going to be into the atmosphere as a form of steam,” Olson said during the press event.

Minnesota Power says there will be emissions from the facility, but that the plant would need to operate under state and federal guidelines, and that when the DNR issued the permit for NTEC, it found the emissions would not negatively impact human health or the environment.

In a story Monday with Mayor Paine, he said he’s trying to get Wisconsin regulators to rethink the project.  He called NTEC and unnecessary, toxic plant with no real benefit to the citizens of Superior, among other arguments.

On Wednesday, the Superior Plan Commission is hosting a public discussion on the project at 4 p.m. at City Hall.

Minnesota Power will be presenting information. Clean Wisconsin will be there opposing NTEC.

The Plan Commission will be voting in the coming weeks on whether to approve a zoning change on a piece of NTEC’s land and two street vacations for construction to begin.