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Thirty years ago, Xcel Energy got permission to store its nuclear waste less than 700 yards from Prairie Island Indian Community. This was supposed to be temporary, but the waste stockpile is not only still there — it’s growing.

For this episode of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell speaks with community members and experts to learn more about the 1994 Minnesota law that allowed the electric utility to store nuclear waste right next to the Prairie Island community indefinitely.

This is part two in a special three-part series, Seven Hundred Yards: How a Native Nation Resisted the Nuclear Plant Next Door. The series examines how powerful players sited the nuclear plant, and its waste, next to Prairie Island Indian Community, and how Tribal members and their allies have stood up for their rights — in the process, growing a clean energy future for the community and Minnesota as a whole.

Explore more resources at the link below — including a transcript and summary of the conversation.

https://ilsr.org/articles/700-yards-pt2-pretend-democracy-ler211/

Less than 700 yards is all that separates Prairie Island Indian Community homes from the Prairie Island Nuclear Generating Plant and its growing stockpile of nuclear waste.



For this episode of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell speaks with community members and experts to learn more about the history of Prairie Island Indian Community and the construction of the nuclear plant next door.



This is part one in a special three-part series, Seven Hundred Yards: How a Native Nation Resisted the Nuclear Plant Next Door. The series examines how powerful players sited the nuclear plant, and its waste, next to Prairie Island Indian Community, and how Tribal members and their allies have stood up for their rights — in the process, growing a clean energy future for the community and Minnesota as a whole.



Listen to the full episode and explore more resources here (https://ilsr.org/articles/700-yards-pt1-small-island-ler210/) — including a transcript and summary of the conversation. Also check out the accompanying StoryMap as part of ILSR’s 50th-Anniversary Racial Justice Storytelling Project.



Note: This episode discusses events related to the United States’ genocide and killing of Indigenous peoples.  Listen with care.

Advocating for a distributed, democratized clean energy transition involves a never-ending series of legal and regulatory battles.

For this episode of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell is joined by Mariel Nanasi, executive director of New Energy Economy. They discuss New Energy Economy’s efforts before lawmakers, regulators, and courts to protect consumers from the nefarious plans of New Mexico’s investor-owned utilities.

Listen to the full episode and explore more resources below — including a transcript and summary of the conversation.

https://ilsr.org/articles/advocate-full-court-pressure-utilities-ler209/

A community-owned clean energy project has a lot more to offer than just electricity.

For this episode of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell is joined by Christina Hollenback, CEO of Justice Capital, and Joseph McNeil, CEO of SAGE Development Authority. They discuss how SAGE Development Authority has created a model for community-led wind development and why community ownership is so important to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.

Listen to the full episode and explore more resources below — including a transcript and summary of the conversation.

https://ilsr.org/articles/standing-rocks-wind-project-puts-people-first-episode-208-of-local-energy-rules/

DTE Energy is not meeting Ann Arbor’s needs for reliable, renewable electricity. Could a municipal takeover be the answer to residents’ pleas?

For this episode of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell is joined by Gregory Woodring, the president and founder of Ann Arbor for Public Power. They discuss the ways that investor-owned utility DTE Energy has failed Ann Arbor customers and how the city could take over and provide better service.

Listen to the full episode and explore more resources below — including a transcript and summary of the conversation.

https://ilsr.org/articles/ann-arbor-public-pathway-reliable-power-ler207/

Local solar offers relief from exorbitant electric rates, but San Diego may need a different utility business model to see dramatic savings.

For this episode of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, host John Farrell is joined by Dorrie Bruggemann and Bill Powers, Campaign Coordinator and Campaign Chair of the Power San Diego ballot initiative. They discuss how a publicly-owned electric utility would be more supportive of distributed solar, offer lower rates thanks to that solar, and what it will take to bring the municipalization decision to San Diego voters.

Listen to the full episode and explore more resources here (https://ilsr.org/articles/san-diego-solar-takeover-ler206/) — including a transcript and summary of the conversation.