Dear Governor Dayton,

I understand you met with frac sand industry representatives yesterday. I would imagine their rhetoric included the promise of jobs and state competitiveness. Before accepting their statements as fact, I encourage you to consider the following:

• According to Industrial Minerals, Wisconsin produces more frac sand than any other state.

• According to the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, companies in Wisconsin have been mining frac sand since at least 2007.

I would guess that Wisconsin’s economy is on the smaller side among all states in the U.S. If you believe the oil and gas industry, natural gas production (fracking) is a huge contributor to the U. S. economy.

If Wisconsin is the biggest producer of frac sand in the nation, and they’ve been doing it for at least six years, shouldn’t this important industry have had a positive effect on Wisconsin’s economy by now?

According to a report released by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in April of this year, Wisconsin ranks 45 out of the 50 states in long-term job growth, and dead last (50 out of 50) in short-term job growth.

I urge you to focus on protecting the health, safety and welfare of Minnesota residents, rather than the empty promises of industry when you consider frac sand mining regulation in Minnesota.

Please continue to support Senator Matt Schmit’s trout stream protections.

Sincerely,

Kelley Stanage

LSP member Kelley Stanage lives in Houston, in southeast Minnesota.