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New Midwest battles brew over CO2 pipelines

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

Tom Peterson | (TNS) Stateline.orgGRANITE FALLS, Minn. — The Minnesota River cuts through this quiet prairie town, powering a small hydroelectric plant in a 19th century dam. A winding downtown riverwalk flanks the west side of the river while a park stretches across the far bank. The dam’s frothy tailrace holds the promise of fish that attract families and pelicans.The old-school hydro provides a tranquil scene in this town of about 2,700 residents. The town’s real energy powerhouse, however, stands on the outskirts, where the towering Granite Falls Energy plant produces 63 million gallons of ethanol annually.Ethanol production has become a vital piece of state economies across the Midwest. Forty-five percent of U.S. corn production now is destined for the scores of ethanol plants that rise from the farm fields.The industry is at a crossroads.Proposed pipelines to move carbon dioxide, a byproduct of ethanol production, would crisscross the Upper Midwest like spiderwebs. From North ...

Mailbag: Deadline (unofficial) for a Pac-12 media deal, Power Five valuations, the “unity” statement, panic scenario and more

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

The Hotline mailbag is published each Friday. Send questions to [email protected] and include ‘mailbag’ in the subject line. Or hit me on Twitter: @WilnerHotline.Some questions have been edited for clarity and brevity.If a media rights deal isn’t completed by football media day, will commissioner George Kliavkoff still speak there? Or will it be like the men’s basketball tournament, when he avoided speaking to reporters? — draywilson29Our absolute, drop-dead, must-be-completed-and-announced deadline for the Pac-12’s media rights contract is Friday, July 21. Five short weeks from today.That’s when the Pac-12 will stage its preseason football media extravaganza in Las Vegas, an event designed to showcase the teams, coaches and players ahead of the conference’s most anticipated season in eons.The marketing potential is enormous. But if Kliavkoff doesn’t have a media deal signed and announced by that point, the existential crisis will suck o...

Sale closed in Saratoga: $2.6 million for a three-bedroom home

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

12291 Mellowood Drive – Google Street ViewA house located in the 12200 block of Mellowood Drive in Saratoga has new owners. The 1,450-square-foot property, built in 1956, was sold on June 2, 2023. The $2,608,000 purchase price works out to $1,799 per square foot. The property features three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a garage, and two parking spaces. There’s also a pool in the backyard. The unit sits on a 10,005-square-foot lot.Additional houses that have recently changed hands close by include:On Woodside Drive, Saratoga, in March 2023, a 2,092-square-foot home was sold for $2,380,000, a price per square foot of $1,138. The home has 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.A 2,291-square-foot home on the 12100 block of Country Squire Way in Saratoga sold in May 2023, for $3,700,000, a price per square foot of $1,615. The home has 5 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms.In October 2022, a 2,520-square-foot home on Titus Avenue in Saratoga sold for $2,500,000, a price per square foot of $992. The home has 4 bedr...

UPS workers could strike this summer, scrambling supply chains, home delivery

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

By Haleluya Hadero and Matt Ott | The Associated PressUnionized UPS workers voted overwhelmingly on Friday to authorize a strike, setting the stage for a potential work stoppage if the package delivery company and Teamsters can’t come to an agreement before their contract expires next month.The Teamsters said 97% of unionized workers voted for the authorization, which the union urged for in order to have more leverage during negotiations with the company. But a yes vote does not mean a strike is imminent.“If this multibillion-dollar corporation fails to deliver on the contract that our hardworking members deserve, UPS will be striking itself,” Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien said in a prepared statement. “The strongest leverage our members have is their labor and they are prepared to withhold it to ensure UPS acts accordingly.”The Teamsters represent about 340,000 UPS employees, more than half of the company’s workforce in the largest private-sector contract in North Americ...

Weight-loss frenzy leaves Eli Lilly’s diabetes drug in short supply again

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

By Emma Court | BloombergSome dosages of Eli Lilly & Co.’s Mounjaro are again in shortage, the latest in a line of recurring supply issues caused by patients using the diabetes medication as a weight-loss treatment.The latest shortage will result in “intermittent backorders” for three of six doses through July, according to an update posted by the US Food and Drug Administration on its website on Friday.Lilly spokespereson Jessica Thompson said the backorders were “due to continued dynamic patient demand” and would affect the three highest doses of Mounjaro. She also said the company is investing in expanding manufacturing capacity.“We recognize this situation may cause a disruption in people’s treatment regimen, and we are moving with urgency to address it,” she said.Mounjaro, also known as tirzepatide, was approved in the US last year to help patients with type 2 diabetes control their blood sugar levels. Lilly is also seeking FDA approval for Mounjaro as an obesity treatment....

SoMa gunman convicted by San Francisco jury

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- A robbery who opened fire on a busy street in San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood was convicted following a jury trial. Jurors found 32-year-old Damone Maxwell guilty of attempted robbery, assault with a firearm, and assault causing great bodily injury.On the morning of September 9, 2022, Maxwell approached the victim on Natoma Street in SoMa and asked if he had change for a $20 bill. After the victim said "no," Maxwell brandished a firearm and demanded that he hand over "everything he had," according to prosecutors. When the victim refused, Maxwell shot the victim in the leg. "The victim was able to get away before collapsing in a pool of his own blood. He was found by San Francisco Police who were responding to a shots fired call in the area," the District Attorney's Office wrote.District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said the shooting was "particularly concerning because it happened in the morning on a dense residential street where any passerby may hav...

Senator Padilla introduces bill to make college cheaper

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

(KRON) – U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) joined U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in reintroducing the College For All Act, a bill that would expand access to college for millions of students.The bill would allow working class students to attend public community colleges, public trade schools, and public four-year colleges free of tuition. This legislation would apply to students from single households earning up to $125,000 or married households earning up to $250,000. Oakland police still searching for missing woman from 2021 This legislation comes as the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to release its decision on President Joe Biden’s Student Loan Forgiveness Plan, which would cancel student loan debt for 20 million Americans and lower debt for 20 million more.On Wednesday, Republicans rolled out a plan of their own, called the Lowering Education Cost and Debt Act. The plan includes reducing nine student loan repayment options to two repayment options, and limiting loans for ce...

Fucsovics upsets Fritz in Stuttgart; Tiafoe reaches semifinals

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

STUTTGART, Germany (AP) — There won’t be an all-American semifinal at the Stuttgart Open after Taylor Fritz was upset by qualifier Marton Fucsovics 6-4, 7-5 in the quarterfinals while Frances Tiafoe won his match on Friday.Fritz, the top-ranked American men’s player at No. 8, was on the back foot immediately after losing serve in the opening game before the rest of the first set went with serve. The second was even at 5-5 until Fucsovics broke Fritz and closed out the win on his fourth match point in the next game.Fritz would have faced his friend Tiafoe in the semifinals. Instead, that opportunity goes to Fucsovics. It’s the Hungarian’s first semifinal on tour since 2021 on any surface, and his first ever on grass despite having been the Wimbledon boys champion in 2010.“I was a very talented boy,” the 31-year-old Fucsovics said. “Throughout my career I always believed I can play good tennis on grass. Maybe it was because of the Wimbledon title.”The third-see...

After a collision, the U.S. boat retires from final leg of Ocean Race, asks for a ruling

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

The leading boat in The Ocean Race dropped out of the last leg of the around-the-world sailing competition on Friday and asked the sport’s overseers for compensation in the standings to make up for the collision that punctured its carbon fiber hull.Six months after leaving Spain on a 32,000-nautical mile (37,000-mile, 59,000-km) circumnavigation of the globe, 11th Hour Racing was T-boned by Guyot environnement — Team Europe 17 minutes after leaving The Hague, the Netherlands, for the seventh and final leg. Guyot skipper Benjamin Dutreux has admitted the collision was his fault. Newport, Rhode Island-based 11th Hour has filed a Request for Redress to the World Sailing International Jury. It is empowered under the Racing Rules of Sailing to compensate a boat when “a boat’s score or place in a race or series has been or may be, through no fault of her own, made significantly worse.”11th Hour was atop the leaderboard through six legs and the corresponding in-port races with 33 points. T...

MATCHDAY: Haaland back for Norway, Ronaldo’s Portugal plays in Euro qualifiers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:02 GMT

A look at what’s happening in European soccer on Saturday:EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFYINGGROUP AErling Haaland is set to play against Scotland in his first game for Norway since September and the pressure is on for Manchester City’s record-breaking striker to salvage his country’s troubled qualifying campaign. Scotland stunned Spain 2-0 in its last game in March and is the surprise group leader. Norway has one point from two games and last won a competitive match in June 2022. The bottom two teams meet when Georgia plays Cyprus.GROUP EThe Czech Republic leads the group ahead of what in theory should be a routine trip to the Faroe Islands. However, the Czechs dropped points in a draw with struggling Moldova in their last game and the Faroe Islands showed a potential to upset bigger teams in a win over Turkey last year. The Czech Republic did beat the Faroe Islands 5-0 when they last met, though. Albania hosts Moldova.GROUP FBelgium is without Kevin de Bruyne as it hosts ...