Dan Kraker

Reporter at Minnesota Public Radio (St. Paul, MN)

Duluth Correspondent for @MPRNews. I cover the economy and the environment of Northeastern Minnesota. Retweets not endorsements.

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Articles

Interested in remote work? The National Park Service may have a job for you

1 day ago | inforum.com | Dan Kraker

The National Park Service is seeking applicants for a job that puts a new spin on the phrase “remote work.”The agency is looking for people or groups interested in managing the 10-room Kettle Falls Hotel, a historic hotel along a wild stretch of the Canadian border, accessible only by boat or float plane. The Kettle Falls Hotel was built in 1910 to accommodate fishermen, lumberjacks and construction workers who built a nearby dam.
Interested in remote work? The National Park Service may have a job for you

1 day ago | mprnews.org | Dan Kraker

Create an account or log in to save stories. Thanks for liking this story! We have added it to a list of your favorite stories. The National Park Service is seeking applicants for a job that puts a new spin on the phrase “remote work.”The agency is looking for people or groups interested in managing the 10-room Kettle Falls Hotel, a historic hotel along a wild stretch of the Canadian border, accessible only by boat or float plane.
Duluth wastewater plant captures methane to produce heat, power

5 days ago | mprnews.org | Dan Kraker

A huge wastewater treatment plant serving Duluth and surrounding communities has installed a new system to generate electricity from the gasses captured during the sewage treatment process, part of a growing trend to harness renewable energy from waste. The project at the former Western Lake Superior Sanitary District, recently renamed Resource Renew, captures the methane and carbon dioxide produced during anaerobic digestion.
Report: Majority of Minnesota's power is carbon free, but renewable growth has slowed

6 days ago | mprnews.org | Dan Kraker

For the fifth year in a row, more than half of Minnesota's electricity came from carbon-free sources, including wind, solar and nuclear power, according to data from the Minnesota Energy Factsheet. The annual report, produced by Clean Energy Economy Minnesota and the Business Council for Sustainable Energy, also found that greenhouse gas emissions from the state’s power sector continued to decline. Emissions decreased four percent from 2023 to 2024 and have now dropped 52 percent since 2005.
Trump policies top talking points at legislative town halls

6 days ago | mankatofreepress.com | Dana Ferguson |Dan Kraker

Many Minnesota lawmakers used this week to reconnect with constituents who filled in-person town halls to express displeasure and some support for their representatives in contentious times. Once the Easter and Passover recess has ended, a divided Minnesota Legislature will put together a budget with a modest surplus expected but a $6 billion shortfall anticipated for the following two-year budget.
Trump policies take priority at Minnesota town halls

1 week ago | sahanjournal.com | Dana Ferguson |Dan Kraker |Hannah Yang

This story comes to you from MPR News through a partnership with Sahan Journal. Many Minnesota lawmakers used this week to reconnect with constituents who filled in-person town halls to express displeasure and some support for their representatives in contentious times. Once the Easter and Passover recess has ended, a divided Minnesota Legislature will put together a budget with a modest surplus expected but a $6 billion shortfall anticipated for the following two-year budget.
Trump policies top the talking points at Minnesota lawmaker town halls

1 week ago | mprnews.org | Dana Ferguson |Dan Kraker |Hannah Yang

Many Minnesota lawmakers used this week to reconnect with constituents who filled in-person town halls to express displeasure and some support for their representatives in contentious times. Once the Easter and Passover recess has ended, a divided Minnesota Legislature will put together a budget with a modest surplus expected but a $6 billion shortfall anticipated for the following two-year budget.
Soaring egg prices mean no ‘egg-splosions’ at Duluth community arts event

1 week ago | mprnews.org | Dan Kraker

The skyrocketing cost of eggs is forcing a popular community arts event in Duluth to go largely egg-free. In past years, the Northern Expressions Arts Collective has hard-boiled as many as 900 eggs for its Egg-splosion event. They set up different dyeing stations, teaching different techniques including tie-dyeing and marbling. Then, at a field in back of the community center, they awarded trophies to who could launch an egg the farthest using a wrist rocket.
As electric vehicles surge on Minnesota roads, a policy U-turn from Trump looms - Albert Lea Tribune

2 weeks ago | albertleatribune.com | Dan Kraker

Published 2:51 pm Wednesday, April 9, 2025 By Dan Kraker, Minnesota Public Radio NewsJonathan Schmelz grew up in the car business. As a kid, he washed cars at his family’s Twin Cities dealership, Schmelz Countryside Volkswagen, Alfa Romeo and Fiat. He’s now owner of the Maplewood auto seller, where, for the past few years, the Volkswagen ID.4 — an electric crossover SUV — has been the top-selling car.
Sen. Smith introduces bill to ban copper mining near the Boundary Waters

2 weeks ago | mprnews.org | Dan Kraker

U.S. Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota has introduced legislation to permanently ban mining for copper, nickel and precious metals near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. The bill would make permanent an existing 20-year moratorium imposed by the Biden administration two years ago. It would prohibit new mining projects over about 350 square miles of the Superior National Forest within the Rainy River watershed, which flows into the Boundary Waters.