Elk River Station
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Elk River Station is an incinerator operating in Elk River, Minnesota that generates 35 to 42 megawatts of electrical power. The site was originally built as a coal and oil-fired facility in 1950, then was converted to a nuclear power plant (boiling water reactor) in 1963. The nuclear reactor was small and only operated from 1964 until 1968 before undergoing decommission and dismantlement in the following years, ending in the early 1970s. It resumed operating on coal and oil in 1968. In 1989, the facility was again converted, this time to use waste for fuel. Waste arrives from Anoka, Benton, Hennepin, Sherburne, and Stearns counties, and the ash remaining after incineration is taken to a landfill in Becker, Minnesota. Elk River Station is operated by the Great River Energy cooperative.
