November 30, 2005
Opinions

Whichever way the wind blows

It’s a strange thing when a multimillion dollar project tries to move into your neighborhood. I guess it would be similar to putting the Sears Tower next to Agway in Lyndonville. Kind of out of place.

There is a lot of talk about how terrible or great this new neighbor might be … what they might add or what damage they might do to the area, and a whole lot of second guessing.

If you have been trying to pin down the truth, like most of us, here are some of the things we know.

This is a huge company moving into a tiny town, the likes of which this town has never seen before.

This is the largest project of its kind in Vermont since Vermont Yankee. The towers they want to erect on top of Hardscrabble Mountain are as big as a football field standing on end. The number and size of the towers, of course, have both changed.

There is no solid information on what amount of money, if they have to at all, this company will pay to our town.

Until there is something in writing … The town will be reliant on this company’s good faith to do what it says it is going to do. We have nothing in writing except a proposal.

The state doesn’t know exactly how they are going to be taxed.

If this company sells to another out-of-state company, we do not know if these promises are binding to the next company.

No one knows what effect these five proposed projects (perhaps over 100 turbines) will have on our northeastern economy. Already I have talked with people who will not buy real estate until they know the towers aren’t coming. (That might be a good thing.)

No one knows exactly what percent, if any, of this electricity is going to stay here or go on the grid.

It is not known if this will make any change in our electric bills or if it will help the environment.

This much we know we don’t know.

Whichever way the wind blows …

Greg Bryant, Sheffield


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2005/11/30/690/