August 27, 2010
Letters, New York

Protect people against foreign wind developers

Watertown Daily Times, www.watertowndailytimes.com 27 August 2010

A lot of us who live in the north country have seen firsthand what the foreign energy companies have done to our small-town quality of life. Everyone here knew their neighbors and tried to help one another. When the large property owners were approached over five years ago to sign leases to have 400-foot-tall industrial wind turbines on their property, they were never told of all the negative stuff and how they would be affecting their neighbors. We know so much more now. It’s sad to see how people aren’t talking to each other. Some people are trying to sell their homes to move away from this potential disaster before it’s too late.

I think the developer should have to buy out any landowner who doesn’t want to live under or near these industrial turbines. And they should be paid for what their home is worth before the industrial wind turbines came. The developer should also be paying to test for water quality and quantity before and after they blast to put in the concrete bases for the turbines. Individual property owners can’t fight these giant foreign-owned energy companies, so safeguards need to be in place now to protect our citizens.

New York state can and probably will take away our school state aid if the schools start receiving revenue from the industrial wind turbines since any payments would be considered income. So our taxes will probably have to go up.

None of the four townships that host the Maple Ridge Power Project have seen a reduction in their town taxes. Not one. They have also had problems collecting what was due them from the same company who wants to put industrial turbines here.

I think we should protect the people who live here now and make sure that there are strict guidelines so our citizens are not hurt. The power from these turbines is needed in New York City and other large cities, so let them erect them down there and not here.

Marian Vaadi

LaFargeville

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2010/08/27/protect-people-against-foreign-wind-developers/