August 19, 2012
Letters, Vermont

Preserve the battlefield

Rutland Herald via Grandpa's Knob Wind Project

To Sens. Patrick Leahy and Bernard Sanders and Rep. Peter Welch:

By now, you probably know about the proposal of Reunion Power to build wind turbines on top of Grandpa’s Knob and all along the Pittsford ridgeline. This is a project that, virtually, no one in the four town area – Castleton, West Rutland, Hubbardton and Pittsford – wants. The reasons that these wind towers are not wanted are, first, the physical, mental and emotional health hazards to the towns’ residents, all of which have been cited by local prominent physicians.

The second set of reasons is the certain detrimental effects that will be inflicted upon the environment, the animal life, the bird life and all the marvelous scenery and vistas that will be devastated by drilling, trucking, blasting and construction.

The third reason why the populace of the four towns is completely against this proposal from Reunion Power is that these towers will sit adjacent to a sacred and hallowed place: the Hubbardton Battlefield, which, we are certain, you know was the only battle site where action was demonstrated in Vermont during the American Revolution. Placing wind turbines in so sacred a place is tantamount to desecration of the grounds where our ancestors fought to help mold this country, some of them spilling their blood and dying for the American cause. It would be as if someone were to put a fast food restaurant on the battleship Arizona.

We recently visited Mount Independence, which had some experience during the American Revolution, and we discovered an astounding fact from our tour guide. This fact is that a power company tried to build a nuclear power plant on the Mount Independence site, but citizens concerned for the hallowedness of the mount fought this proposal and, ultimately, prevented construction of the nuclear power plant on a site which plays such an important position in our history.

Hubbardton holds a special place for Vermonters because of its prominence in the American Revolution. Hence, we respectfully request that you please determine what can be done, in the name of the Hubbardton Battlefield, to permit it to take its proper place of honor in American history, and to prevent the construction of these potentially irreverent wind turbines.

LARRY BOOKER
Pittsford


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2012/08/19/preserve-the-battlefield/