LOCATION/TYPE

NEWS HOME


[ exact phrase in "" • results by date ]

[ Google-powered • results by relevance ]

Archive
RSS

Add NWW headlines to your site (click here)

WHAT TO DO
when your community is targeted

Get weekly updates
RSS

RSS feeds and more

Keep Wind Watch online and independent!

Donate via Stripe

Donate via Paypal

Selected Documents

All Documents

Research Links

Alerts

Press Releases

FAQs

Campaign Material

Photos & Graphics

Videos

Allied Groups

Wind Watch is a registered educational charity, founded in 2005.

News Watch Home

Scituate selectman candidates talk wind turbine 

Credit:  By Patrick Ronan, The Patriot Ledger, Apr 12, 2013, patriotledger.com ~~

The three candidates vying for a seat on Scituate’s board of selectmen agree that something can be done to quiet the town’s wind turbine. But specifically how – and when – it should be done is what differentiates them.

Ann Burbine, James Gilmore and Martin O’Toole took part in a WATD radio forum on Thursday. The annual town election will be held April 30.

Burbine, 64, a small-business owner, said the residents who live near the turbine, which is off the Driftway, need relief. Some neighbors say the turbine’s shadow flicker and noise are hurting their health.

“You can’t help but feel empathy, and (I’m) so sad for those people that are dealing with all of this without any real recourse,” Burbine said.

She said the town should act immediately to reduce the turbine’s noise impact. On Wednesday, Burbine was one of 118 residents who supported a non-binding resolution at town meeting to shut down the turbine.

O’Toole, 53, a small-business owner, was one of 132 voters who opposed the resolution. O’Toole said the town needs to wait until the turbine has been studied before acting.

“If these health problems are real, then we do have a real problem,” O’Toole said. “The only thing is I hesitate to jump into anything until (the studies are done).”

O’Toole suggested that the turbine owner could reduce the blade speed to see if that helps.

Gilmore, 54, the president of a flooring contractor, voted in favor of the resolution Wednesday, but he said he did so because the measure was non-binding. Like O’Toole, he wants to wait for the study results before taking action.

However, Gilmore said the selectmen have erred by focusing too much on the turbine’s fiscal impact and not enough on the health complaints.

“If we’ve got to spend a little bit of money, risk-wise, to say, ‘OK, let’s turn it off from 7 p.m. at least until first thing in the morning,’ we might risk $100,000,” Gilmore said. “What’s $100,000 (if we’re protecting residents)?”

On a separate topic, Gilmore and O’Toole both said the town should look at reducing its Community Preservation Act property-tax surcharge in order to lessen the burden of the town’s long-term building plan, which will likely require temporary tax hikes. Burbine disagreed, saying the Community Preservation Act funds should be left alone.

All three candidates agreed that the selectmen need to be more transparent and more proactive in communicating with residents.

Source:  By Patrick Ronan, The Patriot Ledger, Apr 12, 2013, patriotledger.com

This article is the work of the source indicated. Any opinions expressed in it are not necessarily those of National Wind Watch.

The copyright of this article resides with the author or publisher indicated. As part of its noncommercial educational effort to present the environmental, social, scientific, and economic issues of large-scale wind power development to a global audience seeking such information, National Wind Watch endeavors to observe “fair use” as provided for in section 107 of U.S. Copyright Law and similar “fair dealing” provisions of the copyright laws of other nations. Send requests to excerpt, general inquiries, and comments via e-mail.

Wind Watch relies entirely
on User Contributions
   Donate via Stripe
(via Stripe)
Donate via Paypal
(via Paypal)

Share:

e-mail X FB LI M TG TS G Share


News Watch Home

Get the Facts
CONTACT DONATE PRIVACY ABOUT SEARCH
© National Wind Watch, Inc.
Use of copyrighted material adheres to Fair Use.
"Wind Watch" is a registered trademark.

 Follow:

Wind Watch on X Wind Watch on Facebook Wind Watch on Linked In

Wind Watch on Mastodon Wind Watch on Truth Social

Wind Watch on Gab Wind Watch on Bluesky