Democrats Against Wind

Another view of the Lenox Select Board meeting describe by Scott Laugenour (0.00 / 0)

Scott Laugenour's depiction of the events at the Lenox Select Board meeting on August 31st was selective, limited, and somewhat skewed such that a more complete assessment is in order.  

The proposal by one of the Selectmen was to put a Board discussion of the proposed Industrial Wind Turbines atop Lenox Mountain on the back burner FOR NOW.  In no way was there a suggestion that all public discussions should be curtailed nor that there shouldn't be open forums in the future.  Rather, it was a practical approach to using the time of the Board more productively.  At the meeting, there had already been a vigorous discussion regarding the relative merits of placing a single sandwich board display on the grass in front of a small business in Lenox Town Center which occupied 30 minutes +/-.  Can you imagine the amount of discussion entailed in the placement of two 500+ foot tall turbines covering a 70 acre area next to an Audubon preserve the blasting for which could completely disrupt and possibly destroy an aquifer that provides water for people living on the mountain or who rely on the Lenox Reservoir and Stockbridge Bowl.

An engineer at the meeting, who has read the entire feasibility study, commented on how little the study actually clarified.  In fact, those of us with a science background recognize that charts and data in and of themselves may look impressive but may obfuscate the flaws in model design and camouflage what has been left out as much as anything else.  

Someone else at the meeting pointed out the absence of a formal hydrology study which, in his words, was a "fatal flaw" of the proposal.  The Town of Lenox received a grant for $90,000 with which to study the proposed Industrial Wind Turbines.  Performing the further studies necessary and defending the inevitable suits that would arise were the Town to pursue the development of Wind Power on Lenox Mountain, would likely come out of the Town's (read Lenox taxpayer's) pockets.

I think the Selectman's suggestion to pursue less controversial, less expensive, and equally effective alternatives such as solar power (and conservation) would be a much better use of the Board's efforts at this time.  He made the point that with all the studies and talk, Lenox had fallen behind neighboring communities including Pittsfield insofar as Green Action was concerned.  He preferred to get something done that would help the environment NOW versus putting off any action until the endless discussions regarding wind power would be exhausted.

As a lifelong advocate for sustainable living, I am reminded that just as all that glitters is not gold, all that generates electricity isn't green.  An approach to our energy needs should be diverse, appropriate to local conditions, and relevant to local resources and vulnerabilities.  I favor the Cape Wind project where there is substantial wind all day long and no people live close to the turbines.  I do not favor the Lenox Mountain project because of its location in a very small, environmentally sensitive area where adjacent people and other living things might suffer illness, the evidence for which is mounting (I recommend reading THE WIND TURBINE SYNDROME by Nina Pierpont, MD, PhD).  

The availability of wind on Lenox Mountain is at the bottom of an acceptable range and is limited largely to the night time when the demand for electricity is lowest.  Adding it to "the grid" sounds good so long as we ignore the cost of the actual transmission as well as ignore the scientifically proven degradation/loss of the generated power associated with long distance transmission.

I hope the above provides some useful additional information and places Scott Laugenour's comments within a more comprehensive context.  

John Cowl, MD

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by: John Cowl @ Tue Sep 06, 2011 at 17:57:42 PM UTC

Appreciate the dialogue, but ... (0.00 / 0)

I appreciate Dr. Cowl's contribution to the discussion, which I hope continues in public meetings where the posted agenda indicates such discussion will take place.

The issue of the public forums has always been to educate the voters of Lenox through robust discussion in advance of next spring's annual town meeting, where it is expected that relevant warrants will be put to the town for a vote.  I think there is enough time to consider both wind and solar options and different ownership structures.  

It was the sentiment at the Aug 17 Select Board meeting, when the posted agenda item was duly discussed, to conduct public forums on both wind and solar.  If a group of citizens wishes to petition the Select Board to change the format of the forums, then the right decision was made to table the 'new/old business' motion and put it on the agenda for September 14.

Move forward; the center leads nowhere.

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by: scott_laugenour @ Thu Sep 08, 2011 at 19:41:03 PM UTC

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