A HYPOCRITICAL OPPOSITION TO OVERSEAS OWNERS

A HYPOCRITICAL OPPOSITION TO OVERSEAS OWNERS

October 31, 2007,
It’s totally hypocritical and inaccurate for people to complain that wind farms generate money that goes to foreign countries. You shop at Wal-Mart, you’re sending American dollars to China. You fuel up your car, you’re sending American dollars to a Middle Eastern country. China is one of the world’s biggest polluters, and most 9-11 terrorists were from Saudi Arabia, from which the U.S. imports oil. Yet people are furious some wind farm companies have headquarters in Europe?

Do your research. While AES and Acciona are international engery companies, AES is heaquartered in Arlington, Va., and Acciona Energy NA is headquartered in Chicago. Plus, turbine parts are produced in the U.S. and the green energy boom is giving hope and revitalized industry to many Upstate New York cities and rural areas that have been struggling for decades.

It’s easy to see through the misinformation the Wind Power Ethics Group is trying to sell. For example, the “20-year life span of turbines” myth. If a company yields revenue from a certain resource, they’ll stay where that resource is inexhaustible. Cape has had an inexhaustible wind resource for centuries, yet WPEG wants you to believe a wind company will just up and leave within 20 years?

It’s true that generators on some turbines have the potential to decrease efficiency, but swapping out generators, even swapping whole turbine structures, wold not be a big deal for wind companies. This would work to our advantage. Turbines are ever evolving into quieter, more environmentally harmonious structures. If a turbine put in next year needs to be replaced 20 years from now, it would be replaced with a quieter, more environmentally harmonious turbine.

Gerald Aubertine recently wrote a letter blaming our incumbents for no zoning for wind farms. Actually, Supervisor Thomas Rienbeck and other councilment voted to implement zoning, but Councilman Cliff Schneider voted no, and stopped the zoning from going into effect.

People complain about our officials not being able to vote because they have family with property in Cape Vincent wind projects. We all know Supervisor Rienbeck has no family in the AES, Acciona or BP project, but what about John DeFrancesco? DeFranseco’s brother-in-law is signed up in the BP project. He won’t be able to vote on the BP project for the zoning for either project.

Also, I recommend all voters in Cape ask DeFransesco about his underhanded conduct at the 2005 Republican caucus, and why village sidewalks were removed from his property.

Harvey White
Cape Vincent
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Published on November 1, 2007, Page A9, Watertown Daily Times

CANDIDATE'S VOTE CORRECTED
A letter Wednesday from Harvey White, Cape Vincent, misrepresented town Councilman Clifford Schneider's vote on a zoning law for wind towers. According to minutes of the Aug. 28, 2006, board meeting, Mr. Schneider voted against a motion "to discontinue amending the town of Cape Vincent zoning law to regulate wind. Link here to read previous post