Letter to the Editor
Well, it looks like there is an opportunity to object after all. My head was filled with the understanding that the power plant in Lounsberry was a done deal. That's what I was told by people who should know. I asked more questions and received interesting but odd answers. So now I ask, what is it that I don't understand? How can such an environmentally poor plan be good for Nichols in the short or long run? And why aren't all the facts about the power plant offered to us - the public - to vote on?
It is not just Nichols (which includes Lounsberry) that would be affected by the obvious pollution problems. All villages and towns around us will receive the pollutants as they are produced and as they accumulate annually, building up in our air and water. My understanding is that New York City gets the electricity, but that we get the waste products, some of which result in decreased visibility. The beauty of our countryside not withstanding, (which was excluded in the damage control equation as not of value) what additional breathing problems will be felt by asthmatics? How can it be that a handful of people decide this major change in our quality of living?
I have been told that we'll benefit from lots of jobs and lots of taxes. With the political plan that seems to be coming we will be hard put to receive taxes for a school district that is mostly Owego's district for one thing, and for another, if the Empire Zone is designated it becomes a freebie on the other taxes for the Twin Tier Power Company. This wisdom is justified because we, the population of Nichols need the business. Really? Any business at any price? Is it really less than two dozen jobs that might come to our area? Naturally, there will be people coming in with the business who are already hired, so we'd need to subtract the already-hireds from the job pool possibilities. The people of New York City don't want another power plant in their area because they have seen the pollution up close and personally. Maybe natural gas is the lesser of the possible polluting fuels, but do we need to accept even that?
Are you willing to trade-in your air and water quality without comment? I am not. My husband and I belong to a long, long list of environmentally concerned organizations. Some of them are in New York, others are protecting places all over our country. We just didn't pay proper attention to the concerned residents' objections to this power plant plan. We are truly embarrassed that we waited so long to read and listen to this apparently politically proposed power plant. We believe in the consent of the governed as an important United States Constitutional right. We believe in gracious acquiescence should there be a vote and a majority of our community want this power plant built here. However, until and unless there is a plan for a vote I will continue to pursue the facts, and continue to educate those who, like me, like us, didn't realize the mess a power plant this large would cause to our beautiful area.
It is not too late to object, but the time is short. The Industrial Development Agency (IDA) and our Tioga County Legislature, our senators, and even our governor need to hear from those of us who see this business, this power plant, as a mistaken idea for Lounsberry and our communities surrounding it. The votes of agreement are louder and at the moment more powerful than the objectors' voices, but we are indeed a democracy and should have the right to be given the whole picture and to vote on it. It affects our quality of life and that of our children and grandchildren. The effects of pollution take a long time to reverse after we discover that we made a mistake because of misinformation.
Lynn Vestel
Nichols
The Community Press