Dear Mr. Gabler -
Apparently, our Town Hall did not inform you that we have a STRICT ordinance(s) that does not allow your facility ANY WHERE in this town.
J. INDUSTRIAL USES
2. Sawmill operations in structures, forest products manufacture.
(only permissible in agriculture district)
4. To prohibit in all districts, the construction, operation or maintenance of facilities designed to process, recycle, incinerate, store, treat, transport or dispose of solid waste as defined by RSA 149-M:1 XIX, refuse as defined by RSA 149-M:1 XVII-a, putrescible materials as defined by RSA 149-M:1 XVI, sludge from a waste treatment works, septic sewerage, or ash resulting from the incineration of the foregoing other than at facility owned and operated by the Town of Winchester. Storage of household and commercial waste generated on site pending removal to a waste disposal facility and recycling of waste produced on site or collected by a volunteer organization is permitted.
(not permitted in any district)
Despite what you were told - You should have been properly informed that in order for your facility to be built you will be required to have the town vote out this ordinance in March. It was tried two years ago and failed!
Respectfully,
Concerned Citizens of Winchester
PS: Don't go away mad, just go away!
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20 comments:
Thank you for the information blog. I cannot imagine the Town Hall neglecting to tell this company that there were certain conditions that had to be met. Shades of Triple T; it must have been an oversight or perhaps the $ signs in their eyes got in the way.
There are many of us that will continue to pay attention to this issue. As I for one, am concerned about the safety and welfare of the "whole" community not just a select few.
Nice try, but timber specifically cut for power generation would actually be a commodity, NOT solid waste, refuse, putrescible material, sludge, septic sewerage or ash under the definitions of those RSA's
Industrial wood burning sickens and kills. The tons and tons of particulates the proposed plant would pump into the air above a densely settled area are clearly unacceptable. The Winchester community is not obligated to barter away the health and safety of its citizens for a European multinational corporation's gain (or for the gain of Gestamp's Concord lackies.)
However, using affluent from the sewage plant to cool the chips and ash would fall under the recycling waste and incineration clauses; thus having this plant in town would be a violation of our zoning laws and a defensible matter if it went before the courts. One could also argue using the tree tops and other woody waste left over from cuttings which would normally be left behind to replenish the soils would fall under the ordinance as incinerating solid waste.
Why do people always want to destroy beauty in order to make a buck? It's bad enough that loggers are ruining our forest cutting firewood and leaving a mess behind, can you imagine what it's going to look like when they get paid twice as much to feed this plant? The health hazards to everyone near this plant and in the downtown area will be significant and reason alone to say no; but when you add in the over cutting of our forests and the devastation it will bring, who would ever want to move to this town? Didn't I read REDS mission statement correctly, to promote and protect the natural resources of the area and preserve our mountain forests, seems contrary to what this plant if allowed to be built here will accomplish. I guess when large sums of money are involved along with a certain group of people all hell goes out the door.
Informer,
Thank you for the RSA reference you provided, but they appear inaccurate. The RSA 149-M:1 you reference is a single sentence statement of purpose which has no sub points XIX, XVII-a or XVI.
So, I researched them for you . . .
Refuse is actually defined in RSA 149-M:4 where all of the definitions are located. Refuse is defined in sub point XXI, where it states that refuse is; " . . . any waste product, solid or having the character of a solid rather than a liquid in that it will not flow readily without additional liquid, and which is composed wholly or partly of such materials as garbage, swill, sweepings, cleanings, trash, rubbish, litter, industrial or domestic solid wastes; organic wastes or residue of animals sold as meat; fruit, vegetable or animal matter from kitchens, dining rooms, markets, food establishments or any places dealing in or handling meat, fowl, fruits, grain or vegetables; offal, animal excreta, or the carcasses of animals; construction and demolition debris; or accumulated waste material, cans, containers, tires, junk, or other such substances which may become a nuisance"
Solid Waste is defined in RSA 149-M:4 sub point XXII and putrescible materials is not defined.
As it is clearly evident that clean woody biomass does not fall within any of these definitions, there will not be a problem. You might, however, want to do the research and update your files.
To Anonymous who speaks of the use of the effluent from the treatment plant. That would be for use in the cooling towers, and has nothing to do with the chips or the ash. It is certified clean and acceptable for discharge to the environment.
This is to Mr. Gabler,
You need to understand that the majority of people do not want this in town. We want to protect our health and children. We also remember that you insinuated that we were a poor town so you chose us.
You might want to consider Athol as you are wanted there. At this point in time we are looking at the whole community and probably will once again need to upgrade our sewer plant for you. Hmm, I am not certain that the tax payers will go for this.
Have a nice day. I know that it's tough to hear the word "no".
To the casual observer it would seem that the two top Winchester pastimes are alternately A)whining about high taxes and non-existent industrial tax base and B)throttling any business that threatens to change that way of life. If the numbers show that there is a sustainable “wood basket” within a 35 mile radius of Winchester and GESTAMP is backed by 6 billion dollars as they claim, you can be pretty sure that the plant is going to go in SOMEWHERE in the region. When that happens, your forests will still be harvested and you will still be subjected to whatever emissions come from the plant but you will not be burdened by the additional jobs or tax base that is created. You will not have to be concerned with free steam heat for all of the town buildings, and your erstwhile board of selectmen can continue to spend your tax dollars over pre-buying heating oil.
Thank you citizens of Winchester and thank you blog for providing constant entertainment to the region. You are like reality TV only less believable.
Go away fool. Free steam heat at what costs to us? Our health, our children's, our pocket books paying higher prices for wood products or our property values with the scenic views of stripped landscapes?
The RED Committee and it's Mission Statement.
John Gomarlo
Ted Whippie
Harvey Sieran
Kenneth Harvey
Margaret Sharra
Mark Tigan
Suzanne Boisvert
John Pasquarelli
Gus Ruth
Paul Morehouse, Jr.
Jeannette Duhaime
Steven Thompson
Our mission statement:
For the economic growth, social cohesion, and conservation of the natural resources of our community, the future of Winchester will be a commitment to promoting the wealth of assets and ideas that have shaped the Town over it's years. In order for Winchester to become a prosperous, distinctive, and inclusive community we will: support and retain existing local businesses, target and market to needed or desirable businesses in the Downtown and the Town at large, revitalize the Downtown into a safe, attractive and unique destination for residents and visitors, conserve and utilize public space for passive and active recreation, and improve infrastructure to support existing and future needs. The future of Winchester will be a town that embraces it's history and rural character. While embracing our past we will also be looking forward, using new technologies and providing the right atmosphere to create a strong and diverse economic base and a vibrant and thriving downtown; a future that Winchester residents take pride in calling home.
Our goal this summer is complete the park across from the Town Hall.
We are looking into the Federal Stimulus money to see if we can qualify for any projects the town has/needs.
Last year we were selected out of many New Hampshire towns to take part in a "Plan NH Charrette" for Winchester where qualified engineers and planners came for 3 days to access our needs and concerns about Main Street and come up with a plan to address their idea of what a future Winchester might look like. The plan is complete and can be viewed at the Town Hall. This plan is a nice road map for the committee and town's people to use as a vision.
What hypocrites !!!
Mr. Gabler -
Are you accepting whole trees or only trailer loads of chips. And how is it going to be stored?
In regards to not solid waste; What would call wood chips which are a byproduct of the ongoing logging operations, which harvest timber for sawmills or paper mills, etc. In the past, loggers left behind the tree limbs and tops, called "slash". They also left behind the culls, deadfalls, brush, and non-merchantable species of timber. What would you call this removal of slash, brush, deadfalls, and non-merchantable timber if not solid waste?
Fool? Indeed. The facility will get built somewhere in the region and your town will feel all of the mentioned impacts from it but get no benefit whatsoever. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot...
Maybe, maybe not but with all of the information posted on this blog and opposition growing concerning burning wood and other biomass compounds for fuel and energy which poisons the air we breath and causes more harm then good, perhaps Congress will see the the boondoggle they have created and legislate stricter mandates and take away the funding for these polluters that call themselves clean air and green power; which we all are finding they are anything but.
Since Mr. Gabler does not appear to want to reply to my other post -
did anyone attend the presentation and learn in what form do they accept the wood? In logs, chips or both? And how did they propose to store it on the property?
He does seem to have disappeared; hopefully put his tail between his legs and left for good. If you want to see how they work, go on their website and there is a page on the way they would operate. The chips AS PROPOSED SUPPOSEDLY arrive chipped by the truckload and are put in a pile outside. Backhoes? load them into a hopper to be burned. Hmm which raises another question, what certifies that the chips in the truck are "virgin" wood and not treated wood chipped and trucked in???
you should go away informer fools we dont want you or need you. we need business to offset our taxes and you keep telling us that business is bad for winchester your the problem not them.
im all for it -
Did you attend any of the presentations? Mr. Gabler stated that utilities can not be taxed on property, but on REVENUE. Whose lying?
Companies need to make a profit in order to stay in business. They are not a nonprofit organization so yes they will pay their share of taxes. Don't let them fool you! I would be concerned about the wages that they are going to pay. I would wonder how much they will pay the loggers. Bottom line they will take care of themselves first because their goal is to make a profit at our expense.
Just remember there is no such thing as a free lunch someone always pays. I really don't think that Winchester can afford another lawsuit.
As to the taxpaying situation. Perhaps someone should check out the state of NH (In Lieu of Taxes) rsa. I believe that the two power dams in Ashuelot fall under those provisions. Their contribution to the town's coffers is a percentage of the value of the power output annually. The more they produce, the more they pay. It's for real.
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