Health & Fitness
Wind Direction Intervention Overdue
It's no secret Falmouth officials are overwhelmed and are being tossed about by our prevailing winds. It's time for a direction strategy rather than aimlessly being blown around.
Since the turbines began operating in 2010, Town Meeting has bailed-out the wind project shortfall to the tune of $700,000. This spring’s Town Meeting approved $477,000 alone. And the $700K DOESN’T even include the incremental depletion of the $1 million Wind Energy Reserve Account established by Town Meeting in FY2009.
The State’s Renewable Energy Agency (MassCEC) has proposed financial aid, $1.8 million with significant strings attached that will ultimately do nothing to abate the evidenced Nuisance. With this offer it would appear, to the Town Administration’s apparent satisfaction, four years of turbine torment has been worth in the neighborhood of about a 1.5% return on original investment and subsidy appropriations combined. That’s hardly the sound and business-like project the community was promised, and that was railed for at the most recent Town Meeting. Ironically, it was MassCEC that assured Falmouth of a ‘windfall’ from the planned project.
It’s clearly time for intervention. And I DO NOT mean from MassCEC.
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The various levels of Chambers of Commerce represent business in public policy by proactively addressing important issues. The local Chamber has tried to help businesses prosper and the community flourish. Falmouth’s town hall argues that it’s wind project needs to be operated like a business. Then what’s preventing the local chamber from proactively helping the town address this troublesome business issue?
The national chamber renewable energy platform is to help create a more predictable investment environment. It’s obvious that Falmouth is in desperate need of that!. The US Chamber of Commerce has said that the government must phase out subsidies (for renewables) and reform its policies. Why not start in Falmouth?
Find out what's happening in Falmouthfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Continuing to do ‘wind business’ as usual, the way our fiscally driven town officials and MassCEC envision, is hardly a sound business practise, and as a community, unsustainable.
Will the Falmouth Chamber of Commerce step up... Will the town collaborate?
