Category Archives: Planning

Tom Call: New VLCIA Board Member

The Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority (VLCIA) has a new board member, Tom Call, local realtor and pesticider:
Roy Copeland
Roy Copeland 		Tom Call
Tom Call 		Mary B. Gooding
Mary Gooding 		Norman Bennett
Norman Bennett 		Jerry Jennett
Jerry Jennett,
Chairman
Since VLCIA’s website has no picture for Tom Call, LAKE has used the one from his Plaxo page.

He’s on the board of Homeland Defense Corp., which does “Custom Automated Mosquito and Insect Misting Systems” and says this:

Thomas B. Call graduated from the University of Georgia with a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture. After a career in the agricultural chemicals industry, Tom branched out into real estate. Today, he is the owner of Coldwell Banker Premier Real Estate, and owns a number of successful businesses specializing in residential and commercial real estate development. www.Valdostarealtors.com
(Also on that board are Continue reading →

In refusing debate, VLCIA staff are following orders from their board

We’ve seen Brad Lofton write I will not debate you over e-mail and We will not, however, debate you over e-mail meanwhile refusing to put tax-funded presentations and videos up for public view through the VLCIA website, and offering personal meetings instead. Having experienced one of those personal meetings down at VLCIA HQ, and having heard from others who have attended them, I know of no substantive debate that happened at those indoctrination sessions, either. Any attempt at debate or even to get Lofton to produce the scientific evidence he claims he has ends with a proclamation like this one from September:
We’re moving forward with permits in hand.
or this one from December:
We’re moving forward now, and we are looking forward to the ground breaking which will be Spring of 2011.

But let’s not be too hard on VLCIA staff. At the 21 Dec 2010 board meeting, it became clear Continue reading →

VLMPO Planning Meeting

A local planning organization that studies advertises frequent meetings for input and studies facebook usage data to see what people care about? That’s the Valdosta-Lowndes Metropolitan Planning Organization (VLMPO), which holds frequent and repeated hearings on major projects. Next week it’s having its regular Policy Committee Meeting 1:30PM to 4:30 PM, Tuesday 11 Jan 2010, at the SGRC office at 327 West Savannah Ave., Valdosta. You can see what they’re up to about traffic congestion, busses, trains, bicycles, Moody access, conservation, or other issues, and voice your concerns. Continue reading →

Brad Lofton’s memory fails him again

On 28 Dec 2010 Brad Lofton wrote:
No one but WACE has made any claims about our efforts to substantiate this project.
Who are all these people, then, asking questions at the VLCIA’s 6 Dec 2010 event?

For example, this one, following up about the Environmental Impact Study he requested back at the EPD air quality hearing (see video of that event). He didn’t get an answer then, and at VLCIA’s 6 Dec event he still only got allusions to studies and standards that were not produced.

You can see Brad Lofton in that video, listening. Did he forget so quickly?

What about SAVE’s event at VSU at which Dr. Sammons spoke? What about the well-attended Biomass Town Hall that Pastor Angela Manning organized? And other events.

What about my question at the 6 Dec 2010 VLCIA board meeting? Continue reading →

“folks come into the community.” –Col. Ricketts responding to WACE in VLCIA board meeting

Previously I promised to post the rest of what Col. Ricketts and Brad Lofton said about biomass in the 21 Dec 2010 VLCIA board meeting.

In these two videos, Col. Ricketts responds to materials sent to VLCIA by WACE. He dismisses certain material as being from Massachusetts or being from “folks come into the community.” That’s rather rich, since as near as I can tell, all of VLCIA’s “expert” panelists at their 6 Dec 2010 event were from not from around here. Some were from states a thousand miles from here. Maybe somebody can transcribe Brad Lofton’s enumeration of those “experts” from the board meeting, since as near as I can tell VLCIA has provided no written list of them. And of course Sterling Planet is located in Atlanta, not Lowndes County.

In the first video, Col. Ricketts says he’s responding to WACE materials: Continue reading →

“We will not, however, debate you over e-mail.” –Brad Lofton to Dr. Noll

Breaking his self-imposed nonresponse policy, Brad Lofton responds to Dr. Noll’s summary. -jsq
To: “Michael G. Noll”, “Mary B. Gooding”, “Ricketts, Allan” <aricketts@industrialauthority.com>, “Copeland, Roy”, “‘John S. Quarterman'”, “Susan R. Wehling”, Kay Harris
From: “blofton@industrialauthority.com” <blofton@industrialauthority.com>,
Date: Tue, 28 Dec 2010 09:56:14 -0500
Subject: RE: Wiregrass Power, LLC

Good morning Dr.Noll-

We have provided ample evidence supporting our project over a very lengthy period of time, and I am sorry that you simply can’t come to terms with that. No one but WACE has made any claims about our efforts to substantiate this project. If we had done no additional due diligence at all (and we have done plenty), the seven month environmental study and approval by the state Environmental Protection Division was completed, and they found this project safe for Georgia. The Feds not only support it, but they are providing tax credits and have publicly called biomass a great tool to reduce GHGs.

We’ll be happy to review all of the additional studies and vast amount of environmental and other support with you for the tenth time if you would choose to finally meet with us in person as we’ve been asking for over two years. We will not, however, debate you over e-mail. As I promised, we will add your e-mail today to our file, but with all approvals and permits in hand, we are indeed moving forward now and are excited about a Spring groundbreaking.

Thanks,
BL
Sent from my Verizon Wireless Phone

“no way shape or form” –Brad Lofton on Dr. Teaf

A week after Brad Lofton failed to produce evidence and offered to file Dr. Noll’s correspondence “in the appropriate file”, VLCIA has still not published the videos or slides from their 6 Dec 2010 event at the Rainwater Conference Center.

However, Brad Lofton and Col. Ricketts summarized that event for the VLCIA board at their recent board meeting, and they never presented any actual evidence there, either.

Brad Lofton said his toxicologist says the biomass plant in “no way shape or form” will cause health problems. Then he rattled off a long list of supporters of a Gainesville biomass plant. The rest of this post has videos of what he and Col. Ricketts said, plus screenshots of each of Dr. Teaf’s slides: see if you can find the details. Continue reading →

“we will make sure they get in the appropriate file.” –Brad Lofton

Mr. Lofton refusing to respond to Dr. Noll’s latest. -jsq
From: “blofton@industrialauthority.com” <blofton@industrialauthority.com>,
To: “Michael G. Noll”, “Mary B. Gooding”, “Ricketts, Allan” <aricketts@industrialauthority.com>, “Copeland, Roy”, “‘John S. Quarterman'”, “Susan R. Wehling”, Kay Harris
Subject: RE: Wiregrass Power, LLC
Date: Sat, 25 Dec 2010 14:01:51 -0500

Dr. Noll-

Please feel free to continue sending e-mails, and we will make sure they get in the appropriate file. We appreciate your passion for one of our projects. As I mentioned yesterday, we’re enthusiastically moving forward at this time, and we will be breaking ground in the Spring.

Thanks,
BL
Sent from my Verizon Wireless Phone

“nothing short of irresponsible” –Dr. Noll to Mr. Lofton

Dr. Noll responding to Mr. Lofton’s latest. -jsq
From: “Michael G. Noll”
To: “blofton@industrialauthority.com”, “Mary B. Gooding”, “Ricketts, Allan”, <aricketts@industrialauthority.com>, “Copeland, Roy”, “‘John S. Quarterman'”, “Susan R. Wehling”, Kay Harris
Subject: RE: Wiregrass Power, LLC
Date: Sat, 25 Dec 2010 17:55:18 +0000

Mr. Lofton.

Moving forward with a project like yours

  1. after it has been established that biomass is dirtier than coal (see the data we shared from the Georgia EPD)
  2. after it has been established by medical associations throughout the country that the hundreds of tons of pollutants your proposed plant would spewout (as identified in your own application) would result in significant health issues (increase and/or worsening of COPD, asthma, cancer, heart disease)
is nothing short of irresponsible and speaks of the lack of respect you have for the health of our community.

The fact remains that you have not been able to provide quantitative data or scientific studies that prove that biomass is “clean” or

Continue reading →

“It is your responsibility to prove us wrong” –Dr. Noll to Mr. Lofton

Dr. Noll responds to Mr. Lofton’s email of 24 Dec 2010. -jsq
From: “Michael G. Noll”
To: “blofton@industrialauthority.com” <blofton@industrialauthority.com>, “Mary B. Gooding”, “Ricketts, Allan” <aricketts@industrialauthority.com>, “Copeland, Roy”, “‘John S. Quarterman'”, “Susan R. Wehling”, Kay Harris
Subject: RE: Wiregrass Power, LLC
Date: Fri, 24 Dec 2010 21:19:15 +0000

Hello Mr. Lofton.

You might remember that WACE handed out a “Myth vs. Fact” info sheet at the meeting. On it were clearly outlined major issues we have with your biomass project. I will only entertain the first three to refresh your memory, since they are the most important facts for our community:

Continue reading →