Tag Archives: Georgia

Tranquility Trail –James Wright and students @LCC, 8 Feb 2011

Valdosta City Council member James Wright and students speak to the County Commission about Tranquility Trail. The students have a number of good points, such as “It’s not about me but our community” and “Don’t Litter, Make Our Trail Glitter”, and trees have educational and recreational benefits, and “We need our community to come in with us… how our community can get involved.” James Wright wraps up with “Development of our community and our citizens.” There’s more. Here’s the whole thing:


Regular meeting of the Lowndes County Commission, 8 February 2011,
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia.
Video by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

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How much has VLCIA paid for Sterling Energy travel?

VLCIA says it paid for hotel rooms in December for Bob McCann and Gil Waldman of Sterling Energy. Why? How much more has VLCIA spent on travel for Sterling? And how can this public-private keep Sterling documents related to the biomass plant confidential?

According to the VDT, “Biomass plant said good for Valdosta and Georgia,” by Johnna Pinholster, 4 Nov 2010, “Gilbert Waldman is vice president and general manager of Sterling Energy Assets” and “Sterling Energy brought in Robert McCann, Jr. from Golder Associates Inc.” It’s curious that VLCIA paid for a room for the general manager of Sterling Energy, which I thought VLCIA said was the principle investor in the project. Seems like more we, we, we to me. This is yet more evidence that VLCIA and Sterling Energy do indeed have a public-private partnership. In which case, why can Sterling and VLCIA claim Sterling’s wood fuel sourcing study is proprietary?

The VDT also said:

On Tuesday, Waldman, an environmental consultant, members of the Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority board, and Brad Lofton, executive director of the authority, sat down to discuss the plant, how it works and how clean it will be.
Did VLCIA also pay for rooms for Waldman and McCann for that Tuesday 2 Nov 2010 meeting? How much money has VLCIA spent bringing them down here?

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VLCIA Payments for 6 Dec 2010 biomass “Forum”

VLCIA spent more than $17,000 on speakers and catering for their 6 Dec 2010 “Forum”, according to VLCIA’s response to an open records request. Yet local speakers against the biomass plant who would have charged nothing were not invited to be on the panel. VLCIA insists on referring to it as an “information exchange”, even though their hand-picked moderator said “we’re not going to get into debate.”

Here is a summary of the expenses: Continue reading →

Are all these medical associations and doctors lying? –Dr. Noll

In the new era of good feelings, Dr. Noll asked the Lowndes County Commission whether they thought all the medical associations and doctors who oppose biomass plants are lying, same as he later asked the Valdosta City Council. He also offered to discuss with biomass proponent Nolen Cox, who spoke immediately before. Here’s the video.


Regular meeting of the Lowndes County Commission, 8 February 2011,
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia.
Video by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

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Era of good feelings at County Commission

Shutting down debate didn’t work, so now we have the era of good feelings at the County Commission. Here Chairman Ashley Paulk thanks Dr. Michael Noll for a previous meeting:


Regular meeting of the Lowndes County Commission, 8 February 2011,
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia.
Video by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

Some of us did wonder when next thing was Noll’s microphone went off. But that was apparently just a technical failure, which continued for a while during the meeting.

I commend Chairman Paulk for his recent civil and, as Commissioner Lee used to say, “adult-like manner.”

However, as County Manager Joe Pritchard reminded everyone later at the County Commission retreat, the county government is still having a bit of difficulty adjusting to all this recent transparency. Let’s help them by showing them by example on many topics that the road of respect goes both ways.

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Say no to grants and shut off debate on biomass –Nolen Cox, LCC, 8 Feb 2011

Local resident Nolen Cox says government grants are more addictive than drugs, and “all the federal money is my tax money.” He mentions federal debt, and lists only social programs. Regarding grants, he’s specifically referring to a proposal to accept a grant for NOAA weather radios, which we’ll come back to later.

His other topic is that he thinks we need more oil, more nuclear, and biomass. His recommendation: “I would stop discusssing it.” He thinks it’s like global warming, which he thinks is a lie. He sums up:

Build the plant, employ people, get on with the program.
It’s interesting that these are about the best arguments biomass proponents have. Perhaps he’s not aware that shutting off the debate was tried recently and doesn’t seem to be working too well. Here’s the video.


Regular meeting of the Lowndes County Commission, 8 February 2011,
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia.
Video by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

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Uncontrolled growth and water problems

Daniel Mayer, November 2006
Maybe growth, growth, growth alone isn’t any better than jobs, jobs jobs alone, and water remains one of the main issues. Kay Harris wrote in the VDT 17 Feb 2011 that Aging infrastructure, growth, and other issues contribute to city’s sewer woes:
Valdosta Utilities Director Henry … Hicks addressed the sewage spills, saying they are caused by excess rain which overloads the Withlacoochee River Water Pollution Control Plant. He said growth along the river and throughout the regional watershed area has contributed to the amount of excess water running into the river.

“When you have all this growth and you create more impervious surface area (through paving and development), more and more water is running into the Withlacoochee. On average, the plant handles six million gallons a day and is equipped to accommodate twice that, but in recent rain events, we’ve gotten upwards of 15 million gallons extra in stormwater runoff and the system can’t handle that,” Hicks said.

Some of the comments on the VDT page are also interesting. Guest remarked: Continue reading →

Georgia forests worth more standing than incinerated

Sandi Martin writes in Southeast Farm Press:
A University of Georgia researcher has found that Georgia’s forestlands provide essential ecosystem services to the state worth an estimated $37 billion annually.

This is in addition to the value of timber, forest products and recreation. This is the first time these indirect benefits of Georgia’s private forests have been estimated.

That’s substantially more than the $28 billion annually from the conventional wood-products industry.

What are these ecosystem services? Continue reading →

GA biomass bubble bursts

Dan Chapman writes in the AJC:
The premise, and the promise, were brilliant in their simplicity: Turn tree waste into fuel, help break the Middle Eastern choke hold on America’s economy and bring hundreds of jobs to rural Georgia.

What wasn’t there to like?

Plenty, starting with the closing last month of the Range Fuels cellulosic ethanol factory that promised to help make Georgia a national leader in alternative energy production. Then there’s the money — more than $162 million in local, state and federal grants, loans and other subsidies committed to the venture.

Hm, who was involved in that?
“Range Fuels represents a new future for our country,” proclaimed then-Gov. Sonny Perdue, flanked by dignitaries and beauty queens. “With Georgia’s vast, sustainable and renewable forests, we will lead the nation.”
That reminds me of this press release from 15 Sep 2009:
“Georgia’s status as the nation’s Bioenergy Corridor continues to grow with the location of a renewable energy power plant in Valdosta,” said Governor Perdue. “Our vast supply of biomass, technology innovations and business-friendly environment are very attractive to companies such as Wiregrass Power.”
Will history repeat itself?

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Biomass plant a done deal? –Floyd Rose

This LTE appeared in the VDT Sunday 13 February 2011. -jsq
Abraham Lincoln said, “The probability that we shall fail in this struggle should not deter us from the support of a cause that we believe is just.” Such a cause for us is opposition to the biomass plant.

Given its support from city and county officials more concerned about doing the bidding of the rich and powerful than they are about the health of children, it is likely a “done deal.” Done by those who will profit from the deal.

None of the national health organizations endorse biomass plants as safe for children. The American Cancer Society, the American Lung Association, and the World Health Organization have concluded that biomass plants pose serious threats to children.

None of the deal makers, investors, or politicians who signed off on their deal live in the community which will most be affected by the poisonous toxins that will fill the air. Their children don’t attend the schools, nor do they attend any of the seven area churches.

Meetings have been held on the biomass project. Some by the Industrial Authority, WACE, the NAACP, and SCLC. And not a single citizen has spoken in favor of it. When I asked a council member about this, he said, “They are afraid of you.”

It is not the proponents who have anything to fear.

Continue reading →