Category Archives: Health Care

VDT Elevates Biomass and Renewable Energy as Political Issues

The Valdosta Daily Times (VDT) has apparently decided biomass and real clean energy instead are political issues. As part of the VDT’s sudden turn against the VLCIA and its biomass plant, which was provoked by citizen and student activism, the VDT started a week of articles with the headline “Proposed plant said to be ‘medical atrocity'”, about Dr. William Sammons’ Monday talk about health problems of biomass and how solar is better.

The VDT then featured biomass in its reporting on the AAUW Candidate Forum: Continue reading →

Why is the VDT suddenly anti-biomass and pro-solar?

What has caused the VDT to decide to look into the matter? Johnna Pinholser acknowledges that it was Growing oposition of proposed biomass energy plant:
A growing organization of concerned citizens are opposing the building of a biomass energy plant in Lowndes County.

Wiregrass Activists for Clean Energy hope to promote clean and sustainable energies while also educating the public on how a biomass plant could be detrimental to community health.

The goal of the organization and the opposition to the plant is not to inhibit economic development but to promote a conversation on sustainable energy, Dr. Michael Noll, WACE president, said.

The new organization is not the only one in the community speaking out against the biomass plant.

Continue reading →

VDT turns against VLCIA and its biomass plant

The newspaper of record in Valdosta and Lowndes County has reversed course on biomass. Top of the front page in a landmark issue: Wednesday, October 27, 2010:
Biomass plant fuels questions

by Johnna Pinholster
The Valdosta Daily Times

VALDOSTA — As the state and nation look to renewable energy solutions, locally, a proposed green energy plant is causing controversy and raising questions that remain unanswered.

The Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority and Wiregrass Power, LLC are in the beginning phases of developing property for a future biomass electric generating plant.

…

Issues with lack of information

Continue reading →

“Proposed plant said to be ‘medical atrocity'”

Johnna Pinholster writes in the the Valdosta Daily Times (paper 25 Oct, online 27 Oct 2010) about the the SAVE Biomass Forum at VSU:
A medical atrocity.

That is the phrase Dr. William Sammons used to described biomass energy plants at Monday night’s biomass forum at Valdosta State University’s Student Union theater.

Dr. Sammons answered many of the unanswered concerns about the biomass incinerator, and, unlike the lack of peer-reviewed evidence from the plant proponents: Continue reading →

Bigger Hall: SAVE Biomass Forum at VSU

Due to popular demand, the SAVE Biomass Forum has moved to a larger hall, the Student Union Theater. That’s on the east side of North Oak Street, across from Baytree Road.

It’s still Monday, 25 October 2010 from 7 to 9 PM, organized by Students Against Violating the Environment (SAVE) at Valdosta State University (VSU). The featured speaker is Dr. William Sammons, a pediatrician who has spoken nationally on the subject. Forum flyer PDF is available. See SAVE’s facebook event page for any updates. Continue reading →

SAVE Biomass Forum at VSU

Monday, 25 October 2010 from 7 to 9 PM, Students Against Violating the Environment (SAVE) will hold a Biomass Forum at University Center at Valdosta State University (VSU). Featured speaker Dr. William Sammons is a pediatrician who has spoken nationally on the subject. Forum flyer PDF is available. See SAVE’s facebook event page for any updates.

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Michael Noll: precious gifts to all of us

Dr. Michael Noll sent the appended message to all members of the Valdosta Board of Education yesterday, 13 Oct 2010.

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Dear VBOE members.

Thanks for giving me the opportunity to share some important documents with you last night. As we recognized during the invocation, our children (and grandchildren) are precious gifts to all of us, and those of us who have healthy children (and grandchildren) can count their blessings every single day.

As a parent of two school-aged children and member of the community, I feel it is my responsibility to bring the issue of our children’s health into a clearer focus. It is my sincere hope that once you have had the chance to reflect on the materials I handed out last night, you will realize just how serious the issue is. As a responsible parent I am compelled to advocate for my childrens’ health.

All of us, whether we are parents, educators or members of the VLCIA,

Continue reading →

LBJ about Pollution

It’s a really great speech and still relevant 45 years later. This is just a little excerpt:
In the last few decades entire new categories of waste have come to plague and menace the American scene. These are the technological wastes–the by-products of growth, industry, agriculture, and science. We cannot wait for slow evolution over generations to deal with them.

Pollution is growing at a rapid rate. Some pollutants are known to be harmful to health, while the effect of others is uncertain and unknown. In some cases we can control pollution with a larger effort. For other forms of pollution we still do not have effective means of control.

Pollution destroys beauty and menaces health. It cuts down on efficiency, reduces property values and raises taxes.

The longer we wait to act, the greater the dangers and the larger the problem.

Continue reading →

Phyllis Stallworth: “I am gravely concerned and disappointed”

I received this on 7 Oct for posting.

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Valdosta is an innovative city with expanding opportunities for our growing community. Valdosta has recently celebrated 150 years of progress. As a citizen, I have spent most of my adult life experiencing this progress. I’ve seen economic developments through recruitment, retention and expansions that benefit our city, with tremendous support from our communities. I’ve seen job opportunities that improve the livelihood of our citizens, through the recruitment of national companies who have established their businesses in our great city.

Our school systems are innovative, and they serve as models for other school systems in our state, with great parental involvement and encouragement toward improvements. Our University and College systems are some of the best in the state, with phenomenal enrollment and retention of traditional and non-traditional students in our city and abroad.

Our religious establishments are growing from leaps and bounds with more and more people becoming citizens of our great city, who are leaving larger unsafe, polluted, and unproductive cities, for a safer, less polluted and productive small town lifestyle, such as our wonderful city provides.

The development of small businesses, through our downtown projects, have been a great success story for our city. The innovative improvements make our city one of the most visited in our state. We pride ourselves as a Titletown community, through continuous progress over 150 years.

When I contemplate our shared 150 years of progress, I find it disturbing that our Industrial Authority would make such a bad decision as to bring a Biomass incinerator into our community. As an advocate for the welfare of children, women, and families I am gravely concerned and disappointed that such a project has been endorsed by leaders who were elected to carry out the wishes of the community for the betterment of all citizens.

Continue reading →

Excuse me? Nobody but me had gotten a biomass presentation from VLCIA?

An open letter to Brad Lofton and Allan Ricketts,

Watching a video of your speeches to the Valdosta Board of Education (VBOE), I was astonished to see Brad Lofton say nobody in the room but me had sat down and gotten a presentation from VLCIA!

Brad Bergstrom has already reminded you that Bergstrom and Seth Gunning sat down with VLCIA months ago. I hope you weren’t failing to count Dr. Bergstrom because he wasn’t physically in the same room at the time you made that astonishing assertion.

And what about these people?

More here.

Sitting directly in front of Lofton in those pictures of that June 10th meeting in the VLCIA offices is Pastor Angela Manning.

I see later in the same video Allan Ricketts contradicts Brad Lofton by referring to that very meeting that I organized on June 10th. Yet one of Ricketts or Lofton (I can’t see which) at the very end of the video claims VLCIA answered every one of Pastor Manning’s concerns.

As I already pointed out directly to Brad Lofton before the VBOE meeting, listening to the VLCIA persuaded Pastor Manning to oppose the biomass plant, organizing a town hall at which numerous people spoke about the biomass plant, mostly against. In case there is any doubt as to Pastor Manning’s position on the biomass plant, she has since spelled it out in a letter directly to Brad Lofton:

“I stand with the NAACP, the SCLC, the American Lung Association, and any other group fighting against the bio mass plant.”

In my above message to Lofton, (sent, once again before the VBOE meeting) I listed four unanswered concerns from the June 10 meeting at VLCIA. He responded by ignoring half of them and inadequately answering two of them. When I pointed this out to him, he failed to answer any of them and asked for assistance in recruiting jobs. When I offered such assistance his whole response was:

“We’re moving forward with permits in hand. Have a nice day.”

All the messages cited in the preceding paragraph were exchanged before the VBOE meeting. Yet Lofton and Ricketts stood up before the VBOE and asserted all concerns had been answered. Is that how someone acts who is seriously trying to answer concerns of the community?

I do not appreciate Brad Lofton and Allan Ricketts using my name to support the misinformation they conveyed in their speeches to the Valdosta Board of Education.

When I first heard about this proposed biomass plant, I thought it was green energy. Attempts to obtain objective information about plant emissions and fuel sources for all the similar nearby plants, together with repeated presentations such as this from Brad Lofton and Allan Ricketts, have persuaded me and others to oppose the proposed biomass incinerator.

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John S. Quarterman