Tag Archives: Valdosta

No coal ash on a dozen years of DSSWA agendas (but Brooks County Landfill)

In agendas for the governmental group which supposedly has oversight of the landfill in Lowndes County, Georgia, there is no mention at all of coal or coal ash. Thanks to Julia Shewchuck of SGRC, those agendas for the Deep South Solid Waste Authority (DSSWA) are on the LAKE website.

[April 18, 2007 Agenda] Back in 2006 the proposed Brooks County Landfill is on the the proposed April 19, 2006 agenda, and the June 21, 2006 agenda said there was a public hearing June 29, 2006. An update was on the October 18, 2016 agenda.

2007 starts with one meeting with no mention of the landfill, but the April 18, 2007 meeting has “5. Discussion of Onyx/Langdale Proposed Land Swap”. I don’t see any further mention of the Brooks County landfill after that, and apparently it never happened.

Curiously, these mentions of the Brooks County Landfill on the DSSWA agenda are all months after these VDT stories: Continue reading →

Videos: West Mims Fire, Water Trails, Transportation, Construction Board, 3 tax lighting districts, mosquitoes, no-bid contract @ LCC 2017-08-08

“There’s nobody that can tackle something like that alone,” said Emergency Management Director Ashley Tye in a West Mims Fire Special Presentation with firefighters from all over Lowndes County and its cities, including a resolution from the Charlton County Commission.

Citizen Gretchen Quarterman spoke about WWALS and trash and cameras at the Naylor Boat Ramp site, and about Boy Scouts at the GA 133 Boat Ramp. Citizen Jim Parker poked them about public transportation and renewable energy.

They’re settling on “Wiregrass Georgia Technical College Road to Success”, but when did Commissioners decide on that between the previous morning’s open meeting and this one? But wait: Continue reading →

Landfill Solar on Wetherington Lane, Lowndes County, Georgia

These 1.0 megawatts (MW) of solar panels across from the old closed Evergreen Landfill will soon feed the new Withlacoochee Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) a short distance up the same Wetherington Road. To get the electricity there, a power line will either have to be bored underground or put on poles overhead; that’s as yet undecided.

Solar panels with reference dogs
Photo: John S. Quarterman for LAKE, 25 July 2017

Another solar field, started a couple of weeks ago, will be on land right to the WWTP, for another 275 KW.

This is according to Continue reading →

Big Bets keep getting worse for Southern Company

OSHA certified a “continuing pattern of retaliatory treatment” at Kemper “clean” Coal after an employee alerted Southern Company of alleged fraud: SO fired him, refused to hire him back and now he’s suing. Plant “new nukes” Vogtle also had impossible projections from the start and is even later and more overbudget, while anybody from GA-PSC to Georgia EMCs to the Florida PSC or even PowerSouth in Alabama could bring it down. Somebody put Plant Vogtle out of its misery so we can get on with solar power in Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and everywhere else.

Plant Vogtle reactors 3 and 4
Two new cooling towers and construction cranes mark the work sites for nuclear reactors 3 and 4 at Plant Vogtle in east Georgia. The project is currently $3.6 billion over budget and almost four years behind the original schedule. JOHNNY EDWARDS / JREDWARDS@AJC.COM, in Plant Vogtle: Georgia’s nuclear ‘renaissance’ now a financial quagmire by Russell Grantham and Johnny Edwards, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 19 May 2017.

Kemper “clean” Coal

Doyle LLP, PRNewswire, 8 August 2017, Whistleblower in Kemper Project Sues Southern Company and CEO: OSHA ruled former company engineer faced “continuing pattern of retaliatory treatment” Continue reading →

Videos: Construction Board, 3 tax lighting districtcs, mosquitoes, radios, roads, and truck @ LCC 2017-08-07

Emergency Management Director Ashley Tye gave a preview of the West Mims Fire Special Presentation that will be tonight at 5:30 PM by someone from the Charlton County Commission.

Looks like another no-bid special contract award, this time to Lovell Engineering, without even the excuse of an emergency.

They have signs made for Wiregrass Technical College Highway. Two out of three (not Creekside) Special Tax Lighting Districts may be ready to vote on tonight.

If you have any other plumber to propose for the Valdosta-Lowndes County Construction Board of Adjustments and Appeals, get that name to them before tonight; they’ve already got one name.

A month ago there was Continue reading →

Videos: Appointments to Hospital Authority and Parks and Rec + well pump @ LCC 2017-07-11

Two Regular Sessions back, they started with a moment of silence for Mike Everett, recently deceased employee of the Public Works department. The obituary in the VDT, 14 July 2014,

Michael Thomas Everett, a senior heavy equipment operator with Lowndes county and long time resident of Berrien County, GA, died unexpectedly on July 9, 2017 at the age of 58 at his home. Mike was born in Miami, Florida on December 29, 1958 to Hermon J. Everett and Mary C. Everett both deceased and is survived by his loving Step-Mother Nora N. Everett. Mike also known as Mr. Mike to many of his close friends and co-workers was an avid race car fan, loved cooking, enjoyed tending to his many gardens. He also loved music and often played guitar with family and friends. He was a magnet for all dogs taking great care of any that showed up on his doorstep. Mike was a very kind and generous man who will be deeply missed by his family, close neighbors, friends, co-workers and all who knew him. There is no service scheduled at this time.

No surprise on the pump or for the Hospital Authority, but news about Ashley Paulk and VLPRA. They approved everything else unanimously, as they usually do.

Below are links to each LAKE video, with a few notes, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also the agenda. There are no LAKE videos of the previous morning’s Work Session, because, they moved it half an hour early and didn’t send a notification. But there is a blog post about one Commissioner’s response to that. The county apparently does video its work sessions, but not that one, and not this Regular Session, either.

Continue reading →

West Mims Fire, Construction Board, 3 tax lighting districtcs, mosquitoes, radios, roads, and truck @ LCC 2017-08-07

The most interesting item this morning at 8:30 AM at the Lowndes County Commission Work Session is the Special Presentation by someone unnamed about the West Mims Fire in the Okefenokee Swamp. Apparently they sent some assistance.

The agenda sheet for the appointment to the Valdosta-Lowndes County Construction Board of Adjustments and Appeals says:

Mr. Mike Vickery’s term on the Valdosta-Lowndes County Construction Board of Adjustments and Appeals expired on June 30, 2017, leaving a vacant seat. Mr. Tripp Howell has expressed interest in being appointed to the board.

Here is the agenda: Continue reading →

Videos: Lake Park Zoning Amendment, Valdosta personal care CUP @ GLPC 2017-06-26

They meet again tonight at 5:30 PM. Last month was a very rare meeting where nobody showed up to speak for or against either item at the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission, June 26, 2017: one zoning change from Lake Park, and one Valdosta rezoning for a “personal care salon” on Woodrow Wilson Drive.

Below are links to each LAKE video followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also the agenda. Continue reading →

Crowd expected for three rezoning cases @ GLPC 2017-07-31

Three rezoning cases, one in Hahira on W. Stanfill St. and two in Valdosta on Eager Road, may be controversial tonight at 5:30 PM.

Daniel DeMersseman, VDT, 26 July 2017, Planning Commission expects crowd,

“It’s just three properties but they’re not simple ones. Each of these has the potential to bring a crowd,” [Valdosta and Hahira Planning and Zoning Administrator Matt] Martin said.

316 Eager Road, with 318 Eager Rd to its left
Map: Lowndes County Tax Assessors, of 316 Eager Road, with 318 Eager Rd to its left

Here’s the agenda, which the county put on their website after Gretchen called and asked. She will be there with the LAKE video camera. Continue reading →

Videos: alias for Val Tech Road, Moody, Library, KLVB, DFCS, Construction Board @ LCC 2017-07-25

They actually spent the most time on the fire pages, but the biggest item was renaming Val Tech Road: they decided not to do that, rather to designate “a portion” of it as Wiregrass Technical College Way or something like that.

For two boards, KLVB and DFCS, they didn’t have an application for one seat, so they left it until the next meeting.

The meeting lasted more than fifteen minutes, so they’ll probably have to pay staff overtime! Below are links to the LAKE video for each item in the agenda, for yesterday morning’s Regular Session, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also the LAKE videos of hte previous morning’s Work Session.