Efforts to get the truth out about glyphosate has been stymied by tainted corporate research and by an Environmental Protection Agency that is "dysfunctional at best."
Sen. Michael J. Barrett, D-Lexington, opened the hearing by remarking on the lack of transparency in the natural gas utility industry compared to other infrastructure industries the legislature has dealt with.
When asked about one of the biggest, and longest running, environmental issues in the Berkshires—cleaning up the Housatonic River from PCB pollution dumped decades ago by General Electric—Gonzalez said he agrees with local communities and the EPA that the toxins should be “safely disposed offsite.”
“I definitely share in the disappointment about the lack of net metering increases. I understand there are a lot of folks in the Berkshires and in my district who are vocal proponents of lifting and even eliminating the cap on metering credits."
-- State Rep. William "Smitty" Pignatelli
If it passes at town meeting, the GB On Tap program intends to provide additional drinking fountains and bottle refilling stations throughout town. In addition, it will help participating merchants and restaurants offer refillable water bottles for sale.
Smart water meters use attached transponders to transmit usage and other data to water companies via the same cellular data networks used by smartphones.
New England ratepayers paid $3.6 billion more for electricity due to capacity withholding. The utilities appear to have had an additional motive for withholding gas. Not only did the practice raise rivals’ costs in the electric generation market, but the artificially created gas shortages and high energy prices also lent credibility to the arguments for natural gas pipelines.
The Worthington Broadband Committee and municipal light board will present residents with at least two possible options for bringing broadband internet to the town.
“During a time in which our regional economy is struggling to recover from decades of dramatic economic transition, this overall rate proposal is an unacceptable burden.”
--- Jonathan Butler, president of 1Berkshire
Gov. Charlie Baker’s administration is quietly flirting with massive private companies like Comcast to deliver what will likely be inferior and expensive service to rural towns. “It’s a slow-rolling tragedy that will blight Western Massachusetts for generations.”
-- Susan Crawford, Harvard law professor and director of the Berkshire Center for Internet and Society
As MASS MoCA’s director of development from 1988 to 2012, Jennifer Trainer Thompson helped raise some $70 million for operations and programs, including the Permanence Campaign that launched the Museum’s endowment and Sol LeWitt building.
“The Court’s decision makes clear that if pipeline developers want to build new projects in this state, they will need to find a source of financing other than electric ratepayers’ wallets.”
-- Attorney General Maura Healey
The scanner will allow Fairview to perform more complex exams with greater clarity for physicians and continued reduced radiation exposure for patients.
“If the cap [on how much power an individual producer can put back into the power grid] isn’t lifted, I’m in big trouble. I’m the camel with the straw on my back right now.”
--- Louis Aragi, owner of Pine Island Farm in Sheffield, Massachusetts
“The power companies are running wild. They don’t have to answer to anyone. It’s tragic for something this good.”
-- Edwin Williams, CEO of Williams Stone who had donated the land where the town of Otis had intended to build a wind turbine to provide the town’s electricity needs
