The idea was to collect 5-cent deposit beverage containers from the town transfer station and send the money to victims of a historically destructive month of hurricanes. In the process, we also developed some ideas about how the Massachusetts Bottle Bill, a good thing, could be made even better.
Following nearly four years of struggle against a powerful company (Kinder Morgan and its subsidiary, Tennessee Gas Pipeline) backed by laws and a Federal commission, it seems that now is an appropriate point to judge performances of the various participants and agencies that could have made more of a difference to avoid this calamity.
Sage Macken, a Monument Valley Middle School student, has been chosen to represent her community as part of Project 351, a statewide youth service and leadership organization (established by former Gov. Deval Patrick) focused on building unity among non-profits, private businesses, educators, and kids.
Some Great Barrington Selectboard members lit up in 2011 as they considered the restoration of a hamlet that had fallen on hard times, especially after a massive fire wiped out the Aberdale block in the 1960s. Board members were also starry-eyed at the much-needed tax revenue potential.
The Massachusetts Broadband Institute paid $1.9 million to lawyers and consultants to undermine the WiredWest collaborative of 32 towns seeking to create a viable rural broadband, high speed Internet network.
"The purchase of this spectacular property [Otis State Forest] ensures its lasting protection and is an example of our prudent investment in the Commonwealth’s rare and irreplaceable natural resources.”
--- Gov. Deval Patrick, in 2007
“We’ve been FERC’ed!”
-- Rep. William “Smitty” Pignatelli, upon learning that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission had approved a Tennessee Gas Pipeline route through the protected lands of Otis State Forest in March of 2016
“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
"I’m not surprised the bill [reform of payment in lieu of taxes requirements] met its demise. There is scant enthusiasm to compel nonprofit and charitable organizations to pay taxes either in whole, or in part."
-- Great Barrington Assessor Christopher Lamarre
Community service “helps our generation as a whole — it influences kids to be more caring. It teaches kids responsibility and how to care for the next generation.”
-- Sean Macken, Great Barrington's ambassador to Project 351
Nola was one of several senior citizens recognized by Gov. Deval L. Patrick for her life-long commitment to the African-American community in the Berkshires.
'This is absolutely a good idea. It's a massive investment in infrastructure, and it will be significant for the Berkshire economy.'
-- State Sen. Benjamin Downing
The proposed pipeline route travels through an estimated 20 state-protected wildlife management areas and state forests, municipal watershed protection areas, the reservations and sanctuaries of The Trustees and Mass Audubon, and the Appalachian Trail.
Prison reform in the age of our own Mass. imprisonment has become a low-priority issue for today’s brand of timid political activists, who often seem more concerned about their own comfort than they are about the greater good of the society.
The pipeline proposed by Kinder Morgan would add more than 15 times the expected growth rate in natural gas consumption in New England. This pipeline is providing natural gas for export.
