July 08, 2021

Forest Rally Set

by Eesha Williams
Tags:

In Greenfield on July 31 there will be a rally to protest cutting down forests in Massachusetts to put up solar panels. The panels can go on roofs of big box stores, warehouses, and other buildings, and on top of parking lots. To see a big photo of seven acres of solar panels over a parking lot in Amherst, click on the small photo of "Lot 44" at:

www.umass.edu/dcm/campus-solar

The Greenfield rally organizers said, “To date, the state has lost 4,000 acres to large ground-mounted solar, much of it pristine forest.”

They have a web site at https://savethepinebarrens.org.

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In the USA in 2019 (the most recent year for which data is available) cars and trucks killed more than 36,000 people, of whom about 7,000 were walking or riding a bicycle. In Brattleboro, the state transportation agency is taking more than three months to fix the “walk/don't walk” signals at one of the busiest intersections in the town: Route 5 at the Hannaford supermarket.

Ann Gammell works for the agency. Here are emails the Valley Post exchanged with her:

From: The Valley Post
March 25, 2021
To: Gammell

Re. Route 5 in Brattleboro: when will work on the Hannaford crosswalk resume?

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From: Gammell
March 26, 2021
To: The Valley Post

The project is expected to be completed by the end of June 2021.

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From: The Valley Post
July 2, 2021
To: Gammell

Thank you for your email in which you say this will be done by June 30. It isn't done. For months, black garbage bags have been taped over the "walk/don't walk" signals. Why?

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From: Gammell
July 6
To: The Valley Post

Apparently it is a supply issue, and our manufacturer has had trouble getting the equipment to our contractor, and we no longer have an expected delivery date for the “controller” for the walk/don’t walk signals. I certainly hope we have the controller equipment by the end of August. However, without a date from the supplier, I hesitate to commit.

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From: The Valley Post
later on July 6
to: Gammell

Can you please ask the supplier and let me know what they say?

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No reply as of 11 a.m. on July 8.

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