Getting Organized

At a meeting of the newly formed Clean Energy Task Force for the Town of Canton a group of people who had shown up to learn about plans to restore the hydroelectric facilities built by the Collins Company and abandoned 40 years ago agreed that this effort deserved community support. In order to determine how to organize and focus the energy and commitment of those people and all those who share our interest we are creating this blog/website as a place to determine just what we can and should do.

Look to this site to learn what others are thinking, hoping, and hopefully doing to support this effort. Please post comments. If you have an interest in helping to maintain this site say so in your comment to this post.

Pass This Bill

We need to help get House Bill 5214 passed so that Hydroelectric Power can again be generated as a clean renewable resource in Collinsville. At a recent presentation about plans for the Collinsville Hydroelectric Power Project Duncan Broach of Summit Hydropower explained that the most immediate need is to pass this simple bill that gives the DEP the authority to lease the dams for use to produce hydroelectricity.

While Summit Hydro holds a license to operate a hydroelectric facility at the upper and lower dams of the river the land is owned by the DEP, who is willing, but not currently authorized to lease the property for this use. The bill would remedy that by granting the DEP that authority. Here is the language of the bill.

AN ACT AUTHORIZING THE COMMISSIONER OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION TO ALLOW PRIVATE ENTITIES TO GENERATE HYDROELECTRICITY.
To allow the Commissioner of Environmental Protection to enter into lease agreements with private entities to generate hydroelectricity.

Its that simple. So how do you and we support this bill.

Write or email the co-sponsors of the bill:

Rep. Mike Alberts, Woodstock and Rep. Michael Caron, Danielson

Write or email our local political representatives:

Rep. Kevin Witkos who we should know meets his constituents every third Wednesday at the Canton Public Library from 7-8PM and first Wednesayat the Avon Library from 5-6PM
Senator Tom Herlihy