Letter to the editor: Arguments for Vt. Gas easement are all bad ones

Middlebury voters have the chance to decide whether to approve an easement agreement that gives Vermont Gas Systems (VGS) use of town land for $1, or reject the agreement so the selectboard can renegotiate the easement and receive fair market value for the use of town land. Leading up to the vote there has been a lot of misinformation floating around in support of the current easement agreement.

Historically the only businesses granted free use of town rights-of-way have been utilities whose services have tended to greatly improved the quality of life for the entire community.

Mr. Gleason’s letter in the March 7th Addison Independent regarding U.S. support of the elimination of the Palestinian people from their traditional homeland was a poignant reminder of our complicity in the majority of death and suffering going on in the … (read more)

Make no mistake, honeybees and beekeepers in Vermont are struggling.

When the editor of the national beekeeping magazine that I regularly write for asked me to start recording audio versions of my articles so folks could scan and listen to them, I was again able to make use of the DML to accomplish this task.

In June the Middlebury selectboard approved a free right-of-way easement for Canadian-owned Vermont Gas Systems to build new fossil fuel infrastructure downtown on Mill Street.

The honey bee is critical to the environment and our survival. Here are some facts about honey bees, drawn from two sources.

The Spirit in Nature (SpIN) annual meeting will honor Ross Conrad of Dancing Bee Gardens, Middlebury, with its Eco-Spirit Award for 2022 on Sunday, March 20, from 4 to 5 p.m. at the Ripton Community House. 

On Tuesday, Aug. 31, Middlebury residents will have the opportunity to approve a bond to purchase some solar panels within the Bristol Community Solar project. Not only will this proposal help reduce Middlebury’s GHG emissions and earn money for the town … (read more)

June 21-27 is national pollinator week and it could not arrive too soon. Vermont’s honeybee population and native pollinator populations are challenged.According to researchers, many native pollinators are in decline, or are apparently no longer present i … (read more)

A number of years ago, several literary-minded beekeepers got together to discuss how they might write the history of beekeeping in Vermont. Fast forward to 2020, and “The Land of Milk & Honey: A History of Beekeeping in Vermont” is now available. “Land o … (read more)

MIDDLEBURY — Local beekeeper Ross Conrad will present a talk on his new book, “The Land of Milk and Honey: A History of Beekeeping in Vermont,” which he co-authored with Bill Mares, on Thursday, March 19, from 6:30-8 p.m., in the Community Room at Ilsley … (read more)

Despite the useful information census data provides, and the federal dollars that flow to the state as a result of the census, there is reason to not be supportive of the U. S. census. The Addison Independent did an admirable job recently reporting on the … (read more)