Letter to the editor: Looking ahead to solar vote

We are hopeful our iconic natural beauty will be saved from egregious industrial development and preserved for future generations of both humans and wildlife.

When they go to the polls on Nov. 5, Panton residents will not only make their choices in political races, they’ll also express their opinions on a proposal to site Vermont’s largest solar array within the town’s borders.

The scale of the Panton solar proposal is out of character with the Vermont we all know and love.

At the end of last year I finally took the plunge and purchased an electric car. I have felt conflicted about the purchase ever since.

My reaction to Bill McKibben’s letter to Editor, May 16, Addison Independent, supporting the Panton solar project was one of great distress.

They produce clean renewable energy over which no wars will be fought.

Andy Kirkaldy’s story makes clear something that usually gets lost in these accounts: this array would replace an operation that uses huge amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus which then wash into Lake Champlain.

I could just break down and cry at the thought of 300 acres of beautiful farmland being turned into ugly solar panels!

There is no question about one element of the 50-megawatt solar array that is proposed for land west of Route 22A in Panton. At 300 acres, mostly now farmland, it would be big — Vermont’s largest. 

As folks in Panton discuss a 50-megawatt solar array that Freepoint Commodities is proposing to put up west of Route 22A and south of West Road, the local debate is playing out on a larger stage.

Community solar is simply the ability for an individual to participate in solar usage if their own lot or circumstances prevent them from being able to place any solar arrays of their own.

Vermonters are invited to give feedback to regulators while they consider comprehensive adjustments to Vermont’s Renewable Energy Standard.

When it came time to replace its 22-year-old boiler earlier this year, the Lincoln Library had to make a crucial decision: stick with heating with oil, or switch to something more environmentally friendly.

Regular Climate Matters columnist Mike Roy sat down with Ian Phair of Cornwall to learn more about his new solar power venture, Vermont Solar Fund LLC. 

The Starksboro Energy Committee is exploring the possibility of placing solar panels on the pavilion’s roof once it’s completed, along with studying other options for meeting the town’s electricity needs through solar.