American Council On Renewable Energy (ACORE)

I think this is what they mean when they talk about " Renewable Power"!!!

http://www.acore.org/about

From the ACORE Website.

The scope of ACORE's membership spans all constituencies in the renewable energy sector, including financial institutions, government leaders, educators, end-users, professional service providers and allied non-profit groups.

Yeah...they got that govt leader part right!!!!!

Xcel?

Maybe Xcel will be Cape Vincent's next wind developer?

"BP Plc (BP/) lost $849 million on its investment in OAO Rosneft (ROSN) overnight, highlighting how its relationship with Russia’s state oil company may become awkward as the crisis in Ukraine develops."

Read more at the link below.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-03/bp-s-1-billion-loss-in-russia-overnight-highlights-rosneft-risk.html

Epic Canyon Rescue

"Thought that I was all alone
Broken and afraid
But You were there with me
Yes, You were there with me

And I didn't even know
That I had lost my way
But You were there with me
Yes, You were there with me "

 

(song from the video below)

 

 

 

               I am extremely proud of the volunteer men and women of my SAR team,

             and the other rescue and EMS professionals we have the privilege to work with!!!

 

 

    AZ DPS Air Rescue  helicopter gets ready to haul out an injured fall victim on a rope out of a steep rugged N. AZ canyon.


                     See the Youtube video and story below. 

        This video is very unique since it was shot from the point of 
                    view of our victim as he was rescued.


        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDiWdZGrD_k

Most of my regular readers know I am on a sheriff's search and rescue (SAR) team here in N. AZ. I sometimes refer to my experiences on this team because I am very proud of the incredible volunteer men and women on my team and of the sometimes very difficult work we do. I don't spend all my time tilting at industrial wind turbines.

Below is the story and pictures of one recent difficult rescue.  This one ended very positively with a life saved. 


About a week and a half ago my phone rang about 8pm.  Our sheriff's dept. SAR team had just received an  emergency  signal from a SPOT satellite locator beacon.  SPOTs are basically a radio that can send out an emergency message and location to a satellite and then the signal is sent to the appropriate emergency agency.  We found out it was coming from a deep canyon called West Clear Creek Canyon, about a 2 hour drive south of Flagstaff by the time you take all the confusing very rough 4wd roads to get to the rim of the canyon.  All at night!

“Canyoneering”  is a sport that has become real popular, especially in N. AZ since we have such rugged terrain with many deep canyons. Canyoneering is exploring deep narrow remote  canyons sometimes with ropes and climbing gear, and wet or dry suits since there can be deep water pools on the route.  It is sort of mountain climbing upside down! 

Previous to our arrival we immediately sent the AZ  Dept. of Public Safety (Highway Patrol) helicopter to the location of the signal and they were able to locate the victim in the dark after searching, since the locator beacon was not 100% accurate.  They could not land since the terrain was too rugged with tall trees.  They took our cliff rescue team leader to look at the victim’s location.  It didn’t look good, and it was obvious it was going to be a real long night, and that the rescue would likely go into the next day.  It appeared the best route to reach the victim would be a possible bushy steep climbing / scramble route from the bottom of the canyon. Fortunately we had nearly a full moon to help with our headlamps.

Our subject appeared alive but badly injured, and was way up on the steep rocky side of the canyon, and cliffs prevented him from going further up. It looked as if he had fallen and tumbled to where he was located. We were real concerned because we didn’t know the extent of the victim’s injuries and the night was getting colder, so we were under pressure to reach him or at least establish communications with him if possible. 

Two SAR ground teams were dispatched.  One in the canyon bottom via a trail but there were numerous stream crossings in very cold water so they had dry suits and other technical rescue gear.  The canyon team  would try to locate the victim by climbing up from the bottom.  A monumental task

I led the other team on the canyon rim.  Our primary assignment was to find rim locations to provide a radio communications link from the team in the canyon to the command post back from the rim, and also to try to locate the victim from the top if possible. It involved a lot of challenging and precise navigation and route finding at night in steep exposed terrain.  Another thing we spend a lot of time training for.

Once we placed all this info on our computer mapping program, it did look like it might be possible to scramble down a steep narrow ridge that stuck out into the canyon and at least get above the victim.  It was hard to tell how far we might get on the ridge, or how safe it would be, especially since all this climbing/scrambling by both teams  would be done in the dark.

It turned out we were able to descend the narrow ridge fairly safely, but it finally ended in steep rugged cliffs where we could go no further.  But as luck would have it, after about 20 minutes of yelling, the victim finally responded almost right below us, but about 150  to 200 hundred ft. down.  He indicated he had fallen and had a head injury, was very cold  and had other injuries.

To put this in perspective, for those of you in CV or NNY, the 1000 Islands Bridge deck is about 150 ft. above the river at mid span. 

The canyon team could hear us yelling and the victim’s response.  By a lot of tough but excellent  route finding in steep terrain the canyon team was able to reach the victim and they attended to his injuries, and his hypothermia since he was wet and the temperature was now getting cold quickly.

In a radio discussion with our command team, it was decided that our subject was unable to scramble out on his own, and a litter evacuation in this terrain, although possible,  would be extremely difficult, but could be a last resort. 

Up would have been a technical rope rescue over steep terrain and cliffs and dense brush and trees to reach the rim.  Down would be basically the same just to get him to the canyon bottom, and then cold sometimes deep stream crossings and a long carry out up a steep trail.  Carrying an injured human over  his type of terrain can be exhausting and very dangerous., for the victim and the team.

It was decided the victim was stable enough and could be rewarmed on the spot and wait till first light where a helicopter “short haul” would be attempted.

A “short haul” is originally a Swiss mountain rescue technique where a helicopter lowers a rope, and the victim and an attendant are attached, and then “hauled” a “short” distance to a landing zone where the victim can be put inside the helicopter or transferred to another medical helicopter for a flight to a hospital.

Our helicopters don’t currently have lifting winches.  It is still a risky procedure, and the short haulers, pilots, and helo crews do regular and intense training to make it as “safe” as possible. 

        The AZ Dept. of Public Safety Air Rescue helicopter "Ranger 42"

     surveying  the scene to assess  a "short haul" operation. These incredible

professionals are called  on to do some demanding  flying  in difficult terrain.  

Soon they will land and remove the helicopter doors, remove extra

       weight,  and rig for the short haul.

Since much of the terrain in our county is so rugged and remote, short haul is a critical technique for us to use, but we don’t take it lightly and we carefully  look at all the other possibilities first.  I have been on some nasty ground rescue evacuations when short haul was unavailable or too risky.  Short hauling is not done in the dark, so we had a long cold night to bivouac till first light. But we go prepared and equipped for this eventuality as part of our training.  

 
              Helicopter being rigged for a short haul on another rescue. Lots of  equipment that  
                     has to all  work right, and is checked, double checked, and checked again

 

One of my SAR team partners getting warm in the morning sun after a long cold night!

 

 

My team was bivouacked perched on the canyon ridge on a rocky outcrop with steep drops all around for communications and other assistance if needed, and the other team was bivouacked with the victim part way up the steep canyon wall.

        First light waiting for a rescue helicopter... after a long cold bivouac on the exposed canyon rim.


As you can see in the video, the victim was lifted out in the early morning.  Fortunately the weather was good with almost no wind. 

At minute 4:00 to about 4:06 in the video when the victim is lifted you can momentarily see our team observing in the upper right of the video on the rock outcrop on the rim. 

The picture above is from the video and is where my rim team spent the night on the rock out crop.

We are tiny dots on the rock, which gives perspective as to just how rugged and big the canyon is and how extremely difficult such a search and rescue mission can be here.  And before we could rescue the victim...we had to FIND HIM in this terrain!!!  The video picture is titled left making the terrain look a bit less sheer that it really is.


I’ve attached another video I took from our location on the rim.  As luck would have it my camera batteries ran out just before the victim was lifted out.

I think we saved a life…and that is a real good feeling, especially when considering the difficulty of the situation.  A 200 ft. fall / tumble in extremely rugged terrain, alone and many miles from help or cell phone coverage could have ended very differently.  Some of these rescues do not end this well…as you can imagine, even with a rescue beacon or cell phone. 

      Those devices only work if you are alive to push the button!!!

                                                Back at the rescue truck packing up gear for the long
                                           ride home.  A soft bed and hot shower felt really good!!!

       The vehicles are gassed up, the equipment is reorganized and stowed, radios are charged,
       because the next search or rescue could come 24/7/365.


Stay safe!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Comment From Cape Vincent Citizen John Richardson

The post below came to my blog as a comment from John Richardson.  It has a lot of relevant  points so I decided to publish it as a post. 

But first let me put some of this in context. 

The following comment was left recently on the Pandora’s Box of Rocks blog under the post about the final letter to the NYPSC regarding Art 10, and BP. Currently it is (or was) the top post on her blog.  But that could change since she seems to have been rearranging her posts lately.

“Anonymous said...

The movie "Promised Land" was about an energy fracking co. coming into a town to sign up drilling leases for natural gas.
The company secretly hired a supposed environmentalist who pretended to oppose the project but was later found to be actually working for the company who was trying to get the fracking leases approved by the town.
Could Art possibly have been such a person?”

Currently, as of 12:30 EDT  4/23/14, this comment and others attacking me are not posted.   For some reason K has occasionally removed them along with other comments on her blog. Don’t know why.   I reacted to this comment in my own post on my blog a few days ago under the title:

“ Pundt Disagrees with Hirschey…” which is several posts back on my blog. It might also help to read it to put this all in context.

After reading my post Mr. Richarson sent me his comment.  I don’t know if he was able to see the original comment on the Pandy blog.

Below is John Richardson’s comment verbatim as he sent it to me:

"Wow, I haven’t been on the blogs for a while and after reading Art’s blog tonight I went to Pandy to see what all of the fuss was about. 

I would like to set the record straight from my point of view on a couple of points.  First, Art wasn’t really ever out of the loop, he has plenty of contacts including me at times to keep him informed.  The fact that Art and I often disagree doesn’t mean we weren’t honest with each other about the facts of the wind fight. 

Secondly, and this is directed at Art.  The Hirschey board did exactly what they needed to do.  I told you on numerous occasions the local town board, in the end, wouldn’t be able to stop wind if the broader world market supported the technology.  However, they could block and delay it in hopes that the world financial markets would turn against the technology.  In the end, the town board’s strategy was exactly right.  Was it a risk or different than what you would have supported?  Certainly it was, but there was no way the town was going to defeat wind regardless of whose strategy they followed if the global market decided to adopt wind on a grand scale.  You and others can debate this until the cows come home, but the undisputed fact is world financial markets trump local town desires each and every time.  That is just the world we live in. 

Lastly, at least for now and probably for a long time, if not forever, the fight over wind in the Cape is over.  So, for people to continue to attack Art’s intentions and his devotion to protect the Cape, or his love of the Cape is ludicrous.  And for Art to continue to speculate on Urban’s motives, beliefs, reasons for acquiring land or other issues is nothing more than a defensive move to rationalize the attacks he has been under for years.  In the end, both are complete bullshit. 

I have known Art and Urban for almost exactly the same amount of time, and while they are entirely different people, they are both well intentioned, regardless of how they go about trying to solve the same problem.  In the end, they were on the same team, even if it wasn’t apparent to those that stood on the sidelines during game time.  For me, I respect them both because they played the game live with everything they had, and were not Monday morning quarterbacks. 

It is truly time for all of this to end and for the good people of the Cape regardless of which side they supported to move on as unified community. "

John Richardson

 

 

Summer Images - Cape Vincent

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Cape Vincent Water Dist. 2 Mess - Are Back Channels Buzzing????

When you examine the Cape Vincent  water dist.2  debacle it seems that the CV Town Supervisor Mr. Hirschey is giving former NYS Sen. Aubertine a lot of latitude on this issue, even though the NY Dept of Health has made it pretty clear the town should take control of the issue once and for all. 

On the surface it looks like the big state connected official is pushing around the small town supervisor.  Maybe Hirschey is just a real nice guy trying to work it all out.

Of course there is a lot to consider here.   Let's see.

 Darrel Aubertine currently works in the NYS Comptroller's Office.

His boss is Tom Dinapoli the NYS Comptroller.

Aubertine’s son Paul is a new Cape Vincent councilman. A person who  Hirschey out of the blue was willing to appoint to an empty town board seat at one time not long ago before Aubertine was actually elected to that seat.

Dinapoli also manages the NYS Common Retirement Fund (CRF) including Retirement Fund’s “Green Initiative” making investments for the state retirement fund in “green” companies.

In 2008 Dinaploi’s ‘Green Initiative” invested in Mr. Hirscheys family business … Climax Paper.

Below is a link to a report in this paper where you can see Dinapoli speaking at Climax Paper announcing this investment.  Did I mention that Dinapoli is now Aubertine’s boss????

http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/article/20080517/NEWS04/617584592

Who else was there?  Well of course Darrel Aubertine when he was a NYS senator.

I guess it is just a lot of funny coincidences eh!  Wonder how many back channels are buzzing on this CV water issue????

Below is a quote from a 2011  report on the Dinaploi’s  “Green Initiative”

The CRF also has investments in clean technology through the In-State Private Equity Program.  This program makes investments in promising businesses in New York State— promoting economic growth while garnering attractive risk-adjusted returns.  Through the In-State Program, investments have been made with the following green businesses: 

 Invenergy – a wind energy developer for a wind farm in western New York.

Climax Paper – a manufacturer of paperboard products from recycled fiber.  

Innovation Biofuels – a biodiesel manufacturer.

 Zeropoint Cleantech – a manufacturer of equipment to create syngas and liquid fuels from wood and crop residues.  Crystal IS – a manufacturer of devices to reduce energy use in lighting and data storage applications.  

You know…it makes me wonder if any of this has anything to do with Mr. Hirschey and his town board’s reluctance to not breath a word of opposition to the State’s Art. 10 process he and the town  were engaged in with wind developer BP????   Instead they said it was fair, even handed, and a welcomed relief…even though the Jefferson County Legislators had a completely opposite reaction and  unanimously passed a resolution of opposition to Art 10.

Let's See What Happens

According to a WDT article the state Dept. of Health has told the Town of Cape Vincent to take the control of the Water Dist. 2 situation.  Below is a quote from the article.

"In the April 7 letter, the department urged the town to take over control of Water District 2 from its three sanctioned users and expand it to include other properties. If users fail to cooperate with that plan, the town must presume a “hazardous designation” and perhaps install a backflow-prevention device to ensure outside connections do not contaminate water that flows downstream.

Now...the Town has sworn unwavering allegiance to the State's Art 10 system backed by the NYPSC...wonder if they will do the same for the Dept. of Health request and move ahead the actually take control of this situation...instead of their apparent appeasement of the Aubertines!

Good Question!

In reference to a post on the Pandora blog about the Cape Vincent Water Dist 2 and 3 debacle
 this comment was left by a reader.



Anonymous said...

How long must the Cape residents suffer the abuse of power and misuse of public trust exhibited by the Reinbeck, Mason, Mason,Wood,Orvis ,Edsall gang?

It's a tragedy, that's painful to endure.

 

April 21, 2014 at 9:06 AM

 

My response is...go ask your Deputy Town Supervisor Macsherry ...maybe he knows...he campaigned and ran  for a town board seat as a Democrat with the Rienbeck gang in 2009.

 

Maybe he has an insight.

Pundt Doesn't Agree With Mr. Hirschey...It Has To Be A Huge BP Conspiracy!!!

Why does the president of an anti industrial wind group, knowing all the serious negative impacts or industrial wind... go right out and buy a piece of property nearly in the middle of a large proposed wind farm????? 

                               WHAT?????  Good Question!
 

There have been some really odd things, names, connections, “coincidences” and events in the long Cape Vincent industrial wind battle... like the one above.  Most of them have gone almost completely unnoticed and unmentioned.  I think there was a definite purpose for that.

Let’s look at a one.

But first you have to understand that readers over at the CV Pandy blog are still pounding in desperation on their lunatic fantasy that I was somehow in a secret conspiracy against Hirschey and his govt to help BP, simply because I won’t lock step with Hirschey.

They don’t have one shred of evidence to support this lunatic accusation.  But they need to desperately cling to it because of their inability to explain numerous pro wind leaning events and odd events surrounding the Hirschey govt.

Their conspiracy is based on one singular premise, and only one.

 Pundt doesn’t agree with Hirschey!   That’s it!  This means there is a huge sprawling BP /pro wind / Pundt conspiracy afoot!!! 

The democratic process by which I have a constitutionally protected right to disagree with any govt including Hirschey’s is the sum total of their lunatic conspiracy.   It has to be a BP conspiracy!  It has to be!!!!  

Apparently these people have a bit of difficulty grasping the democratic and constitutional process and what it means!

And now they have completely lost touch with reality and are now even comparing me to the Hollywood movie fantasy “Promised Land” 

                             Yooo hoooo la la land!!!! 

                            So you want a conspiracy?  OK!  

                                Or maybe it's just a "plan!" 

 

 What  I am going to present below is all based in FACTS anyone can research and verify!  The rest is my opinion ( if any) as to what it might mean. Mainly I will let the reader decide.  But at least there are actual underlying FACTS to support any opinion.

So let’s see who might is far more likely to be assisting wind development in CV.    If  they want to persist in their lunatic conspiracy and lies …I can play that game too… but with actual FACTS.  And you watch carefully.  These are facts they will have a damn hard time explaining away...or of course they WON'T or can't explain them away... or just attack me again with goofy conspiracy nonsense to distract and cover for what they can't explain!     

If they want to continue they are going to end up a lot more uncomfortable about the actual facts than what they are trying to use to make me shut up with their lunatic conspiracy that has no  facts! 

And if Hirschey supporters (and blogs) want to keep pushing this lunacy and lies about me, I guess I can just keep upping the ante.   It's up to them!

 Because my files and emails are very FULL of FACTS!!!!  Lot's of them!

Believe me if they persist with their lies you will want to stay tuned here …because it will get REAL INTERESTING and the fanatic Hirschey supporters won’t like where it ends!!

I don’t like lies!!!  The wind companies lied to us…now those same tactics are being used against me or anyone who dares speak against the Hirschey govt.  Or bloggers who insist on perpetuating those lies, when they know better.  That is reckless.  And frankly I am get a bit tired of this nonsense!  So I guess the game is on...better get your facts lined up and something better than your Pundt disagrees with Hitschey BP conspiracy.

OK…So let’s start here.

 It has become clear that sound emitted from industrial wind turbines can be detrimental to the health of people living close them.  This was one of the major concerns of the  the current CV govt and “wind opposition”  used to support their new industrial wind zoning regulations.

It is also clear that properties near industrial wind farms can see significant reduction in value.

This would be due in part to the sound issues, but also simply an obvious aesthetic issue as turbines would be an invasive disruption of the viewscape.

WPEG and their Hirschey candidates and their “anti wind” blogs have understood  these invasive impact issues well for a very long time.  In fact the  Hirschey favorable CV blogs have pounded on these issues repeatedly for years.  And renowned sound expert Dr. Paul Schomer even teamed up with the town and WPEG and received BP intervenor funds in the Art 10 process to debate  BP’s wind farm  application.

Another situation that could cause a reduction in a property’s value might be its proximity to a major power line. It has also been suggested that living in close proximity to large electric power lines may not be good for one’s health.

In 2008,  Acciona, in addition to BP, had a major wind project planned for CV.  And in 2008 the old wind conflicted CV govt was in power and was moving the wind agenda significantly forward. 

In other words in those days it looked like there was a significant probability that two major wind projects were going to be sited in CV.  Two…not one!!!!  The negative impacts on property values was likely to be significant if both projects, along with projects in Lyme and Clayton were approved.  Based on local realty information even in 2008  it appeared the CV wind issue was already having a significant negative  impact on local property sales.

In fact at one time the BP  project even spanned both CV and Lyme.  So the prospects in 2008 were real grim to say the least!

Now, knowing all this, here is what I find really odd.   Is it a conspiracy??????

In the summer of 2008, knowing perfectly well the impacts  brought on by the scale of industrial wind development outlined above, and WPEG, the wind opposition,  and Mr. Hirschey their  president were using those impacts as a prime wind “opposition” defense, Mr. Hirschey  (now our CV town supervisor) goes out and purchases a piece of CV property nearly in the center of the proposed BP CV wind project, and in a town that looks like it is about to soon be overrun with industrial wind impacts! Actually the region looks like it is about to be overrun and real estate sales are sagging!

 Apparently those invasive region wide  impacts didn’t seem to bother Mr. Hirschey much, even though he and WPEG knew full well what the impacts were and how bad they would be!

Go figure…but that is FACT!!  You can look the property up on the Jefferson County Website property locator.

But that’s not all.  It just so happens that this property also borders the DANC regional water line that comes out of CV toward Watertown.  On one complete side it has roughly  .4  miles bordering the water line right of way.

Now as you might remember the DANC water line right of way is where both wind companies wanted to put major power lines to connect to a Nat. Grid substation in Chaumont.

So this property Mr. Hirschey bought would be nearly in the middle of the proposed BP wind farm, and in addition could be bordering a major power line all along on one side! 

Not exactly a piece of property that would have “Location, Location, Location” attached to it if the wind farms and power line were built.  Location in the traditional  real-estate sense in large part refers to the beauty of the property, and view among other things. 

Just seems like a very odd purchase if you factor in all the variables and Mr. Hirschey heading the CV  “wind opposition“ group WPEG at that time. 

It’s funny that pro wind never picked up on this fact.

Here is the president of the major wind opposition group in CV, whose prime arguments against industrial wind are significant property value reduction and sound impacts, yet their president marches right out, and out of the blue and buys a large piece of property (33.79 acres to be exact) right smack next to a major proposed wind farm and it’s power line, in a town over run by wind development proposals!

Seems like pro wind and the developers would have been all over this, saying that even the president of the “wind opposition” was buying property in a proposed wind farm, and apparently he isn’t even worried about the supposed impacts on his investment!  Even though he and WPEG  have been harping on these impacts for a couple years!!!   The same guy who says he isn’t opposed  to either industrial wind  (on TV and in the WDT) … or the Art 10 process that removed our home rule rights to help the NYS wind energy agenda!

Of course the pro wind side has never been led by the sharpest knives in the drawer when it comes to politics, strategy, and tactics to promote wind!   

When Hirschey bought this property on Burnt Rock Rd., it’s almost like he was trying to secretly negate the entire WPEG and wind opposition argument on reduced property values and sound from wind farms!  Like he was early on trying to undermine their message that was taking hold locally and in the region to expose the industrial wind mess and potential impacts.

Why in the hell does someone in the supposed wind opposition, who knows all the significant negatives about wind development, go out and buy a large tract of land nearly right in the middle of a large proposed wind farm, and almost right under a wind farm power line????  Is this a "plan" to help the wind developers and water down the WPEG wind opposition message? 

Even if it isn't... it doesn't seem like a real smart move to buy property so close to a proposed wind farm and power line, not to mention the question  it leaves regarding how seriously dedicated he might actually be to the wind opposition message.

And I would think Mr. Hirschey,with his longtime family business,… a “green” business the NYS retirement fund even invested in,  …. (that also has to be a conspiracy...right?) … and with his county  JCIDA experience, one would think he would not be a stupid investor!   Of course we have to keep in mind, according to Mr. Hirschey’s own words on TV and in the WDT , he is not opposed to industrial wind … just the improper siting of turbines. 

Let me get this straight…

…one of your main concerns (on TV) is the improper siting of wind turbines?  You even get elected as the town supervisor on that premise, and you campaign to draft a wind law to site wind turbines properly, and then you previously bought a piece of property nearly in the middle of a proposed wind farm where you as president and your wind opposition group have been very clearly fighting the improper siting of the wind turbines!!!!!   Seriously?  So does he think proper siting is if they site turbines near (or on) HIS property???

AND THEN write a wind law that shoves the turbines back two miles from the CV shoreline and right toward your new property!!!   

And this is proper siting!!!   

In my opinion it is almost like he is shoving wind turbines away from his shore property where he lives, and toward his CV interior property at the cost of other people in the CV interior, some who do not want wind turbines near their property!

Or maybe he was just trying to say to those people…

“ Those wind turbines we allowed in our new zoning won’t be so bad!   Look I even bought property back there too, I’m not worried!!!”

Or was he trying to convince pro wind he was just another "good neighbor" and right there with em! 

And also, what did Mr. Hirschey tell the WDT when he declared to run for CV supervisor in 2009.e

“Mr. Hirschey, who is a member and former chairman of the of the Wind Power Ethics Group, said he is not entirely against industrial wind development.  However, he said, the town and wind developers should "come up with a sensible" site plan and setbacks to "spread out" the wind turbines if they were to build a wind farm in Cape Vincent.”

 

To me this doesn’t sound like a guy really opposed to wind , and not even near his own property!!!    Just spread them out???   You mean like spread them all over town?  What is he saying????  A few giant wind turbines here and a few over there is no big deal, but a good siting plan???? 

Seriously???    He was kidding right????  And then he has property nearly in the middle of the large BP  proposed wind farm and right next to its proposed power line??????   

 And the fanatic Hirschey supporters think I am the one helping

BP????

Now here is another real odd part.

If the pro wind side even so much as farted, the other CV blogs would be giving every graphic detail and ripping them apart.  Pandy’s blog gained a reputation for great in depth research and investigation.  Yet I guess she just happened to miss all these rather odd details.  So did Wiley at JLL.  It just slipped right by their razor sharp “anti wind”  investigative minds!!!!

Every other frickin pro wind minutia in the CV wind battle sticks to their brains like glue…that is except this really  odd event involving Hirschey’s property that somehow slips right off like them Teflon!!!

Those blogs, even today, go on and on and on and on about industrial wind’s negative impacts on property values and the sound issues, and the president of their favorite wind opposition group in 2008 buys a property right next to a large proposed wind farm nearly surrounded by turbines and power lines….and not a single word about it from those blogs!!!!  Something screwy about this picture!!!

What was Hirschey thinking???    Considering the location of his property next to the DANC water line, and proposed BP/Acciona power line, and the BP wind farm…he could have been one hell of a “ good neighbor”  if he wanted to be!!!!

So is that the conspiracy????

And what about that DANC water line???   What about Mr. Hirschey’s good old Republican friend and colleague former NYS Sen. James Wright, who once represented the CV area and is now the Exec. Director of DANC?    A person Mr. Hirschey has even given campaign donations too.  Nothing illegal or unusual about that. They are just  good supportive Republicans scratching each other’s backs and probably know each other well from Hirschey’s associations with the Jefferson County Industrial Development Agency, (JCIDA) (note that part about “industrial development!”).  The JCIDA who even had a mission statement in 2008 proposing the development of the county’s renewable resources like wind. 

But it is interesting to see who, other than Hirschey  contributed to his Republican buddy’s campaign when he was in the NYS senate AND sitting as chairman on the powerful NYS senate energy committee.  A committee apparently very favorable to renewable energy in NY, just like Hirschey’s JCIDA.

Some of Wright’s campaign donation list reads like the elite of wind energy development, AND the CV wind issue!

Below are only a few! These aren't exactly small players in the wind business!!!

GE Wind

American Wind Energy Assoc.

Enron…Enron…really????  Yup!

Flat Rock Wind Power (Maple Ridge Wind Farm)

ACENY – Remember Carol Murphy the renewable wind zealot who came to CV on behalf of BP and VFW!

Florida Light and Power – Largest wind developer in North America!

And these are just a few of Wright’s numerous campaign donations from BIG WIND and other real interesting connections and characters that pop up in the CV wind story and around Hirschey and Wright!

Oh geeees…I almost forgot…here is a very interesting campaign donation to Wright…

...AES/Acciona!!!         What?????

That would be the same Acciona that was proposing a large wind farm in CV and wanted to use the DANC power line corridor for their power line. The same Acciona that BP eventually took over in CV.  The same DANC where Wright is now the executive director.  The same DANC water line that borders Hirschey’s  property for nearly ½ mile.  Hey I’m just telling ya the FACTS!!! 

That must be a conspiracy…right…I mean Wright?

And the other CV blogs?????  Not one stinking word about Wright…or his donation connections to the elite of BIG WIND and his relationship to Hirschey, who has stated he is not against wind, and the JCIDA who isn’t opposed to wind either.   

And I just showed a few Wright donations above.  It gets A LOT more interesting if you dig into the NYS Board of Elections Website!!!

For example,  did ya ever wonder how Rochne Burns who held a wind lease with Acciona/BP and has obvious wind conflicts gets appointed to the CV planning board by Hirschey and his board?  That doesn't seem to make sense from a town board who ran on ethics and claims as a campaign platform to want to eliminating wind conflicts of interest.

Oooppps...Imagine that,,,Mr. Burns is also a significant contributor to  Hirschey's Rep. buddy Wright.  Gotta be a conspiracy their, right?  Well maybe not.  Maybe  it's just more good old Republican boys scratching each other's backs again!

A lot of really odd stuff you could build a conspiracy on to help BP and Acciona  if you wanted to!  But no lies … the events themselves are all  FACT!

And some Hirschey fanatics still think I am the one  in a conspiracy to help BP??????   I guess, just like the blogs, they missed some interesting facts!

Seems like I would have a lot more to go on than the fanatic Hirschey supporters and blogs if I wanted to conjure up a REAL CV BP wind conspiracy!

Oh… it gets a lot better!!!!  If the lunatics want to keep going…we can go on!!!  Like they say ... just follow the money!

Tick, tock!!!

 

 

The Beauty Of Our Region - Beyond Cape Vincent

                                                                    Henderson Harbor

                                                                       On  Tug Hill

 

 

Lyme Library

 

 

                                                               In the 1000 Islands

 

Behind Grindstone Is.

 

 

 

 

                                                                    Rock Island Light

                                                             Burrville Cider Mill

The Blood Moon Eclipse

Don't know if you were able to see the Blood Moon eclipse in Cape Vincent.  Looks like the weather might have prevented good viewing.

If you didn't see it, here it is from the AZ clear night sky.

         The lunar eclipse in progress with a nearby star and the planet Mars in the upper right.

 

The eclipse nearly complete

 

 

 

 

 

Not All Cape Vincent Beauty Is Along The Lake Or River

                 This is a concept the Cape Vincent zoning law writers failed to grasp by shoving   
                     the allowable zoning area for industrial wind turbines into the CV interior!

      Such a failure to grasp the CV  interior beauty, but instead treat it like wasteland to put industrial
            wind turbines,  leaves me with serious doubts of our town leaders fundamental   
                          understanding needed to truly protect CV's scenic resources.