An excerpt of a recent e-mail from my dear friend Cy in Moray, Scotland.
The pictures give us a glimpse of what Mt.Tom may look like in the future.
" Hi Leonard
Kath and I are back from our holiday in the English Lakes/Scottish Borders. I thought of you as I drove northwards through a valley and stopped the car to take the attached pics. The windmills are on an isolated hillside near Kendal in England. They show the type of windmill favoured by the Power Companies in this country to generate electricity which is added to the National Grid. I walked from the car and struck up a conversation with a man who had parked his camper van and who was drying his sodden walking gear. We commented on the silence of the wilderness all around us. The windmills were eerily quiet and to be frank were strangely beautiful. I thought you might be interested in them, as something along similar lines is proposed for your Mt Tom? "
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We have just the plan!
Mining operation proposed for Mt. Tom State Reservation
A proposal to remove the top few hundred feet of Mt. Tom in Mt. Tom State Reservation in Holyoke, MA was made public today by the Enviro Show, LLC. Mr. Glen Ayers, spokesperson for the company stated: "We are not sure exactly what important geologic materials are buried deep inside of Mt. Tom, but it could be something that is needed somewhere in the world, and who ever needs it should not be concerned about the impacts that blowing off the top of this mountain will have on our local environment."
The proposed operation would remove the top part of the mountain with explosives to get at the deeper, economically important geologic
materials. Ayers said the Old Growth Forest and the excess overburden from the blasting could be bull-dozed and dumped into the Whiting Street Reservoir which is conveniently located down hill, providing plenty of capacity for spoil materials and any associated toxic wastes that the mining will generate. The project is seen as a boon to economic
development in the region.
Ayers noted that "Immediately next to the Mt. Tom State Reservation is the Mt. Tom Power Plant on the banks of the Connecticut River, which gets its coal from mountain top removal operations in Central Appalachia, burning 1,200 tons every day to generate CO2 and 146 Megawatts of much needed electricity. That coal is delivered by 80-car long trains, directly from the mines in places like Rawl, West Virginia". Ayers says that mountain top removal has become an accepted practice and that it will benefit the community through the creation of jobs and eventual recreation
opportunities on the leveled area.
"This represents a good business opportunity", says Ayers. "We are looking for smart investors, and expect the State of Massachusetts and the Patrick Administration to fully support this important effort to improve the economy of the Pioneer Valley. Public lands are special places that should be used to benefit society, industry, and the local economy. Such uses have a long and proud history in the Valley."
The Enviro Show, LLC, plans for this site include creating a large flat treeless expanse that will better support future development
opportunities. Some ideas that may be pursued on the reclaimed site are community or private football and athletic fields, golf courses,
cross-country skiing, community gardens, parkland and open space, and solar panel arrays, making this proposal a truly "green" opportunity. Its win-win-win for everyone!
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For more information contact Glen Ayers at The Enviro Show, LLC
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