Kudos to Sherry Greenfield for writing this text and the Carroll County Instances for printing it.
What was not talked about, was the variety of involved residents from Carroll County who attended the assembly. The commissioners’ room was crammed to overflowing with residents who objected to the event of a “Neighborhood Photo voltaic Vitality Producing System,” which would seem of their backyards and on viable, helpful and presently farmed land.
Kudos additionally to the newly elected commissioners who listened to their constituents, learn their passionate emails and letters that shared their emotions and tales. There are too many residents of Carroll County who stay in agricultural and residential neighborhoods; they have been born right here and can by no means depart. I usually meet individuals who say “I fished in your pond after I was little,” and now their kids are doing the identical. There are additionally many like me who moved right here 20 years in the past or so, looking for the agricultural ambiance and nation attraction. There is a cause why No. 1 business in Carroll County is agriculture. Do you know that fifty% of the county’s land is agricultural in use, with 708 farms? Do you know that Carroll County is the No. 1 in Maryland for Farmland Preservation acres?
On January 6, 2021, earlier than county commissioners adopted the modification to permit photo voltaic growth as much as 20 acres (Might 15, 2021), the Carroll County Farm Bureau wrote a letter to reinstate its coverage suggestions. This coverage was adopted by the farm bureau membership on the annul enterprise assembly in October 2020 and states that “After reviewing all the data and after a lot dialogue, the legislative committee determined to submit a coverage suggestion in opposition to any implementation of group photo voltaic on Ag land, whether or not it is a residual Ag or not.” Take into consideration that for a minute, the group representing farmers and agriculture in Carroll County opposes photo voltaic growth in group zoned agriculture … and the commissioners beforehand ignored the suggestions.
Most residents and communities in Carroll County usually are not against photo voltaic power era efforts. They oppose ground-mounted photo voltaic panels, institutional fencing, months of development of their yards. There are various legitimate causes. Place it on roofs, barn roofs, farmlands, industrial zones and business zones that don’t contact residential areas. So now it’s as much as the brand new commissioners to repair the errors of the previous commissioners. Please full “due diligence” in your analysis and outreach. Search for educated and skilled professionals within the area of photo voltaic power who’re unbiased of their strategies.
Do not get caught by exterior forces from state mandates and stress from photo voltaic power corporations to realize “inexperienced power” targets and tasks. Search enter from communities and residents in your respective districts. They understand how they really feel and why. Talk with communities and social teams. Get feedback and emotions from everybody in Carroll County. Be clear in relating your plans, motives and proposals, earlier than subjecting them to many modifications. Educate residents and teams. Use native newspapers, social media and civic teams. Carroll County residents are all concerned with what is occurring of their neighborhood, particularly one thing that’s necessary to them. Hopefully it will enhance their high quality of life.
On a private notice, my life fully modified when an indication appeared within the area throughout from my 50-acre farm inviting me to attend a TRC assembly to debate Spring Valley Photo voltaic, on Might 23, 2022, eight months in the past. What sort of assembly? About what? Who Critiques Progress? None of us within the neighborhood knew something about photo voltaic. Please do not let this occur to any Carroll County resident once more.
“Neighborhood Photo voltaic Vitality Producing Programs” doesn’t belong to residential areas or agricultural land.
Annette Fleishell, Sykesville
My spouse and I lately moved to the county, and revel in your newspaper. Generally, I fear, although, in regards to the manipulation and distortion of the information. The January 23 article titled “Home panel on China Stoking worry” is an effective instance.
About 80% of the article objectively experiences on the Home Republican majority’s efforts to research China’s troubling financial competitors. The vast majority of Congress voted in favor of this newly created committee, by a vote of 365 to 65, however the unfavorable and alarming feedback of the Democratic opponents dominated the opening of the article and the important thing areas inside Rachel’s article. Oswald – together with the title, talked about above.
Hidden inside the article was an announcement by the panel’s chairman, Mike Gallegher, a Marine veteran, who mentioned “[W]We should make it possible for we now have a distinction between the celebration and the Chinese language individuals, who usually are not at odds with us and who are sometimes the principle victims of the CCP’s aggression and repression.” No critical citizen would query or dispute the issues of Democratic Reps. Grace Meng and Andy Kim, each Asian People, however of their statements neither mentioned nor implied that any such derision was advised by the committee – though the article definitely left that impression.
One wonders whether or not the reporter formed his article on this perverse means, or whether or not the native editorial boards did it. Both means, such distortions may cause the end result the committee seeks to keep away from – and likewise trigger critical residents to query the accuracy and dedication to the reality that newspapers declare to champion.
I recognize the chance to voice my concern.
David Sampselle
