Surveys about wind project in Barre shouldn’t exclude leaseholders

Editor:

Over the past month, 212 responses to a canvass done by Know Your Facts USA have been posted to the Public Service Commission docket. In the cover letter, it is stated that “No board members or leaseholders have been included in these numbers.” In a video posted on the Know Your Facts USA Facebook page, it is stated that friends and family of leaseholders are also not included in the canvas.

Approximately 2,000 people live in the Town of Barre. Eliminating leaseholders and their friends and family leaves a large percentage of the residents and taxpayers unaccounted for. This exercise was not fair or unbiased and should be taken with a very large grain of salt.

In the summer of 2018 Labella Associates conducted a survey of the town’s opinion on Heritage Wind. Out of the respondents who are full-time Barre residents, 46% of them are in support of the project, 36% are opposed, and the remaining 12% are either neutral or need more information. The survey report from Labella states that “potential leaseholders are still members of the Barre community. Their expressed concerns, knowledge, and opinions need to be accounted for as part of a whole picture for the Town of Barre.”

Alice Mathes

Barre