Advertisement. Advertise with us

Work Starts

On County’s

Energy Plan

By PATRICK WAGER

ONEONTA – Now, the hard work begins.
What’s now called Otsego County 21-member “Energy Working Group” will convene for the first time at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 27, in Old City Hall.
And coming out of the Otsego County Chamber’s “Energy & Infrastructure Summit” two weeks ago at The Otesaga, the word  “compromise” is in the air.
“I don’t see compromise as being a dirty word,” said county Rep. Michele Farwell, who with Meg Kennedy, C-Mount Vision, is leading the effort. “I see compromise as being able to actually accomplish genuine movement forward. I feel that this is what my constituents look for in county government – getting the real work done.”
Still, they expect challenges. She and Kennedy both “noticed a pattern,” Farwell continued. “One side says, we need jobs. And the other side says, we need to protect the planet.”
All 21 members of the Energy Working Group – divided into four groups: Building & Efficiency, Energy Supply & Distribution, Economic Development, and Environment – are expected at the first meeting.
Also attending with be a group of “technical advisers,” from an engineer to a lawyer.
At this point, the timeline, according to Kennedy is that “the plan will be ready for SEQRA review in 18 months. Hopefully ready to adopt in roughly 24 months. An ambitious goal, but I think we can manage.”
After the initial meeting, each group will meet and select a leader who will keep a Leadership Group – Kennedy, Farwell, Oneonta Town Supervisor Bob Wood, City Engineer Greg Mattice and the OCCA’s Leslie Orzetti – apprised monthly on progress.
The Leadership Group will attend meetings on a regular basis, and continue with monthly groups.”

 

 

 

Posted

1 Comment

  1. Where is the list of the 21 members of the group and are the meetings open to the public, or at least will the minutes be read at a public forum?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

Related Articles

170 PARTICIPANTS HEAR MANY IDEAS FOR FUEL FUTURE

170 PARTICIPANTS HEAR MANY IDEAS FOR FUEL FUTURE Chamber’s Rubin: Exciting Information Exchanged, But ‘Now The Work Begins’ By JIM KEVLIN • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com COOPERSTOWN – In the end, 170 – up from 125 a week ago, and 155 a couple of days ago – today listened for eight hours to presentations on the United States’ – and Otsego County’s – energy future from some of the most knowledgeable people in New York State. The venue was the Otsego County Chamber of Commerce’s “Energy Summit:  Energy & The Economy,” which finished up in late afternoon in The Otesaga’s pretty-close-to-full ballroom.…

No, We Can’t Save World Alone; Yes, We Can Embrace Opportunity

EDITORIAL LESSONS FROM OTSEGO CHAMBER EARTH SUMMIT No, We Can’t Save World Alone; Yes, We Can Embrace Opportunity The debate around here has appeared to be all about energy. Listening to 19 content-rich, tightly packed presentations – 15 minutes, 15 minutes, 15 minutes – at the Otsego County Chamber of Commerce’s “Energy Summit: Infrastructure & Economy,” Thursday, Jan. 31, at The Otesaga, you’d have come to a different conclusion. The discussion’s all about jobs. Energy is the means. Which can best produce jobs, gas or renewables? Ideally, both. There were woeful predictions. “Time is not on our side,” intoned Tony…

Energywise, We Can Have It All: Natural Gas Now, Renewables Later

Energywise, We Can Have It All: Natural Gas Now, Renewables Later The Otsego County Chamber board and president deserve a heartfelt “thank you” for having the vision and courage to host the “Energy Summit.” Speakers from New York and Pennsylvania talked about fossil fuels and renewables including biomass, ethanol, electric cars, wind, solar and geo-thermal. At the end of the day, it was clear that, although promising for the future, renewables are not currently capable of replacing or offsetting our demand for energy provided by fossil fuels. That does not mean we should abandon our pursuit of alternative sources of…

Putting the Community Back Into the Newspaper

Now through March 30, new annual subscribers to “The Freeman’s Journal” and AllOtsego.com (or subscribers who have lapsed for two or more years) have an opportunity to help their choice of one of four Otsego County charitable organizations.

$5.00 of your subscription will be donated to the nonprofit of your choice:

Cooperstown Farmers’ Market, Cooperstown Food Pantry, Greater Oneonta Historical Society or Super Heroes Humane Society.