Small Town News

Wood plant be good?

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Folks are coming out of the woodwork in opposition to a wood-burning electrical plant being proposed on Johns Prairie.

A new group, called Concerned Citizens of Mason County, says that the Adage facility "would kill us and make us sick in Shelton and Mason County."

The question for all of us to consider at this point - the threat of death notwithstanding -- is whether the new citizens group is full of a bunch of hot air or whether the prospect of a bunch of real hot air powering 40,000 homes is worth it.

Quite frankly, we've been a little surprised that it's taken this long for a group to form in opposition to the plant. From the get-go there have been folks raising very legitimate questions about air quality and water quality, and those questions deserve honest answers.

The economic benefits of a new $250-million plant are obvious and elected officials are thrilled at the prospect of more jobs and greenbacks being spent in Mason County.

Mason County Commissioner Lynda Ring Erickson went from being an apparent skeptic with valid questions and concerns one week to being a featured speaker the next week at a photo-op in Olympia announcing an alliance between Adage and John Deere. In that same meeting in which Ring Erickson raised questions, if not doubts, about the project, Commissioner Ross Gallagher just seemed, well, out to lunch. The meeting, so far the first and only session with officials from Adage, featured elected officials from the county, city, port and PUD 3, but it also featured one group that Gallagher did his best to ignore: the public.

Then, of course, there is commissioner and state senator Tim Sheldon, who also sits on the executive board of Energy Northwest. Three guesses and the first two don't count on where he comes down on the idea of locating a wood-burning energy plant here in a "strong, wood-products county."

State Representative Fred Finn was also at the Port of Olympia when the Adage and John Deere alliance was announced, and he was ecstatic about the idea of "jobs, jobs, jobs."

So, it's pretty clear where our elected officials all stand on this issue. What hasn't been so clear, up until just recently, is where their constituents stand.

It just might be worth finding out.



Copyright 2010 Shelton-Mason County Journal, Shelton, Washington. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.

© 2010 Shelton-Mason County Journal Shelton, Washington. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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