I think it's widely assumed that our rail system isn't up to the task. In this case, I wonder if it wasn't an oversight or whether other considerations weighed against a rail decision, such as the resource having been already allocated elsewhere.
Jon recently told me that Bill Gates is a major investor in the Canadian rail system. I wish he or someone with his bucks would invest in ours, before it's too late. Bethany Joel and Sarah Gagnon wrote: > Why isn't anyone asking why bulk commodity transport like this isn't going > by rail? > > Joel > > At 07:16 AM 3/3/08 -0500, you wrote: >> Hi Jan, >> >> Regarding Seneca Meadows, aka Mount Trashmore, the site is engineered >> with an impermeable layering system which seals the landfill off from >> the groundwater that flows into Cayuga lake. Redundancy is built into >> the engineering plan, which is really state-of-the-art in waste fill >> management. The landfill hosts an annual open house every fall and >> tours are available any time throughout the year, if you want to learn more. >> >> The issue of the trucks on 89 is problematic. The plan was to have >> trucks take the Thruway to Seneca Falls, but as fares have gone up on >> the highway, drivers are taking the secondary routes to save costs. I >> think some citizen advocacy could probably be used to reset the >> expectations there. >> >> Whether Seneca Falls should be a regional landfill brings up a larger >> question: where do our large cities put their waste? Regional >> landfills situated off a major highway with sealed layers to protect >> groundwater is the current answer. But for those living near the >> landfill this solution seems like urban exploitation of a rural resource >> (space), which the monetary incentive is supposed to compensate the >> community for. Maybe that's not a fair trade? >> >> Also, did you know that the methane produced from Seneca Meadows is >> going to be used to heat greenhouses? I believe that program is going >> live this year. >> >> Best, >> >> Katie Q-J >> >> >> >> Jan Quarles wrote: >>> I'm concerned about the land fill(s) surrounding Cayuga Lake, and their >>> effects on our water quality. We have one of NY's largest right here in >>> Seneca County. You can't miss it on your way up to the NY Thruway; it's a >>> giant mountain. It's euphemistically called "Seneca Meadows," but us >> locals >>> refer to it as "Mount Trashmore." Seneca Falls gets big bucks for >> importing >>> tons of garbage daily from PA, NJ, MA and NYC. Seeing all these huge >> trucks >>> on Rte 89 every day, I got concerned about all this unfiltered garbage >>> coming into our region. It's enough of a challenge to deal with our own >>> garbage! I am especially concerned because we pump water directly from the >>> lake, and use it to water our big organic veggie garden. When I read last >>> Spring that they're expanding Mt. Trashmore, I contacted the Cayuga Lake >>> Watershed Network (CLWN) to see if Sharon Anderson (Steward of CLWN) knew >>> anything about its effect on Cayuga Lake. She wrote back that it's being >>> monitored by the EPA. This doesn't satisfy me, though, because we all know >>> that the Bush Admin. appointed the foxes to watch the hen houses. Does >>> anyone know about any info or citizen action on this issue? >>> >>> I also asked Sharon about the issue of WATER RIGHTS -- i.e., the >>> probability that private companies like CocaCola will try to purify and >> sell >>> bottled water en masse from the lake, as companies are already doing in >> Lake >>> Michigan and in thousands of towns in America. She said the CLWN >> doesn't get >>> involved with that aspect of water. I think there's some action on the >> State >>> level -- some proposed legislation to pre-empt private ownership of our >>> watershed, which, in my mind, belongs to us all as "the commons." I'm part >>> of "Back To Democracy" (based in Trumansburg) and we'd like to convene a >>> public meeting about water rights, as well as the effects of the land fill >>> and all this imported garbage on the lake, so if anyone has info on local >>> people who are working on these problems, it would be great connect with >>> them. One issue for citizens who surround the lake is: Why should Seneca >>> Falls benefit financially while our bodies pay the price? >>> >>> I saw a recent article in the Ithaca Times about a group of citizens >>> (including Robert Barton) who are mobilizing to address their concerns >> about >>> the spreading of tons of sludge on our region's farmlands. >>> >>> I am grateful to be part of a concerned community and to be able to >>> communicate through this list serve. It's a wonderful means by which we >> can >>> exercise our right to assemble in order to promote sustainability! >>> >>> - Jan >>> >>> ----- Original Message ----- >>> From: "Joel and Sarah Gagnon" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >>> To: "Sustainable Tompkins County listserv" >>> <[email protected]> >>> Sent: Thursday, February 28, 2008 12:46 PM >>> Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] why save water? >>> >>> >>> >>>> The city water source issue is more complicated than implied. Six Mile >>>> Creek water is often turbid. The chemicals used to clear the water have an >>>> associated environmental impact from their production and then disposal. >>>> That needs to be weighed against the energy cost of pumping lake water >>>> uphill to storage. Either way, conservation reduces environmental impact. >>>> >>>> Joel >>>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >>> [email protected] >>> http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >>> free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org >>> >>> >>> >> -- >> _______________________________________________ >> RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >> [email protected] >> http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >> free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > _______________________________________________ > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > [email protected] > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > _______________________________________________ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: [email protected] http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org
