Welcome (back) to the second world, heh? My understanding is that in Ithaca we spend about $1 million per mile when we have to work on our roads, so $10 million doesn't sound like so much.
Bethany George Frantz wrote: > I think Joel raises a very good point. > > The Seneca Meadows landfill is only 1.5 miles from the railroad connecting > Geneva and Auburn, which itself connects to the NYC-Albany-Buffalo mainline > seven miles to the north in Lyons. The rail system is up to it, it just > needs $5-$10 million to connect Seneca Meadows to the mainline system. > > But we don't spend $5-$10 million in thic country to upgrade our rails > system, because we prefer to spend $20-$30 to upgrade the highways instead. > > The most direct rail link between NYC and Seneca Meadows would actually be > through Ithaca. The railbed is even still intact. Unfortunately it's > reserved for a higher priority - the Black Diamond Trail recreational bikeway. > > And while Bill Gates is investing in the Canadian rail system, the Canadian > railroads are investing in ours. Those red locomotives you see off to the > south as you drive east through Binghamton on Re 17/I-81or rumbling through > Waverly are Canadian National locomotives. > > The way things are headed, maybe within the decade the Canadians will be > running our railroads and the Europeans our windfarms. > > George Frantz > > > Bethany Schroeder <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > 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" >>>> To: "Sustainable Tompkins County listserv" >>>> >>>> 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 > > > > --------------------------------- > Never miss a thing. Make Yahoo your homepage. > _______________________________________________ > 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
