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October 24, 2015
Published by New Market Press, Inc.
Staff reductions, Solar quality inspections looks coming to Vermont bright in schools By Bruce Parker Charlotte
Serving more than 30,000 Readers Weekly
OCTOBER PUMPKINS
Vermont Watchdog Report
By Gail Callahan CHARLOTTE — While some residents of New Haven and Hubbardton are resisting more solar-power projects in their community—complaining of permanent changes to their town’s rural landscape— Charlotte town officials are eager to utilize solar power, plugging in new state standards and revamping existing regulations. The state is seeking to use 90 percent renewable energy by 2050, Vermont is experiencing a solar boom with the help of taxpayerfunded incentives which are set to expire in 2016. The Vermont State Legislature has crafted and passed new energy regulations, but with that comes a new layer to take closer looks at projects. Locally, the Charlotte Planning Commission is discussing how the Town Plan can include regulations, enabling the town to have more say in the location of solar projects. The current document contains no such language. That goes hand-in-hand with a state-created committee, kicking off in three months, is tasked with studying how project locations are determined. Charlotte officials are considering a list of goals as a starting point for writing documents on how to look at proposed solar projects. At the same time, areas that are off limits to development, such as wildlife habitat, will also be included in the work. CONTINUED ON PAGE 3
BRISTOL — In part two of an interview with State Rep. David Sharpe, D-Bristol, the House Education Committee chair told Vermont Watchdog reporter Bruce Parker he supports the recent Board of Education ruling that effectually ends school choice for tuitioning towns that merge with operating towns. In part two, Sharpe tells what Vermont is doing to address its costly student-teacher ratio— the heart of the state’s education financing crisis. He also says the Agency of Education plans to conduct unannounced quality inspections of schools. Bruce Parker: The cost of education boils down to the cost of paying teachers and staff. Is this the main issue driving Vermont’s education finance crisis? Rep. Sharpe: There was pretty broad recognition in our committee that that was the single biggest problem — the number of adults employed in our schools. The student-to-staff ratio was 1 to 4.67 — so one employed staff member to 4.67 students. That is off the charts compared to other schools CONTINUED ON PAGE 5
A young boy expresses his inner artist while painting locally grown pumpkins at Agway’s Day of the Pumpkin event. The event was held at the retailer’s farm store located on Exchange Street in Middlebury last weekend. Adults carved the pumpkins as children lined up to paint the orange-colored fruit in time for Halloween. Young and old alike enjoyed the afternoon along with apple cider and doughnuts. Eagle photo
Rutland leads lake wastewater dumps, group claims By Lou Varricchio lou@addison-eagle.com
An Oct. 13 news release distributed by LCI singles out the City of Rutland for its highlevel of sewage that eventually ends up in the lake. Pictured is a representative overflowing sewage conduit. The photo was not taken in Rutland. USGS photo
MIDDLEBURY — Lake Champlain may be far away from most Vermont communities, but community wastewater—bearing everything from microorganisms to metal pollutants—ends up there just the same, according to the non-profit pollution watchdog group LCI, Lake Champlain International. Downstream pollution—or “upstream” in the case of the north-flowing Otter Creek—is a significant problem challenging ongoing efforts to reduce lake pollution. An Oct. 13 news release distributed by LCI singles out the City of Rutland for its high-level of sewage that eventually ends up in the lake. “Rutland pads it lead over Burlington with up to another 100,000 gallons of human excrement dumped at West Street,” according to the LCI statement released by Eric LaMontagne. “Twenty six dumps in four months will make it difficult for anyone else to catch up to Rutland this calendar year. Rutland further distinguishes itself by accounting fully for one-third of the 76 total dumps contributed by the other 15 Vermont communities during the last 16 weeks.” LCI reports that sewage contains far more pollutants than farm phosphorous. “That now brings the total to 76 sewage spills in the 16 different communities CONTINUED ON PAGE 3