To the Editor:
The Working Waterfront report on the Army Corps of Engineers assessment of the LPG facility proposed for Mack Point, in the July 2012 edition, summarizes often unsupported and inaccurate material from the assessment, authored by Jay Clement, without balancing source material, ultimately concluding “minimal disruption” from the LPG facility.
It was unfortunate and unreasonable not to seek another source for a differing perspective. Islesboro Selectman Arch Gillies, Islesboro residents Chuck Verrill and Kim Tucker, North Haven Selectman Bill Bartovics, attorney Stephen Hinchman—any or all of these folks could have created informational balance in the report, and there are certainly others as well.
Municipal governments from Islesboro, North Haven, Belfast, Camden, Stockton Springs, Rockport and Lincolnville are all concerned about the safety, economic and environmental impacts of this proposed facility and sent letters to the
Searsport Planning Board to record those concerns. This is a truly unprecedented indication of regional concern, indicative of potentially massive disruption, which the Working Waterfront piece all but ignored.
Islesboro lobstermen are very concerned about or in fact opposed to the LPG facility. While the Coast Guard expects LPG tankers to plow up the channel at 10 to 12 knots without stopping for anyone or anything, lobstermen are supposed to get out of their way. Who should get preferential use of the bay?
With Islesboro and North Haven taking the lead protecting Penobscot Bay in this LPG matter, this is a story about the significance of the region’s economy and the role that islands play; it is a story about national, regional and local energy policies and how decisions made in the energy sector affect other aspects of our lives; it is a story about land uses that may cause substantial disruption across municipal boundaries; it is a story about public risks and corporate benefits.
Sincerely,
Stephen Miller
Islesboro Islands Trust