Ethanol in the Finger Lakes?

Is it good for the environment? Is it good for the economy? Is it good for the residents of Seneca County? Give us an Environmental Impact Statement, and we'll give you our answer!!

Friday, December 14, 2007

The Public Pans the "Canned Hunt" at Seneca Army Depot

The Sesslers would really like to give wealthy clients from around the world the opportunity to corner one of the Seneca Army Depot's rare white deer against a chain-link fence, stare into its frightened eyes, and blow it away. And what could be more sporting than that?---as long as the shooters pay up for the privilege, and the Sesslers get to collect the big green bucks for the dead white buck, suitable for mounting on a wall of your palace in Dubai...if you happen to have one. Such is the business plan of the Sesslers, the "canned hunt" that takes land from the people of Seneca County, and money from the taxpayers of the State of New York, and gives it to...well...the Sesslers. (To see the actual Sessler business plan, as opposed to the warm-and-fuzzy statements they've been making to the press, see this link.)

The members of the Seneca County Industrial Development Agency (SCIDA) were happy to oblige, continuing their best efforts to hand over public lands and taxpayer funds on a silver platter to their well-connected friends, under the pretense of boosting the local economy. But their latest giveaway scheme hit a speed bump on December 13 in the Town of Varick. Apparently, to the IDA's horror, the public weighed in on the issue. The public showed up, and their verdict was--- HELL NO!!

It wasn't for lack of trying that the SCIDA failed to get this project rubber-stamped in favor of the Sesslers. They had done their usual routine. They had privately signed off on the project in their typically illegal executive sessions, keeping the public safely out of the way. To short-circuit the pesky "public comment" session, they scheduled it at 10am on a Thursday in a remote location, to keep the irritating "working classes" away. They were even lucky enough to have near-blizzard conditions at that time.

But a strange thing happened---THE PEOPLE SHOWED UP! About a hundred of them, with more overflowing outside the door. And they were not happy. The blizzard outdoors was nothing compared to the "perfect storm" of public outrage within the meeting room. The members of the SCIDA, who only the day before were meeting happily in the comfort of their illegal "public not welcome" executive session in the back room of Abigail's Restaurant, were nowhere to be seen. Not one of them bothered to show up to listen to the concerns of the public which they claim to serve. Had they been there, they would have heard from hunters incensed at the unsporting nature of this "sporting" proposal; from environmentalists and eco-tourism advocates who made the case for better uses of the site, none of which the SCIDA had bothered to consider--- in spite of over 1000 signatures in favor of this idea; and from good-government advocates who were appalled at the cronyism and self-dealing of the SCIDA. All this was occurring in a county already reeling from the indictments of the Sheriff and a number of his subordinates for their shocking corruption in using the former Seneca Army Depot as their private stash for stolen goods.

The SCIDA has never in the past shown much interest in public opinion. They answer to a higher God---themselves, and their special friends! Perhaps, even now, they intend to ignore public opinion and hand the Sesslers a free pass, as they previously did for the ethanol profiteers. But now they are being watched as never before--- a fact that perhaps accounts for the recent spate of resignations from the agency. As Abe Lincoln put it, "You can't fool all the People all the time". The People of Seneca County are in no mood to be fooled again. They are watching, and they are angry!

You can read media accounts of the meeting at:

http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007712140361

http://www.syracuse.com/poststandard/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-11/119762680126

http://www.theithacajournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071214/NEWS01/712140348/10021060.xml&coll=1

Posted by Finger Lakes Future Alliance

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Sign our Petition for an EIS

October 22, 2007

Our position from the beginning has been that the ethanol plant project in Seneca County needs an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The more we learn about this project, the more we realize just how essential this is.

The Seneca County Industrial Development Agency (SCIDA) sees its main role as promoting industrial development---especially industrial development that benefits members of the SCIDA themselves, their family members, and their friends and business associates. However, when the SCIDA saw to it they they were named "lead agency" under SEQRA, New York's environmental review law, they took on a legal obligation to defend the public by making sure any negative environmental impacts were identified and studied.

They have shown little interest in doing that. Despite overwhelming evidence that there would be huge environmental impacts, they issued a "negative declaration", and refused to require an EIS. In effect, they gave a free pass to a huge project with enormous giveaways of public lands and taxpayer funds. It would destroy a sensitive ecosystem and degrade air and water quality. There is little evidence that this project would benefit the public in any way. But there is overwhelming evidence that there would be serious negative consequences to the public.

But it's not too late.

Under the SEQRA law, the lead agency is not just permitted, but OBLIGATED, to rescind a negative declaration when it becomes clear that the scope of the project has changed, or new information has come to light. Both of those conditions clearly apply. The project as it is now discussed is different in many respects from the preliminary documents presented by the developers, which were used as a basis for the negative declaration. These documents were full of omissions and misrepresentations.

Will the IDA do its duty and rescind the negative declaration, and now require an EIS?

Maybe---but only if we hold their feet to the fire, and hold our public officials accountable.

That's where the petitions come in. Let it be known that we demand that the IDA do its duty and RESCIND THE NEGDEC!! We need an EIS for this project!

SIGN OUR PETITION:

There are two ways to express your support for Finger Lakes Future, and demand that the IDA do the right thing and REQUIRE AN EIS :

1) Click here to sign our petition on the Care2 website.

or

2) Email us at fingerlakesfuture@gmail.com and we'll add your name to our petition. Or, if you prefer, we'll send you a pdf of our petition, suitable for gathering written signatures.