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Volume 18, No. 20
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Lawmakers Rail against State Climate Law; Green Groups Call State Report Inaccurate By ERIC SANTOMAURO-STENZEL
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ALBANY tsego County’s representatives in Albany are criticizing the state’s landmark climate law after a report released by the Governor Kathy Hochul administration said its costs of implementation would be in the thousands of dollars for oil and natural gas users. The report comes as the Hochul administration has been mulling ways to alter provisions in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, Politico has reported. Environmental groups are calling the report
inaccurate, exaggerated and misleading. The report from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority estimated that “Upstate oil and natural gas households would see costs in excess of $4,000 a year” by 2031 if the CLCPA is implemented as written. The three-page report said costs would fall particularly hard on those without the ability to install low emission technology, which is harder to obtain for a range of reasons. Doreen Harris, NYSERDA president and chief executive officer, also wrote that the federal government’s Continued on page 9
Yellowjackets Season Ends in Section Finals
Photos by PhotoJoe Photography-Joe Harmer
BINGHAMTON—Oneonta High School’s basketball team fell to Maine-Endwell Senior High School’s Spartans in the boys Class A Section Finals on Sunday, March 8 at Visions Veterans Arena. The Spartans won 68-42. Left photo: Yellowjackets senior Brady Carr goes for a jumper. Right photo: Yellowjackets senior Britten Zeh drives in for a layup. INSIDE ► Larry sharpe talks gUbernatorial race IN HARTWICK, page 2
Town of Hartwick Sets Public Hearing for Solar Moratorium By ERIC SANTOMAURO-STENZEL
HARTWICK fter a contentious start to its new term of office, the Town of Hartwick board has found an issue to unify ► citizen science IS BACK, around: opposing a proposed solar farm. AND IT’S chaos! page 4 At its regular meeting on Monday, March 9, town board members unanimously voted ►LOTS OF LETTERS, page 4 to set a March 20, 6:30 p.m. public hearing ► ccs hISTORY DAY for a proposed six month solar moratoOVERVIEW, page 6 rium, pending timely review by the Otsego County Planning Department and publi► HOLOCAUST EDUCATOR PLANS VISIT, page 9 cation of notices in “The Daily Star.” The moratorium proposal comes in response to ► NEALON ON BEHALF OF solar company SolAmerica seeking to build rss, page 10 a 12.8-acre solar farm near the intersection of Greenough Road and Dobbs Hill Road. Residents have been speaking out against the project since news of the company’s 1 98715 21709 4 inquiries broke last month, including three ► another county board meeting in the books, page 3
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Photo by Eric Santomauro-Stenzel
The Town of Hartwick board voted on March 9 to set a public hearing for a proposed six-month solar moratorium in response to a solar farm project being considered by Georgia-based SolAmerica.
public commenters at the Monday meeting. Opponents have cited noise, visual impact, potential environmental impacts and prox-
imity to residential properties. SolAmerica has yet to file an official Continued on page 15
THE FREEMAN’S JOURNAL & HOMETOWN ONEONTA, OTSEGO COUNTY’S AWARD-WINNING WEEKLIES 2010 WINNERS OF The Otsego County Chamber/KEY BANK SMALL BUSINESS AWARD
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