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The Herald of Randolph, July 16, 2009 Editorial Sometime soon, perhaps very soon, the people of Randolph may have a dramatic decision to make. They will be asked to decide whether the possibility of increased energy independence in the future would make it worth digging up all the village streets yet again. They’ve been dug up before. They were dug up when municipal water first became a reality, and in 1907 when the progressive town built a municipal sewer system. In the 1990s, many of the streets were dug up all over again to install a separate sewer system to handle storm runoff. This time, the town may be asked to dig up its streets in order to secure a stable price for space heating for years into the future. The proposal is to build the country’s first village wood-heating district, a boiler and system of hot water pipes which could heat 433 buildings. Supporters, including the Biomass Energy Resource Center in Montpelier, believe that Randolph could save many millions of dollars in heating costs over the next couple of decades by creating such a district. Those supporters say the district would stimulate the Randolph economy, as companies and residents respond to the lure of lower heating costs. Incredibly, it looks very possible that Randolph could receive a huge dose of stimulus money to help create such a pilot district, a grant that would make the project financially feasible. Chris Recchia at BERC told the selectboard July 1 that the timing of a stimulus grant program is right for Randolph. The program is aimed exactly at this kind of heating district, he said, and it’s on a fast track. There are very few towns in the whole country that are as close to qualifying as Randolph is, he said. Furthermore, a clause in an energy bill passed by the Vermont legislature this year positions Randolph, along with Montpelier, as the most likely communities to host any biomass heating pilot project. Orange Co. Sen. Mark MacDonald, who authored the special provision, said that it should give the Randolph application credibility in federal eyes. If the grant comes in, Randolph will have to decide whether and how to take advantage of it. Seldom if ever has the town been presented with such crucial choice for its future. If the optimistic predictions hold, the downtown heating district could secure a much brighter, more affordable, future, along with the satisfaction of being one of the few small towns in America not dependent on Middle East shieks to heat their homes. If it doesn’t work out as hoped, the downside could include a failed utility company and a much smaller impact. The decision will have to rely on extensive information we don’t have yet. It will also depend on certain subjective judgments: What do we believe will be the future of oil supplies and prices? How do we feel about being a town that takes the lead, and the risk, in such a crucial experiment? According to Tuesday night’s PBS special, when Athens decided to rebuild the Parthenon in 400 B.C., the city-state was experimenting with a new form of government, called democracy. Thus, the question of the Parthenon was put before the public and widely debated. Enormous expenditures were at stake, but so was the pride of the city. Athens decided to build. To answer a question of similar magnitude in Randolph, we look forward to a similar democratic process. We hope that multiple experts can be found and listened to, and that forums can be held throughout the town (the village especially) to make clear what the choices are. Only then can we make an informed decision. |
