Lenox Protects Watershed With Unanimous Special Town Meeting Votes
 The meeting was so well attended that residents were standing in the back and the meeting was delayed 15 minutes while voters piled into Town Hall. |
In a special town meeting voters unanimously approved three motions to ensure Article 97 designation is on all of the watershed land.
The town had crafted a conservation restriction for the land in the past and more land had been donated.
However, there was some legal confusion over whether the Article 97 designation was in place.
"Article 97 isn't insurmountable but it is the highest bar we can set on our watershed," Board of Selectmen Chairman Channing Gibson said. "We had different legal opinions on it ... this reaffirms it."
Energy company Kinder Morgan has proposed digging into the watershed land for a natural gas line prompting town officials to seek out the quickest way to end confusion over the land's protected status. That took one, three-part warrant article that accepted the donated land and two motions to reaffirm the coverage.
"It is a great system but it is very fragile," Gibson said.
Gibson said the watershed area provides very clean drinking water for the town. But it is very small. The pipeline proposal raised concerns about digging, deforestation and blasting.
Water Superintendent Richard Fuore said any problems in the watershed could be catastrophic to the town's drinking water system.
"We feel this is the best defense," he said.
Former Selectman John McNinch chaired the watershed committee that wrote the conservation restriction. He said all the Article 97 coverage is something all watersheds should have.
The town also unanimously gave the Selectmen the authority to move forward with a solar project at the landfill and the waste-water treatment center. The town has been working in conjunction with the town of Lee to craft a proposal for photovoltaic arrays.
 Selectmen Ken Fowler outlined why the town needed to approve the project a second time.
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"All of the specifics became null and void when Broadway Electric decided to close their doors," said Selectman Ken Fowler, adding that the company left the town "high and dry."
The town has been working — through a state grant — with a consultant to recraft the project.
"We have 18 companies looking at our proposals with Lee," Fowler said.
Lenox Environmental Committee member Susan May voiced favor in the project saying it will save the taxpayers money and increase the amount of clean and renewable energy.
"The electricity will go to power this beautiful building and others municipally owned," May said
The Selectmen did field questions about whether the project will be just for the town and if the waste-water treatment plant proposal will require the removal of trees.
"We don't want to do that," Fowler said of the removal of trees. "We would be looking to minimize the footprint at the waste-water treatment plant."
Fowler said that was one of the lessons they learned through the process with Broadway and that they will be seeking to produce only enough power for that plant.
As for what the energy will power, it will be only for municipal buildings. But, Gibson said the Selectmen are interested in a community solar project in the future.
"We think that is a great idea," he said.
A third and final warrant article was approved that outlines more clearly where the sewer revenue was coming from per a request from the state Department of Revenue. Selectman Ed Lane said the article was a "housekeeping" item.
Overall, the Selectmen were happy with the turnout. In recent meetings they've expressed concern over the number of voters might have attended — including worry that they wouldn't hit the 35 people needed to make a quorum.
"We always worry about calling a special town meeting because we didn't feel it is representative of the town," Gibson said.
But that wasn't the case on Tuesday when the meeting had been delayed some 15 minutes because residents were still piling into Town Hall.
Tags: conservation restriction, gas pipeline, municipal solar, watershed,
