BARTON — Chairman Robert Croteau set the tone early at Monday’s meeting of the Barton Town Selectmen. The crowd was swollen with members of the Ladies Improvement Society and other opponents of wind power development.
“I think we’ve incorporated some good language in the plan,” Mr. Croteau said. “I think you’ll be pleased. But if you are for the outright banning of wind power, you’ll probably be disappointed.”
Mr. Croteau and fellow selectman Rupert Chamberlin stated that an outright ban of wind power was not in the best interest of the town. Selectman Dan McMaster was on vacation and did not attend Monday’s meeting. Mr. McMaster, in an open letter to the board, wrote that it was his desire to follow the wishes of the voters, who overwhelmingly supported the ban.
“I would ask the board to respect the democratic process,” said Liz Butterfield, a member of the Ladies Improvement Society. “The majority of people supported the plan you had initially presented in May.”
That plan, prepared by the town planning commission, incorporated language that would ban commercial wind development in the town. While the commission did not agree with the language, it was included because it represented the majority opinion of the voters, Chairman of the Planning Commission Jay Dudley wrote in a preface to the town plan.
In fact, the commission had little choice in the matter. It was compelled to include the ban after the Ladies Improvement Society collected enough signatures on a petition that called for a flat prohibition of “commercial or industrial wind turbine development within the town of Barton.”
The selectmen, however, are not legally bound by the language of the petition.
Mr. Croteau questioned whether, in fact, the decision of the voters represented the true feelings of the entire town. Since the town’s unanimous vote against the Sheffield wind project in January 2007, Mr. Croteau said, he had personally heard or read letters supporting wind power that cast doubt on the accuracy of the vote.
“I for one am on the opposite side of the fence on this issue,” said Mary Scarpa, board clerk for the selectmen. “I didn’t come out to vote that night because I had to work. I am not opposed to wind power.”
“Everybody had an opportunity to come out and voice their opinions during the process,” Ms. Butterfield said. “The people who don’t care don’t show up.”
Many supporters of wind power did not feel comfortable turning out for a public discussion on the issue, Mr. Croteau said, due to the “intensity” of wind power’s detractors.
Given today’s economic climate and the state of electrical generation in the New England market, it seems unwise to ban wind power outright, Mr. Croteau said. That sentiment was echoed in the amendment the selectmen incorporated into the town plan.
“In the current climate of energy problems or shortage thereof and the economic atmosphere of today, the Town needs and should try to maximize the amount of renewable energy and tax revenue that it can possibly collect while respecting the natural resources and the environment,” read the amendment under discussion Monday night. “The Town of Barton Select Board does not agree with the outright banning of commercial wind power, therefore the Select Board believes that all options need to remain on the table.”
While steadfastly refusing to ban wind power, the selectmen proposed a compromise that would heighten the value placed on Barton’s natural scenic views. That compromise incorporated language in the plan’s land use section recognizing the importance of scenic vistas within the town. The revised language on land use takes aim at development “with particular attention given to those structures and uses which by their nature may have an adverse and detrimental impact on the scenic character of any of these areas.”
Mr. Croteau added that the lack of a definition for what constitutes “commercial wind development” was particularly troubling. Any wind power source tied to the grid could be viewed as constituting commercial development, he said.
“That’s not what we meant and you know that,” Linda Saparoff said.
“Not everybody knows that,” Mr. Croteau replied. “You never said wind farms or stated how big or how many towers are considered commercial wind development.”
Given the vagueness of the wind ban, it would appear to suggest that a single home or farm would be unable to install a windmill to generate power for that property and put the excess power onto the grid, Mr. Croteau said.
JoAnn Stefanski offered to help the selectmen craft an amendment that would enable small-scale wind power while banning wind farms. The Ladies Improvement Society and the voters who signed the petition never intended to ban all forms of wind power, she said.
“Our objection has always been the 450-foot tall turbines,” Ms. Stefanski said.
The language in the town plan was always designed to be specific by outlining specific uses in specific areas, Ms. Saparoff said. That level of precision would give the town plan legal weight in any Act 250 or Public Service Board hearings.
“It will fall apart in court if the language isn’t strong,” she said.
The town plan itself cannot regulate electrical generation, Mr. Croteau said.
“That language tries to regulate something we have no authority to regulate,” he said. “That’s something for the Public Service Board to decide.”
“The Public Service Board takes into consideration the philosophical goals and wishes expressed in the town plan,” Ms. Butterfield said. “The philosophical goal of the people who signed that petition was that we don’t want commercial wind development in the town of Barton.”
“Let the people decide whether to vote it up or down,” Ms. Stefanski said of the ban.
“The people will have an opportunity to do that on the plan as a whole,” Mr. Croteau said.
“If you don’t like the wording, vote it down,” Ms. Scarpa added.
The plan requires approval by the town’s voters. That vote could come on Primary Election day in September or General Election day in November, depending on when the selectmen present their final draft.
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