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THE MADISON COUNTY (GA) JOURNAL. THURSDAY. JANUARY 9, 2020 - PAGE 5A
Opinions
Madison County now a site
of environmental injustice
Dear Editor:
Madison County has prov
en to be a perfect site for a
classic case of environmental
injustice. They chose us for a
reason.
It is a shame that one of our
own was the driving force be
hind this operation and I can’t
help but assume he thought
that we would not fight. This
individual talks down to us
with technical language and
pretends to understand by
responding with false state
ments and platitudes that
make no sense. To compare
the pollution from Georgia
Renewable Power (GRP) to
a car’s emissions is ridiculous
and insulting. That is a form
of environmental injustice.
In August, the injustice
continued when our Board
of Commissioners amended
the noise ordinance. You may
have missed that news, for it
happened the same night as
the “Little League” debacle. I
begged the BOC not to amend
the ordinance and to delay
voting on it. We were told
(on record) that amending the
ordinance would “serve to let
folks that might move to this
area, to make them aware,
that these certain activities
that are in the amendment are
permissible.” Later, I went
back to review the video and
it had been edited, removing
everything I said except the
last line. If you view the vid
eo, you will see me standing
in front of the podium and
hear my friend Ted Lowler
talking. If I had known that
they could alter recordings
of a public meeting, I would
have recorded it myself.
That moment poured gas
on the fire of my fury.
Now, as we enter our sev
enth month with the beast,
GRP, in our backyard, my
fury continues to bum. Since
that August meeting, the
beast has polluted our envi
ronment with light, air, water
and land pollution. Sure, the
BOC is showing empathy
for our situation now, but that
doesn’t pay for the extensive
(and expensive) water testing
I will have to have performed.
It doesn’t quiet the beast.
It doesn’t sell my home. It
doesn’t lower my taxes. To
put me in a position where I
have to spend money I don’t
have to prove that they are
polluting my property is envi
ronmental injustice.
There seems to be a lot
more to GRP than just pol
lution. The lawsuits filed by
investors and the RICO case
indicate that this was a dirty
deal from the get-go. Why are
they given a pass on late pay
ment of bills? I would like to
receive the kind of grace they
have been given on payment
of bills. After all, Madison
County went into serious debt
to bring them here, the least
they could do is pay up! I will
wait to see what else will sur
face about this company, and
I am confident that there is
more to come. It is not diffi
cult to dig up dirt on the other
companies involved. Why
would I trust a company that
produces railroad ties, sells
them to CSX, collects them,
and sells the used railroad ties
again? Why are we trusting a
company that was involved in
the Flint River crisis with our
environment and our health?
Why?
When the Clean Power Co
alition held the meeting at the
high school, we were accused
of all sorts of treachery. As
a group, we agreed that we
would try to shield our local
leadership from the public
outcry. Our goal was not to
publicly roast our leadership,
but to present the truth about
burning railroad ties. We
wanted them to know what
we had discovered and end
the rumor that creosote is safe
to breathe. In a private face-to-
face conversation, I explained
to a local politician that there
would be no mic time for
him or any of the reps. Les
son learned, put everything in
print. GRP and National Sal
vage, were adamant that they
would host a public meeting
to refute our statements about
burning railroad ties...I am
waiting.
Madison County sits be
tween two smoke stacks, 23
miles apart. No one is safe
from the pollution. Our coun
ty has an enormous debt for
the water tine. Our taxes just
went up, and the company
that will buy the power gener
ated by GRP is about to raise
our rates. Home values in the
area will plummet and we
face serious health risks.
The beast has shattered our
quality of life and replaced it
with pollution in every form.
We have been lied to repeat
edly and admonished for
wanting our peaceful country
living. All for the almighty
dollar.
I will fight with fury, for my
home and yours. #mcproud,
Sincerely,
Gina Ward
Colbert
How to stay on track
with New Year’s resolutions
We all turned the calendar page from 2019
to 2020 last week. 2019 was full of success
es, failures and challenges. We often view
the New Year as a time to “re-boot” and start
the year fresh with new business, family and
personal goals. New Year’s goals and reso
lutions fill all of us with hope that this next
calendar year can be the best year that we
have ever had.
While it may be easy for us to set new
goals and resolutions, keeping those same
goals and resolutions throughout the year
(even the first month) is very difficult. Here
are a few tips to stay on track with your New
Year’s resolutions and goals.
Tip #1: Have a plan. Before you can set
goals and resolutions, a period of reflection
is required. It is hard to visualize where you
are going, without first looking at where you
have been. What worked for you last year?
What did not work last year? In order for
your goals or resolutions to be met, you have
to put a plan in place. A goal without a plan
is just a wish. A goal without a plan is just a
wish. I thought you should see that last sen
tence twice; it’s important. Check back next
week to see how to set SMART goals.
Tip #2: Locus on the journey, not the des
tination. Try to focus on improving yourself
every day. Instead of setting a weight loss
goal to achieve by the end of the year, set a
weekly weight loss goal. According to the
Center for Disease Control, evidence shows
that people who lose weight gradually and
FACS
of Life
bradley.
averill@
uga.edu
By Bradley Averill
steadily (1-2 lbs. per week) are more suc
cessful at keeping weight off 1. The thrill of
hitting those small goals can give you the
motivation to keep moving towards your
next small goal. Take a bunch of small steps
forward instead of trying to take a leap.
The problem with New Year’s resolutions,
is in the name itself. Why do we need to wait
for the beginning of the New Year to start
improving our lives? Why do we need to
start and stop goals only once per year? Start
today by making a plan. If that plan changes,
which it will, make a new plan.
My New Year’s resolution is to keep
Madison County informed weekly about all
matters in health, wellness, chronic disease
prevention, nutrition and exercise. Looks
like week one is in the books! See you next
week.
Brad Averill is the Family and Consumer
Science Agent for Madison County. He can
be reached at bradley.averill@uga.edu
Jenkins contimied from 4A
best (see Dr. Judith Curry’s ar
ticle from 2019 “Ocean Heat
Content Surprises” at her
website Climate Etc.) Mean
while, we also recorded only
our fourth year since 1982
with no snow at all. Small and
big kids alike were no doubt
very disappointed in this turn
of events.
Speaking of snow, are we
done with winter this year?
As I mentioned in my winter
forecast, I was expecting a
normal to slightly cold winter
this year, but so far the cra
zy-warm waters in the Gulf,
Atlantic and part of the east
ern Pacific, in tandem with
an unusually strong and per
sistent Bermuda high off the
east coast, have performed as I
feared and shunted or stopped
the cold intrusions for most of
the deep South.
But not just here. After a
cold start to winter, the chill
has retreated back into the
Arctic and Canada for a time.
But don’t give up on winter
just yet. There are signs that
changes toward more wintry
weather may begin to develop
after the middle of January.
Of course, some of the same
models predicting this (the
CLSv2, for one) were saying
the same thing two or three
weeks ago. But so far, the brief
cold snaps have been pretty
weak and haven’t lasted.
Weather averages for De
cember, 2019: Avg. low:
39. Avg. high: 57. Low
est: 25. Highest: 70. Mean:
48.0 (+3.5). Rainfall: 5.44”
(+1.18”). 2019 rain total:
59.19” (+9.05").
Mark Jenkins is Madison
County’s cooperative weather
obsen’er.
A look at 'The Beast’
Dear Editor: Details on its
owners, who invited it and
where it came from, are not
clear. There are many stories
about who is to blame. Just as
many half truths about it fill the
air like mosquitoes buzzing on
a hot summer night. All of these
are clearly outweighed by the
all too often heard, “It wasn’t
me.” Some day the truth may
be known. Only time will tell.
The one fact that cannot be de
nied or disputed is this, the beast
is there!
At first, it seemed so inno
cent. The owners assured us
that the breath of the beast could
reach no more than 300 feet
from where the beast was being
assembled. When asked if they
were sure about that, they just
smiled and replied, ‘This will
be good for all of us.. .wait and
see.” The beast did not speak. It
just sat in silence.
The people watched in
amazement as the beast grew.
It wasn’t long before the sheer
size of it began to alarm the peo
ple who lived in the area near
the beast. When they expressed
their concerns the owners just
smiled and replied, “This will
be good for all of us.. .wait and
see.” The beast did not speak. It
just sat in silence.
The beast was not yet huge,
but it was incredibly bright. It
was the brightest thing any
one had ever seen. It became a
strange eerie beacon in the oth
erwise beautiful night sky. The
light could be seen by all, close
and far away. It was so bright
that the beast’s light began to
devour the nearby stars in the
night sky. Worried about the lost
of these stars, the people asked
if more stars would be con
sumed. Could the beast turn the
entire sky black? “No,” replied
the owners, “Losing a few stars
in the night sky will be worth
the rewards you will receive
from the beast. Are you sure
asked the people? The owners
just smiled and replied, “This
will be good for all of us...
wait and see.” The beast did not
speak. It just sat in silence.
The owners said that the
beast would need water, lots
of water and that it would be
necessary for everyone to give
part of their water to satisfy the
beast’s thirst. Water was one of
the most valuable possessions
the people had. It gave life to
everything. The people ques
tioned the amount of water
needed, over a million gallons a
day and asked, “What if we run
out of water?” The owners just
smiled and replied, “This will
be good for all of us.. .wait and
see.” The beast did not speak. It
just sat in silence.
Next the owners told every
one that the Beast would need
food, lots of food. The owners
said that part of the forest would
need to be cut down, ground up
and delivered to feed the beast.
The people cried out that cut
ting down the forest was too big
a sacrifice. Surely the trees are
more important than anything
the Beast could give in ex
change. The owners just smiled
and replied “This will be good
for all of us... .wait and see. The
beast did not speak. It just sat in
silence.
Several years passed. The
beast had grown to an incredi
ble size. It was now the biggest
thing in the entire area. Finally,
the owners announced that the
building of the beast was com
plete. That the, “good for all of
us,” time was about to begin.
That the, “wait and see time”
was over. The beast, who had
sat in silence from the begin
ning, was ready to speak.
Somewhere deep inside the
belly of the beast the fires that
would consume part of the
forest were lit. The heat from
the fires boiled away the water
that everyone had given. The
last connection was made. The
spark of life raced to every part
of the beast. The beast creaked
and groaned and seemed to
grow even bigger and brighter.
The silence that everyone was
used to and loved disappeared
in an instant. The beast spoke!
The earth trembled. Hous
es shook on their foundations.
People were jolted from their
beds. The noise that came from
the beast drowned out every
other sound. The sky turned
black with smoke as the beast
belched out the remains of the
forest it was consuming. The
owners had known that the
wood from the forest would
be too expensive. Train loads
of poison railroad ties began to
appear. The beast consumed
them! The refreshing smell
of the country side air was re
placed with a terrible odor that
burned people’s eyes and made
it hard to breath. Dirty clouds of
water vapor filled the sky. It was
all that remained of the precious
water the people had provided.
The beast spread its dark wings
and fanned the foul air far be
yond the 300 feet promised.
The water now dark and tainted
poured out of the beast and ran
into every nearby creek to be
carried off to distant places. The
beast reached out and touched
everyone and everything. No
one was immune from the ter
rible effects of the beast. The
beast, now with a mind of its
own, demanded more and more
and more.
When the people cried out
that this was not what was
promised and asked where is the
“good for all of us” the owners
just smiled and replied, “This
will be good for US!, watch and
see.” To this they added, “It’s
too late to do anything about it
now.” There’s no one among
you who can stop the beast.”
To the people it seemed that
the “all” in “good for all of us”
had gone up in smoke when the
beast came to life.
Try as they might the peo
ple could not think of a way to
stop the beast from destroying
everything they enjoyed and
loved. The question was always
the same, “Who among us can
correct this wrong.. .The beast
just smiled and roared louder
and louder and louder!
There does exist somewhere
a little known legend, almost
forgotten by everyone, that
might hold the answer to the
question of who could stop this
terrible wrong. It is said that
before the beast had a good
footing in the area a stately old
man, extremely well dressed
and with an aura of dignity, ap
peared before a meeting of the
people and their leaders. The
meeting was almost over and
the time for comments had end
ed but his appearance, which
was extremely powerful to ev
eryone there, demanded that
he be allowed to speak With
the shaky voice of someone
who had seen a lot of years but
conveyed strength and wisdom,
he warned them of the dangers
and disasters that would come if
the beast was allowed to come
to this area. When there was no
response to what he had said, he
turned to leave but stopped at
the door when someone asked,
“Who could stop this from hap
pening?” Without speaking a
word everyone there heard his
answer. ‘Look in a mirror.. .the
answer is there.”
“Never doubt that a small
group of thoughtful committed
citizens can change the world.
Indeed, it is the only thing that
ever has.” Margaret Mead
Sincerely,
DragoTesanovich
New Year starts off with a bang at the senior center
By Jennifer Lastinger
Senior Center
Happy New Year.
Believe it or not it’s already 2020 and
we’re ready to start the New Year off with
a bang at the Madison County Senior Cen
ter.
December was a very busy month for us.
We celebrated the Christmas holiday all
month long. We dressed in silly Christmas
socks and adorned our tacky sweaters, we
watched Christmas movies and drank lots
of hot chocolate, listened to many wonder
ful carolers from both the community and
schools, we shopped till we dropped and
ate a hearty breakfast on our monthly out
ing and finished off the celebrations with
Bingo, a Christmas party and a visit from
Santa.
We were blessed by many community
members during the holiday season. We
would like to send out a thank you to the
Pilot Club for a great game of Bingo with
some awesome prizes. Thank you to the
Homesteaders group who donated lots of
Christmas goodies for our seniors and our
Meals on Wheels clients.
Our Christmas party would not have
been a success without a few special peo
ple. Thank you to the Madison County
Pastors and Laymens Fellowship, who
donated gifts for all of our seniors. The
food for our party was donated by the Re
publican Party of Madison County and the
dessert by the Democratic Party of Mad
ison County. We are truly lucky to have
so many caring community members sur-
See Lastinger, page 6A
1050 Thomas Avenue.
Watkinsville, GA 30677
Monday - Thursday 8:00 am - 4:30 pm
Friday 8:00 am - 12:00 pm
alhensdermatoiogygroup.com
706.769.1550
READY FOR
DAWGDAY
FUN IN
THESUNU
M
KAREN MAFFEI, MD
Emory University School of Medicine,
Cum Laude, American Society of Mohs
Surgery, American Society of
Dermatological Surgery, American
Board of Dermatology
MORGAN RAINS, PA-C
Medical USC.Summa Cum Laude
UGA, Magna Cum Laude, American
Academy of Physician Assistants, Society
of Dermatology Physician Assistants,
Georgia Dermatology Physician Assistants