MANCHESTER — A recent poll indicates support is growing for the Northern Pass project among New Hampshire residents, though opposition in the North Country remains strong.
MANCHESTER — A recent poll indicates support is growing for the Northern Pass project among New Hampshire residents, though opposition in the North Country remains strong.
To improve the chance of seeing your comment posted here or published in the New Hampshire Union Leader:
Note: Comments are the opinion of the respective poster and not of the publisher.
Paul Conboy said:
I question the validity of the article's headline assertion that support for the PROPOSED no. pass project is growing. According to the poll, only 13% of the .040% of the state population who were surveyed said they were "very familiar" with the proposed project. These would be the people who either "strongly oppose" the proposal or work for the utilities or another company that would benefit financially at the expense of the rest of NH. Where were all these supporters at the public hearings and town meetings? There was no support then and even less now as the truth gets out.Anyone who has studied the claims and misinformation promulgated by the utilities about lower electric bills, jobs, broadband for the North Country, snowmobile trails, etc. is aware that they are a crock. A dollar per month or less if any at all? Jobs flipping burgers and changing sheets for the out of state workers who would build this line since no NH company is qualified. No snowmobiling on private property and No broadband on high tension lines. The power isn't green since they are clear cutting huge carbon absorbing and oxygen generating forests and flooding them while the debris gives off huge quantities of methane - a green house gas exponentially worse than CO2. So what aspect of this proposal is responsible for it's increased popularity? - and among what demographic? Is it the people who hate the North Country, Dixville Notch, The White Mountain National Forest, and the Balsams? Is it those who think a scenic vista just isn't scenic without a 180 miles of huge towers and sagging wires? Is it those who just like the idea of 135 foot towers in their neighborhoods and back yards so they can listen to the crackle of the power flowing along the cables instead of those pesky songbirds. How many people want to live with the strong magnetic fields and the related health concerns and lowered property values that this line could bring to thousands of NH residents while it racks up hundreds of millions of dollars in private profits every year for it's priviledged few? - who won't live anywhere near it!I did my own survey. I went door to door in my town and asked people if they were aware that there was a proposal to build a 180 mile long private overhead powerline all the way from Canada to Deerfield, NH and did they want to sign a petition to oppose it as currently proposed. Only five out of almost one hundred declined to sign the petition. One, a selectman whose property had been deliberately avoided by a longer detour of the route said he wanted to remain neutral and one who said he was in the middle of refinancing and didn't want a conflict. One worked for PSNH. Another wanted to wait until she had more information and one, a convenience store owner naively hoped it might lower his property taxes. Unscientifically and with a margin of error of 0% there is a minimum 95% opposition in my area. Of the five who declined, the woman who wanted more info became opposed to the proposed project when she found out about it. The one refinancing became an active and vocal opponent to the proposal and the convenience store owner found out his taxes weren't going to be lowered - big surprise there. It's pretty clear that the only support for this project is from those who are either unaware of the details or are benefitting financially. Everyone agrees that if this power is needed in southern New England, then they can treat us as equals and bury the line like they are required to do by law in their home state of CT. The profits for this proposal border on the obscene so they have no reason to cry poor mouth. Bury it or forget about it!
(Report Abuse)
Susan Shibanoff said:
Allowing for the margin of error, that's as little as a 1% increase in "strong support" for Northern Pass since a year ago. "Support is growing" is technically correct but rhetorical hyperbole. With all the millions and millions that PSNH-NP has spent on print and media advertising, on faux "grassroots" websites, on promotion with unions and NH businesses, and on intense lobbying since last spring, what a dismal payoff. You just can't "cosmeticize" this pig. Hydro Quebec execs must be sighing, rolling their eyes, and wondering when to pull the plug on the funding for this abysmal failure.
(Report Abuse)
You must sign in before you can post comments. If you are experiencing issues with your account please e-mail abuse@unionleader.com.