Archive: Opinions

Dear Editor,

When the USSR unraveled in the early ‘90’s, it was interesting to learn about the many “propped up” industries that the Soviets had been maintaining. The factories were redundant or non-competitive, and yet the Soviets kept them open just to keep people employed.

This is what’s happening locally today at the Cayuga Operating Plant. Experts have noted that the plant is unnecessary and that any power shortfall could be met through upgraded transmission lines. Further, any large investment at the plant locks us on the path of fossil fuels instead of a cleaner energy future.

For certain, closing the plant will be painful. It will eliminate jobs and remove a significant property from  the tax rolls for Lansing schools and local governments. Transition assistance for these closures is readily available, and there seem to be many employment openings for the fast-growing green energy boom we’re currently experiencing in Tompkins County.

Do Lansing residents, including our students, want our town to be known as a place that props up unnecessary companies at the expense of ratepayers and the environment?

Robert Rieger
Town of Lansing

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