Letters: July 10, 2007

Cut some costs

This is in response to Lorali Carter's statement in reference to the governor vetoing MEA's grant from the Railbelt Energy Fund, &#8220but they would have significantly helped to cover that cost. Now we will need to go to MEA rate-payers.”

Perhaps if upper management of MEA were to remove the attorney fees and other support costs of the Alaska Electric Generation and Transmission Cooperative from the equation, our rates would appreciate a significant reduction in cost, and we could all save a little money across the board.

Bill Erickson

Wasilla

Many questions

I have wondered how the MEA board of directors could be so blatantly indifferent to the requests of MEA members. Today (July 7) I received the promised new voting material regarding the power plants. It's now all too clear. This general manager, Wayne Carmony, speaks like the Bush administration. How do we get rid of this entire board as well as its puppet manager? We need integrity locally too.

The brochure says on page two that in 2006 the board accepted the recommendation of its consultant. Isn't this a paid-for recommendation? What consultant, and what are his qualifications? MEA members and ecologists recommend against a coal-fired plant.

Perhaps two gas plants would serve our purpose. Perhaps we need to join the Railbelt. MEA insists on keeping coal tied in with a natural gas-fired plant. In fact, it seems determined to build a coal plant on a priority basis. Never do board members provide us the statistics on either method. They only compare expected savings; do they include health costs?

The last vote was a farce, giving members a choice only of locations for coal-fired plants. Ballots with &#8220no coal” written on them were discarded. Then MEA claims its members have all chosen coal. Who is kidding whom?

&#8220Mat-Su Borough proposed requirements make no sense,” Carmony says. Excuse me? The borough seems to be looking out for the welfare and health of the public, locals and visitors. I don't believe the borough needs to know squat about your insinuated details like costs and delays. And assembly members certainly are not imposing a hidden cost factor in any way. In fact, I bet they will require transparent costs for a change. I certainly hope so.

Carmony states that renewable sources may not be available. You mean because they have not been built yet? What do you mean? If something seems cost prohibitive, how about sharing it with Railbelt? What are the facts about that? So, you are against the Railbelt. Why? What is there you hope to gain by keeping us in the dark (literally, I'm afraid). Oops, maybe you only want us under your thumb.

Carmony also says we have no right to vote regarding Chugach Electric. Then it discounts MEA member votes regarding coal plants. What is the difference? How are we better off having to listen to a puppet dictator like you and MEA?

This vote ballot is also a farce. Why do we now only have the choice to vote for local generation (no mention of plants), or import from Chugach Electric? Are you trying to intimidate us into staying with local generation and whatever you choose to do with our MEA? By staying with local control, are you leaving yourself with carte blanche control as you already have been trying to do?

The MEA board cannot override the members. No matter what else you believe. Perhaps the borough needs to investigate MEA thoroughly. Do we have a prosecutor available?

Gary Dorsey

Palmer

Kohring neds a trial,

not pre-judgment

In listening to comments made around me at the Wasilla Independence Day Parade, I feel I need to speak up.

Whether you support Rep. Vic Kohring or not politically, whether or not you like him personally, whether or not you think he is guilty or innocent of the charges against him, you need to let him have a fair trial.

He should be presumed innocent until proven guilty. We should not allow him to be tried by the television and radio sound bites we see and hear.

We should not make snide remarks about him nor feel he should be banned from public events. You don't have to associate with him if you don't want to. That is your right.

Perhaps you know some facts that should be brought to the attention of Kohring or the prosecuting attorney. If so, tell them, but don't assume he is guilty just because he has been charged.

What if you were charged with something and you knew you were innocent? How would you feel if you were treated as if you were already proven guilty?

Think about it. What do our Constitutional rights mean if we allow hearsay and gossip to decide criminal cases instead of facts and a jury?

Margaret Heaven

Wasilla

Open letter to

the governor

Congratulations on your decisive action to slow down Matanuska Maid's irresponsible closure plans that placed in jeopardy the Alaskan dairy industry. Unfortunately, the new Board of Agriculture and Conservation, acting as the interim Creamery Board, is making decisions that are in the interest of a continuation of Mat Maid rather than what is in the best interest of the dairy producers and the industry as a whole. These interests are not the same.

Mat Maid is a state-owned company. This acquisition came at a time when the creamery was bankrupt and spurned a bid by state dairy farmers to purchase and again operate the creamery as a co-op. The board is making recommendations to itself to sell assets (the Anchorage bottling plant property) and recapitalize Mat Maid to operate in a leaner, all-Alaskan milk product model. These actions will perpetuate state ownership of what should be a private function and put it in direct competition with private industry.

As a fiscally responsible Republican administration, it would be ideologically consistent to grasp this opportunity to return this segment of economic endeavor to private ownership. I submit that revenues received from the sale of this asset should be used to partially recapitalize the BAC's Agricultural Revolving Loan Fund. If it is deemed desirable to keep the Mat Maid name in circulation, a deal may be possible with the new privately owned Palmer-based milk bottling facility to accept assignment of or lease/ purchase the mark for use on new products.

The priority, as rightly stated by your office at the time of your appointment of the new BAC, is to receive and process milk from private dairies until production can be received by the new private bottling plant. There is not, nor should there be, a priority to save the state-owned corporation known as Matanuska Maid. The new private bottling plant will be able to process all current and foreseeable future production of the Alaskan dairies. The funds realized from the liquidation of Mat Maid assets will better serve the Alaskan agricultural community in the ARLF.

Please restate these priorities to the new BAC now.

Mike Presley,

vice-president

Mat-Su Chapter

Alaska Farm Bureau Inc.