Letter: Thanks to commissioners for renewable energy vote

Posted on by Letters
Graphic by Lori Deaton

A big thank-you to the visionary and courageous members of the Buncombe County [Board of Commissioners] who voted on Dec. 5 in favor of Brownie Newman’s proposal for 100 percent renewable energy for all municipal operations by 2030 and countywide by 2042!

Thanks to all who wrote, who called, who came and spoke. Huge thanks go to the high school and college students who collected over 1,800 signatures among them and spoke so earnestly and compellingly about their commitment to get to this goal. Thanks, Judy Mattox and Ken Brame of the Sierra Club, for helping to empower the students.

Brownie Newman, Jasmine Beach-Ferrara, Al Whitesides and Ellen Frost voted in favor, and the three Republicans made speeches about how they support the environment before voting no. They just did not believe it would be possible to reach the target. And yet, whole countries are embracing similar goals. With the planned solar farm on the landfill and efficiency measures, we’ll already be at 48 percent — well along toward the goal.

NC WARN has created North Carolina Clean Path 2025, a plan for all of North Carolina to get off fossil fuels in the next 25 years through greatly increasing solar installations on homes and businesses, along with battery storage and energy efficiency. This plan calls for adding 2,000 megawatts of solar power each year at homes, businesses, schools and other buildings with cost-effective battery storage. The energy saved will save the county (and its residents) money.

Financing options, such as a leasing program, will put solar within reach. For example, under the solar lease model, the government would pay the upfront cost of a system and be repaid by the participant at a flat monthly rate over time. Sixteen thousand good jobs would be created statewide in the first three years, according to the plan’s author, engineer Bill Powers. Please visit www.ncwarn.org/cp25.

Let’s make it happen!

— Cathy Holt
Asheville

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11 thoughts on “Letter: Thanks to commissioners for renewable energy vote”

  1. Lulz

    LOL, you mean the 1800 students that don’t see their property taxes used for Wanda Green’s home decor? Better yet ask them who Wanda Green is and I betcha anything not one can tell you.

    People like you are why corruption flourishes in the county.

  2. indie

    If Newman had been doing his job as opposed to letting the county manager write her own bonuses, we’d have plenty of $ for projects like this. What a fraud.

  3. Enlightened Enigma

    uh, this Wandagate theft was occurring long before Newman… David Gantt is largely responsible and not being held accountable …why is that ? WHERE are the real investigative reporters in AVL?

    • Lulz

      Yes because McBrownie hasn’t become very wealthy while in government. Wonder how that can be? A complicit media that refuses to look at his conflicts of interests? Yep. A complicit bureaucracy? Yep. To say that he should get a free pass even though he wasn’t the chair but has been a commissioner for years now is absurd. He pushed for tax increases to pay for Green’s perverse lifestyle. To him, tax revenue is a means to an end. Even if it’s wasted away there’s always more. But to actually see where the money’s going is apparently not his job. I know you rich democrats don’t care but others are tiring of it.

    • bsummers

      Um, careful how hard you pull on that thread, Fred Caudle. Who was Commission Chairman for 8 years before David Gantt? Republican Nathan Ramsey. He had 8 years to manage Wanda Greene, and he apparently did no better.

        • bsummers

          But that’s totally off-script! I thought this was all about those pesky corrupt democrakkks.

          • Lulz

            LOL no. It’s about corrupt pieces of crap no matter their political stripes. I go after Newman because he is corrupt and also currently in power. It’s definitely not a free pass to anyone elected prior. Scum is scum. Left or right. And if they abuse their office, they need to be prosecuted. Period.

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