Current News

A series of public meetings will be held in April to gather comments on the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources’ Draft South Lake Champlain Tactical Basin Plan.
A Draft Water Quality Management Plan, the Southern Lake Champlain Tactical Basin Plan has been developed to protect and restore surface waters in the southern Champlain Basin. The southern Champlain Basin includes the Poultney and Mettowee River watersheds, as well as the East Creek and several other small discrete tributaries that drain directly to southern Lake Champlain, which includes all of the land in Vermont that drains to the lake generally south of Crown Point.

by John Herrick vtdigger.org Developers are lining up to bring renewable power to southern New England as part of a regional initiative that guarantees a ratepayer-backed return on investment. This is the second proposal in recent months that would lay an electric transmission line under Lake Champlain and connect it to a Vermont substation.
In response to a six-state strategy to bring more clean power to the region, a Massachusetts transmission company said it wants to bury a transmission line under Lake Champlain to connect industrial wind power in New York to a Burlington substation.
“It’s a unique moment in time,” said Edward Krapels, CEO for Anbaric Transmission, which is in the early stages of proposing the 40-mile project called the Grand Isle Intertie.

House Speaker Shap Smith on Friday spiked a proposal to study potential tax revenue the state could earn by legalizing marijuana.
The amendment would have asked the Joint Fiscal Office to study the revenue impact of legalizing marijuana, using Colorado’s pot tax as a guide. The Ways and Means Committee endorsed the amendment.

The University of Vermont will award honorary degrees at the May ceremony to Professor Jonathan David Jansen, Dr. Irwin H. Krakoff, Dr. Robert Larner, Crea Sopher Lintilhac, Dr. Robert B. Low and Richard E. Tarrant. The university will also award an honorary degree to Samantha Power, the 2014 commencement speaker.
Jonathan David Jansen is a leading public intellectual in South Africa renowned for his passionate dedication to education, social justice and the process of reconciliation. As vice-chancellor of the University of the Free State, his leadership and his pioneering work is creating unity in the diverse academic community and transforming the atmosphere on campus. He is president of the South African Institute of Race Relations and Patron of Muslim and Jewish Foundations.

Vermont Family Network (VFN) partnered with restaurants around the state to raise money for children with special needs. The Fundraiser took place February 1-14 and a portion of sales for specials identified by each participating restaurant were donated directly to Vermont Family Network to help support the work that the organization does with Children and families with special needs across the state. During the two-week period, the 10 restaurants raised $2,428.00 to support the state-wide non-profit organization.
Area restaurants present a check to Vermont Family Network in the amount of $2,428.00 for proceeds raised during the organization’s Valentine’s Fundraiser in February. In the photo from left: Katelynn Audette, Trade Duke’s; Bob Conlon, Leunig’s Bistro; Sarah Hammitt, Trader Duke’s; Jeff Morton, Vermont Family Network; Jeff Bushey, The Windjammer Hospitality Group. Photo courtesy of Vermont Family Network.

The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets (VAAFM) is reporting the first case of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus (PEDv) in the state. The positive diagnosis occurred on a swine operation in Rutland County on March 26th, 2014.
PEDv is a coronavirus that affects pigs only and is similar to Transmissible Gastroenteritis. It does not make people sick and it does not affect other species of livestock. PEDv does not affect pork safety and pork remains completely safe to eat.
The first detection of this disease in the U.S. occurred approximately one year ago, and since then it has impacted over 4,000 premises in 27 states. The Vermont case represents the first confirmed positive premises in Vermont. The most common sign of PEDv in swine is severe diarrhea, and mortality rates in pre-weaning piglets approach 100%. Older animals generally survive the infection but can shed the virus in their feces and through their respiratory tracts for an extended period.

by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Public Service Board on Friday (March 28, 2014) approved the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) reached between Entergy and the State of Vermont back in December. The decision to approve the MOU keeps in place the overall Settlement Agreement in which Entergy Vermont Yankee (Entergy VY) agrees to advance steps in decommissioning the plant sooner than otherwise would be required, and to establish a separate $25 million site restoration fund.

by John Herrick, vtdigger.org The Vermont Senate on Thursday passed a bill designed to raise money to offset the cost of implementing the state’s universal recycling program.
The money raised by S.208 will go to small haulers in underserved regions of the state that will need equipment and facilities’ upgrades to comply with the phase-in of state’s universal recycling law, which will ban many materials from the state’s landfill over the next few years.

by Hilary Niles, vtdigger.org Republicans balked at increases in the state’s budget and what they deemed an over-reliance on one-time money in a heated debate Thursday night in the House Chamber.
Rep. Don Turner, R-Milton, minority leader of the House, told his colleagues that this year’s budget growth is not sustainable because half of the money used to balance the budget and cover a $70 million gap between state revenues and state spending is from one-time monies. Turner said the fiscal year 2016 budget gap will be as large or larger than this year’s.
“Although this is less than the budget others proposed, this budget is still much more than the state can afford,” Turner said.
The budget passed on second reading, 91-46.

Related Company: Entergy Nuclear Vermont Yankee LLCGovernor Peter Shumlin Friday afternoon expressed his support for the decision of the Public Service Board to approve the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) reached between Entergy and the State of Vermont back in December. The decision to approve the MOU keeps in place the overall Settlement Agreement in which Entergy Vermont Yankee (Entergy VY) agrees to advance steps in decommissioning the plant much sooner than otherwise would be required, and to establish a separate $25,000,000 site restoration fund.

While April 1 signals the end of the Winter Manure Spreading Ban imposed by the Accepted Agricultural Practice Regulations (AAPs), the continued presence of snow pack on farm fields will present a challenge to farmers who wish to start spreading manure as soon as the ban is over. The AAPs require that all agricultural wastes be managed in order to prevent adverse impacts to water quality. That means that while it is legal to spread manure once the Winter Ban is over, manure must still be applied in a way that does not result in runoff of manure to surface water or across property boundaries. Once the snow begins to melt, manure can be carried away to the low points in the landscape.
To help you remain in compliance with the AAPs, the Agency of Agriculture strongly recommends the following:
▪ If you still have room in your manure pit, wait until snow is off the fields before you spread manure.
▪ If you must spread manure before snow is off the fields:

Starting in fall 2014, Johnson State College will offer a new Certificate of Proficiency in Accounting, a program designed to help Vermonters meet new state licensure requirements for accountants without having to enroll in graduate school.
The program emerged in response to Vermont’s adoption of interstate equivalency standards for CPAs and a change in state licensure rules that make it easier for accountants to practice in other states. Starting in July 2014, Vermont accountants will need a bachelor’s degree and a total of 150 college credits, including 42 credits in accounting-related classes, and one year of experience. Under current regulations, Vermont accountants need only 120 college credits – a bachelor’s degree – along with two years of experience.