Current News

The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced its decision Wednesday to deny the Friends of Wolcott Pond’s petition to restrict use of Wolcott Pond. The Department found that enforcement of the existing 5 mph speed limit is preferred to prohibiting internal combustion motors from using Wolcott Pond.

“Wolcott Pond is an accessible, natural pond with some nice wetland edges that provides important recreational opportunities for fishing and wildlife watching. We are pleased that the pond will continue to be available to all boaters who respect and obey the 5 mph speed limit on all areas of the pond,” said Department of Environmental Conservation Lakes & Ponds Program Manager Susan Warren.

Governor Peter Shumlin presided over a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday marking the completed construction of the Vermont Department of Health's new state-of-the-art publich health laboratory at the Colchester Business and Technology Park. The facility physically adjoins UVM's Colchester Research Facility and was designed in collaboration with UVM. The new lab will open for business in November. The 47,844-square-foot facility replaces the Health Department’s current 32,695 square-foot laboratory in Burlington. Built in 1952, it was the oldest public health lab in the nation and had to be replaced due to a lack of space and an outdated structure.

“We’re proud to be able to provide a new facility for Vermonters at a time when the ability to quickly and effectively respond to both existing and emerging health threats has never been more important,” said Gov. Shumlin. “It’s been 14 years of waiting, thinking and planning, and today we can say, ‘Mission Accomplished.'"

Vermont Business Magazine Anticosti Hydrocarbons LP, a limited partnership between Resources Quebec Inc, Petrolia Inc, Saint-Aubin E&P (Quebec) Inc, and Corridor Resources Inc, has signed a strategic agreement in principle with Gaz Metro Limited Partnership to develop associated natural gas from Anticosti Island. The agreement with Gaz Metro will provide Anticosti Hydrocarbons with access to the expertise of Quebec's leading gas distribution utility and distribution franchise-holder on Anticosti Island to identify economic, operational, and technical solutions to transporting associated natural gas to consumer markets should any be produced in the event hydrocarbon resource production gets underway on Anticosti Island (situated in the Gulf of St Lawrence between the provinces of Quebec and New Brunswick). Gaz Metro is the parent company of Green Mountain Power and Vermont Gas Systems.

The Snelling Center Launches a new program aimed at building greater knowledge, engagement, and leadership in early childhood issues across a broad spectrum of Vermonters. The Snelling Center for Government is a sub-recipient of a statewide Early Learning Challenge -- Race to the Top Grant (ELC-RTT) and early next year will launch the state’s first and only Early Childhood Leadership Institute. The Early Childhood Leadership Institute (ECLI) is envisioned as a means to equip a broad coalition of families, policymakers, and professionals from diverse sectors with the knowledge, motivation, and interpersonal skills to collaborate toward realizing a shared vision for young children and their families in every Vermont community.

The Franklin family has been farming in southernVermont for nine generations. A family operation with one son helping full-time and two others pitching in on weekends, the certified organic dairy farm stays busy raising and milking some 52 dairy cows, along with producing fresh organic eggs and farm-raised organic beef, and some of the best-tasting organic maple syrup in Vermont.

US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, said he is “disappointed” by today’s announcement of only a 1.7 percent increase in the cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security beneficiaries and disabled veterans. The cost-of-living adjustment is one of the smallest increases since the automatic annual adjustments were adopted in 1975. (There was no increase in benefits in 2010 or 2011.)

“At a time when the prices of prescription drugs and electricity are skyrocketing, I am disappointed that seniors and disabled veterans will only be getting a 1.7 percent increase next year,” said Sanders. “This is the third year in a row that the cost-of-living adjustment will be less than 2 percent.”

by John Herrick vtdigger.org The Legislature next session will decide whether electric utilities should be required to sell renewable energy to customers, rekindling a debate over the price Vermont consumers will pay to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The creation of a renewable portfolio standard would establish by law how much electricity generated from wind, solar and other renewable resources utilities must be sold to customers. Under the state’s current voluntary goal, utilities are allowed to sell renewable power credits out of state to reduce electric rates.

Governors and lawmakers in state capitals across the nation continue to take major steps to lower energy costs, reduce pollution, and save consumers money by increasing their states’ energy efficiency, according to the findings of the 8th edition of the State Energy Efficiency Scorecard released today by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy. The report found that in 2014 Massachusetts (#1) continues to edge out California (#2) as the most energy-efficient state in the nation for the fourth year in a row. Following these states in the top 10 are: Rhode Island (marking the state’s first time in top five), Oregon, and Vermont (all tied for #3); Connecticut (#6); New York (#7); Washington (#8); Maryland (#9); and Minnesota (#10).

Other key State Energy Efficiency Scorecard findings include the following:

by John Herrick vtdigger.org Green Mountain Power will be required to constantly monitor sound coming from wind turbines, which could provide the most detailed assessment yet of a noise issue concerning some residents living near wind farms. The Vermont Public Service Board fined the utility $1,000 last week for exceeding sound limits it placed on the Kingdom Community Wind farm, which was approved in 2011. In place of a larger civil penalty, regulators asked the utility to implement a continuous sound-monitoring program for one year. Regulators said it will cost the utility approximately $109,000 to implement the department’s proposal. The board said GMP cannot recover these costs from ratepayers.

Joined by Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger, tech business owners, economic development officials and others at Ello in Burlington, Governor Peter Shumlin Wednesday touted the upcoming 2014 Vermont Tech Jam being held on Friday and Saturday, and highlighted Vermont’s growing high-tech industry and national recognition. “We’re at Ello today because this company – the hottest new social media site since Facebook -- is a great example of this booming part of our economy,” Shumlin said. “Ello is not alone. There are new companies across Vermont looking for employees to take these cutting-edge jobs. The growing popularity of Vermont Tech Jam is a testament to this thriving sector of our economy.”

Vermont Tech Jam file photo by Matthew Thorsen.

The US Department of Energy awarded more than $3.1 million in grants to two Vermont companies to help make solar energy more affordable and accessible. The Department of Energy awarded a $1 million grant to Faraday in Middlebury and $2.1 million to Norwich Technologies in White River Junction. These funds are part of more than $53 million awarded by the Energy Department to advance 40 research and development projects throughout the United States. The projects are designed to drive down the cost of solar energy and bring innovative ideas to the market more quickly.

Vermont’s congressional delegation – Senators Patrick Leahy (D) and Bernie Sanders (I) and Representative Peter Welch (D) – made the announcement today.

“These Vermont companies are on the forefront of reducing the cost of solar energy, a crucial element in helping transform our energy system away from fossil fuels and into renewable energies,” the delegation said in a joint statement.

Vermont Business Magazine FairPoint Communications in a statement issued a statement reiterating its commitment to providing high-quality customer service as it implements and ramps up its contingency plans during the strike by two unions that began last Friday. FairPoint said it is concerned with activities and incidents that have alarmed individuals and obstructed customer service. Meanwhile, the unions, representing more than 1,700 workers, said they are unaware of any inappropriate activity on the part of their members, which they would address if true, but that FairPoint has failed to provide specific information on its claims.

FairPoint's statement reads: