Briggsville Dam Redux01-27-2010
This letter was sent to us by Clarksburg Selectman Carl McKinney in response to comments on a recent story about the removal of the Briggsville Dam. Mr. McKinney wrote the letter two years ago and it first appeared in the North Adams Transcript on Jan. 29, 2007.
To the Editor: I am writing this letter to clear up a couple of issues as they relate to the article about the breaching of the Briggsville Dam in Clarksburg.
First, and foremost, let me say, as I said at the meeting of the Select Board on Wednesday, Jan. 24, [2007] that I am not in favor of, nor in love with the idea of breaching the dam at Briggsville.
This particular dam has a special place in the history of the town. When it was first installed, its power was used by the Strong-Hewat Mill to power their machinery via an underground penstock (water-driven drive shaft). This dam over the years has provided a swimming area for the towns youth, a great pool of water for fishing, and of course, a supply of water for the Fire Department to re-supply their fire tankers.
I had visions of, in the future, dredging the debris from behind the dam, which has accumulated and become much more visible and voluminous since the 9 1/2-inch rain storm in 12 hours we had on Oct. 8, 2005. I had hoped to improve the recreational utility of the dam for swimming, tubing and fishing. I had hoped to possibly add a hydroelectric component to the facility to provide the town with cheap, clean and renewable electrical supply.
The commonwealth of Massachusetts, in its infinite wisdom, has determined that this particular dam is a high priority risk and may cause damage and devastation should it collapse. Now I am not an engineer, but at present, that dam is not holding much in the way of water back. There is probably 2 miles of waterway before you even reach a structure. How could this little, tiny dam be of such danger?
Due to the incident in Taunton (the near-collapse of a dam that threatened a large population), the Legislature rushed through legislation in a "one policy fits all" manner and has placed the Briggsville Dam as a high priority to either repair or remove it. While other more significant dams throughout the state have ongoing inspections, under this new law — from between three to five years if in decent condition and/or not immediately imperiling the safety of the community — the state has issued a requirement that this dam be inspected at a six-month interval. The costs to bring this dam up to state-mandated standards has been estimated to be about $700,000.
The dam is owned by Cascade Paper Co. of Clarksburg. They have indicated that they do not have that kind of money to repair the dam. They have offered to donate it to the town. The town certainly does not have that kind of money. We have many pressing financial obligations (like a school renovation), and we are in no position to take this on ourselves.
Mr. Newport of Cascade Paper Co. is pursuing a grant from the Hoosuck Chapter of Trout Unlimited for the breaching of the dam. He came to our meeting requesting that we (the Select Board) draft a letter of support on his behalf for obtaining this grant. He asked, if we couldn't support his proposal, would we at least not oppose it?
I am a fisherman and believe in preserving our environment, our town, our planet. But you also have to remember that there are two more dams downstream. This breaching does not add much waterway. Cascade also has to do some preliminary measures, such as cutting down quite a number of trees along the riverway, which seems to be in direct conflict with the goals of having wood and shade near to the river. It puzzles me.
We have had Route 8 nearly collapse into the river on Oct. 8, 2005, just above the northern outlet of Hayden Hill, and many significant embankment collapses along the stretch of river from the North Adams line to just about the East Road (Clarksburg) area. Nothing has been done about this. We have asked for help from FEMA and MEMA, and nobody, either in the state or federal government, would help us.
Now they come to town on their high horses to tell us country bumpkins what we need to do. They will use the power of the law to dictate to a business owner he has to invest an astronomical amount of money just to keep it the same — or rip it down. This is a piece of our town's history, and once it's gone, it's gone for good, my friends. Clean renewable energy (hydro), even on a small scale, is far superior for the environment and as an educational tool for our children.
The breaching of the Briggsville Dam serves no other purpose than to allow an ongoing business to stay in business — save 32 full-time jobs — and "maybe" add a small amount of riverway for fish.
On the downside, what is our town going to look like? Where do the kids go swimming? Are we losing a part of our history? Are we losing a potential environmental education and a science education for our kids? And once that dam is gone, the possibility of hydroelectricity at that site will disappear.
That all being said, I as a selectman have to look at the greater good — saving 32 jobs and removing the possibility that, should this concern fail and property taxes are not paid, the town would end up owning the dam.
I do not feel this town is willing to pay up to $700,000 when we are working on renovation of our elementary school. The Select Board, Finance Committee and the town administrator have set spending priorities that concentrate on the school and town government, trying to make everything work more efficiently. It would appear that a project of this magnitude is out of our grasp.
It is purely on this basis I voted for "conditional support" of the grant application. Environmental concerns need to be addressed. A conversation with North Adams to discuss potential impacts needs to happen, and the aspect of continued recreational use by town residents must all be considered.
This was a very hard decision, which I did not take lightly. But unless Boston stops painting the Berkshires with their Boston brush — or Taunton brush (as the case may be) — where they force "one size fits all policies" down our throats, concerned citizens and officials in the small towns of Western Massachusetts will continue to see unreasonable treatment and mandates flow from the East.
I hope the new governor will give me an attitude adjustment.
Selectman Carl W. McKinney
Clarksburg
Jan. 25, 2010 |
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