LETTERS
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SIDEWALKS ARE FOR WALKERS

To the editor:

Summer activity on Nantucket brings so many exciting and festive moments along with it. Such activity requires everyone to be a bit more attentive to each other, particularly since there are so many of all ages out and about in a joyful and carefree mood. This letter simply hopes to elicit some attention to a situation unique to the lovely season on our island.

Bicycles approach a pedestrian quietly, particularly from behind. Their speed, while not great, is alarming relative to reaction time when they come so silently. Dusk makes this fact even more potentially dangerous to persons walking on our sidewalks.

The other night (a Wednesday) I counted 67 bicycles being ridden on the sidewalks in front of 76 Main Street Inn between 5 p.m. and 5:25 p.m. It seems to me that something needs to be done to actively discourage that riding.

Bike rental agencies must tell their patrons more clearly not to ride on sidewalks. Police must evidence more presence in difficult areas (cobblestones make bikers on streets uncomfortable); some ticketing for this offense may be a necessary deterrent. But most important, bikers must recognize that those walking are the very young, the elderly, and all in between already paying considerable attention to loose bricks, uneven walkways and all the other vagaries of Nantucket's romantic sidewalks.

People are not safe when bicycles are approaching at higher speeds, without sound to alert walkers, and from behind as well as in front. It would be a shame to have an accident of some significance occur - and it most certainly could. Sidewalks should be the province of walkers only.

Sincerely,

- David Cantrell

THANKS TO SOMETHING NATURAL

To the editor:

On behalf of the entire Nantucket New School community, I would like to thank Matt Fee, Terry Hastings, and the entire staff at Something Natural for honoring us as Nantucket's favorite non-profit at their annual Non-Profit Day on June 12.

Something Natural generously donated their retail bakery sales and a percentage of their T-shirt sales for the entire day to the Nantucket New School, and some of our students were given the unique opportunity to work behind-the-scenes. We had a great time, and we are extremely grateful for Something Natural's generous support. In a community with so many wonderful nonprofit organizations, it is refreshing to see a business like Something Natural lend a hand in such a creative, generous way.

Sincerely,

- David Provost Head of School, Nantucket New School A COMMITMENT TO STUDENTS

To the editor:

While graduation ceremonies are certainly special events, the one celebrated by Nantucket High School on June 9, 2007, was made more extraordinary by the overwhelming show of support and generosity by the many scholarship donors. These scholarships, which are also made available for alumni of Nantucket High School, demonstrate the Nantucket community's high regard for the pursuit of knowledge and its enduring commitment to the success of its youth. On behalf of Nantucket High School, its staff and its students, thank you very much to all who contributed to the scholarship funds which make possible the advancement of our students' education even as they move beyond our doors.

As proud as I am to be a part of the Nantucket school system, displays such as these remind me how pleased I am to be a member of the Nantucket community. Each of us is truly lucky to live in a place where people are so supportive of one another and so actively involved in the successes of our children.

It's been said that "it takes a village to raise a child." Your kindness and willingness to aid our students in their quest for knowledge demonstrate the truth behind that statement. Thank you again for the role you play in the growth and development of each of our students.

Sincerely,

- George Kelly

Principal Nantucket High School

INTERFERENCE ISSUE PUT TO REST

To the editor:

The recent story about the Department of Defense report on the Pave Paws Radar Station in Sagamore and Cape Wind left out some important information:

+ The beam from Pave Paws is 2500' above the water on Horseshoe Shoal, more than 2000' above the blade tips.

+ The Commander of the Pave Paws installation has said repeatedly over the last two years that Cape Wind will have no negative affects on the facility.

+ The Commander of the U.S. Space Command in Colorado has also said that Cape Wind will have no negative affect on Pave Paws. All three studies that have been done to date say the same thing. The issue of Pave Paws and radar interference is now put to rest.

- Carl K. Borchert

SCORE SINCE 2001: EUROPE 24, U.S. 0

To the editor

There are those who believe that the permitting process for the Cape Wind project is moving too fast, who regard this country's first offshore wind farm proposal with the same caution one might apply to the introduction of a new unproven line of pharmaceuti- cals. There are also those who cannot comprehend the ponderous nature of our permitting process, having answered half a generation ago those technical questions that many in America still insist are untested and unresolved.

This latter group principally consists of those involved in wind power development in Europe, where near-offshore wind has been used successfully and continuously for over fifteen years to generate electricity. And little wonder that they are perplexed; since Cape Wind was officially proposed, late in 2001, no fewer than thirteen wind farms have been completed in Northern Europe, with a further eleven now under construction or in the contracting stage. In the United Kingdom, the average interval between proposal and permitting of a new wind farm is some eight months (yes, months and not years), largely because the 'programmatic' issues of site selection and environmental/ wildlife protection have long been understood. For Europeans, a full generation ahead of us in offshore wind development, there is nothing 'experimental' about the technology. They're at the top of the ninth while we're still looking for the dugout.

So while some of us have been busily raising tens of millions of dollars to quash this country's first significant renewable energy facility, the Northern European near-offshore wind farm scorecard reads like this:

United Kingdom: 5 farms, total capacity 390 MW, completed since 2001; 5 farms, total capacity 568 MW, under construction; 2 farms, total capacity 408 MW, to start construction next year

Ireland: 1 farm, capacity 25 MW, completed since 2001

Sweden: 2 farms, total capacity 20 MW, completed since 2001; 1 farm, capacity 110 MW, under construction

Netherlands: 1 farm, capacity 108 MW, completed since 2001; 1 farm, capacity 120 MW, under construction

Denmark: 4 farms, total capacity 409 MW, completed since 2001; 2 farms, total capacity 400 MW, under contract

Nor were these the first leaps into the wind for some of these countries: the UK, Sweden and Denmark all had land or sea-based wind farms in operation before the turn of the century. And in achieving the above results Denmark forswore nuclear power in 1985. The Danes also banned new coal-fired plants in 1995.

The UK now has advanced to the playoffs. Having subsidized the first round of wind farms with Government grants, the country is moving into a second, unsubsidized round, a clear indicator that the British consider wind farms commercially viable. This round will include two projects in the Thames estuary delivering a total of 1,300 MW, three times the planned output of Cape Wind and enough to power a third of London's three million households.

The Danish route to world leadership in wind energy is a study in national determination. In 1973, Denmark generated 90 percent of its electricity from imported oil. After the OPEC oil embargo, the country committed itself to wind energy, building turbines first on land, then - from 1991 - at sea. Alittle over two decades after the oil crisis, in 1997, Denmark achieved total energy independence. Today, with six offshore projects in operation, the country meets 18.5 percent of its domestic power needs from wind. That's the equivalent to powering the state of Rhode Island with all of its generated electricity from wind alone.

As a sidebar, Nantucket Island residents might note that the Danes erected ten turbines off Samsø Island in 2003, making the island self-sufficient in electricity and carbon neutral. Samsø is the same size as Nantucket.

Issuing a challenge to the United States to match European determination in the battle against global warming, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany called on the U.S. to follow the European Union's commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 50 percent by the year 2050. For Europe, this commitment will require the European bloc to derive one-fifth of its energy from renewable sources such as wind and solar by 2020. For us, if we want to get on the scorecard at all, it will mean two things. First, a change in team management; President Bush has already rejected Chancellor Merkel's call for specific emissions reductions instead setting "aspirational" nonbinding goals by individual nations. And second, we have to figure out if we came to play, for if we don't have the same level of determination in our national character as the Europeans, we belong in the Bush league. Pun intended.

- Chris Stimpson and Charles Kleekamp

Directors of Clean Power Now