Tioga Peace and Justice / Tioga County, New York

TIOGA COUNTY VOTERS VOICE OPINIONS

Tioga County Voters Voice Opinions

By Brian Bishop, Daily Review Staff Writer
Published: 10/25/2008

Tioga County residents attending a forum hosted by Tioga County Peace and Justice last Tuesday at the Hubbard Auditorium in Owego voiced their concerns to county legislators, chief among them being concerns about energy and the environment.

The legislators attending were: George Penney, Dale Weston, Don Burns, and Richard Huttleston. Burns and Huttleston are on the Nov. 4 ballot.

The legislators were asked questions from a list prepared by Tioga County Peace and Justice, which was distributed to the legislators prior to the forum. Members of the audience were also free to ask their own questions, however.

Many questions and concerns from the residents present centered on energy policies in Tioga County, including plans for natural gas drilling in the area. County Legislature Chairman Dale Weston commented on the need for "balance" in government, allowing industry to produce things society needs while having regulations in place to control the impact on the environment. Mr. Weston commented on some things the county is doing to conserve energy, including consolidating county buildings and improving energy efficiency in county properties.

When asked how to promote clean, safe, renewable sources of energy for Tioga County, Legislator Don Burns suggested the use of wind, solar, and geothermal energy in place of fossil fuel sources. Burns stated that while solar energy may not be a viable alternative for Tioga County at this time, wind energy could be a potential solution in the area.

Dale Weston also said he believed wind energy to be a possible answer. He also pointed to geothermal power and solar energy as viable alternatives to fossil fuels. Weston stated he was anti-nuclear power, but "all for" energy from domestic sources instead of foreign imports.

Residents voiced many concerns about possible gas drilling in Tioga County, including the possible impact on county infrastructure and environmental concerns about the drilling process.

Richard Huttleston stated that many of the regulations on gas drilling were being developed by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). He stated that gas wells were moving into Pennsylvania because of more relaxed regulations.

A resident in attendance asked the legislators if they would be receptive to viewing a program recently presented in Bradford County about the impact of gas drilling. Dale Weston said he was "not opposed to it," (viewing the program,) but did not want people to use the county as a forum to promote drilling. Weston said he wanted to "err on the side of caution" and to not jump into anything without knowing the impact on the county.

A resident in attendance asked the legislators if Tioga County needed a comptroller. A countywide referendum on whether or not to create a county comptroller office will be on the Nov. 4 ballot.

Huttleston stated that a comptroller was needed because currently the functions that the comptroller position would encompass are being filled by the county Treasurer. Since the Treasurer is an elected official, Huttleston said, the Treasurer is not accountable to the legislature.

Dale Weston said that the comptroller position was an effort to simplify the county government, and save taxpayers money. In an interview after the forum, legislator George Penney voiced concerns that replacing an elected official with an appointed official would take away authority from the voters.

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