To the Editor:

As I look upon empty and barren industrial properties here in both the Village and Town of Massena, I have wondered if the concept of a waste-to-energy plant has ever come about in a discussion.

Not too long ago, I remember the Village of Massena hashing out refuse prices with St. Lawrence County. I would have to believe that this could be an excellent opportunity for either the town or village to push for one of these extremely efficient power-producing Industries. A Waste-to-Energy plant has many benefits that our area can strive from.

We can efficiently dispose of our own garbage without relying on other counties, in a more environmentally safe and economical fashion than just dumping refuse into a landfill. New York State has many of these green power producers within its borders. We have the all the infrastructure needed in order to turn this idea into a reality. We can continue to use the county transfer stations, use the existing transmission lines and rail lines, and maybe even help lower our power bills while reducing our carbon foot print.

Why should we be shipping out our trash by truck and rail, when we can take care of our own trash plus some? We as taxpayers need to start thinking outside of the box in order to turn our home around.

As a whole, we can even convince the federal and state governments to help us fund such a needed resource to our area. Let’s fill those empty lots up and add to our career and tax base that we so drastically need.

For more information- http://www.energyrecoverycouncil.org/.

Justin Niles

Massena