I have to say that besides Eubanks Road, Hillsborough (or of any of our municipalities) is about the worst place I can imagine putting our future waste transfer station. Apprently the two sites being looked at there are in an economic development zone. Unless they are planning for it to heavy industrial development, it doesn't seem like a good fit. (The DTH has a small graphic of the top 10 sites and Hillsborough's response to the two sites on their doorstep.)

These soggestions are so off the wall that I am wondering if they're preparing us for something really awful. I am ready for the Comissioners to get rid of the siting consultants and step up to take some responsibility for our county's garbage for a change.

From BolinCreek.org:

The 5th Annual Bolin Creek Festival will be from 11am-5pm, October 4th at Umstead Park in Chapel Hill. Featuring local artist Dale Morgan, music by Club Boheme, Skeedaddle, Project Mastana—passionate Bollywood dance music, and rhythm circles by the Music Explorium. Special activities for children will include the introduction to stream critters and the popular Enviroscape by the Chapel Hill Stormwater Office.

I was fortunate enough to be a scholarship participant on the Inter-City Visits to Madison and Ann Arbor. I thoroughly enjoyed both experiences, but I found that I am unable to stop comparing the Madison experience to the Ann Arbor experience.

This exercise, of course, is completely unfair. Mainly because, in my opinion, Madison wins. In everything. Hands down. Period. Ann Arbor doesn't stand a chance.

Madison has an abundance of natural beauty. It had a really great downtown that seemed accessable to both students and other people. It has the Overture Center, which always takes my breath away, and Madision is a hotbed for creativity and technology. It is so much what I want for Chapel Hill.

But Ann Arbor is different (duh). I didn't see anything particularly beautiful or extrodinary about it. Ann Arbor seems much more into function, rather than form. It ain't Madison, but it has its good parts.

Via Facebook:

Orange County Community Organizations Join Forces to Oppose Waste Transfer Station

The Orange County Organizing Committee (OCOC) has come forward to support the Rogers-Eubanks Neighborhood Association (RENA) and the Coalition to End Environmental Racism (CEER) in their on-going efforts to oppose the building of the proposed Orange County Solid Waste Transfer Station at the present site of the Orange County Landfill.

The Eubanks Road landfill site is immediately adjacent to the historic Rogers Road neighborhood, home to a vibrant African American community for more than 150 years. The Rogers Road community has borne the burdens of living with Orange County's garbage for 36 years, and now the Eubanks Road landfill site is near the top of the list of proposed sites for the Waste Transfer Station.

Via e-mail:

The Durcham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization (DCHC MPO) is beginning the process of seeking public comments on the various transportation Alternatives which it will incorporate into its 2035 plans to be submitted to the federal government later this year. These meetings will be the last opportunities for public comment before the plans are finalized and submitted so now is the time to make your voices heard.

This Monday the County Commissioners are holding what may be the final Public Hearing on the proposed Comprehensive Plan Update. The hearing begins at 7:30 pm and will be held in the downstairs courtroom at the County Courthouse in Hillsborough. At their regular meeting on October 7, the Commissioners are expected to vote whether or not to adopt the Plan.

Submitting written comments in advance of the August 25 Public Hearing and/or presenting your comments on the 25th might be your final chance to provide input on this important subject.

I encourage OP readers to review at least the first two chapters (links below) of the proposed Comprehensive Plan and judge for yourself if the chapters clearly articulate how sustainability can be achieved in Orange County over the next twenty years.

A short story posted today on WRAL.com describes how Durham has entered into an agreement to install internal combustion engines and generators at their landfill. Duke Energy will subsequently buy the power generated which is estimated to be sufficient to serve 1600 homes.

The News & Observer of Raleigh reported Thursday that a deal with Methane Power Inc. will allow Charlotte-based Duke Energy to begin buying up to two megawatts of power generated by the landfill beginning next year.

-  WRAL.com: Duke to turn Durham landfill gas into electricity, 8/7/08