Council is deadlocked on boilers
By KAYLEIGH KARUTIS, The Leader-HeraldGLOVERSVILLE - A local law regulating the use of outdoor wood boilers in the city failed to pass Tuesday night when the Common Council deadlocked in a 3-3 vote.
First Ward Councilwoman Robin Wentworth, 4th Ward Councilwoman Ellen Anadio and 6th Ward Councilman Ray Hindes voted in favor of the local law. Second Ward Councilman John Castiglione, 3rd Ward Councilman James Robinson and 5th Ward Councilman Matthew Myers voted against the proposal. Councilman-at-large James Handy was not present for the meeting, thus tying the vote and leaving the proposal dead in the water.
Councilmembers expressed a desire to rework the legislation and possibly vote again on it at a later meeting.
Hindes has been pushing for some sort of regulation on the devices for months. At past council meetings, Hindes said he believes legislation is important because more people may purchase a boiler in the next few months in preparation for winter. Without legislation, he said, there will be no guidelines for residents. City code requires boilers be placed 100 feet from any property line, which prevents them from being placed on most city properties.
One resident in the city has an outdoor wood boiler, Fire Chief Douglas Edwards said. The city established a moratorium on boilers in December 2007, but that expired in mid-2008.
At past meetings, several councilmembers expressed concern that regulating the devices would put additional financial hardship on residents who want to use them to save money.
In Fort Johnson, officials have enacted a six-month moratorium on the devices while they consider what action, if any, to take next. A group of officials and residents are set to make a presentation to the Board of Trustees regarding the topic at a future board meeting.
Kayleigh Karutis covers Gloversville news. She can be reached at gloversville@leaderherald.com
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AirFreedom
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08-03-09 4:50 AM
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Please visit the websites below to learn more about OWBs and the victims they have claimed throughout the U.S.: ****myspace****/freedomofair *******freedomofair.webs**** *******burningissues****
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AirFreedom
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08-03-09 4:50 AM
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The other problem s the OWB sellers don't HAVE to sell the so called updated newer models. It is only their option to sell them. It is like buying a flex fuel car or not buying one. Sure you can spend $5,000 more and get the flex fuel car, but the reality is people don't buy the so called CLEANER models, they buy the old smoke stacks and put them in the their yards to smoke out their neighbors. See the newer models are what are called "dual fuel" models. Gee, let's look at this perspective. The only way the new models meet emission standards is by USING gas to lower the emissions. Now isn't the argument that you have the right to burn wood and not be dependent on foreign oil? Well how about the new products make you not only supply wood, but also gas to your furnace. Isn't that pretty much a moot point to buying an OWB?
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AirFreedom
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08-03-09 4:49 AM
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Continued from above You can easily spend $15,000 before the so-called savings even start. So don't believe the "I'm so poor I can't heat my home" argument because it is all bogus. The other thing to mention is that these things consume and use electricity about 3 times as much as a normal furnace. Electricity bills nearly triple when using these. So spend $150 a month on electric instead of that price on gas? So in closing would you want this across from your home? Probably not......
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AirFreedom
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08-03-09 4:48 AM
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The problem is this as quoted by the U.S. EPA: "Current outdoor wood-fired heaters are substantially less efficient and more polluting than other home-heating devices." That pretty much sums it up. An OWB creates on average 72 g/hr of pm 2.5 particulate matter as compared to other forms of heating (even with wood) of: OWB = 72 g/hr Conventional Wood Stove = 18 g/hr EPA Certified Stove = 6 g/hr Oil Furnace = 0.07 g/hr Gas Furnace = 0.04 g/hr Secondly, these DON'T I repeat DON'T save a person money. These cost around at minimum $10,000-$15,000 to purchase and operate before you even throw your first log on the fire. So when someone claims "I can't afford my bills" well they sure could afford $10,000 to buy one of these monstrosities. I know I don't have $10,000 to throw down on anything much less, something like this. Also take into consideration the $2,000 -$5,000 in installation costs that are associated with this. You can easily spend $15,000 before the so-called
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reader
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07-31-09 10:36 AM
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shotgun, the legislation was to prevent more wood boilers, I saw the actual reso! Castigone, Robinson and Myers voted against the ban on out side wood boilers. Lewinstein, Handy underwent surgery the day before the meeting, and perhaps still in the hospital at meeting time. Has there ever been a time that you have lost time from work because of illness?
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cruella
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07-31-09 4:24 AM
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Must have caught it from Hughes. Can only find them at election time trying to put 4years work into 3 months!lol
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rpc831
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07-31-09 12:10 AM
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Handy is getting some sort of money from the city yet he is now where to be found.
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Lewinstein
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07-30-09 9:27 PM
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What a farce - and again Handy is nowhere to be found when it's time to vote. How about finding someone with more dedication.
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Vroman
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07-30-09 3:26 PM
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What a bunch of balony! How many of you grew up with the smell of leaves burning in the fall? Brings back good memories, doesn't it? Some bureaucrat in Albany decided that wasn't good for us. Same with woodstoves. We should all stay inside and breath purified, filtered air.
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shotgun
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07-30-09 1:43 PM
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Reader, unless I am mistaking, Castiglione, Robinson and Myers ere against allowing the instalation of these wood boilersbecause of the affect they would have on people with breathing problems. You should be directing your remarks to Wentworth, Hindes and Anadio.
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reader
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07-30-09 12:06 PM
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Many people can not breathe the wood smoke that is generated by these devices! Castiglione, Robinson, and Myers better do their homework and find out how many of their voters have respiratory problems.
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