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Letters to the Editor

Ban would be infringement on private property rights

To the editor: On February 15 the Columbiana County Commissioners held a public hearing on a proposed ban on “large solar facilities” and “large wind farms” in the unincorporated parts of Fairfield, Franklin, Perry, and West Townships. The trustees in these townships passed resolutions requesting that the commissioners adopt their own resolution to implement the ban. I am writing to voice my opposition to the proposed ban. In this letter I am going to only talk about solar, since wind will most likely never be developed in Columbiana County on a large scale because we don’t ...

East Palestine residents proud of the efforts

To the editor: As residents of East Palestine we want to say how very proud we are of this town. Our fire, police and city officials who were, and still are, committed to keeping us safe as is possible. School administrators and staff who went above and beyond to reach out to displaced students. Our residents and all the others who provided help for those evacuated. Thanks to so many first responders who came to our aid. Your help is deeply appreciated. So many people who helped in so many ways. Thank you to all. You have not only helped in a terrible situation, you restored our ...

Why is Norfolk cheapening out on the EP cleanup?

To the editor: Last year Norfolk grossed over $12 billion. They had income from railroad operations of almost $5 billion and a final bottom line of $3.2 billion. They are worth over $50 billion and have a plan to spend $10 billion on stock buy backs in the future. This benefits no one except the shareholders and management. From rail operations they make over $400 million a month, $13 million a day. Per their 10-K, almost 17% of their gross revenue is from hauling chemicals. Yet apparently, they cannot afford to hire more workers to staff the emergency center to help the people ...

Placing people before profit and planet

To the editor: Placing profit before people and planet is an operative corporate formula for a disaster waiting to happen. And in East Palestine it did happen, with a vengeance. The grave effects of the disastrous train derailment culminating in a highly toxic mushroom cloud over this beleaguered village will linger on for years. Thousands of dead fish in the polluted waterways alone, much like dead canaries in a toxic mineshaft, announce the dire threat posed by massively unleashed toxins like vinyl chloride, phosgene, butyl acerbate and other poisons. What makes matters worse is ...

Ohio counties lose money by snubbing renewables

To the editor: A public meeting will be held at 9:15 am on February 15 at 105 S. Market Street, Lisbon to gather comments regarding requests to “bar large scale solar and wind farm facilities from building in unincorporated areas of Fairfield, Franklin, Perry and West townships. The county commissioners went on record last year against the 145 MW Kensington Solar project. Resolutions from trustees said the construction of any type of large wind warm or solar facility “would not be in the best interests of the residents.” Unfortunately, misinformation, ill-conceived laws, and ...

Help needed to establish new food bank

To the editor: Columbiana is the “Friendliest City in America,” an honor bestowed by Reader’s Digest in 2020. One of the notable features of the city was the Oasis Food Bank, a community outreach begun by four young ladies, part of the First Christian Church, ten years ago. From a small beginning, volunteers from throughout Columbiana County joined in to help feed 400 families by the end of its run in December 2022. After such a service of Christian outreach, the ladies decided it was time to forgo the huge amount of time dedicated to this project, each an average of 30 hours ...