NY power grid project, saving woodlands
We must strengthen our electrical infrastructure and deliver more renewable energy, a reader writes. Credit: Newsday/John Paraskevas
Grid project is worth some inconvenience
We all must accept some temporary inconvenience to gain a stronger energy infrastructure [“Multiple groups voice worries over power lines,” Long Island, July 5].
Nobody likes construction disruption, power outages, or air pollution. Propel NY Energy will boost grid reliability and deliver additional clean energy to us.
Some people have a misplaced worry about hazards of imperceptible electromagnetic fields like those from home wiring and appliances. The World Health Organization reports such exposure is “safe according to scientific knowledge” below a threshold it cites. The field directly over a cable buried under a road will almost always be five times lower than that threshold, and it will always be five times lower — the state’s limit — at the edge of the road and even lower 20 or 30 feet farther away. This is not an issue anyone should worry about.
Climate change is supercharging the frequency of extreme heat and violent storms, as we saw over the July Fourth weekend.
We must strengthen our electrical infrastructure, deliver more renewable energy, and reduce our dependence on polluting fossil fuels, which Propel NY will do.
People should abandon their unfounded fears and instead look at the project’s long-term benefits for us and our children.
— Peter Gollon, Huntington
The writer is a former senior radiation safety officer at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia, Illinois.
Save our woodlands to save our wildlife
Too many deer? The overdevelopment and destruction of woodlands have contributed to this [“Trying to change hunters’ aim,” News, July 8].
As more forests disappear to make way for development, these beautiful creatures are forced from their natural habitat into our neighborhoods, streets, and backyards.
When I moved from Nassau County to Suffolk County more than 20 years ago, I rarely saw any deer.
Now, hardly a day goes by that I don’t see them. Rather than blaming the deer, we should address the real problem: relentless overdevelopment that destroys their habitat. If we protect our woodlands, we also protect our wildlife.
— Nancy LiRosi, Kings Park
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