Tammy R. Lawson

February 21, 2008

Tammy R. Lawson,
MC Sun Staff Writer -

Just do it and get it over with - hum a few bars of “Karma Chameleon”, and then we can all move on.

Monday was Cultural Advocacy Day across the state of Iowa, and Marshall County’s Culture Club, an extension organization of the Arts and Culture Alliance, hopes to blend a palette of diversity and artistic talent that could be advantageous to residents and tourists alike.

“The Club was formed so people could meet, get to know one another, and then work together in order to show people the various cultural experiences that exist,” said Beth Burkemper, ACA Executive Director, characterizing the volunteer-based group. “I see this as an enhancement.”

Marshall County has long been considered an area hub for arts and cultural organizations due to its Midwest location. Being nestled between Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, and nearby Ames, the city is surrounded by dozens of smaller townships that contain their share of au courant urbanity.

“Everyone wants to create, and creativity isn’t something you can shut down,” said Central Iowa Art Association’s Rosemary Meling. “This is a great opportunity for people to expose their own, creative aspects.”

Since the county has a history of support for the arts, the Culture Club is hoping to network local groups in order to showcase a cornucopia of everything from candle making to mariachi bands.

“I think it would be interesting to work with the schools-whether during school hours or after-to provide some kind of opportunity for the people in the Latino culture to have access to equipment or instruction in order to learn mariachi music,” explained Latinas al Éxito Representative Jan Mitchell. “Students start to learn the instruments, but usually they’re in concert, jazz, or marching bands; therefore it’s not part of the culture.”

Bringing artists into the Education & Training Center in order to help students develop their own artistic quality is an idea that Gloria DeBower, Family Literacy Coordinator for Iowa Valley Continuing Education, would like to pursue, whereas music would coincide different perspectives into their own values. “Even if they are local musicians, to teach the art would be a way the kids can develop it into their culture.”

Annie Grieshop agrees, having a head start with a March 15th event called An Old Fashioned Singing School-complete with music reading instruction and a capella singing.

Other events on the Culture Club agenda include Orphaned Art at The Perfect Setting on March 27th, ‘Romeo & Juliet’, a fundraiser for the ACA on April 25th, ‘Cyro Baptista’ at the Martha Ellen Tye Playhouse on May 5th, the American Cancer Society’s June Benefit with a performance by Rubberbandance Group, October’s Art & Compassion Soup Lunch, and the Assistance League Marketplace, which will take place in November.

Of course, local businesses and vendors would fair from this collaboration as well with such events as the Hispanic Heritage Festival and annual Garden Extravaganza, which Main Street Community Executive Director Marie Steenlage boasts as a win-win deal for the district.

“It’s not only an event to focus on creative activity in the downtown area, but it’s a unique time to show what the community has to offer,” Steenlage said. “It’s also a retail event, so it all fits together.”

One day, the refurbishing of a multi-purpose theatre will be new icing on the proverbial downtown cake, and with several efforts currently in the works to raise the remaining $80,000 ransom for its life, the Orpheum Theatre will undoubtedly be a draw for businesses, a site for art exhibits, and a flashback for those old enough to remember its ‘when I was your age’ marquee.

“I think all of this is a real, great source of real collaboration to bring several organizations such as the library, the Community Theatre, and others together,” said Sue Martin, Executive Director of the Martha Ellen Tye Foundation. “It’s a wonderful opportunity for everybody.”

One more thing: If you’re too young to know who Boy George is, lucky YOU.

Marshall County Sun© Copyright 2008

January 17, 2008

Tammy R. Lawson,
MC Sun Staff Writer -

Alliant Energy and its contender of multiple oppositions came out of their corners swinging at Monday’s Iowa Utilities Board hearing in what promises to be a heavyweight match up - and what’s at stake is the basis of the entire fight.

Plains Justice Law attorneys Carrie La Seur and Jana Linderman are representing five organizations against Interstate Power and Light Company (a subsidiary of Alliant Energy Corporation), along with three other Cooperative partners, in a quest to knock down a proposed 630-megawatt hybrid coal/biomass power plant capable of burning coal, switch grass, and corn stalks. This $1.5 billion facility would service 94 of Iowa’s 99 counties.

The organizations - Community Energy Solutions, Iowa Environmental Council, Iowa Farmers Union, Iowa Renewable Energy Association, and the Iowa Chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility - began presenting witness testimony, including that of NASA’s world-renowned Chief Climatologist, on repercussions that could affect public health and environmental issues, but not before the community got a chance to voice their opinions to the three-member Board first.

The doors of the Iowa Veteran’s Home’s Whitehall Auditorium opened to the public at 9:00am. Five minutes later, it was standing room only. From citizens to elected officials, public statements were ongoing for the next two hours.

“They’ve designed the proposed plant to be the cleanest and most efficient built in Iowa, and maybe the United States,” said Mayor Gene Beach, who started off the procession. “The design would also produce more energy with fewer emissions than our current plant…that’s why I would think the environmentalists would want this plant built.”

State Representative Mark Smith agreed. “As a legislator with a strong record of supporting laws and protecting our environment, I believe our efforts to make Iowa a green state are paying off; this plant is designed to take advantage of emerging technologies, while providing my community a catalysis to pursue emerging, clean industries that offer quality jobs.”

Amid hushed speculation that Lennox Industries of Marshalltown could eventually outsource their furnace and air conditioning operations to Mexico - terminating the jobs of over 1100 employees, the construction of Sutherland Unit #4 would guarantee stability for the region by supplying a variant of 1200 jobs. That translates into over one million labor hours for each five-year construction period.

It is well known that the demand for energy continues to grow, and as far as Beach is concerned, it’s inevitable. “Every flat screen tv set requires five percent more energy than an older model. All the server farms (e.g. Google, the internet search engine in Council Bluffs) demand more and more energy, and ethanol plants demand a huge amount of energy.”

The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association would likely agree. Iowa has 28 ethanol plants that produce about 2 billion gallons of ethanol a year, with 12 more plants under construction, in addition to five expansion projects at existing facilities. If those alone will add 1.2 billion gallons of production capacity, there’s a good chance Iowa will run out of extension cords.

But is a coal powered plant the way to go?

“I believe we have overwhelming support,” Main Street Community Vice President Kathy Baker said. “I also know that we all need to find ways to conserve energy, but people are moving here because of jobs - not because of mountains or rivers.”

‘LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE’ comes to mind.

Greenhouse gases, environmental destruction, financial obligations, carbon emissions, and the physical condition were just a few of the legitimate concerns brought to the microphone. And though there were a lesser number of opposing statements in comparison to those backing the issue, there was no lack of concern.

Reverend Benjamin Webb of Cedar Falls presented his statement with conviction, emphasizing that without common sense, “We have the capability to have Dante’s Inferno here on Earth.”

The Board was handed a petition from former county extension educator Bill Helgen containing 180 signatures from surrounding communities, warning of issues that wouldn’t be conducive to the financial and well being of the state.

“I’m not going to stand here and argue about money,” said Jonathon Buffalo of Tama. “There is a saying: You can’t ruin your house if you have to stay in your house, and whatever you put in the air is going to come down. Why let my children and grand children play Russian Roulette with their lives?”

Former Marshall County Extension Director Sally Wilson read a letter from Marshalltown Pediatrician Dr. Jim Metzger, who stressed his concern for the effects such a plant would bestow upon the entire physical community.

Melbourne’s Mark Runquist said, “It is the duty of the IUB to safeguard the public interest - not to guarantee a risk free investment for the management and stockholders of this company.”

Runquist brought to light the November 2007 signing of the Greenhouse Gas Accord by Governor Chet Culver, which agrees to lower global warming pollution up to 80% by the year 2050, adding that “new coal plants would contradict this policy”.

At the same time, some have criticized the governor for not speaking out enough in opposition of this plant, along with a similar plant proposal in Waterloo. In his defense, Culver spokesman Brad Anderson was stated as saying, “The governor is going to continue to do everything in his power to increase use of renewable energy, knowing we are going to be living with coal-fired power plants to some extent in the foreseeable future to produce base-load electricity.”

(Incidentally, Culver has set a goal of producing enough wind energy by 2015 to power 500,000 homes and cut carbon emissions by more than 7 billion tons per year.)

Perhaps the most anticipated one-two punch has come from the top climate scientist in the country, Denison native James Hansen, head of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York. For some time, Hansen has spoken numerously throughout the country about carbon sequestration.

“Coal use is the major factor that will determine the magnitude of the human-caused climate change,” Hansen said in a written statement. “There is much more CO2 in coal than in oil and gas because of the size of the reservoirs in the ground. A large fraction of the CO2 we put in the air by burning fossil fuels will stay in the air more than 1,000 years.”

He continued, “[Although] it is not practical to catch CO2 coming out of vehicular tailpipes, and oil is going to run out over the next several decades, it is possible to capture CO2 at power plants, and any new coal plants should capture it.”

Hansen also discredited the notion of the new plant being part of a large, economical/environmental stand off. “The economics-versus-environment issue is a false one. The cheapest source of energy is energy efficiency, and if power plants made more money by helping us be efficient (rather than making more money when they sell us more energy), you can bet they would find a lot of ways to do it.”

When asked why he felt compelled to speak as a private citizen, he replied, “I have grandchildren who will inherit what we leave them. I see a train wreck coming down the road if we don’t get off the business-as-usual path.”

“No one is interested in ruining the environment,” remarked Beach. “If coal is as bad as the opponents say it is, we would all have three legs and two heads. Reason must prevail here.”

Marshalltown resident Dianna Flaten feels the way many do. “I’m torn, but there are a lot of people out of work that need to work. If it’s not going to destroy the environment, I’m all for it.”

Due to the list of expert testimony and cross examinations, the hearing is expected to last several days, and the Iowa Utilities Board will render its final decision mid summer. It’s also safe to say no one will be throwing in the towel on this one, but at least they shook hands first.

Marshall County Sun© Copyright 2008