The Fine Print

With a little more time I have found some interesting statements in the letter the panel sent to Ameren with their recommendations for the $5 million.

We consciously made a decision early in the selection process to focus on building and repairing existing but resource-strapped entities, instead of land purchases and acquisition of new properties for environmental purposes.

We believe that our recommendations are entirely consistent with the criteria established in the FERC Stipulation and Consent Agreement and the Panel’s collective understanding of the local community and relative value to the community of each application. Therefore, we are confident that the recommended applications/projects are an appropriate and worthy use of the funds.

We have been thorough in our reviews, and believe we have collectively determined critical needs for the affected region of Reynolds and Iron Counties.

I still have problems with the process and the recommendations. I don't doubt that the panel worked hard, given the amount of requests and the short time line. But it still seems to me that many of these projects would have a hard time justifying their relationship to the FERC criteria. Having said all this I won't waste my time responding to Ameren or FERC on this matter. I will try to keep reporting on how the money is spent and what effect it has on the "quality of life".
Spring is here, it's time to get on with real life.

Here is the List

Ameren has posted the list of the recommended projects for the $5 million fine.

Where's the List

On Ameren's Taum Sauk web page is the following statement.

The plan must be filed with the FERC by February 28, and the FERC must look over the plan and respond.

At the final panel meeting we were told that the plan for the $5 million would be posted on the Ameren site in about a week, it's been 12 days and I can't find the plan or any information about what is happening. Everyone said that there was no time for public debate because they had to get it to FERC by today, OK what are you sending to FERC today, make it public.

The Doyle Show

Here is an article about a letter that Doyle Childers sent to Jay Nixon on the Taum Sauk settlement. There is also a link to the DNR press release about the same subject. Since public is not privy to either sides real position on this matter, it's hard to know which side has the better argument. I've already said that I'm disappointed in the lack of information from DNR. It has been six months since the Shut-Ins web site has posted any real data.

Depending on which business you are talking about we have somewhere between 6 and 10 weeks until the start of the season. The pottery will open on weekends starting April 14, Wilderness Lodge opens early May, and BRL May 18. I really think for most local folks believe that DNR and the Shut-Ins have over played their hand. That is not to give Ameren a free ride, Ameren should also be more open to what is happening on top of the mountain. I saw a large truck heading towards St Louis loaded with twisted rebar today, assume it came from the concrete lining of the Upper Reservoir, but I don't know. Ameren also needs to either update Experienceblackriver.com or pull it down. No one feels comfortable taking information from a web site that is clearly over a year old. Most of the contact information is probably correct, but the calendar is clearly old. During the panel meetings one panelist said that they didn't have to give a lot of money towards tourism because Ameren already had done the job with the Experienceblackriver.com web site. That person was not is the tourism business.

First Bird

The first hummingbird of 2007 was spotted in southern Louisiana yesterday. They usually show up in Peola Valley on April 15. You can follow their trip north on this web site. If you have never feed hummers and want to give it a try I suggest that you have some sugar water out when they first arrive, that way you will let them know this is a good place to check out everyday.

If you need a feeder I'll be happy to make one up for you. You can go to my pottery web site for information.

Another sign of spring, yesterday a number of "v's" of geese were headed north over Peola Valley at 9:30am. Probably about 400 birds. That sound of geese at a few thousand feet is a wonderful sound.

Broadband Again

Just read about the new Missouri Virtual School program. A test program for 1,000 students starting this fall will allow students to take classes at home over the internet. While the state site does not go into equipment requirements, here is a quote about the program.

To assure student success with virtual learning, a variety of web-based, technology resources (streaming audio and video, computer animations, email, newsgroups, chat rooms, bulletin boards, digital portfolios) are provided.

You already know how well I think that would work on a rural dial-up system.

Students in Lesterville don't have access to public broadcasting because there is no signal that reaches here now, so you know that once Feb. 17, 2009 gets here with only digital broadcasting that even a big antenna won't bring in PBS and the nearest NPR is from Rolla.

The digital divide is real and getting worst.

FERC Meeting

Two weeks from today FERC is coming to Lesterville (7-9 at the school) for its environmental scoping meeting. If you want to read the entire 24 page document go to the FERC web site and click on "project correspondence" on the lower right hand side. Then open the first document. Here are a few items from the document.

The effects of construction on public access to recreational amenities at the
lower reservoir.

The effects of construction on local traffic.

The effects of project construction on visual resources, such as views from
nearby roads, parks, trails, or residences.

The effects on local economy of temporary hiring local workers.

The effects on local businesses and tax revenues of non-local workers’
expenditure of living expenses.

The effects of a large capital investment on the economy in the area.

It is estimated that the final kidney-shaped dam will be approximately 6,400
feet long and approximately 100 feet high and require the placement of approximately 3.0
million cubic yards of RCC.

A point of reference for those of you that have never poured concrete, a regular concrete truck holds 8 cubic yards of concrete. 3 million cubic yards is a lot of concrete.

Broadband

John Chambers, the CEO of Cisco, gave a talk to the National Governors Association this afternoon. Among other things, he challenged the governors to get broadband to every home in the next 4 to 6 years. His reasons were much the same as my argument for Lesterville, education, health, economic development, and better government. Anybody want to start an office pool on when broadband is really available to every home in rural Missouri. Unless some new technology comes along I still think that in 2020 there will vast areas of Missouri without broadband.

Rebuild

Here is an article about the Upper Reservoir rebuild in BusinessWeek.

This Is Funny

Here is a link to one of those web sites that is hoping to make some money by having you click on one of the Google ads. So check out the related sites section of the page.

Tourism

An article in the Springfield newspaper caught my attention this morning. The state is predicting an increase in tourism spending this year. There is no way to know what things were like in Lesterville/Arcadia Valley in 2005 vs. 2006. Lots of stories, but no hard evidence. I still find it interesting that tourism (recreation) only received 4% of the $5 million. I don't know about Arcadia Valley, but in Lesterville almost everyone that is involved in a tourist business is from somewhere else. Even Gil at BRL still considers himself an outsider after more that 50 years living on the river. So the fact that most of the money went to help "the locals" doesn't surprise me.

Another part of the article that caught my attention was about a bike race that will occur in Missouri during September. If you vacation in Lesterville I'm sure you have seen some of the hard core bike riders struggling up the hills. However, because of the narrow roads and no shoulders, most people wish folks would bike somewhere else. Besides if those later day hippies were real Americans they would buy a pickup.

Tightenupamerica!

Slow News Day

Ameren has a new VP of PR. What I find interesting is after months of shallow stories about the Black River, there was no state wide news coverage of the $5 million Ameren lottery in Lesterville. Once the final list is posted to Ameren's web site maybe the St Louis TV types will look a little closer at the process and results.

Black River Enviroment

One of the things that was proposed during the Taum Sauk Project Enhancement meeting was a sewer/waste water treatment system for Lesterville. Currently, every home and business has a septic tank and drain field. Everyone knows that many of these tanks are steel and have started to rust, plus it good practice to have a tank pumped out every five years, but I'm sure there are many that have not been pumped in twenty years. The cost of building and maintaining a new sewer system is very high for the small population and the system won't cover those of us outside Lesterville proper (where ever that is). I bring this up because there is a cheaper method of dealing with human waste, but I know that even if it were delivered free to each home that most people would say "I'm not having that thing in my house".

New Slogan

I have a proposal for a new slogan for Lesterville, not that we have an old slogan.

Lesterville, where the elevation is greater than the population.

Extra, Extra

For those of you that don't check in to see what Shelley Powers is writing I hope you read this post.

FERC Meeting

The following is from a FERC letter.

The Commission intends to prepare an environmental document under the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for the Taum Sauk upper reservoir rebuilding
project. The NEPA document will be used by the Commission to identify environmental
impacts and to identify measures that would help mitigate the impacts caused by
construction activities. To support and assist our environmental review, we are beginning
a public scoping process to ensure that all pertinent issues are identified and analyzed,
and that the environmental document is thorough and balanced.

Public Scoping Meeting
Date: March 12, 2007
Time: 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. (CST)
Location: Lesterville High School
State Highway 21
Lesterville, Missouri 63654

At the scoping meetings, Commission staff will: (1) summarize the environmental
issues tentatively identified for analysis in the environmental document; (2) solicit from
the meeting participants all available information, especially quantifiable data, on the
resources at issue; (3) encourage statements from experts and the public on issues that
should be analyzed in the Commission’s NEPA document, including viewpoints in
opposition to, or in support of, staff's preliminary views expressed in the SD; (4)
determine the resource issues to be addressed in the NEPA document; and (5) identify
those issues that require a detailed analysis, as well as those issues that do not require a
detailed analysis. Staff will also be soliciting input on potential measures that could be
implemented to minimize construction-related impacts. The meetings will be recorded by
a stenographer and become part of the formal record for this project.

Anybody reading this ever been "scopped" before?

No Broadband

As most of you know, I was trying to get Broadband internet service for the Lesterville area from the FERC fine funds. Ameren said that since they did not own the power lines in the area and because of the low population density that it was not economically possible for them to get involved in my proposal. No other Broadband alternative was considered, so the proposal is dead.

I'll make a prediction, barring some new technology, I'll bet that ten years from now that most of rural Missouri is still on dial-up. The vision I have of the future is rural Missourians hoarding old modems, because no one makes modems anymore. When you buy a new computer right now, they don't come with floppy drives unless you pay extra for one. I'm sure it is only a matter of time until a modem won't be included with a new computer, the numbers just won't justify it.

Missouri is a low tax / low service state and proud of it. Other states have seen the value of encouraging the state wide roll out of Broadband, but I don't think you will see that kind of leadership in this state. When was the last time you saw a big company come to Missouri and build a really big operation. I have family that live in Mississippi, a state that is usually 50th on any list, and when I go for a visit I pass a new Nissan plant that goes for miles along I55. But in Missouri we only hear about plant closings.

I know that having Broadband in Reynolds County would not bring new jobs to the area, but I think it could have allowed some enterprising local folks to venture into cyberspace with a money making idea. Yesterday I started working on my 2006 taxes and I needed to download additional files from TurboTax. It took two hours to get the files. So I'll continue to use the net for news and email, but that's about the limit of what is possible. Once again, no grand vision.

And The Winners Are .....

I'm going to make you wait and read the actual list on the Ameren web site once it is posted. When I left at 9:45pm last night the panel was still working out details of the funding. However, here are some headlines. The EMS package (fire, ambulance, 911, ect) received almost $2 million or 40% of the funds. Of the remaining five FERC criteria, economic development, quality of life, wildlife habitat, education, and recreation here is how I saw it divided.

Wildlife habitat received no funding. I'll admit there were very few proposals, but you have to remember that if you were born and raised locally (like the majority of the panel) that wildlife falls into two categories, food and pests. And while some will try to stretch the concept, I feel that there were no funds for economic development. This is an area with high poverty and underemployment. I know a woman that drives to Farmington and back each day (100 miles) to work as a waitress. But still no real funds for economic development!

So what about the remaining three criteria. Well $120,000 went reluctantly to tourism (recreation), but with a number of strange strings attached. The education part of the puzzle was still being worked on when I left, but the schools in the area will probably get a good chunk of cash, mainly because they are poor. I know that it will be argued that the school funding is also going to improve the quality of life factor, but for who or how many.

Finally that leaves the buying of two dump trucks, two 4WD pickups, one front end loader, new water pipes for Lesterville, kitchen equipment for the Annapolis community center, a K-9 training center, and a number of other local government requests.

I do feel that the EMS funding will contribute to the quality of life for everyone in the area, but a lot of the other funding seemed to go to local offices just because we are all poor. Once again I hope that five years from now someone looks into what effect these funds had on the area. No one seemed to have a grand vision.

School Days

The following is a quote from an article in the Springfield News-Leader.

Under Wallace's legislation, local school boards also would have to hold a public hearing if they wanted to set school start dates more than 10 days before Labor Day.

"(This bill is) trying to remind school people that set dates that just maybe they're creeping a little too early into the month of August," said Wallace, a Thornfield Republican. "It's affecting the tourist industry and agriculture in some areas."

The early start of the school year in St. Louis County has had a bigger economic effect of Lesterville than the Taum Sauk event. Black River Lodge is now closed the week before Labor Day weekend and is considering closing for two weeks before.

Here is a link to the Ameren 2006 Earnings and 2007 Guidance.

Lots of News, Not Enough $$$

Ameren has received over $50 million dollars worth of requests for the $5 million dollar fine. The Taum Sauk web site has a number of new links about the FERC fine process and the Upper Reservoir rebuild.

Cold Night

Although I wanted to see the information about the rebuild of the Upper Reservoir, tonight was just too cold for this old man to get out. So for me and all the others that were not able to make it to the meeting I hope that Ameren will post all the photos and drawings on the Taum Sauk web site.

Hard to believe that the first hummingbirds will be on the Gulf Coast in two weeks.

Letter From FERC

The following quotes are from a letter FERC sent to Ameren about a future Emergency Action Plan.

1. In addition to the Sunny day failure case for both dams and the probable
maximum flood (PMF) failure case for the Lower Reservoir, you should include an
overtopping non-failure case for the Upper Reservoir's emergency spillway. The purpose
of this case is to clearly show the flow path to the lower reservoir and to highlight what
actions are needed to warn any recreationists in the area.

5. In addition to revised inundation maps, the EAP should include enhanced
features to ensure people in close proximity to the dam can be notified and evacuated in a
timely manner. These measures must be coordinated with pertinent local and State
emergency management officials. The EAP should include a discussion on what steps can
be taken to educate residents, campers, and recreationists of their proximity to the dam
(e.g., brochures/fliers handed out to guests, signs, etc.), how they will be warned of an
emergency and where they should go during an emergency.

Nothing like this existed in the past, although there was a map somewhere that showed how high the water would get if the Lower Dam failed, but no one ever made sure that the locals saw the map. There was no talk last week during the discussion about the EAP on a system to notify the local residents or campers. You would think that some sort of siren would be inorder, since the phone system clearly can't handle a mass calling. Maybe Ameren should buy everyone a NOAA weather radio that is programmed to give a warning for this type of event. Its interesting that the tower used for the local NOAA weather transmitter is on the Electric COOP tower, not Ameren's Taum Sauk tower.

For security and business reasons, both Twin Rivers and Riversedge have only one road out of their campgrounds and there is no way you could evacuate these on a busy weekend. At least at Riversedge you might have a chance of getting to higher ground at Wilderness Lodge, but at Twin Rivers the exit is along the East Fork.

Finally, I can't wait till the "recreationists" return to Lesterville and start buying my pottey again. Wonder how many "recreationists" Washington, D. C. gets.

Weather II

It has rained all night and is now at 35 degrees. Didn't put out a rain gauge because I was afraid it would freeze and break, but the river gauge recorded one and a half inches since yesterday. That's normally not enough to worry about "high water" or flooding. If we have freezing rain later this morning things are going to get interesting.

Weather

We are forcast to received heavy rain tonight and up to two inches of snow tomorrow. If Ameren decides to reschedule Tuesdays nights meeting on the rebuild I'll post it here. Weather looks OK for the last meeting of the FERC $$$ panel on Thursday.

Emergency Management System

The EMS committee made their recommendations for the FERC criteria Thursday night. They first explained that Reynolds County does not have a real 911 system. If I were to call 911 the call would be routed to an 800 number that would in turn call the Sheriffs office. So the dispatcher who answers the phone has no idea who or where I am and if another 911 call is made they will get a busy signal, since there is no dedicated line for this service. So the EMS committee is proposing that Reynolds and Iron Counties join St. Francois County for their e911 system.

Second it was proposed that a dedicated room be added to the court house to house the dispatcher and the other EMS equipment. The court house does not have a generator, so if power is lost they have a hard time responding to emergencies, so a generator is part of the EMS proposal.

The third part if the proposal is for the communication system that I talked about below. So tower(s) and new radios for all departments involved in the EMS.

The final part of the system is the new equipment, fire trucks, search and rescue equipment, ambulances, ect.

The total cost is between $1.8 million and $2.2 million depending on some variables. So if the panel goes with this proposal it will take about 40% of the $5 million. Some on the panel seemed to think this was a lot of $$$ for EMS, but I for one feel it is a great investment in "the quality of life" for everyone in the county, plus all the visitors we have here each summer.

It was interesting that the sheriff still made his proposal for 2 four wheel drive trucks for his office that were not part of this EMS proposal. I heard that many of the related departments that were left out of the plan were upset with this proposal.

A side note, if this plan is funded one of the things the county commissioners will have to do is assign 911 addresses. My address is RR 1 Box 16F and that won't work for e911. I bring this up because a year ago I wanted to open an account with Vanguard and was told that because of Homeland Security I could not open the account with my current address. I talked to my postmistress and found out that it is up to the county commission to assign addresses, not the post office. Anyway, as far as Vanguard knows I live at 16 Peola Road. Life is interesting in the country.

The Phone

There is a phone that works with VoIP and Wi-Fi/Wi-Max. So I hope that the EMS committee considers this option.

Slick

Ameren has printed a slick new brochure titled One Year Later. I assume that it will be available at next Tuesdays meeting about the rebuild.

Communication

One of the things that was brought up at length at last nights panel meeting was the poor state of communication in northern Reynolds County. The EMS Technical Advisory Committee spent a lot of time talking about how difficult (if not impossible) it is for the various first responders to talk to each other. Part of the EMS package that was proposed is for additional towers and new radios so everyone can keep in touch. There was also a lot of talk about the need for better cell phone coverage in the area. I must admit I find it interesting that the people making the most noise about bad cell phone service are folks that do not live in Lesterville. We know that the service is bad, I have to drive to Wilderness Lodge to get a signal, so we have learned to live without a cell phone on our belt all day.

I bring all this up because at the start of the meeting it was stated that the answer to Sen. Engler's question about my broadband proposal would be put off till next week. I'll remind you that he wanted the Forrester Group to ask Ameren if my proposal to have Ameren install a Broadband over Power Lines (BPL) was possible. I got the feeling from a private conversation last night that Ameren has said that they don't have any interest in working on this project.
I'm disapointed if this is the case, but I will try to remind the panel that in my proposal I stated that if Ameren couldn't (or now it appears won't) supply a BPL network that I wanted them to investigate Wi-Max. Wi-Max is the big brother of Wi-Fi. Its a wireless internet protocol that covers a lot larger area than Wi-Fi.

I always felt that the biggest problem with Wi-Max was the cost of building the tower. But if the EMS proposal includes towers, I would hope that a Wi-Max antenna could be installed along with the EMS radio antennas. It was stated that one of the members of the EMS Technical Committee was Dee McCormick. Dee owns the Ellington Telephone Company and I know his firm also installs towers around the mid-west. So I assume that he might be an involved in the building of the EMS network.

Since no one locally (or in Jeff City) can do anything but twist arms to get better cell phone service, it seems to me that a wireless internet system would offer the possibility of VOIP (voice over internet protocol). I'm sure you have seen the commercials for Vontage or heard of Skype, two of the VOIP systems. I don't know at this time if it is possible to buy a phone that works on VOIP without being connected to a laptop, but if this doesn't exist I'll bet it will soon. The point being that the local area could have better communication by putting Wi-Max on the new towers. So I will try to see if I can get this across to the panel at next weeks meeting while they decide what to fund.

One last thought for today, an Ameren representative stated last night that they do not know how much interest the $5 million will generate. This has been stated before and is posted on their FAQ page. What bothers me is no one wants to say that it is invested at x% or state that on February 1 the fund had x number of dollars. You know that any number of people within Ameren have access to these numbers, so I don't understand this "Sgt Schultz" game of "I know nothing".

I'll post some further thoughts about last nights meeting later.

Where's the Video?

I would have loved to see a video of the local "good ol boys" meeting with Blunt and Nixon on the county's problems vis a vis the Taum Sauk event. Many of our local county officials went to Jefferson City yesterday to plead their frustration with lack of progress in getting the area back to normal. If every there was a group that could be described as "out of their league" it would have been this group. If you were at last weeks panel meeting and saw the Northern County Commissioner make the counties request you know what I'm taking about. The St. Louis Post has an article about the latest political dirt raking and these Jeff City meetings.

Tonight the marathon panel meeting starts at 6pm. Next Tuesday Ameren presents the rebuild plans at 7pm.

After todays post I'll probably never get my road graded again, that's politics in a small county.

Venue and Information

Here is a link to Shelley Power's take on the Ameren change of venue request.

On another subject, at next Tuesdays meeting on the Upper Reservoir rebuild, I hope to twist as many Ameren arms as possible for webcams at the site of the rebuild. I'd like to see it happen sooner, rather than later. They have to take down the old reservoir first and I'd like to see photos of that. Hope that Ameren is sensitive to the fact that right now the site is about as open as Area 51.

Rebuild

Here are two articles about the proposed rebuild.

St Louis Post

Belleville News-Democrat

BIG NEWS!

Ameren just announced that it plans to rebuild the Upper Reservoir if all issues can be worked out with the state. Stay Tuned.

Bring Your Appetite!

Members of the Lesterville Cancer Crusaders will offer food and drink at a concession stand at this Thursdays marathon panel meeting (starts at 6pm this week). So bring you appetite and your money to support the Relay for Life efforts of this local group. Here is a link to a KC article about efforts to jump on Ameren in the state legislature.

Amy's Drawings

An old friend of mine has started a blog with a daily drawing. Todays drawing includes an old Ferber vase. Thanks Amy.

Move The Suit

Ameren has filed a motion to move the AG's suit from St. Louis to Centerville. Interesting!

Upper Reservoir

AmerenUE will host a public meeting Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2007, to discuss the company’s dam safety program and the many safety features incorporated into the proposed new upper reservoir at Taum Sauk Plant.

Also in attendance at the meeting will be representatives from Paul C. Rizzo and Associates, Inc., specialists in dam design, analysis and repair who prepared both the Environmental Report related to the proposed rebuild and the design for the new upper reservoir.

The meeting is scheduled for 7:00-9:00 p.m. at the Lesterville High School, State Highway 21 in Lesterville. At the meeting, members of the public will have the opportunity to see displays and talk to experts about:

• Dam safety at Ameren;
• Preparatory Work at the Taum Sauk Upper Reservoir, including safety stabilization work;
• The Environmental Report related to the rebuild effort; and
• The proposed new upper reservoir construction

Panel Meeting

The Ameren Fine Panel meet last night with all members present. The first hour was spent trying to come to consensus on a number of topics. There is still no definition of "near the project", but they did decide on what is "far". They also eliminated about a dozen applications that didn't specify a specific monetary amount. About 20 people made three minute presentations on their applications. After seven presentations, the panel was given 15 minutes to ask followup questons. I happened to be the 7th presenter and had two followup questions and because I am asking Ameren to provide a BPL network Sen. Engler ask the Forrester Group to contact Ameren and report back to see if my proposal has legs. After the second seven presentations the panel had no followup questions.

I served on a similar panel 15 years ago for the Missouri Arts Council. We would meet once a year to provide grants to Missouri arts organizations. There was spirited debate and questions about the details of the grant requests. I bring this up because what I saw last night raises three questions. Is the makeup of the panel going to insure turf warfare when it gets time to make decisions? Is the panel overwhelmed with the volume and detail in the proposals? Or, have they personally already eliminated 75% of the proposals and feel that there is no reason to ask followup questions?

Next Thursdays meeting will start at 6pm and probably go past 10pm because of the volume of the presentations. I still can't figure out if the panel is going to try to hand a few $$$ to each of the government agencies that are seeking funds or are they going to recommend specific line item requests. What I fear is that rather than pick proposals that will really impact "the quality of life" of the greatest number of people in the area that a lot of proposals will get 10K or 20K and it won't be enough to make much difference. I do believe that the EMS departments will get enough funding to make some difference in northern Reynolds County, although there is not enough money to help everyone will all their requests. I hope I'm alive five years from now so that I can try to see if this money really made a difference in the area. I'm from Missouri!