We, the undersigned residents of the Town of Clinton and/or Dutchess County and/or NYS hereby request that the New York State Public Service Commission reject any and all applications for high-voltage power lines in the Town of Clinton-- for health and property value reasons; there are alternatives (see below!).

There is information in the 24th paragraph from this recent public notice regarding Central Hudson/National Grid proposal for tripling voltage for current 115,000-volt power lines in east side of the Town of Clinton (to go up to 345,000 volts); path laid out here: http://www.nyseg.com/MediaLibrary/2/5/Content%20Management/NYSEG/Our%20Company/PDFs%20and%Docs/Transco%20Pub%20Notice.pdf ; also http://www.nyenergyhighway.com/rfidocument/transmission/.

Click on this link for information on NextEra Energy's proposal for more high-voltage power lines in the Town of Clinton as well:
http://classifieds.poughkeepsiejournal.com/osform/MVCCService?osform_template=%2Fstandard%2FresultDetail.oft&publication=pojo&netgravityPublication&category=LegalLegalNotices&startElement=16&displayCount=50&selectedCount=50&sortOrder=ascending&sortAttribute=adDescription&displayArguments&queryString&queryResultCount=196&queryValues=Sm..&clickedButton=viewPrev .

Check out the information below from the well-respected Dr. David Carpenter, public health physician trained at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Institute for Health and the Environment at the State University of New York at Albany: "High-voltage Power Lines Pose Health Risks" February 04, 2010:
http://www.winonadailynews.com/news/opinion/article_47bd6aa4-1055-11df-99e1-001cc4c002e0.html.

Contact NYS Public Service Commission with your thoughts on all this now-- specifically, Hon. Kathleen H. Burgess Secretary, State of New York Public Service Commission Empire State Plaza, Agency Building 3 Albany, NY 12223-1350 Phone: 518-474-6530, Fax: 518-486-608; email: secretary@dps.state.ny.us!

[emails to countylegislators@dutchessny.gov can't hurt either-- to all 25 members of the Dutchess County Legislature!]

For more information on this see (thanks much to Ray and Susan Rivard for their work and diligence):
<http://www.sampratt.com/files/transco.pdf>;
<http://www.smartenergyuniverse.com/utility-news/3499-new-york-transmission-owners-submit-response-to-state-s-energy-highway-task-force-request-for-information>

[and-- click on this link re: NYMarc gas pipeline to go through Poughkeepsie, Pleasant Valley, Dover-- and points between(!):
<http://dutchessdemocracy.blogspot.com/2013/05/stop-nymarc-gas-pipeline-from-going.html>]

There are alternatives to all this nonsense-- namely, solar(!): http://www.NYSEIA.org/​ ; http://www.VoteSolar.org/​ ;                                        http://www.HudsonSolar.com/​ ; http://www.SolarizeNewYork.org/​ ;                               http://www.SolarizeMadison.com (model for Dutchess County already reality in Madison, Genesee, and Tompkins counties; Joel Tyner already got a resolution passed unanimously this August for Dutchess to have a Solarize program too!).

Fact: Anthony Ingraffea and Robert Howarth of Cornell University in Ithaca, along with Mark Jacobson of Stanford, released a study earlier this year (in March) about how "converting all of New York's energy sources from natural gas, coal, and fossil fuel to wind, water, and sunlight by 2030 would stabilize electricity prices, reduce power demand by about 37 percent, and create thousands of permanent jobs, in a new report in the journal Energy Policy"(!).
http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/2013/03/new-yorks-fossil-fuel-gone-wind-water-and-sun

Joel Tyner                                                                                                                                 42-year resident of the Town of Clinton                                                                                     Dutchess County Legislator, D. #11: Clinton/Rhinebeck                                                                      324 Browns Pond Road                                                                                                      Staatsburg, NY 12580                                                                                             joeltyner@earthlink.net  (845) 453-2105                              http://www.DutchessDemocracy.blogspot.com

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http://www.winonadailynews.com/news/opinion/article_47bd6aa4-1055-11df-99e1-001cc4c002e0.html

David Carpenter: High-voltage power lines pose health risks
February 04, 2010 12:15 am

By DAVID O. CARPENTER / Rensselaer, N.Y.

Dr. Carpenter is a public health physician trained at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Institute for Health and the Environment at the State University of New York at Albany.

I'm writing to share knowledge accumulated through decades of studying the health effects of high-voltage power lines, such as the CapX2020 power line proposed to come through southeast Minnesota.

As a medical doctor and Director of the Institute for Health and the Environment at University at Albany, SUNY, I believe that the health risks posed by long-term exposure to magnetic fields are serious, especially to children and fetuses.

There is definitive scientific evidence that exposure to magnetic fields from power lines greater than 4 milligauss (a level significantly less that what is expected to occur near this proposed power line) is associated with an elevated risk of childhood leukemia. Some scientific research indicates an elevated risk at levels of 2 milligauss. A home not near a power line will usually have a level of less than 1 milligauss.

Scientific evidence also links magnetic field exposure to cancer in adults as well, particularly leukemia and brain cancer. There is strong evidence that lifetime exposure to magnetic fields above 2 milligauss is associated with an increased risk of neurodegenerative diseases in adults, including Alzheimer's disease and Lou Gehrig's disease.

With many aspects of human toxicology, there is uncertainty as to which mechanisms may be responsible for increased human disease with exposure to power line magnetic fields. However, there is a large body of evidence showing ways in which magnetic fields, including the frequencies from power lines, affect tissue at a cellular level.

Some people may be unusually sensitive to exposure to magnetic fields. A recent study demonstrated that children living within 100 meters of a power line who lacked a gene to repair DNA had a 400 percent greater chance of developing leukemia than other children with a similar exposure

Based on this scientific information, I would make these public health recommendations:

n Information should be publicly available regarding the calculated magnetic field strength from a power line at various distances.

In many locations along the route, magnetic fields from the CapX2020 power lines will exceed levels that create

health risks, particularly over time as more electric power is used.

n High-voltage power lines should be routed to prevent power line magnetic fields in homes from exceeding 4 milliguass. Every effort should also be made to avoid long-term exposure to magnetic fields above 2 milligauss.

n Public health precaution also suggests that high-voltage lines be located as far as possible from homes, schools, playgrounds and child-care facilities. In areas of dense population where routing away from homes and other sensitive uses is not possible, power lines should be placed underground in such a way as to reduce human health impacts.

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http://www.safespaceprotection.com/electrostress-from-power-lines.aspx

EMF Pollution from Living Near Power Lines

Power lines and electrical poles have become so common on the landscape, they are virtually invisible. But it’s worth taking a hard look at them. Are you living near power lines? What is that barrel-shaped device on the electric pole and is it harmful? Did you grow up near a high-voltage power line?

Is there a safe living distance from or to power lines?

Experts say as far as possible … Hundreds of studies worldwide have shown that living next to high voltage power lines and other parts of the power transmission network increases your risk of cancer and other health problems.

We’ll examine those risks below, and the recommended SafeSpace solutions designed to minimize and eliminate the health risks.

Safe Living Distance To Power Lines?

Is It Harmful To Sit Under Power Lines?

Absolutely possible. It depends on how powerful are the EMFs coming from your neighborhood power lines? The electrical power grid uses a “step down” system of distribution, highest near the generating station and substations, lowest at the end. The closer you are the more you are bombarded with dangerous EMFs.

Living Under Power Lines? Some Facts You Should Know

High voltage transmission lines (those towering metal power lines you often see usually along highways and across rural landscapes. Some folks, unfortunately are under them.):

• Use high voltage direct current (HVDC) to transmit large amounts of power from the generating station over long distances
• Voltage varies from 138kV to 765kV
• Radiate powerful electromagnetic fields (EMFs)
• Linked to diseases in animals and humans
• There is growing speculation that the values of homes near major power lines will soon begin to decrease because of this threat

Transmission substations, (which often look like a fenced-in thicket of metal structures. Maybe you see one near your home, school or office.):

• Contain circuit breakers, switches and transformers
• Decrease the voltage coming from high voltage transmission lines
• Connect to local, lower voltage distribution lines.
• Reroute power to lines that serve local markets
• Suspected cause of cancer clusters for nearby residents

Lower voltage distribution lines, (or local power poles, which are everywhere):

• Are smaller than the huge high voltage lines
• More likely to be seen in residential areas
• Sometimes buried
• Risk varies with strength of voltage

Transformers, (those barrel-like metal trashcans mounted on power poles are EMF factories.):

• Reduces the voltage to the 120-/240 current needed by the nearby homes
• The typical power line feeding the transformer is carrying 4000 to 13,000 volts
• Creates a strong field extending up to a 1/4 of a mile
• The strength of this field decreases significantly with distance (the further away you are the better, even if you are still within a quarter mile)
• Health risk depends on strength of incoming power line

Buried lines and transformers (Recognizable by a metal box located on the ground near the street.):

• Some people contend that burying power lines can mitigate EMF dangers.
• Other experts note that while burying power lines will shield the electric component of the electromagnetic field (EMF), the magnetic component can still pass through the earth—and walls and human bodies.

Electric Fields, Magnetic Fields & Power Lines are a Health Hazard!

There is no question that power transmission apparatus emit electromagnetic fields (EMFs).

An EMF is not just one thing, but two kinds of fields:

• Electrical field: the part of the EMF that can easily be shielded.
• Magnetic field: part of the EMF that can penetrate stone, steel and human flesh. In fact, when it comes to magnetic fields, human flesh and bone has the same penetrability as air!
• Both fields are invisible and perfectly silent: if you live in an area with electric power, cell phone service, water pipes and more, some level of artificial EMF is surrounding you.

Living Close to Power Lines and How EMFs Harm Human Health

Your body acts like an energy wave broadcaster and receiver, incorporating and responding to EMFs. In fact, scientific research has demonstrated that every cell in your body may have its own EMF, helping to regulate important functions and keep you healthy.

Strong, artificial EMFs like those from power lines can scramble and interfere with your body’s natural EMF, harming everything from your sleep cycles and stress levels to your immune response and DNA!

Studies Show Living Next To Power Lines Increases The Risk Of Cancer

After hundreds of international studies, the evidence linking EMFs to cancers and other health problems is loud and clear. High Voltage power lines are the most obvious and dangerous culprits, but the same EMFs exist in gradually decreasing levels all along the grid, from substations to transformers to homes.

From the British Medical Journal, June, 2005:

Researchers found that children living within 650 feet of power lines had a 70% greater risk for leukemia than children living 2,000 feet away or more.

From Epidemiology, 2003 Jul;14(4):413-9:

“Several studies have identified occupational exposure to extremely low-frequency electromagnetic fields (EMF) as a potential risk factor for neurodegenerative disease.”

From Epidemiology, 2002 Jan;13(1):9-20

There is “strong prospective evidence that prenatal maximum magnetic field exposure above a certain level (possibly around 16 mG) may be associated with miscarriage risk.”

From the Internal Medicine Journal, 2007

In a study of 850 lymphoma, leukemia and related conditions, researchers from the University of Tasmania and Britain's Bristol University found that living for a prolonged period near high-voltage power lines increased the risk for these conditions later in life.

• People who lived within 328 yards of a power line up to age 5 were five times more likely to develop cancer as an adult.
• People who lived within 328 yards of a power line at any point up to age 15 years were three times more likely to develop cancer as an adult.

Dr. David Carpenter, Dean of the School of Public Health (SUNY), believes that up to 30% of all childhood cancers come from exposure to high voltage power lines.

Even the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cautions citizens that "There is reason for concern" and advises “prudent avoidance” of high voltage power lines.

The California Department of Health concluded that EMFs were responsible for an increase in childhood leukemia, adult brain cancer, Lou Gehrig's disease and miscarriage in the 2002 report, “An Evaluation of the Possible Risks From Electric and Magnetic Fields (EMFs) From Power Lines, Internal Wiring, Electrical Occupations and Appliances.”

The studies cited above and dozens of other epidemiological studies specifically link high voltage power lines with:

• Brain tumors
• Leukemia
• Birth defects
• Lymphoma

Electromagnetic Radiation and Power Lines. It‘s a Problem.

According to research and publications put out by the World Health Organization (WHO), EMF such as those from power lines, can also cause:

• Headaches
• Fatigue
• Anxiety
• Insomnia
• Prickling and/or burning skin
• Rashes
• Muscle pain