Title: China officials defer decision
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Blog Entry: Correspondent CHINA -- Selectmen declined to act on an open space committee's request that they establish a separate Thurston catalog printing Park committee and appoint its members. With only four board members present, Joann Austin's motion to create the committee died for lack of a second. The issue is likely to be revisited. The action followed an hourlong discussion about whether selectmen should proceed with selective cutting on the approximately 400-acre park in China, as recommended in Albion forester Vite Vitale's management plan; or else seek a more comprehensive management plan. There was agreement that Vitale's is a good forestry management plan. But Austin and others think he should have been asked to pay more attention to other goals, especially recreation and wildlife habitat. Austin consequently opposes immediate action on Vitale's plan. South China forester Richard Morse reminded selectmen they cannot completely abandon selective cutting and other forestry management practices without losing the park's certification as a tree farm. A tree farm plan -- unlike a plan for land set aside under the state's Tree Growth tax program -- does not need to have forest management as its only objective, but management must be one objective, Morse said. Morse agreed with those saying there is no need to cut timber this winter. Vitale's plan "is flexible enough so you can delay things while you think about it," he said. Morse; Tim Basham, who is a logger, forester and woodlot owner; Vassalboro resident David Jenney; and others urged selectmen to get a revised plan if they think they need one. Jenney, active in the Small Woodlot Owners Association of Maine, recommended they ask Vitale to do the revised plan, after they clarify its goals. An offshoot of the debate is that China has apparently lost the free services of Sappi consultants Howard Charles and Katie Cousins. During the Jan. 4 discussion, resident Al Althenn alleged that Charles and Cousins could not give the town unbiased advice, because they were bound to reflect their employer's interests. Town Manager Daniel L'Heureux received a telephone call from Cousins afterward. As he recalls, she said she and Charles felt the town would make better progress with an independent forester. L'Heureux did not know whether Cousins had read his email expressing regret for Althenn's comment before she made the call. Morse and board Chairman Irene Belanger agreed loss of Sappi's services costs the town in expertise and in money, since selectmen will have to hire someone to oversee work that Sappi would have supervised for free. postcard printing The main item on Monday's agenda was continued review of L'Heureux's draft of the 201011 municipal budget. Board members ran out of time, and scheduled a special meeting for 6 p.m. Jan. 25, to finish. L'Heureux said the budget he prepared shows a few increases and a few decreases. It will not affect the town's tax rate, he said, although the school budget and the county tax, which selectmen do not control, are likely to increase local taxes. Other articles: http://www.pbloger.com/blog.php?user=mywatches¬e=88126 http://www.sz-dxs.cn/Blog/View/?222 http://www.wvlife.com.cn/Blog/View/?186
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