To the editor,

Last July the Village of Ellsworth was presented with a “Game Changer” proposal by a Danish company (Bigadan A/S). An anerobic digester with an almost 200-foot stack that will produce natural gas through waste from the Ellsworth Cooperative Creamery and a variety of animal feces trucked in. In exchange, Bigadan (tax exempt), will provide a Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) to the village. On the face of it, it seems like a great deal, but the devil is in the details.

Odor, traffic, and trust are at the heart of my concerns. There are three things we know for sure about this project: It will smell at some point, it will bring an increase in traffic to that area of the village, and PILOT payments for this sort of project are not protected within state statues. So, in making a decision on whether to support this or not, I have to decide if I am okay with essentially selling out the East End of the village. The East End residents that already deal with a significant odor and plenty of traffic. Should we add to it trusting Bigadan will follow through on the PILOT?

On top of that, I have serious concerns related to environmental impacts of what is essentially a natural gas and animal waste processing facility operating next to a village well and the Isabelle Creek. I understand the benefits of a possible increase in revenue to the village, but it is only that, a possibility.

There are no do-overs on this once we issue the Special Use Permit. I made a promise to represent ALL residents, including those in East End, when they elected me a Village Trustee. We owe it to them to make the right decision when this comes to a vote.

Ryan Bench

Ellsworth Village Trustee