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FUTUREGEN, A BOLD INITIATIVE
The “Reporter at Large” essay in the April 2 Illinois Times [see “The questionable future of FutureGen,” by Fletcher Farrar] asks important questions about restarting the FutureGen at Mattoon project. Let me add two others: If not FutureGen, what? If not now, when? Some of the nation’s top technical minds designed and sited FutureGen. Before the project became a political football, few in the scientific community disputed its technical merit. If we are serious about closing the gap between rhetoric and tangible solutions on carbon reduction, there are no other shovel-ready alternatives to FutureGen. Those who say otherwise either have something else to sell, or are clinging to the notion that coal can be kept out of the nation’s energy portfolio.
As the State of Illinois’ lead economic development official, my advocacy of restarting FutureGen should surprise no one. This project will have a profound impact on Illinois. It brings jobs when we need jobs — up to 1,000 construction jobs that will draw skilled workers from a wide radius around Coles County. This project is also critical in bringing long-awaited opportunity to the coal-producing regions of Illinois.
I acknowledge that FutureGen is not simple, inexpensive or failure-proof. But what better point in history to entertain bold initiatives?
The FutureGen site is purchased.
Project preliminaries are nearly complete. Engineers are at work obtaining necessary permits. If we move now, we will be at full construction in a matter of months. And, within 10 years, we will have a proven design for a new fleet of emissions-free electric generating stations.
We can move forward with FutureGen, or we can hope a better concept suddenly pops out of a genie’s bottle. However, by that time some other nation will have seized the leadership position in curbing greenhouse gases in the electric power sector. And we will have squandered the opportunity to utilize an abundant, homegrown source of energy using breakthrough technology stamped “Made in the USA.”
Warren Ribley Director Designee Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Springfield
GOOD STEWARDS
This letter from Illinois Symphony Orchestra board president John Wohlwend came to Illinois Times on April 29, in response to an April 23 IT news article about the orchestra.
On behalf of the Boards of Advisors and the Board of Directors of the Illinois Symphony Orchestra, I am writing to express our deep disappointment with your publication of a one-sided piece last week [see “Modulation at Illinois Symphony Orchestra,” by Dusty Rhodes, IT, April 23]. When approached by your writer for comment, I responded that I would be able and willing to speak with her following our Board’s meeting on Monday of this week. Unfortunately, she opted to go to press with a biased and sensationalist story that not only misleads the public, but distracts from the wonderful music that is being performed for 4,000 students in Springfield and 1,800 students in Bloomington this week and our season finale performances this Friday and Saturday [May 1 and 2] that promise to be an exciting and beautiful collaboration between our Music Director, Karen Deal, and the top-notch musicians of the ISO. We are a volunteer-governed organization, as are all orchestras of every size in this country. As the chair, I have always felt it my responsibility to discuss and reach consensus with our Board, representing both cities we serve, before commenting on what are usually confidential and internal matters.
We want only the best for our artistic and administrative employees, so that the end product — great concerts — can be enjoyed by our communities. This requires many volunteer hours and financial contributions on all our parts, but we are happy to take the lead so that the quality of life is sustained and ever improving here in central Illinois. We believe that music has added so much to our lives, and we want to be good stewards so that our children will benefit from the joyful experience of orchestral music. For these reasons, it is all the more disheartening to see the article of last week. As I understand it, the group that conducted their survey was not officially elected by their peers who play regularly in the ISO. We did not receive a copy of their survey to know what types of ques-
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