Thank you to the Gazette for covering the Amherst Town Council’s decision to buy another gas school bus. I was present at both council meetings, and dismayed by many councilors’ comments.
They did not seem to recall Amherst’s commitment to speedily move to 100% renewable energy. They did not seem to be considering the United Nations report about the looming climate emergency. And even after they heard that a new bus was not needed until winter, and that it was possible to temporarily lease a bus, they continued to see the purchase of a bus as an “emergency.”
They voted down a motion to learn more about the cost of electric buses. Questions would have included: Over the lifetime of an electric bus, how much is projected in savings for the town? How do we access the $75 million from the Volkswagen settlement (which would cover 80% of the cost of replacing diesel buses bought before 2010)? How could they not insist on this information? After Councilor Darcy Dumont exercised her right to postpone the decision in order to gather more information, the council president scheduled another meeting in a week.
I came, along with five others, prepared with information and to make comments to the council. It was a lesson in the so-called “greater democracy” of the Amherst Town Council for me. The meeting was only 30 minutes long, part of the time was used getting the sound system to work, and none of the public was allowed to comment.
Within a few minutes, the Town Council voted down the motion to advise the town to look into the possibility of buying an electric bus. It was “business as usual.” Many Amherst school children just went on strike because adults are not doing enough to fight climate change. What message are we sending to our children when their new school bus is powered by fossil fuel?
Felicia Mednick
Amherst