Majority Say State Should Take Time In License Renewal For Project Due To
Concerns About Economy, Environment And Access To Water
STANLY COUNTY, N.C., July 7 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In a poll
commissioned by the North Carolina Water Rights Committee to gauge public
opinion regarding Alcoa's efforts for renewal of a 50-year federal license
for a monopoly on hydroelectric power from the Yadkin River Basin in Stanly
County ("the Yadkin Hydroelectric Project"), North Carolina voters
overwhelmingly say that the people of North Carolina, rather than a
multinational firm like Alcoa, should control water rights in the Yadkin
River. Additionally, the survey found that by at least a 2-to-1 margin,
voters in every region of North Carolina say the state should take time to
study the renewal of Alcoa's license because this issue will affect North
Carolina's economy, the environment, and access to water for the next 50
years. Results were the same across all political affiliations, ethnic
groups and genders.
The North Carolina Water Rights Committee authorized Hamilton Campaigns
of Washington, D.C. to conduct a telephone poll of 500 likely N.C. voters
between June 30 and July 1. The poll occurred after several legislators and
citizens disputed results of a recent previous survey created on behalf of
Alcoa as being slanted in the wording of its questions. The margin of error
for a sample of this size is plus or minus 4.4 percentage points, at the 95
percent confidence level.
The Stanly County Commissioners are on record as opposing Alcoa's
operation of the Yadkin Hydroelectric Project and has asked the state
intervene in the matter, saying that the state's water rights for a public
resource such as the Yadkin River should take precedence over a private
firm such as Alcoa having an unlimited monopoly on it. Similar resolutions
have been signed by Davidson, Randolph, Iredell, Anson, Cabarrus and Union
County Boards of Commissioners, as well as the Centralina Council of
Governments.
Governor Mike Easley, Lieutenant Governor and Senate Minority Leader
Phil Berger have all sent letters to FERC requesting that it delay its
decision so the matter can further be studied by the state. Based on this
poll, the voters of North Carolina overwhelmingly agree.
Recently, in a bi-partisan effort, several members of the North
Carolina General Assembly introduced language to create a commission that
would study the impacts of FERC granting a 50-year license to Alcoa Power
Generating Inc.'s operations on the river. The provision was under
discussion as part of the state's budget legislation, but may end up being
debated separate and apart from the state budget bill. State Senate
Majority Leader Tony Rand has noted that the only people to contact him to
oppose the study provision have been lobbyists for Alcoa.
Key findings of the survey include:
-- Six out of 10 voters say they agree with people who say the State of
North Carolina should take a limited time period to study the license
renewal because this issue will affect our economy, the environment, and
our access to water for the next 50 years.
-- An overwhelming majority (86 percent) say rights to water in the
Yadkin River should be managed and controlled by the people of North
Carolina.
-- A similar majority (87 percent) say the most important use of water
in the Yadkin River is to ensure that there is adequate drinking water
during the current drought.
Documents outlining survey questions and results, their exact wording
and their percentage of responses are available online at
http://www.mmimarketing.com.
SOURCE North Carolina Water Rights Committee
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Related links:
http://www.mmimarketing.com
CONTACT:
Ryal Curtis for North Carolina Water Rights
Committee, +1-919-233-6600, ryal@mmimarketing.com
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