HealthLink

Letter: A simple truth about Salem's power plant

Sat, April 4, 2008

To the editor:

Its Tuesday, the first day of April. The thermometer is climbing past the 50-degree mark on its way to who knows where. My tulips are poking their heads up out of the warming soil (I was very late planting), and thoughts of spring chores stir in my mind.

Now here is the meat of it:

One of the first chores I tackle is the cleaning and sprucing-up of the old sun-porch. Its white railings are usually covered in black dust and ash. Due to long neglect through the winter months, they get a quick vacuuming, then a scrubbing with bleach and detergent to get them shining brightly again.

When I clean something, I don't fool around; I clean it really good.

But hey! Guess what? This year, the old railings aren't covered in black dust and ash. In fact, they don't look too bad at all this year.

It took me all of 10 seconds to realize what a difference a nonfunctioning power plant can make on the railings of my sun-porch, and who knows what else.

I estimate that my house is approximately three-quarters to maybe a mile northwest of the Salem Willows power plant, and if I noticed this difference, then maybe you too have a story to tell. Maybe we should consider how much dirt this electricity is worth.

JERRY KOEN

Beverly