Letters to the editor March 11

New sewer lines are not needed

Do you have money to flush down the toilet? If not, please read this if your sewer rate is going up. Water, gas, electricity and sewer are required to live in a home. Three out of four are based on usage, so why is sewer not?

Why should a person living alone, bathing every other day, laundry once a week pay the same rate as the family with five kids and all seven shower daily, run their dishwasher twice a day and do laundry daily? There should be a base rate, and then the rest of the charge be based on water usage as is done elsewhere.

We are told the new sewer lines being put in are going to need replacing in 30 years so we need to pay for that now. Huh? There are towns that have 100-year-old sewer lines, so why do they expect these new lines to only last 30 years?

How many of us will still be here in 30 years?

The truth is all these developments, commercial and residential, that did not make a go of it are why these lines are being put in, and since they did not go as planned, we who live here have to make up the money the sewer department did not get from the developers.

Did you vote for these developments? Let the developers and the commissioners who approved them make up the money and not put the burden on we homeowners.

Thelma Rogers

Minden

Air quality permit request raises concerns

This letter is in response to an air quality permit request from Plum Mining currently open for public comment until March 6 - Plum Mining Company, LLC Phase -2 Nevada Mercury Operating Permit. Concerns by the public may be sent to Mr. Rob Bamford at the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Air Pollution Control.

I have a number of concerns as a resident of the town of Silver City, part of the historic Comstock area located where the ground water, surface water and air quality may be affected by activity of Plum Mining.

With consideration to the information that follows, a public hearing and a complete environmental impact statement that will address potential harmful impacts to people, animals and water and air quality seems prudent.

The Plum Mining facility in American Flat will operate upstream of Silver City, in the headwaters basin of American Ravine Creek, tributary to Gold Canyon Creek and the Carson River.

Keeping in mind that the Comstock area and Carson River have considerable mercury contamination due to historical mining, with both land sites and the Carson River designated as Superfund sites due to mercury contamination, this poses obvious concerns about mercury.

Releasing any additional mercury whatsoever into a region that is already suffering from mercury contamination seems unreasonable.

Ideally, a permit would not allow the mining company to test and report on its own activities but would be required to hire a qualified independent consulting firm to test, report, etc.

Quest Lakes

Silver City

New idea for juvenile detention center

This is regarding the commentary by John Simms, chief juvenile probation officer, March 3.

Mr. Simms, decrying cuts to the budget, states that he is advocating for the kids. We seem to get a lot of that lately, especially from those with an obvious self-interest bias, such as job security.

I think all of us can agree that government has to cut spending in order to balance budgets and avoid future deficits. We don't all agree as how to accomplish these goals. With regard to the juvie situation, I believe I have a suggestion that will save the taxpayers a lot of money, while guaranteeing a reduction in juvenile crime/detention, and recidivism.

Many years ago I read a book about a military detention center located somewhere on an island in the Pacific Ocean during World War II. The function of this center was to make good soldiers out of bad soldiers.

Applying the methods modernly, a day at my juvie center would go something like this:

Up at 5 a.m. for a tasty, nourishing breakfast of beans, bread, and water. Then, pick up your backpack containing 25-50 pounds of rocks and hump it, back and forth, from one end of the exercise yard to the next. Repeat until lunch for more of breakfast. After lunch, more exercise with the backpack until dinner time, and then some more tasty breakfast.

Ron Orbas

Carson City