To the editor:

I have lived in Westport my entire life, all 18 years of it. My parents taught me to respect the rule of law and my elders. They also taught me to keep an open mind. The debate over industrial solar developments in Westport has me confused.

I attended the Planning Board meeting in July and left the meeting with more questions than answers. I then went to the town website and read the Solar Bylaws. With that in mind, here are some things that I don’t understand …

I don’t understand why this French-based solar company (CVE North America) would choose Westport as one of its first sites in the USA. We are a mile from the ocean where fog frequently blankets the area. In the winter we have a lot of cloudy weather.

I don’t understand why CVE contradicts its own standards. I quote from the company website, “We prefer to seek out human-used sites (polluted land, former brown fields, industrial landfills, former quarries) for installing our ground-based power plants.” And again, “CVE North America’s strategy begins with acquiring ready-to-build projects.” Really?

I don’t understand why folks call these commercial developments “farms.” They are commercial industrial developments or as CVE puts it, “power plants.”

I don’t understand why large-scale commercial developments are even considered in areas zoned residential/farming, especially within the Westport River watershed.

I don’t understand why we don’t value and protect Westport’s dwindling natural resources. The natural beauty of this town is why we live here. Why destroy that beauty? It’s what brings tourists to boost our local economy.

I don’t understand why CVE chooses to clear cut over 18 acres. With heavy rains from our increasingly strong storms there will be run- off into neighboring properties damaging fields, flooding basements, and the Westport River.

I don’t understand why I don’t understand.

Ben Leuvelink

Westport