January 8, 2001

Once again I am baffled by what I read in The News-Item as compared to what I have heard at another place. The Jan. 5 edition mentions that Dr. Edward Twiggar made a brief report to the Shamokin Creek Restoration Alliance on a week-long seminar he attended. What he heard had to do with the value of usable environmental resources. According to Dr. Twiggar, " New industries are looking not only at the business advantages, but also the overall ambiance of an area, how it can be used for recreation by employees, how does the area appear to the eye, and such. "

Is this the same Dr. Twiggar that I heard speak at the prison scoping meeting in May 2000? At that meeting he spoke very clearly in support of locating a federal prison in Brush Valley! Does he not realize that Brush Valley is a natural resource that is scheduled for destruction!?

I'd like to remind the doctor what we have been saying for almost a year now is exactly what he heard at this seminar. Business leaders consider recreation one of the most important considerations when they look at an industrial site. Brush Valley is the most perfect site within 30 miles of Shamokin to have for recreation.

A recreation area in Brush Valley will do more to lure industry into our area than destroying that valley will accomplish.

If Dr. Twiggar or anyone would like to speak with us so we can outline our program, they can contact us at the BVPA, P.O. Box 301, Shamokin.

Joseph F. Rebar, Treasurer
BVPA