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Hi Ship of Fools,
Thanks for sharing your information and also thanks to the other poster. My husband and I are coming from Putney Vt., just North of Brattleboro in the southeastern part of the state. Brattleboro is a great town as well as Putney.Its quite a bit like Asheville socio-politically but 1/4 the size. we are moving for several reasons, we've been in Vt many years and we're ready for a change and a bit larger music, restaurant scene, our son is living in Asheville and we'd like to be closer, and we've grown weary of the long winters, and very substantial amount of snow, particularly since we are no longer down hill skiers (so we play in the snow much less than in earlier years). We are looking forward to four seasons but with a much longer Spring and Fall. We are aware that we will be giving up an extremely pristine environment, and for the most part a progressive and accepting community( it has been a superb place to raise a child) but hope we will find some of that in Asheville, though we're aware of the local air pollution which wafts over from Tenn. We live close to the border of NH, also a beautiful state though not as socially/ politically progressive as Vermont. We have a friend that has a second home in the North East Kingdom. That is the ultimate area for pristine beauty but quite remote. Burlington and surround, on Lake Champlain is also a very nice area to consider. Best of luck to you in your move north. Linda
Yes it seems that many Vermonters who move down here are coming from either Brattleboro or Burlington. Rarely do I hear of someone coming from the NEK, just because once you get there, why would you ever want to leave? I actually know Putney fairly well, just because I happen to know a guy who lived in Putney for 11 years who now lives in West Burke (in the NEK). Personally, the reason I like the NEK and don't like Burlington/Brattleboro is because of the extremely "progressive" atmosphere in those "big cities". In fact, my one reservation about VT is the fact that it's the only state I know of that embraces the National Socialist Party as legitimate. I don't begrudge anyone who feels that way, but it's not my bag. Still, that is the benefit of NH: it is not nearly as extreme politically as VT is; they still have town-hall meeting style local government, etc., and it's a much more "free" state in terms of less regulations and taxes. Not that the taxes aren't there, there are just less of them. Still, the NEK is where I'm aiming for.
Anyway, back on topic, it is mind-blowing to me that someone who has "lived in WNC all his life" would not even know what the TVA is. Do you live under a rock? And having never heard of the air pollution... I guess it just goes to show what people don't know about their own surroundings.
The Canton paper plant smell IS greatly exaggerated on this message board. It's a plain fact. I drove THROUGH downtown Canton two weeks ago, and I could hardly smell it there! I don't know what you people are smelling, but chances are, it's not that paper plant. Either that, or I just have a terrible nose, but if you're claiming to smell it down the river in Brevard, well, there's just no way. I think that if you're somewhere like Fairview or Brevard and you're smelling a bad smell, it's probably just something close by that doesn't normally smell, not the Canton paper plant. That place isn't even very big! Personally, I would not mind living in Canton at all; I think it's a nice town, and the paper mill smell would not keep me from living there because it's hardly noticeable. Living in town, you would get used to that real quick; everyone I have talked to who lives there says they forget it's even there.
The prevailing winds in the United States are westerly, so pollution that is generated in the Midwest or Tennessee blows east into North Carolina and other eastern states.
I assure you I can smell the plant from fairview. It only happens a few times a year when the air is right, but its there. I know what it smells like and there is no confusing it with any other smell.
Some people don't care, others don't want anything to do with it. I am just trying to give the OP the whole picture, not sugar coating anything.
^ I just think it's odd because I live in Oakley, which is closer to Canton than Fairview is, and I have never smelled the plant at my house. Like I said, I might just have a bad nose.
The only time I ever smell anything is when I am in downtown Canton on a low over cast day and even then it is not something that just makes me want to vomit.
All of you people who claim that you smell the paper mill in all these very few away places are just so convinced that what you smell just has to be coming from Canton so even if it happen to be just someone walking by who passes wind, you will still fight till you dying breath that what you smelled is the paper mill even when that someone tells you that it was actually them.
Scientifically speaking, it is not possible for a smell to stay concentrated enough to be able to travel 25 to 30 miles or more away. The winds & atmosphere will cause the smell to dissipate rather quickly. If a smell was strong enough & dense enough to still be smelled 30 miles away then at its source the smell would have to be so strong that no human could stand it, there is no way any human could possible get use to a smell that strong.
The EPA constantly regulated the mill & works with them constantly to develop new ways to make the odor as minimal as possible, but some people will never be happy until the mill closes. However I don't see that happening any time soon, it has been in operation now for 109 years and will probably last another 109 years.
The only time I ever smell anything is when I am in downtown Canton on a low over cast day and even then it is not something that just makes me want to vomit.
All of you people who claim that you smell the paper mill in all these very few away places are just so convinced that what you smell just has to be coming from Canton so even if it happen to be just someone walking by who passes wind, you will still fight till you dying breath that what you smelled is the paper mill even when that someone tells you that it was actually them.
Scientifically speaking, it is not possible for a smell to stay concentrated enough to be able to travel 25 to 30 miles or more away. The winds & atmosphere will cause the smell to dissipate rather quickly. If a smell was strong enough & dense enough to still be smelled 30 miles away then at its source the smell would have to be so strong that no human could stand it, there is no way any human could possible get use to a smell that strong.
The EPA constantly regulated the mill & works with them constantly to develop new ways to make the odor as minimal as possible, but some people will never be happy until the mill closes. However I don't see that happening any time soon, it has been in operation now for 109 years and will probably last another 109 years.
Ahh, so you're a scientist now, who would have guessed! Well I am too and I worked for the USGS office of water quality and regularly worked on studies related to both water and air pollution. First, the human nose is an amazing detector that can distinguish sulfide odors at levels well below what we could measure in field studies. So yes it is possible to smell sulfides and other gaseous pollutants miles form their sources. A couple of the major pollutants emitted by cellulose digestors are mercaptans and dimehtyl sulfide--commonly found in human farts and that along the various other gases coming out the stacks is what Canton smells like. I used to work at a site near the cellulose plant in Front Royal VA and when the wind was out of the west, I could smell their emissions miles to the east as I drove out I66. I drove through Canton last Friday and both my passenger and I had headaches afterward. We then drove over 276 to Brevard and the smell was still with us there and up along 191 as far an Mills River. I have also smelled it often heading west on I40 towards W. Asheville. For those that live near the place there's something my grandad used to say that seems appropriate here--you can get used to a turd under your nose if you leave it there long enough. Baiscally long term exposure to the smell leads to olfactory fatigue and you can't smell it however the health impacts are still there. Of course there are others who are just in denial. I'm glad I live in Weaverville
All of you people who claim that you smell the paper mill in all these very few away places are just so convinced that what you smell just has to be coming from Canton so even if it happen to be just someone walking by who passes wind, you will still fight till you dying breath that what you smelled is the paper mill even when that someone tells you that it was actually them.
The same could be said of yourself who is just SO CONVINCED that its impossible to smell it.
You clearly know nothing about weather patterns either to say its impossible.
I had cable, it was a problem from the start, a lot of outages and the picture quality wasn't that great, I went with a Satellite company for tv and internet, best move I ever made and a lot cheaper than cable without the outages.
Even Hear in Waynesville I Hardly ever smell the mill, some days it is pretty bad, but most of the time i cant smell it or don't even notice it....and i dont think iv ever smelled the Mill in Asheville.....
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I actually know Putney fairly well, just because I happen to know a guy who lived in Putney for 11 years who now lives in West Burke (in the NEK). Personally, the reason I like the NEK and don't like Burlington/Brattleboro is because of the extremely "progressive" atmosphere in those "big cities". In fact, my one reservation about VT is the fact that it's the only state I know of that embraces the National Socialist Party as legitimate. I don't begrudge anyone who feels that way, but it's not my bag. Still, that is the benefit of NH: it is not nearly as extreme politically as VT is; they still have town-hall meeting style local government, etc., and it's a much more "free" state in terms of less regulations and taxes. Not that the taxes aren't there, there are just less of them. Still, the NEK is where I'm aiming for.
