The paper's recent editorials concerning the removal of the Fort Halifax dam have been critical of Save Our Sebasticook (SOS). Does the editorial board really think that citizens should not have the right to participate in the decision-making process that directly affects their community?

SOS was formed in August 2001 after local people discovered the impact of the 1998 Kennebec Hydro Developers Group Agreement that now has sealed the fate of the Fort Halifax dam. Negotiations leading to this agreement were confidential.

From the beginning, SOS advocated for a balanced solution through the installation of the required fish lift while preserving the renewable energy generation and 100-year-old ecosystem.

Readers deserve to know that the three-member Editorial Board includes the Opinion Page editor, who is the former executive director of Maine Rivers. Maine Rivers was formed as a project of the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM), which is a member of the Kennebec Coalition. The council has advocated for dam removal and is a signatory to the 1998 agreement.

While the paper has the right to its opinion to influence the outcome, it also has the obligation to inform readers of its intrinsic bias.

Fortunately, we have the freedom in this country to express our views and exercise our right of due process to ensure that the greater public interest is protected. The paper obviously resents this freedom. It would appear that the editorial board approves of confidential agreements rather than open government.

Ken Fletcher

Winslow

Fletcher2@roadrunner.com