Good Morning All.
This may seen a bit off topic but I assure you it's not.
I own a commercial LED company in central Florida. We focus our efforts on warehouse
(LED high bay) and LED street lighting. The problem that LLEG is experiencing with
the Berlin project is a problem we experience every day. Selling local municipal governments on new technology can be a daunting task. Our LED streetlights consume
25% of the power of conventional streetlights, last approx. 15 years and require no maintenance (conventional lights are replaced every 2 years), yet we experience harsh resistance on nearly every project. Local gov'ts resist
technology out of fear. Politicians are ALWAYS focused on 2 things and all decisions are based on these 2 things, #1) election, and #2) re-election. They fear the unknown and how a wrong decision may hurt their re-election chances. The voting public can be broken up into 3 groups, the 18-35 year old group, the 35-45 year old group and the 45 and older group. The younger group embraces technological change and will
passionately fight for it. The middle group looks at both sides and weighs decisions carefully. The older group likes the status quo and resists change. It looks like LLEG is stuck with a town full of the latter in Berlin. This group tends to be more active in local politics, and therefore the loudest voice of dissent.
If Laidlaw can focus their efforts on educating the younger voters in Berlin they will have a passionate, local voice for the Biomass project.
Just my 2 cents.
AI
