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By Tony Wheeler
Staff Writer A blacksmithing class at the Jackson County Green Energy Park allows smithys to use one-of-a-kind methane-powered forges. The park in Dillsboro is hosting a gathering of blacksmiths Sunday, May 18 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. A small ceremony to dedicate the greenhouses at the Jackson County Green Energy Park to the memory of Coy Melton will be held Wednesday, May 21, at 1:30 p.m. Melton donated the steel used in the constructions of the greenhouses, which are now fully operational.Coy Melton and his wife owned a retail greenhouse operation in the Greens Creek area for many years. After they retired, the houses sat unused for 10 or 15 years. When they heard about plans for the Green Energy Park, they offered to donate their old greenhouses. All of the structural steel was still very much usable. Jackson County Grounds and Maintenance Department personnel helped demolish the structures, along with the Haywood Community College Greenhouse Club. “We harvested all of the steel, removed all of the debris from the greenhouses, and gave them back a nice pasture. In turn, we saved $25,000 in steel costs,” said Timm Muth, director of the The Jackson County Green Energy Park. The Jackson County Green Energy Park in Dillsboro now boasts six fully-operational greenhouses. Jackson County currently uses two of the houses to grow their own landscaping plants. Ray’s Florist in Dillsboro rents the remaining four houses. Melton attended the grand opening in October 2006, and saw some of the structural steel up, but died before the greenhouses were finished and in operation.“We wanted to honor his and his wife’s gift to the county with a commemorative plaque to be posted,” Muth said. The county currently uses two of the houses to grow their own landscaping plants. Ray’s Florist in Dillsboro rents the remaining four houses. Interestingly, one of the county employees (Randy Cabe) and one of Ray’s Florist’s employees (Cathy Jones) who work in the greenhouses, began working in the Melton’s original greenhouses as teenagers. The Jackson County Green Energy Park (JCGEP) is a landfill recovery program located in the historic small town of Dillsboro, N. C. The JCGEP mission is to offer environmental protection, educational opportunities, and increased economic development to the community through the utilization of landfill gas and other clean, renewable energy resources. The Green Energy Park was awarded Project of the Year in 2006 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA recognized the accomplishments of numerous landfill methane partners who are generating clean, renewable energy while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Coy Melton and his wife owned a retail greenhouse operation in the Greens Creek area for many years. After retiring, the couple donated the old greenhouses to the energy park. Future plans for the JCGEP include the development of pottery and glass-blowing studios, a retail gallery, a café, public classroom areas, and a conference room. Once fully operational, JCGEP will have added 20 or more jobs to the economy, while forming bridges between local educational facilities and community partners. Through this innovative project, JCGEP is transforming an environmental liability into an economic asset for the community.By burning landfill gas as fuel, the park project provides direct and immediate improvements to the environment and local air quality. According to the JCGEP, the yearly reductions in emissions include the prevention of 222 tons of methane entering the atmosphere and the offsetting of 550 tons of CO2 that have been created by fossil fuels instead. That is comparable to removing 916 vehicles off the road, or planting 1,305 acres of forest, or preventing the use of 11,104 barrels of oil, or displacing the use of 521,870 gallons of gas, they said. The energy park is open to the public. For more information and to schedule tours ahead of time, contact the park at 828- 631-0271 and visit them on the Web at www.jcgep.org. According to Muth, a blacksmith studio is also completed and space for blacksmiths is currently available. The Blacksmith Village at the park will host a gathering for area blacksmiths to meet, exchange ideas, and work with the one-of-a-kind, methane-powered forges this Sunday, May 18, from 1 p.m.-3 p.m. |
