Category: Health
We follow local stories of well-being in the Hill Country Observer, from physical and mental health to systems of healthcare and insurance and the challenges of medicine today.
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Issue: November 2011
Fast track to a smart grid
Some raise privacy, health concerns as wireless meters arrive in Vermont By JUDY BERNSTEIN Contributing writer RUTLAND, Vt.Supporters say it’s a big leap forward for energy conservation in Vermont: Over the next few months, utility customers across the state are set to receive new, wireless electric meters. Power companies say the new “smart meters” will read more
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Issue: October 2011
Faster path for wind power?
Mass. weighs bill to streamline development process By CRAIG IDLEBROOK Contributing writer HANCOCK, Mass.When 10 windmills atop Brodie Mountain began generating electricity earlier this year, the Berkshire Wind Power Project became the largest commercial wind farm in Massachusetts. But some say the $65 million project, first proposed back in 1998, offers a cautionary tale about read more
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Issue: September 2011
Equinox Farms responds to food safety and leafy greens
Small producers skeptical of push for national rules By CRAIG IDLEBROOK Contributing writer SHEFFIELD, Mass.As a veteran grower of leafy green vegetables, Ted Dobson has a hard time seeing the need for a new food-safety regimen being pushed by the federal government. For nearly three decades, Dobson has been producing lettuce, salad mixes and other read more
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Issue: June 2011
State takes medicinal pot a step further
Marijuana dispensaries planned for patients under new Vermont law By CRAIG IDLEBROOK Contributing writer BENNINGTON, Vt. Some time ago, a constituent came to state Sen. Dick Sears with an unlikely complaint: He couldn’t get enough high-quality marijuana. The constituent, Mark Tucci, has multiple sclerosis and smokes medically prescribed marijuana to relieve chronic pain and muscle read more