Yet another example of waste, fraud, and abuse by our clueless City Council. Just think of what $350,000 could have purchased for our schools . . .

Suprise its broken again !!!!! How much more money will it cost to replace the big belt and who will pay for it ????

I noticed on Newport Now

(http://groups.yahoo.com/group/KnowingNewport/messages?o=1)

that Jo Eva Gaines (on Aug 4) sees the harvester working early every morning from her window.

Even as it's been broken for the last couple weeks? There's also a post there by Kate Leonard who NOW sees the folly of the purchase. Good luck recouping our investment.

Broken AGAIN

OK it has a new belt paid for by the manufacturer and it is working as designed. Now does anyone have any constructive ideas for using all the collected seaweed?

Got to wonder if BB works either for the city or for Newport-Now. Both are unabashed cheerleaders for this $350K boondoggle. Uses for the collected seaweed. Ok BB I'll bite, the initial plan was to sell it to our local island farmers for fertilizer and to spread on the fields. Was this plan vetted to the farmers? Did they have a place to store their "harvest", did they have a means of disposing of the seaweed before they purchased their ridiculous machine? What did they do with the seaweed before the arrival of the miraculous "harvester"? Likely a dumpster or a pile on the beach.

Our city council is wedded to asinine and untested ideas that reek of incompetence and stupidity. The UV system at the end of the beach is another long term expense that likely WILL NOT WORK. The problem is E. coli, and if you do a little research you'll find that this comes from human feces. Not animals, not roads, human waste. Eliminate the source, eliminate the bacterial problem. AND, you will find that the beach has not met standards for much of this summer, while you've been swimming in it, thanks again to our local cheerleading media for not exposing this fact.

Constructive ideas work for concepts that have a chance of succeeding, not for boondoggles.

Gee Dave I didn't expect to be blasted by saying the machine is working now as it is supposed to. No I don't work for the city nor Newport Now. But as a concerned citizen. I have followed the harvester project very closely. The disposal of seaweed on local farms as it was done many years ago was nixed by DEM. So it is hauled to a DEM "certified" farm for composting. The fact of the matter is the seaweed creates a terrible smell if left on the beach and holds seagull crap that will cause high bac readings. Remember chem class with those petri dishes filled with agar to cultivate the bacteria? Well agar is made from seaweed. The DOH tests for enterococci not for E Coli both are found in the gut of warm blooded animals. Enterococci is used because it is a better indicater. Ecoli is present in seagulls,cows and pets not just humans. It is also found in beef that you buy at the store. Short of bulldozing all of the bailey's brook watershed back to the way it was 400 years ago and removing every living creature then nuking the place you will get bacterium in the water from runoff. I didn't say anything about the UV system but seeing you brought it up I will say that I feel that there are better natural ways to address the runoff into the moat, unfortunity it would require making the lower reservoir into a marsh and cost alot of money. A far as the cost of the machine, I hear you with government spending from local to Federal out of control it is logical to look at the harvester and say what the heck? But with no seaweed in the water and no closures because of runnoff, parking revenue increases will more than offset the investment. Having a clean beach also brings in tourist dollars that are spent with local merchants. The question as what to do with the seaweed is still on the table. Sushi anyone?
BB

The seaweed eater is not a usable tool. Any engineer will tell you there is no process to make this machine a good investment. Yes...it picks up seaweed...so what! It can only be used early in the morning (no people) in light wave conditions (whoops...southerly breezes all summer!). Oh...and maintenance of a complicated, one-off machine can't be cheap. No wonder we are the only city to own one!!!

The City of Newport, Rhode Island is launching its official use of the See Click Fix platform via Report It! Newport on February 18, 2016. All relevant items that might have been submitted prior to this date will need to be resubmitted into Report It! Newport in order to be acknowledged, tracked and corrected as might be applicable. Thanks.