Northampton's WHMP Radio and Montague Community Television are planning on holding a community forum on the proposal by the Kinder-Morgan company to add onto a gas pipeline that would run natural gas from the Gulf of Mexico into New England through several Franklin, Berkshire and Worcester County towns.

The two-hour forum on the proposed expansion of the Tennessee Gas Pipeline and related energy and environmental policy issues will be held on Tuesday, June 3 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Greenfield Community College Dining Commons, which seats 300. The forum is co-produced by Greenfield Community Television and Easthampton Community Access Television

Among the scheduled panelists are:

2nd Berkshire State Representative Paul Mark

2nd Franklin State Representative Denise Andrews

Senior Attorney Shanna Cleveland of the Conservation Law Foundation

Director of External Affairs Eric Johnson of the ISO-New England

Bruce Winn of the Berkshire Environmental Action Team

Journalist Mike Jackson, who has covered the proposal extensively for the Montague Reporter

Executive Director Leigh Youngblood, Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust

Organizers are still waiting to confirm appearances by other experts in public utilities and the natural gas industry but Kinder Morgan has declined to send a representative.

Related: Open Meeting Law complaint postpones Franklin County meeting on gas pipeline



The forum will be hosted by WHMP Franklin County Bureau Chief Chris Collins, attorney Bill Newman, host of WHMP's Bill Newman Show; and WHMP reporter/MassLive.com corespondent Mary Serreze. The forum is free and open to the public and time will be allotted to give audience members an opportunity to speak.

The first hour of the program will focus on the gas pipeline proposal and its impact on the region’s laws and regulations, local resources and property--and how the siting and approval processes work. In the second hour, the participants will address energy policy including natural gas and renewables, safety concerns, and how energy policy decisions are made.

The program will be broadcast live on WHMP 1240 AM/1400 AM/96.9 FM and live-streamed on local TV cable access stations in Montague (Channel 15) and the following areas:

The program will be broadcast live on WHMP 1240 AM/1400 AM/96.9 FM and live-streamed on local TV cable access stations in Montague (Channel 15) and the following areas:

Greenfield GCTV

Amherst Media ACTV

Easthampton ECAT

Northampton NCAT

Frontier FCAT

Athol Orange AOTV

Northfield Bernardston BNCTV

Shelburne Falls Falls TV

The event will also be streamed live on WHMP.com and gctv.org. The audio will be rebroadcast on WHMP the following morning, June 4 from 8 to 10 a.m. The forum will be broadcast on Montague Community TV Channel 17 after the event.