If a test of one’s mettle is made in a trial by fire, the Adams County Board of Supervisors is certainly being tested at the moment.

A little over three months into the new year and the board has:

4Fired the county attorney, then rehired him.

4Discovered that the county-owned hospital is in debt up to its eyeballs and been asked to provide tax support for it.

4Found the infamous missing front-end loader really had only existed for several years on paper, having been sold at auction years before.

In the latest little adventure, a mineral rights dispute may delay the much-ballyhooed Rentech project, tangling up what’s been touted as a potentially billion-dollar investment.

Rentech’s plans have been, and continue to be, speculative, meaning the company must raise investment capital to make it happen.

Rentech has, company leaders believe, invented a new process to turn coal into liquid fuel. The Germans actually invented the process, but Rentech says it has perfected it.

So they have a better mousetrap, just not enough money to build the mousetrap manufacturing plant.

With petroleum oil costs constantly dancing near or surpassing record prices, the likelihood that Rentech’s perfume will soon capture a suitor improves daily.

Is it a bit of a long shot?

Sure. But despite rumors to the contrary, the county hasn’t bought the IP land yet, and they’ve mostly only spent legal fees in trying to get the land sold to Rentech.

Does the massive potential economic impact continue to outweigh the apparent minimal risks?

We think so.

Hopefully, the supervisors will have the internal mettle to help the project keep churning ahead, despite the constant blasts of fire lapping at them.