DEP public meeting ground rules; says nothing about visuals

Dear Interested Person,

As you are aware, the Department has scheduled a public meeting regarding the proposed Canton Mountain Wind Project on March 1, 2012, from 6:00pm to 8:00pm at the Canton Municipal Building on Cross Street in Canton . The purpose of this meeting is to provide all interested persons with an opportunity to provide information to the Department.  Information obtained during the meeting will become part of the Department’s record concerning this project.

The public meeting will be audio recorded and will be conducted in the following format:

1. Introduction                           (5 min)              (public meeting rules and procedures)                 Mark Bergeron, DEP Facilitator

2. Project overview                   (15min)                                                                                     Andy Novey, Applicant Representative

3. DEP permit review process    (15 min)                                                                                    Erle Townsend, DEP Project Manager

4. Public comment period           (1 hr 30 min)

5. Closing                                  (5 min)                                                                                      Mark Bergeron, DEP Facilitator

Public Meeting Ground Rules:

1. Every effort will be made to allow each interested person an opportunity to speak within the allocated time period.  As such, it may be necessary to limit the amount of time each individual has available to speak.  So, we ask in advance for your understanding in this area.

2. All questions and comments should be directed to the Department.  If you have questions that you believe the applicant failed to address or that they should address in more detail in their application, please make the request to the Department.  

If the areas of concern are relevant to a permitting criteria, the Project Manager will follow-up with the applicant to ensure that the appropriate information is in the Department permitting record.

3. Department staff will make every effort to answer your questions during this meeting; however, some technical questions may need to be considered in more detail outside the scope of this meeting.  Therefore, the Department reserves the right to defer answers to some questions until some time after the public meeting but before a Department decision is made.

4. The Department requests that any questions asked by interested persons be provided to the Project Manager in writing at the public meeting at the end of your turn to speak.  This will help to ensure that each question is specifically addressed prior to the issuance of any final permit decision by the Department.  If interested persons wish to provide written comments in addition to questions, they may do so at their discretion.

The Department looks forward to your participation in the public meeting, and welcomes and will consider all comments received during the review of the pending application for the Canton Mountain Wind Project.

I have recently been made aware of the possibility that we may get a significant snow event Thursday. If weather forces postponement of the meeting, I will make every effort to notify all Interested Persons via email at the earliest possible time. In that event, a new meeting date will be chosen and Interested Persons notified via email as soon as possible.

If you have further questions regarding the public meeting, I may be contacted at (207) 991-8078 or via e-mail at erle.townsend@maine.gov.

Sincerely,

Erle Townsend

Environmental Specialist - Division of Land Resource Regulation

Department of Environmental Protection

17 State House Station | Augusta ME 04333

(207) 991-8078 | Erle.Townsend@Maine.gov