BDN - Oakfield wind farm opponents argue feds failed to study effect on Atlantic salmon

Opponents of a 148-megawatt wind farm in the Aroostook County town of Oakfield that broke ground in September are asking a federal judge to withdraw the project’s permit and require additional review to see if it harms endangered Atlantic salmon.

http://bangordailynews.com/2015/02/12/news/bangor/oakfield-wind-far...

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Comment by Kathy Sherman on February 13, 2015 at 12:36pm
Sorry, I did not clarify that my remarks were all about MA utilities contracts to fulfill legislated mandate for RPS and RGGI, and the contracts signed Oct 13, & approved last March.
Comment by Kathy Sherman on February 13, 2015 at 12:14pm
Beautiful. Can you do a view with turbines - mass of the size First Wind now wants. And really, can't we raise enough to buy a firetruck? A firetruck that may only be needed because of the wind project? This may only be one more threat to you in Maine, but it is the last standing of six projects, three developers. Iberdrola dropped their New Hampshire projects; the other dropped by not putting the money into the game upfront. So it is First, Boston-based, and I was just talking to a local decision-maker. He did not know much, but liked that it was a 'competitve' bid. LOOK- it was not. YIELDCO et rely on mortgaging your future and your resources, and sadly the price that would be paid if I had grandkids. It is the 20 year contract that should be fought - that is the base for the new entity and purported savings. Make them be upfront about transmission costs, reliability impacts and how much fossil will be burned to offset the vagaries of Wind. Then what is the externiality worth, the REC? Again, that is much more than even current cost of electric generation, wholesale.
Comment by Frank J. Heller, MPA on February 13, 2015 at 11:25am

At long as you're in Federal Court, you should be able to add the argument that the loss of forest for access roads, turbine pads, and esp. transmission lines not diminishes the amount of CO2 being offset through production of renewable power, but has a negative effect on air pollution and esp. filtration of rainwater going into lakes.  

Comment by Long Islander on February 12, 2015 at 11:20pm

While I know this is about Atlantic Salmon at this point, I cannot believe what happened earlier in the process regarding many issues, one being scenic impact:

How was it concluded that this project will "not have an unreasonable adverse" effect where scenic impact to a significant scenic resource will be medium to high?

Mattawamkeag Lake is 3,330 acres in size and is located in the Town of Island
Falls and T4 R3 WELS. The lake consists of two large basins and is surrounded by mixed
forest. It is listed as a significant scenic resource in the Maine Wildlands Lake Assessment
(Giffen et al. 1987). Turbines will be visible from 10 percent of Upper Mattawamkeag Lake,
and from 80 percent of Lower Mattawamkeag Lake. The overall scenic impact to Upper
Mattawamkeag Lake will be minimal to low and on Lower Mattawamkeag Lake it will be
medium to high. The VIA concluded that the revised project should not have an unreasonable
adverse effect on the lake’s scenic character or the uses related to the scenic character of the lake.

http://www.maine.gov/dep/ftp/WindPowerProjectFiles/Oakfield/evergre...

 

Maine as Third World Country:

CMP Transmission Rate Skyrockets 19.6% Due to Wind Power

 

Click here to read how the Maine ratepayer has been sold down the river by the Angus King cabal.

Maine Center For Public Interest Reporting – Three Part Series: A CRITICAL LOOK AT MAINE’S WIND ACT

******** IF LINKS BELOW DON'T WORK, GOOGLE THEM*********

(excerpts) From Part 1 – On Maine’s Wind Law “Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine if the law’s goals were met." . – Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, August 2010 https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/From Part 2 – On Wind and Oil Yet using wind energy doesn’t lower dependence on imported foreign oil. That’s because the majority of imported oil in Maine is used for heating and transportation. And switching our dependence from foreign oil to Maine-produced electricity isn’t likely to happen very soon, says Bartlett. “Right now, people can’t switch to electric cars and heating – if they did, we’d be in trouble.” So was one of the fundamental premises of the task force false, or at least misleading?" https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-swept-task-force-set-the-rules/From Part 3 – On Wind-Required New Transmission Lines Finally, the building of enormous, high-voltage transmission lines that the regional electricity system operator says are required to move substantial amounts of wind power to markets south of Maine was never even discussed by the task force – an omission that Mills said will come to haunt the state.“If you try to put 2,500 or 3,000 megawatts in northern or eastern Maine – oh, my god, try to build the transmission!” said Mills. “It’s not just the towers, it’s the lines – that’s when I begin to think that the goal is a little farfetched.” https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/flaws-in-bill-like-skating-with-dull-skates/

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Hannah Pingree on the Maine expedited wind law

Hannah Pingree - Director of Maine's Office of Innovation and the Future

"Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine."

https://pinetreewatch.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/

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