All Blog Posts (9,985)

With apologies to CTFWP members who are Sierra Club supporters based on the GOOD things the organization has done in protecting the environment, here comes the proof that Sierra Club was bought off by special interests to promote wind and solar development.  The folks who stand to make a lot of money off this scam have poured their money & influence into Sierra Club, as documented in "Big Donors . . . Big Conflicts".  That has to filter down to Maine, as Sierra Club…

Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker is interested in Hydro power and has file legislation to that effect  - This is good news considering it can reduce the price of renewable energy credits that wind companies now sell for more than they sell electricity.…

I have been checking the ISO-NE website regularly for the past few weeks, since they announced the addition of the "real time fuel mix chart".   The chart is on the bottom of the "ISO Express"  page.   Today's fuel mix has been typical.   Total demand follows a curve from low during the night to high during the day.  …

   Years ago,slick talking hucksters sold their useless product called snake oil which they claimed would cure most human ailments. As long as the liar could move on quickly to the next community before his products real impacts were known to the public,he might survive the noose .

The snake oil salesman has taken on a new form in this century,and they are called wind developers. The only thing saving them presently is the graft accepting politicians that feed their…

One of the most contentious wind power projects has started construction, completely unreported by the Maine media.  The Passadumkeag "Wind Park" will desecrate the highest point of land between Cadillac Mt. and Mt Katahdin.  Initial public reaction reduced the original proposal from 27 turbines sprawled across the 5 mile long monadnock ridge to 14.  The application was filed on February 2, 2012 and the expedited wind…

I am just wondering how John Calvin Stevens' paintings would look with windmills in the background. Bet he would hate the desecration to the environment.

http://www.pressherald.com/2015/07/05/architect-artist-john-calvin-stevens-paintings-at-the-university-of-new-england/comments/

We have been given permission to publish these copyrighted photos of the Oakfield Wind project.   Nothing to add.  The photos sadly tell the story.…

With the conventional generators providing the New England grid with wholesale prices around 5-6 cents per kwh, it is absurd that Deepwater Wind in the shallow waters between Block Island and mainland Rhode Island will come on line starting at 24 cents per kwh. …

The Ellsworth American Newspaper clearly understands the issues regarding the proliferating wind scourge in Maine.  Its good they do, as the stretch of small mountains and ridges along Maine's remote Downeast Coastal region are targeted for heavy wind power development following theBull Hill project.  The problem is all this region consists of Unorganized Territories and tiny towns and plantations all enveloped by the heinous Expedited Wind Permitting Zone.

Here is an excellent quote…

Under LD 828, to remove your township, plantation or municipality from the Expedited Permitting Area, you must submit a petition to LUPC requesting it. It must be in a format provided by LUPC and include the signatures of at least 10% of the number of registered voters residing in the township, plantation, municipality or portion thereof that voted in the most recent gubernatorial election.

To find out how many of your township's registered voters actually voted last…

I know we have already been paying for transmission upgrades!  But how are Bangor Hydro customers going to bear the brunt of this?

https://bangordailynews.com/2015/06/30/business/power-bills-to-go-up-for-bangor-hydro-customers/

Sun Edison has gained funding for and is starting the Bingham project.  More ridgetops will be devastated for useless profiteering.  They make it sound like Maine is getting a GIFT.…

After seeing what Iberdrola has done in Maine, it looks like they are getting a rejection from our neighbors to the south.  Why couldn't our PUC have seen through Iberdrola before we got taken?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-06-30/iberdrola-s-3-billion-takeover-of-uil-rejected-by-connecticut

 A new organization has been started in MA by Tom Thompson who lives in Scituate , MA where the turbine installed in his town has created a nightmare of noise and shadow flicker for the adjacent residents . Tom has been advocating for appropriate siting for some times while the efforts to demand that the State conducts noise testing have been largely ignored.

I believe that joining Tom in his effort is part of the coalition building we need to develop, as New Englanders , to protect…

In a seesion of the legislature where the Governor has been vetoing legislation , Governor LePage stood up for the rights of the citizens in the state's Unorganized Territories and SIGNED LD 828 into law.  What a long and skillfully fought victory!  The following is the message from UT Citizens for Fair Policy.…

ISO New England is retiring more energy plants and looking to Maine to provide more energy, but openly states that Maine lacks the transmission infrastructure.  Are we supposed to foot the bill?  We are already being told new transmission lines are for us! Really??

http://www.ect.coop/editors-pick/challenges-loom-as-new-england-plants-retire/82516

See

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/earth/energy/windpower/11685082/Wind-farm-subsidies-axed-to-stop-turbines-covering-beautiful-countryside.html

It is interesting that there is no US media coverage of this perspective from Bill Gates.  This article comes from the UK.  The UK doesn't utilize direct taxpayer subsidies like the USA, but instead has forced a "Feed-in Tariff" on the grid, forcing electricity costs to skyrocket.  This, in turn, has led to poor and working class people to endure what has been termed "energy poverty" such that they must sacrifice heavily on other things to try to keep the lights on.…

One of the problems we have continually struggled with is the bias of the Maine media in their complicity with the wind industry in promoting this scourge in Maine.  When I saw this completely biased article in the Lewiston Sun Journal, from a reporter who I know must have my phone number and email from previous interactions (as well as contacts for other wind power critics), I got angry and fired off this email:

"Mr. Karkos, I have to strenuously object to the article…

State of the Environment – Maine DEP Commissioner & Bureau Chiefs…