Long Islander's Blog (3,091)

Some gems:

• Studies have shown that wind farms can actually be a boon to tourism, if local tourism agencies market them as a tourist attraction.
• Wind power-related avian deaths are less than those associated with other forms of energy, and much less than those associated with the average house cat.
• Rural communities that are host to a turbine can see an increase in the tax base, as the potential for income from the land is realized.
• There is no need for…

Here's a 21 minute audio interview with windy Hallie Gilman dated 3/7/16. The reporter, Tory Ryden, hopefully won "Softball Pitcher of the Year" for this interview where Ms. Ryden terms wind turbines as "majestic" and pejoratively refers to opponents as NIMBY's. 

http://wgan.com/podcasts/030516-hallie-gilman/

and…

I haven't yet watched but look forward to doing so this evening. Hopefully fact checkers can review and comment if warranted.

THE MAINE EVENT

Wind Power in Maine

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Aired: 02/11/201827:.

Gov. Paul LePage recently imposed a moratorium on new wind energy projects in Maine. Discussing the issue are renewable energy…

In 2010 NRCM's Dylan Voorhees suggested that by 2012 it would be possible that wind power could be supplying 20% of New England's electricity needs. Don't take our word for it. Simply scroll to the 24 minutes and 45 second mark at the following link. …

The new year has brought only bad tidings for the future of wind energy development in Maine: The Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) is reconsidering an offshore pilot, Gov. Paul LePage is seeking to limit new development, and Maine wind failed to succeed in Massachusetts’ recent clean energy request for proposals (RFP). Below is a recap of the latest wind power developments so far this year.…

Angus King's 22 Record Hill Wind Turbines from atop Mahoosuc Land Trust's Rumford Whitecap Property

The Maine Land Trust Network has a piece in the Portland Press Herald today talking about the importance of tourism. See the link to this piece at the bottom of this post.

One would hope that the Maine Land Trust Network…

To build the new $27 billion gas export plant on the Arctic Ocean that now keeps the lights on in Massachusetts, Russian firms bored wells into fragile permafrost; blasted a new international airport into a pristine landscape of reindeer, polar bears, and walrus; dredged the spawning grounds of the endangered Siberian sturgeon in the Gulf of Ob to accommodate large ships; and commissioned a fleet of 1,000-foot icebreaking tankers likely to kill seals and disrupt whale…

Lock up the carbon in wood products Maine can sell rather than fecklessly  attempting to avoid CO2 emissions by desecrating Maine with wind turbines.

• Wood: The only fully renewable heavy duty building material. No waste in production of CLT products.
• A growing forest absorbs 1.4 tons of carbon for every ton of wood produced, and harvested trees sequester carbon in its solid form. A building constructed with 100m3 of CLT offsets the equivalent annual…

Congratulations to Gov. Paul LePage for introducing a bill to repeal the Expedited Windpower Act, enacted in 2008. It is about time the Legislature repealed that act, which is destroying Maine’s mountains.

The 2008 act was prepared by a top-heavy group of power companies, developers and conservation organizations. There is no mention in their report of preventing damage to the fragile mountains and the surrounding ecosystems.

Those same mountains are the sponges that collect…

I am not sure which is worse: the state Public Utilities Commission, whose members authorized an unconscionable 18 percent rate increase (in a period when inflation is less than 2 percent), or the Maine Legislature, which continues to oppose Quebec hydroelectricity, delivered to our homes and businesses at one-third the price we currently pay.…

Clyde Wind Farm - Now that's where I want to spend my vacation!

Wind farms erected in scenic landscapes could be a turn-off for tourists, according to a report.

The findings contradict previous studies which suggested the green energy schemes had no overall impact on visitors to Scotland

The latest analysis, carried out for Mountaineering…

Some excerpts:

• “I do not believe the Applicant has met the burden of proof that there will be no impact on tourism. I’m not sure I know one way or the other. I was critical of the methodology and findings. I did not find them to be particularly adequate or convincing. I did not find the witness to be particularly knowledgeable about the state, its tourist destinations, and I didn’t feel there was an adequate outreach to attempt to fill that gap.”
• “Impact to property…

“We do not support that kind of energy,” said Cathy Corkery, director of the group’s New Hampshire chapter. “What we do support is localized energy,” such as solar panels, she said. “There’s also a huge potential for job creation. That fits into the future of clean energy and the goals that we’re trying to meet.”.............And Corkery said Northern Pass is too large for New England.…

“We felt your company got what they wanted and now they’re leaving,” Selectman Don Hutchins said. “It felt that way; you’ve got your windmills up now you’re gonna go like hell and get your electricity and now the hell with Canton.” ..................…

The transportation department says owners don't pay enough gas taxes to the highway maintenance fund, but environmental groups and drivers say the state should find another way to fill the gap.

The Maine Department of Transportation wants to impose an annual registration fee on the vehicles, $150 for gas-electric hybrid cars and $250 for all-electric models.

An extra fee is needed to make hybrid and all-electric owners pay their fair share of state…

Update 2/9/18 - The segment is supposed to run tonight or Monday. It may be fairly short.

UPDATE at 9:10PM 2/7/18 - I watched and DVR'd the program and the segment never ran. I suspect another segment ran over. I will update when I receive more information. Apologies for any inconvenience.…

Sherman, ME - a gateway community as promised or just Maine's next industrial wind dead zone?

While it may very well make sense now to fully support tourism at the 500 day old Katahdin Woods & Waters  National Monument, it's sad to see a lover of Maine's environment criticizing Governor LePage's protection of Maine tourism from…

A Central Maine Power Co. executive disputes a December report that the company’s $200 million smart meter system crashed during the October 2017 wind storm.

Speaking Tuesday before a state legislative committee about the October storm, Eric Stinneford, CMP’s vice president, controller and treasurer, said the comment by a company spokesman that the system had flatlined was “unfortunate and uninformed.”…

So is this reporter suggesting the smartest policy is to catch unwitting citizens off guard? How about doing that in the Berkshires or on Cape Cod? 

"Even so, the Baker administration believed that out of 46 bids, Northern Pass had the best chance to deliver the most electricity and at the earliest date. Yes, the opposition was loud, but…

All sources of generation that comply with Rhode Island’s RES will be eligible, including solar, biomass, small hydro and land-based and offshore wind.

However, the competitive nature of the solicitation may determine which projects are selected, and the current higher price of offshore wind in the United States may rule out this resource unless a carve-out or other means of differentiating this resource is provided........................

But New England as a whole also…