Voices Protecting Bowers Mountain

This is the press release which was sent out in conjunction with a press conference sponsored by PPDLW back on December 16, 2010. As we prepare to help our friends Downeast in their effort to protect Bowers Mountain and the Downeast Lakes Watershed, I thought this would be a good time to post it here on VOW.

PPDLW Contacts: Kevin Gurall, President (kevin@ppdlw.org)
Gary Campbell (gary@ppdlw.org)

Partnership for the Preservation of the Downeast Lakes Watershed (PPDLW) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the long-term preservation of Maine's Downeast Lakes Watershed through conservation, environmental action and opposition to inappropriate industrial or commercial development. We are currently devoting all our efforts to stopping an industrial wind project in Carroll and Kossuth being planned by Champlain Wind LLC (First Wind). The project, known as Bowers Mountain, will permanently damage the significant recreational economy of the Downeast Lakes watershed. It will threaten the jobs of many guides and the future of many sporting camps.

Today we are joined by the Maine Professional Guides Association and the Maine Sporting Camp Association to voice our opposition to land-based wind projects like Bowers Mountain. We ask Governor-Elect LePage to place a moratorium on grid scale industrial wind projects until scientific cost-benefit studies of the projects currently online can be completed. In addition, we ask that the legislature repeal the Expedited Wind Permitting Law (LD 2283) because it fast-tracks the destruction of Maine’s scenic character and derails the recreational economy that depends on it. We are not against renewable energy, nor are we opposed to wind-generated energy when it is sited intelligently. When industrial wind runs up against the Quality of Place that is Maine’s stated brand, none of us can afford to remain silent.

The Bowers Mountain Project

Although First Wind changes the number of turbines planned from one week to the next, their most recent statement calls for a column of 28 turbines stretching from Bowers Mountain in Carroll to Dill Ridge in Kossuth. Each of these Siemens 2.3MW turbines will rise 428 feet above the ridgeline and weigh 304 tons.

Since the Bowers/Dill ridgeline rises 800’ above the level of the surrounding lakes, these turbines will be more than half again as tall as the ridgeline. They will tower over the entire Downeast Lakes region and become a permanent scar on the horizon both day and night, affecting the greatest concentration of Class 1A and 1B lakes in the State (LURC’s Wildlands Lake Assessment).

PPDLW sees the Bowers Mountain Project as a monumental threat to the Downeast Lakes Watershed:

It will harm the ecology, visual beauty and Quality of Place of the Downeast Lakes Watershed. This will in turn impact the area’s outdoors-based economy: guides, sporting camps, outfitters and all supporting businesses. Visitors who have been coming to the region for generations will simply decide to go elsewhere.

The network of 60’ wide roads, the high and low frequency noise, the use of herbicides, the lights and blades spinning at 190 mph, will all impact the natural habits of wildlife.

The roads, blasting and erosion will silt the brooks that form the headwaters of the watershed that hosts the purest strain of landlocked salmon in the state.

Flashing strobe lights on the towers will punctuate our magnificent dark night sky.

Permanent jobs and a way of life will be sacrificed for a very small amount of electricity that will not even benefit the region.

We call on the incoming administration and the people of Maine to recognize that this region and all the wild lands of Maine deserve to be protected for future generations to enjoy.

PO Box 336, Augusta, Maine (ME) 04332-0336
E-Mail: info@maineguides.org

The Maine Professional Guides Association urges the State of Maine to recognize and address the adverse economic impact that industrial scale wind farms can cause to Maine’s guides. The unspoiled lands, waters and natural character of inland Maine's landscape are what attract clientele to our Association's doorsteps. Without these elements, the livelihood of the Maine Guide and the quality of outdoor recreation in Maine will be irreplaceably lost. Unfortunately, industrial scale wind power projects have far reaching impacts well beyond the actual project site. Their visual and audible impacts, both day and night, can extend far and are in direct conflict with the very characteristics that bring our clients to Maine. Our current knowledge of the impacts that these wind farms may have on wildlife large and small is insufficient to provide comfort to those of us who depend on that resource for our economic survival.

The Maine Professional Guides Association is not philosophically opposed to all wind energy. The rates that our businesses pay for electricity are a heavy burden. However the current government supported model is not economically viable. Improperly placed industrial scale wind farms threaten the traditional sporting economy, employment incomes, and small businesses that make up our Association. We request that the State revisit its current goals for wind power projects and put into place measures that both recognize and protect the guiding profession in Maine.

HC 76 Box 620 Greenville, ME 04441 info@mainesportingcamps.com
The Maine Sporting Camp Association urges the State of Maine to recognize and address the adverse economic impact that industrial scale wind farms can cause to Maine sporting camps. The unspoiled lands, waters and natural character of inland Maine's landscape are what attract clientele to our Association's doorsteps. Without these elements, the livelihood of the traditional Maine sporting camp will be irreplaceably lost. Unfortunately, industrial scale wind power projects have far reaching impacts well beyond their actual project site. Their visual and audible impacts, both day and night, can extend far and are in direct conflict with the very characteristics that attract our guests to Maine.

The Maine Sporting Camp Association is not philosophically opposed to all wind energy. But improperly placed industrial scale wind farms do threaten the traditional sporting economy, employment incomes, and small businesses that represent our Association. Our Association strongly requests that the State revisit its current regulations for wind power projects and put into place measures that both recognize and protect the historic Maine sporting camp industry.