Anti-wind group backs LePage in fight against renewable energy initiative

Spruce Mountain, Maine...before Patriot Renewables' wind project
Leola Ballweber Photo

From the Sun Journal:

AUGUSTA — Friends of Maine's Mountains, a group that opposes the proliferation of grid-scale wind power, announced Thursday that it's supporting Gov. Paul LePage's push against a citizen initiative that would expand the state's renewable energy portfolio.

Maine currently mandates that utility companies derive a certain percentage of electricity from renewable sources. However, a coalition called Maine Citizens for Clean Energy has launched a citizen referendum to increase the requirements in the state's so-called Renewable Portable Standard.

The initiative runs sharply against the governor's energy policy. Last year, LePage tried to freeze the current RPS mandate but met stiff opposition from the state's wind-power lobby and environmental groups.

On Wednesday, the governor told the Capitol News Service that the citizen effort to expand the Renewable Portfolio Standard was "nothing more than a scam to make a few people wealthy."

On Thursday, the Friends of Maine's Mountains group backed the governor.

"This would be an environmental and economic disaster for Maine," said Chris O'Neil in a prepared statement, adding that passage of the citizen initiative was a "de facto mandate for an unsustainable buildup of wind turbines and costly transmission systems on Maine's mountains."

He added, "Markets would not support any wind power at all if not for a complicated brew of incentives, grants, mandates, tax breaks, surcharges and other government-created gimmicks."

Read the rest of the story here.

Voices of Support

Today, the residents of Lexington and Concord Townships and Highland Plantation, Maine, took a stand.  In a press conference in the State Capitol, we requested that Iberdrola Renewables and Highland Wind LLC abandon their wind development plans due to the fact that a majority of the residents signed petitions in opposition to grid-scale wind developments in our communities.  We also asked Governor LePage to support our colllective will by using the powers of his office to remove us from the Expedited Permitting Area.  Our Senator, our Representative and our Somerset County Commissioners showed their support--for which we are grateful.  Below is the letter sent by Rep. Larry Dunphy, District 88. House of Representatives 2 State House Station Augusta, Maine 04333-0002 (207) 287-1440 TTY: (207) 287-4469

Larry Dunphy PO Box 331 North Anson, ME 04958 Residence: (207) 635-2831 Skime2@roadrunner.com

                             

November 14, 2011

To Whom it May Concern:

This is a noteworthy day.  Today, Maine citizens—American citizens–are standing up and stepping forward to make sure that they have a ‘say’ in determining the future of their communities.

Constituents from three communities in my district have spoken, and I intend to support them.   Just as I will respect majority votes in New Portland or Bingham or Caratunk, so will I defend the determination made by the citizens of Highland, Lexington and Concord.  They have spoken and their voices echo a resounding “No!” to industrial wind turbine facilities on the ridgelines in their communities.  I urge Iberdrola Renewables and Highland Wind to abandon their development plans for this particular corner of rural Somerset County and I urge the Governor to support these citizens.  The People have spoken.  We need to listen. 

The current Administration has vowed to put “People before politics”.  Under former Governor John Baldacci, the Wind Energy Act was marketed as a panacea for our energy problems.  But since those panic-driven days of 2008, we have learned much about the impacts and the benefits of wind-generated electricity.  People were not put before politics when the Wind Energy Act, favoring one industry, rezoned 2/3 of the State of Maine as an industrial zone for grid-scale wind facilities.

My constituents in Highland, Lexington and Concord have been proactive.  They’ve educated themselves about this issue and they’ve made their desires known.  They were denied input when their community was rezoned, but they are speaking on the record today.  This isn’t a secret ballot.  My constituents feel strongly about this issue.  They have publicly put their names on a ballot and sealed it with their signatures.  As their Representative, it is my intention to support their votes.

Sincerely,

Larry Dunphy

Anson, Bingham, Caratunk, Carrabassett Valley, Embden, Jackman, Moose River, Moscow, New Portland, Wellington and Plantations of Brighton, Coplin, Dennistown, Highland, Pleasant Ridge, The Forks and West Forks, plus the unorganized territories of Concord, Lexington, and Wyman Townships, Northeast Somerset (including Rockwood Strip), Northwest Somerset and Seboomook Lake