MAINE WANTS BIG WIND

Hundreds of bllions of dollars will be spent in the next couple of decades building the 21st century energy infrastructure. That money could be spent on nuclear, coal and natural gas plants, the Old Energy infrastructure. Or it could be spent to build New Energy, emissions-free and endlessly renewable energy for the new century. Anybody who says it can’t be done hasn’t seen the plans they are making in Maine.

Maine’s task force on wind energy is as serious as the rest of the nation ought to be. With less than 50 megawatts presently operational, they have set a state goal of 3000 megawatts of wind energy capacity by 2020.

To streamline the siting process, the task force wants areas of the state pre-approved for everything except wildlife impacts. They want to pre-approve A LOT of the state: “The areas for expedited review cover all of Maine's cities and towns, including the entire coast. They also include the outskirts of the unorganized territories in rural northern Maine, where wind farms in most cases would no longer require rezoning or have to "fit harmoniously" into the landscape, as now required.”

They task force did stipulate that scenic impacts on mountains and lakes and in state and national parks be regarded. Nobody wants to steamroll important considerations. The task force simply wants to facilitate growth by doing prior planning: “… By mapping areas where wind power would be encouraged, and clarifying and modernizing the rules, the plan would help reduce the risk for developers that might face opposition to their projects…”

Look at those wind assets on the coast! Has the task force looked offshore? There are also great wind assets in the Longfellow Mountains inland. (click to enlarge)

Report: Maine could be major wind power producer
February 9, 2008 (AP via Boston Globe)

WHO
Maine Gov. John Baldacci; Gov.'s Task Force on Wind Power (Alec Giffen, director, Maine Forest Service/ task force chairman; Dave Wilby, executive director, Independent Energy Producers of Maine/task force member; Pete Didisheim, advocacy director, Natural Resources Council of Maine/task force member

WHAT
Report of the Governor's Task Force on WindPower Development: The 16-member task force has submitted a road map for wind energy regulation and siting in Maine, calling for the state to streamline its regulatory review and facilitate rapid expansion without allowing projects to intrude on Maine’s scenic beauty.

WHEN
- The report has been submitted to the Governor and is expected to be enacted into law by Maine’s legislature before the current session’s end in April.
- The task force was appointed last year.

Not much development yet - but a boom is coming. (click to enlarge)

WHERE
- Maine has a 24-megawatt wind farm at Mars Hill.
- There is a 57-megawatt Stetson Mountain/Washington County project in construction.
- Maine is New England’s biggest wind energy producer but only 24th in the U.S.

The Mars Hill wind farm: Far from being aesthetically displeasing, it is a tourist attraction. (click to enlarge)

WHY
- The task force reports calls for Maine to have 2,000 megawatts of wind energy capacity by 2015 and 3,000 megawatts (2000 1.5 megawatt turbines) by 2020.
- The task force calls for the state to streamline its permitting process by pre-designating areas where wind energy installations would not interfere with aesthetics so that regulatory approval would only require wildlife impact assessment.
- Expedited areas would be all cities and towns, the entire coastline and regions of the northern territories.

QUOTES
- Alec Giffen, director, Maine Forest Service/ task force chairman: "This is a major step forward…It's going to put Maine in a position to be a leader in wind power and it's going to preserve Maine's quality of place."
- Pete Didisheim, advocacy director, Natural Resources Council of Maine/task force member: "There's a very strong level of support for wind power in Maine…But people want to be sure the projects are going in the right places."
- Dave Wilby, executive director, Independent Energy Producers of Maine/task force member: "Predictability is essential…"