January 2009
17 posts
Offer of free electricity demeaning to Roxbury...
In a successful effort to convince Roxbury voters to support a zoning change to allow wind turbines, Angus King and Rob Gardiner proposed to make direct payments to Central Maine Power to provide a 500 kilowatt credit to the electric bills of every property owner in Roxbury. This blatant form of bribery is demeaning of the citizenry. By encouraging a sense of entitlement to undeserved benefits...
Maine’s "wind rush" an abuse of the public trust
Last week, First Wind (formerly UPC Wind) hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony at its newest wind farm in New England, the Stetson wind energy facility located in Danforth, Maine. The event celebrated completion of the 38-turbine (57-megawatt) facility and was attended by 100 state and local officials including Maine’s Governor Baldacci, construction company representatives, and local business...
Letter to Roxbury Select Board
Dear members of the Select Board, I am writing to express my concern about the following issues relating to Record Hill Wind.
1. John Sutton’s speculative remarks which were made as if statements of fact prior to the vote at town meeting about a 75% reduction in property taxes which may have influenced the outcome of the vote.
2. Negotiations with RHW regarding payment of legal fees.
3. The...
Bill introduced to strip towns of land use...
Thankfully, due to the actions of Concerned Citizens to Save Roxbury, this matter was brought to the attention of the Maine Municipal Association, which voted to oppose this outrageous move by the wind industry at their meeting last Friday. Unfortunately they don’t control the legislature so citizens have to make themselves heard.
3-49) Bill “An Act To Facilitate Wind Power...
Turbines will be twice as loud as background noise...
YOUR HEALTH IS AT RISK
Doctors say that wind generators, because of their low-frequency noise, are a hazard to the health of those living near them. The turbines, say these medical men, can cause headaches and depression in people living more than a mile away.
Near Padstow, Cornwall, England, the Bears Down wind farm was erected two years ago. It consists of only 14...
WAKE UP MAINE!
Legislation has been drafted in Augusta that will allow the wind industry to put turbines where they please and towns be damned. Having discovered that not everyone is thrilled with the notion of scores of behemoth arm waving machines thumping and grinding on the once beautiful mountains, Angus King is intent on forcing his will on the state and Governor Baldacci has been suckered into...
Disturbing editorial in Sun Journal
Following is a re-print of a Sun Journal editorial, written by the editor of the paper, that shows just how “in the pocket” of the wind industry our major newspapers are.
My rebuttal is included in the comments following the article. Readers are encouraged to comment on articles in the on-line version of the paper which can be found at sunjournal.com.
The wind industry has...
WatchLife Under a Windplant describes how an area in Southwestern Pennsylvania and the people who live there have been affected by the installation of an industrial-sized wind power plant.
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WatchThe Voices of Tug Hill features a number of people in the Lowville and Tug Hill area of upper New York State describing how they have been affected by the installation of an industrial-sized wind power plant. Many more wind installations are planned for the area.
The viability of wind power
Here is an interesting analysis of the cost/benefit of wind turbines vs installing an energy efficient light bulb:
Investment in energy efficient light bulbs would save more than 5 times as much electricity in 5 years as an equal $ investment in a wind turbine would produce in 20 years.
This fact is clearly demonstrated with simple arithmetic: First, calculate the potential output from a wind...
Despite the narrow 87-81 victory of those in Roxbury who have selfishly opened the mountains to industrial wind power, opponents of turbines in Roxbury have every right to be proud of themselves. In the face of an unprecedented attempt to take over the town with bribes, illegal procedures, and an incessant behind the scenes campaign to lure voters to the poles with false promises,...
The love of a lake
The love of a lake is a curious thing.
It never alters.
The lake may be a very small one,
with broad shallows and little depth,
but it is his lake,
to which all other lakes, great and small,
are compared, and always unfavorably.
For years the man who loves a lake has watched it
lying quiet as a gold leaf under the July moon,
has seen it toss in the August wind like a child in a tantrum,
...
Maine needs 6000 turbines to meet wind power goal
In April 2008, in response to the recommendations of Gov. Baldacci’s wind power task force, the Maine legislature passed “emergency legislation” establishing a goal of 3000 MW of wind power by 2020. To achieve this goal six thousand turbines of 2.5 MW nameplate capacity (the size proposed for Record Hill) will be required. Turbines contribute between 10 to 30 percent...
Once in a lifetime opportunity?
Angus King has repeatedly said that his proposal to put wind turbines in Roxbury is a “once in a lifetime” opportunity for Roxbury voters. Nothing could be further from the truth. The wind and the mountain will remain even if Roxbury voters heed the warnings about the serious noise impacts these turbines will create. When the DEP changes the noise regulations to protect communities...
Record Hill Wind noise study - serious flaws
King and Gardiner hired the same engineering firm that promised no noise impacts at Mars Hill. This firm is heavily dependent on the wind industry for its livelihood, so it is no surprise that they are the “go to” firm that can be counted on to provide the desired results. But a review of their noise study points out some serious flaws in the methods used to measure night time...
Who removes the turbines when they stop working?
According to King and Gardiner’s DEP application, they do not intend to set aside any money to remove the turbines, hoping that the project will be profitable enough to begin making payments to a sinking fund beginning after the eleventh year of operation. They also take the position that removing the turbines is not their responsibility if they fail to operate due to circumstances beyond...
Roxbury must resist push of wind 'farmers'
Sunday, January 4, 2009 Sun Journal
Steve Thurston
Roxbury voters are at a fork in the road. They can ignore the loophole-filled promises of free electricity and property tax savings and vote to keep the ridges free from gigantic arm-waving machines, or they can cave in to the lure of easy money and sell Roxbury’s soul to the industrial wind “farmers.”
But let’s not...