Complaints Over Vinalhaven Windmills

As has happened in other places with wind turbines in close proximity to residential areas, people are finding the noise unacceptable.

Portland Press Herald: "Dedicated two months ago with great fanfare, the Fox Islands Wind Project is producing plenty of power, but also, a sense of shock among some neighbors. They say the noise, which varies with wind speed and direction, ranges from mildly annoying to so intrusive that it disturbs their sleep. And they say they lament losing the subtle silence they cherish living in the middle of Penobscot Bay -- the muffled crash of surf on the ledges and the whisper of falling snow."

Aroostook Couty Wind Farm Approved

Boston.com:

"Maine—The Maine Department of Environmental Protection has approved a permit for a wind project in the Aroostook County town of Oakfield.

The Massachusetts company, Evergreen Wind, LLC has proposed building up to 34 turbines that could generate enough energy to power more than 20,000 homes.

Evergreen filed an application with DEP in April.

The DEP said Thursday that it finds the project meets the criteria of the Natural Resources Protection Act and stormwater law."

Offshore Wind Test Sites Choosen

Portland Press Herald:

"The first experimental offshore windmill is expected to be installed late next year in waters south of Monhegan Island, off Port Clyde. Developers have yet to come forward with plans for the other two sites, one near Boon Island in York County and the other near Damariscove Island, south of Boothbay Harbor.

Baldacci called the effort the first of its kind in the country and said it holds huge potential for creating clean energy and Maine jobs. 'This is where the future lies,' he said."

Another Washington County Windfarm

Bangor Daily News:

"First Wind plans to erect 17 wind turbines on Jimmey Mountain and Owl Mountain north of Route 169 in northern Washington County. The project, dubbed Stetson II, will extend First Wind’s 38-turbine Stetson Wind facility that was completed earlier this year on a ridgeline just south of Route 169.

Massachusetts-based First Wind received regulatory approval for Stetson II earlier this year but, like other wind power companies nationwide, had trouble lining up financing after the lending market for wind energy projects collapsed because of the recession."

Wind Power Fails

The problems in Kittery and Saco show that the site for windmills need to be thoroughly assessed before turbines are put up.

Portland Press Herald:

"In Maine, the theory and the practice never matched.

Saco and Kittery bought the wind turbines with the assurance that they would generate about 90,000 kilowatts a year. Entegrity guaranteed that output with the payment promise.

Saco's windmill generated only about 16,000 kilowatts from the time it was installed in February 2008 until this August, when a meter stopped transmitting data.

In Kittery, where the windmill was supposed to power a trash transfer station and lower the electricity bill for nearby Shapleigh Middle School, the machine generated about 35,000 kilowatts from September 2008 until this fall, when hydraulic brakes malfunctioned, locking the blades in place."

Tidal Energy Project

Mainebiz:

"Portland-based Ocean Renewable Power Co. will launch a demonstration project of its proprietary tidal turbine generator technology by early next year in Cobscook Bay, and expects to connect its first full-scale turbine to the power grid by the end of 2010.

'Once launched, the Energy Tide 2 will deploy the largest ocean energy device ever installed in U.S. waters,' said Chris Sauer, president and CEO of ORPC in a release. A prototype was launched in 2007 and tested for more than a year."

Vinalhaven Wind Turbines Up

Portland Press Herald:

"And on Tuesday, the $14.5 million Fox Islands Wind project officially goes on line with a ribbon-cutting event, marking the completion of Maine's first island wind project. It's also the largest community-owned wind project on East Coast.

Vinalhaven itself is a step back in time, a small, close community that looks out for its own. Stacks of lobster traps adorn the docks, and the cut granite that has been the island's industry for more than 100 years is everywhere.

The island has long generated its own power. Tidal waters flow under the Tidewater Motel, through the remains of a mill system that once used hydropower to run a granite cutting operation and a blacksmith's bellows with a network of belts. At one time, a coal-fueled power plant operated near where the ferry landing sits today."

Too Much Wind?

Sun Journal:

"Instead, everyone learned that such a project might not even be viable, because First Wind studies so far show that wind atop Black Mountain is too strong for wind turbine engineering to handle, said Matthew Kearns, vice president of business development for First Wind.

'The gusts are extraordinary, and that's a problem for wind turbine bearings,' Kearns said. 'Turbine blades like a nice even wind.'

He said Black Mountain meets the minimum siting requirements for wind turbines, but the wind is too intense."

Kibby Ridge to StartUp

The Boston Globe:

"The ceremony will mark the completion of the first 22 windmills and the start of their production of power, which will flow to Central Maine Power Co. and through its interconnections to the New England grid.

The second 22 windmills in the project, on Kibby Ridge, are scheduled for completion in late summer or early fall of next year, said Corey Goulet, vice president of energy projects for TransCanada. The portion of the project to be dedicated today will provide the equivalent average energy needs of 25,000 homes.

When all 44 windmills are completed, the Kibby Mountain windmills will provide twice that power and become New England’s largest wind power project. It has an overall cost of $320 million, said Goulet."

Herring Catch To Be Cut

Portland Press Herald:

"Fishery managers from around the Northeast met Tuesday in Portland to discuss deep cuts in the herring catch for 2010. No final decisions will be made until November, but scientists are calling for a 53 percent reduction from this year's catch limit because of uncertainty about the health of the population."

Wind Meeting Draws Protestors

While the Governor was inside praising the prospects of wind power in the State, several protesters picketed outside. Portland Press Herald:

"He spoke about the importance of energy independence, as well. 'We've been through too many contrived (oil) shortages, real or imagined, that are outside of our control,' Baldacci said.

He acknowledged the protesters who began to gather outside the civic center about 10 a.m.

'Everybody needs to be heard from,' he said, 'but we need to take action.'"

Group Appeals Roxbury Wind Farm Permit

Sun Journal:

"The appellants want a public hearing held based on 'credible conflicting medical and technical information regarding the licensing criterion,' mainly on perceived noise to be generated by the turbines.

A hearing, they say, would help the DEP's Board of Environmental Protection understand the evidence.

The 58-page document was sent to BEP Chairman Susan Lessard, DEP Commissioner David Littel and Robert Gardiner of Record Hill Wind LLC, the company that is currently building a 22-turbine, 55-megawatt wind farm.

Board of Environmental Protection executive analyst Cindy Bertocci in Augusta acknowledged on Wednesday that she had started examining it."

Plum Creek Approved

Press Herald

"A sprawling resort and residential development at the gateway to Maine's North Woods won a state planning board's unanimous approval Wednesday.

Plum Creek Timber Co.'s proposal, which would be the largest of its kind in the state, received the go-ahead nearly five years after the Seattle-based company announced plans to build two resorts and more than 2,000 housing units near Moosehead Lake."