Mainers appeared in Augusta on Wednesday to defend their right to private property during a public hearing on a bill which would prevent the state from forcibly seizing private land for the construction of a high-power transmission line.
The controversial transmission line, which is without a developer following LS Power’s decision to pull out of the project, would theoretically connect Massachusetts renewable energy customers to a proposed wind farm 92 percent owned by foreign investors.
The project has previous had the backing of a bipartisan group of Aroostook County politicians, including Senate President Troy Jackson (D-Aroostook), Senate Republican Leader Trey Stewart (R-Aroostook), and Rep. Austin Theriault (R-Fort Kent), who is also running for Congress in Maine’s Second Congressional District.
Although the transmission line and related wind farm were original billed as “green” energy projects that would bring jobs to the County, momentum has been building against the transmission line as the prospect of developers using eminent domain has become more likely.
“Last summer when my husband and I learned that we might lose a portion of our home to a high-voltage transmission line, we were devastated, our hearts were shattered, and our sanctuary was under threat,” said Tanya Blanchard, a Maine landowner and advocate against using eminent domain for the transmission line.
[RELATED: The Heavily Criticized “Aroostook Renewable Gateway” Suffers Another Setback…]
Sen. Chip Curry (D-Waldo) presented his bill, LD 2087, at a public hearing of the Committee on Energy, Utilities, and Technology (EUT).
Sen. Curry’s bill would entirely prohibit the use of eminent domain in the construction of the controversial Aroostook Renewable Gateway, the name that’s been given to the transmission line that would connect New England’s power grid to the proposed King Pine Wind Farm.
The gateway is an energy transmission line which would cut a 160-mile-long, 150-foot-wide swath through northern and central Maine in the name of providing customers, most of whom would be based in New Hampshire, with electricity that would qualify for Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) under the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI).
Due to the size of the transmission line, eminent domain would almost certainly need be used to seize land necessary for the project from rural landowners.
Sen. Curry, a Democrat who supports Maine’s renewable energy efforts, was nonetheless opposed to the use of eminent domain to build the transmission line. Although his bill simply stops the use of eminent domain, he suggested that the EUT consider alternatives such the use of existing corridors, or the use of public other than private land.
Blanchard, along with one of her sons, sat through a four-hour hearing on another topic in order to be able to testify in defense of the family land that they love.
One landowner, Brooke Delorme of Palermo, who’s land will not be directly impacted by the transmission line, spoke out to defend the rights of those who were affected, and to point out the impact on the nearly 3,000 parcels of land adjacent to those affected.
“If a property were impacted by the view of a transmission line it could have a 63 percent property value diminution,” said Delorme, citing information from New Hampshire Public Radio.
Eric Rolfson, a Maple syrup producer in Northern Maine whose property, gained and cultivated over fifty years of work, stands in the proposed path of the line, also spoke in favor of the bill.
Rolfson highlighted the fact that, despite the significant impact on property value, the proposed use of eminent domain would only compensate people for the land actually used, with no provisions made for the loss of value for the rest of the property.
In total, eight Maine landowners spoke up in favor of Curry’s bill to defend their property rights.
Only one speaker, Jay Nutting, came to oppose the protections.
Nutting is a professional lobbyist from Maine Street Solutions, who spoke on behalf of the Maine Renewable Energy association.
The Maine Wire is the only outlet in the state that has reported on the foreign financial interests behind the Aroostook Renewable Gateway.
In September, the Maine Wire reported that the King Pine Wind Farm, a project of the Boston-based Longroad Energy firm, was owned 92 percent by foreign interests, including the sovereign wealth fund of New Zealand, a large New Zealand-based asset fund, and a German asset fund.
From September:
The NZ Super Fund – a.k.a. the New Zealand Superannuation Fund — reported owning 40 percent of Longroad Energy in 2021 and 2022, according to their annual report.
The $34.23 billion fund, which is operated by the New Zealand government for the benefit of the nation’s pension system, reports that Longroad is one of its “larger” green energy investments.
Infratil, a $5 billion Wellington, NZ-based infrastructure investment company, owns another 40 percent of Longroad, according to its recent company reports.
Rounding out the firm’s foreign investors is MEAG, a €324 billion German asset management company.
MEAG purchased a 12 percent stake in Longroad in August 2022 for a reported $300 million.
According to NZ Super Fund’s public reporting, NZSF US Renewables, a subsidiary of the sovereign wealth fund, has provided Longroad energy with a letter of credit agreeing to backstop the firm’s financial commitments.
The King Pine Wind project would also be Maine’s largest-ever wind project featuring some of the largest turbines ever erected in Maine, easily making them the tallest structures in the state.
Five people spoke in the “neither for nor against” category, most of whom were lobbyists for environmental groups such as the Conservation Law Foundation, who opposed entirely prohibiting eminent domain, but who supported some protections for landowners.
Maine must protect its option to return to energy sovereignty which we were prior to 2001. Completely able to reliably produce the electricity to serve the state and the capability to export excess production. All this with major paper mills operating in Millinocket, Madison, Jay and Bucksport.
Wind and solar projects have changed Maine from an independent energy state to a state that has become a renewable development slave for Massachusetts. Massachusetts has about 100 megawatts of land-based wind. Maine has 1156 megawatts with 60% plus of the production locked up in power purchase agreements with Massachusetts’ utilities.
King Pine wind and several other wind and solar developments will add another 3800 megawatts to Maines’ rapidly growing intermittent energy regime and will account for a crushing 74% of Maine’s annual electrical consumption. There is no way Maine can return to pre 2001 conditions that provided inexpensive, reliable electricity with 74% wind and solar that requires matching standby generation at 24 hours a day and from who knows where it will come from. Every New England state government is out to ban natural gas.
Has anyone noticed how close this project is to Canada? Maine has transmission interconnections with Canada in Aroostook County through the New Brunswick Province and has traded electricity with Canada for many years. This project, if connected to the ISO-NE network will corrupt the present electrical flow with Canada.
Good luck, your governor is on the ccp take
Oh, the irony. The NECEC was stopped from building transmission lines through state land to deliver a reliable, inexpensive, and less-polluting energy that would have benefited Maine as well as help Massachusetts. This project is a travesty on so many fronts.
The shameful thing about NECEC is if Maine instead of Massachusetts had bought and paid for this reliable generation which is delivered to a substation in Lewiston Maine, Maine could have a reliable, clean backup to the massive wind and solar development the ratepayers of Maine pay for as well as export some of NECEC production south of the border. Continuing to participate in the Massachusetts driven ISO-NE Network along with giving a blank check to wind and solar development will continue to be the downfall of Maine.
We banned billboards in Maine back in the 60s because they were an eyesore?
I’m so confused.
Just vote Trump
Maine has multiple large rivers that empty into the ocean. These rivers are constant in their flow with spring snow melt adding additional flow rate. Instead of wind generation that is intermittent, and subject to ice buildup that ceases the power generation along with requiring fuel consuming helicopters to de-ice the blades, why not use water turbines?
Water turbines are constant in their power generation, and do not require the old school approach such as hydro dams to utilize. They are not visible to the eye as are land based wind turbines, and are in the fresh water watershed that does not impact ocean water commercial fishing economies.
I read of a test project in NY some years back that had some early failures, but those failures were corrected, and to my knowledge the turbines now operate without issue. Should this not be considered as an option in a state like Maine as a viable contributor to the states energy needs?
Keep voting for liberals!
If you support unreliable wind and solar power you are the reason for the attempts to build these transmission lines. Wind and solar power are not reliable, they depend on weather conditions to generate power. Reliable power sources like natural gas, nuclear or hydro power provide their rated capacity 24/7/365 regardless of weather conditions unlike wind and solar. Time to rethink the green energy hoax.