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My name is Keith Michaud and this is “Letters From Away,” a blog written by a Mainer living outside the comfortable and sane confines of New England. The blog is intended for Mainers, whether they live in the Pine Tree State or beyond, and for anyone who has loved ’em, been baffled by ’em or both. Ayuh, I am “from away.” Worse still, I live on the Left Coast – in California. Enjoy! Or not. Your choice.
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As a small business owner on Vinalhaven and someone active in community energy, I’ve been disheartened with the ongoing debate on the Fox Islands Wind Project. The discourse, thus far, has been framed largely by a minority of self-interested parties who do not seek solutions based on the community working together to benefit the sustainability of our island residents.
Energy is not perfect and inherently presents choices. Given the threat to the long-term sustainability of our working islands, the communities of the Fox Islands made the right choice in developing local, clean, community-owned wind power that will help to support our long-term working island population while demonstrating to the state and nation that we can reduce our environmental impact on our planet.
In response to the issues raised by neighbors who have objected to the Community Wind Project, it is important that we as a community acknowledge the work of the Fox Islands Electric Coop to address the sound issues and to work on these issues in an honest, productive manner, as a community, and not through lawyers and Augusta Bureaucrats.
Some Facts/Fiction points from a group of individuals invested in the community of the Fox Islands and who look forward to working on the issues of FIW in an honest, productive manner:
Fact:
• After 1 year of production, FIW has exceeded its power projections resulting in further benefits for the island communities by lowering the cost of electricity and providing a clean, locally generated alternative to expensive fossil fuel based power.
• Both the working year-round and seasonal population of the Fox Islands continue to strongly support the Community Wind Project, with an overwhelming number (90+%) approving of FIW.
• FIW is community-owned and all the benefits of the project go solely to the roughly 2,000 ratepayers of the Coop.
• George Baker does not benefit financially from FIW. Baker and the Island Institute generously and honorably donated significant time and expertise to help design a creative financial model by which the community retains sole-ownership and decision-making capacity over the Community Wind Project.
• The FIW Community Wind model allows the communities of the Fox Islands to effectively address long-term sustainability of the working population.
• FIW demonstrates to the rest of the state and the nation, the exemplary leadership quality of the residents of the Fox Islands by committing to a cleaner, more local, affordable, sustainable power generation.
• The complaints of Fox Islands Wind Neighbors have cost the communities of Vinalhaven and North Haven over $150,000 in unnecessary legal and sound consultant expenses. This is prior to exhausting efforts to work through the community process.
Fiction
• The communities of the Fox Islands are divided. Despite what one reads in the media, residents of Vinalhaven and North Haven strongly support the Community Wind Project. Even some of the closest neighbors have attested their support of the project and the fact that they are not bothered.
• Property values near the project are impacted by 40-50%. This is complete fiction. Studies show that Wind Projects do not negatively impact property values. See – http://eetd.lbl.gov/ea/ems/reports/lbnl-2829e.pdf
• FIW and FIEC (the Coop) are not addressing the sound complaints of the Neighbors. Contrary to this myth, FIW and FIEC are tirelessly working on the sound issues. From soliciting the help of the nation’s top sound scientists at the National Renewable Energy Laboratories to conduct technical and subjective studies to continually pursuing open, productive dialogue with the community, the Coop remains committed to working on collaborative, constructive solutions.
Its time we put our faith in the community process and all come to the table with an open, honest mind to work with FIEC as a community and refrain from misinformation, slander and using lawyers to resolve our local issues.