NIMBY -- Maine -- Wind -- February 3, 2016

Build the wind farms in North Dakota! Not Maine! These mega-projects will turn Maine into a "wind plantation!" LOL. NIMBY.

The Ithaca Voice is reporting:

Citizen groups that oppose large-scale wind power development in Maine reacted strongly Tuesday to news that developers were proposing numerous wind farms in the state that would supply clean energy to southern New England. The groups have been fighting several of the projects individually, but were alarmed at the overall scale of the combined proposals.

“This will turn Maine into a wind plantation,” said Chris O’Neil, a spokesman for Friends of Maine’s Mountains.

Maine figured prominently this week in a multibillion-dollar competition to provide power to Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts, with companies submitting bids to build giant wind farms in Aroostook County and the western mountains. Together the projects would more than triple the state’s turbine capacity, but the power would not be sold in Maine.

O’Neil said southern New England states were shuttering nuclear, oil and coal plants in their quest for cleaner power, but not taking responsibility for replacing the lost generation.

“They’re jumping off a cliff and expecting Maine to bail them out,” he said.
But energy officials and industry representatives in Maine were tamping down impressions that all or even most of these projects would be built.

“I’ve been trying to get the public prepared for this and not think that all of these projects will be developed,” said Patrick Woodcock, Gov. Paul LePage’s energy director. “In fact, under the request-for-proposals, it’s not even possible for all of them to be chosen.”

President Obama's Clean Power Plan does not allow hydroelectricity to be considered in calculations used for meeting CO2 emissions -- and Maine has potentially great access to hydroelectricity from Canada.

Maine doesn't want natural gas pipelines either.

Maniacs definitely don't want CBR.

And they are shuttering nuclear plants and coal burning plants.

Let's see: that leaves wood. Lots of trees in Maine.

Meanwhile in New York state, after ten years of working this proposal, the state has taken another small step toward implementing this wind farm. The IthacaVoice is reporting:

A project that has essentially be (sic) in progress for 10 years now, the wind farm remains source of controversy in the town of Enfield and throughout Tompkins.

Some residents of the town fear for their safety due to potential turbine accidents. Other are also concerned about their quality of life based on issues like ambient sound and shadow flicker caused by the turbines.

Last week, a committee of the Tompkins County Legislature voted to pass a recommendation in support of "the timely development of" the Black Oak Wind Farm in Enfield on to the full legislature.

• a committee
• recommendation
• in support of
• timely development of 

The project:

Black Oak Wind Farm, LLC., plans to have seven 2.3 megawatt wind turbines built by General Electric, in total producing 16.1 megawatts, on approximately 1,000 acre parcel of land. All electricity produced on the farm, which is enough to power about 5,000 local households, have been purchased by Cornell.

Once completed, Black Oak will be New York State’s first community-owned wind farm, meaning state residents and companies are able to invest in the for-profit energy company. Marguerite Wells, vice president of the board of managers and the project manager, said the about 150 investors have put in $3 million into the project. The entire project is estimated to cost around $40 million.

$40 million / 16.1 MW = $2.5 million / MW. A reader reminds us: wind only works a third of the time, and it is not always there when you need it. It needs back-up fossil fuel power. Wind energy is non-dispatchable: Dispatchable generation refers to sources of electricity that can be dispatched at the request of power grid operators or of the plant owner; that is, generating plants that can be turned on or off, or can adjust their power output accordingly to an order.