More communities opt out of fast-track wind development
An increasing number of Maine communities are seeking to opt out of the fast-tracked commercial wind development areas that were allowed by Maine’s Wind Energy Act of 2008.
A year ago, more than 20 communities in the unorganized territories took advantage of a 2015 law to file petitions with the Maine Land Use Planning Commission to opt out.
The Bangor Daily News reported that number now has risen to 39 communities, located in unorganized territory from western to Downeast Maine.
“The industry will abide by their wishes and adapt and overcome and look for areas that are both reasonable and predictable for their investments,” Jeremy Payne, executive director of the Maine Renewable Energy Association, told the BDN.
Although the Legislature embraced wind power development in 2008 with a law that streamlined the permitting process for projects in much of rural Maine, and gave less weight to the turbines' impacts on scenic views, critics said the 2008 law denied property owners affected by the projects — and especially those in the Unorganized Territory — the opportunity to have a strong voice in the regulatory review.
The 2015 law created a process for residents to petition the Land Use Planning Commission to remove a municipality, township or plantation from the expedited permitting area. To qualify for consideration, a petition must be signed by at least 10% of the voters in that jurisdiction who cast ballots in the last gubernatorial election.
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