We are an opposition group to the UMaine, Cianbro, and Emera, Inc.’s, plan to put two 600’ floating wind turbines within 2.5 miles of Monhegan. They are currently known as, New England Aqua Ventis. There are so many residents, year-round, and summer, that have felt hopeless since the beginning. So many that never had a voice to oppose the legislation. So many that thought we were helping the Unive
rsity of Maine to test a small scale model. It is not fair for Monhegan, or our community, to be subjected to such a grand experiment, full of so many unknowns, in such a fragile environment as this. These 2 turbines would NEVER be placed this close to a coastal community…or any other community, in Maine. When the test site was established, Monhegan was told there would be a small scale model that would only be there in the summer, when Monhegan’s lobster season is closed. Now look at where we are. It was a clear bait and switch. You can read about the original proposed plan and timeline here:
http://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/nepapub/nepa_documents/RedDont/EA-1792-DEA-2011.pdf
The turbines will be detrimental to the scenic environment, the bird migration, underwater sea life, housing values and tourism. And who knows how it will affect the people that live here. There are not any studies of communities that live 2 miles from 600’ turbines with no land barriers between them. There are too many unknowns to simply settle for $200,000 a year…$4 million over 20 years…the money New England Aqua Ventus is offering Monhegan. This is from pages 50-52 from the link noted above:
The New Jersey Audubon Society conducted dual marine radar surveys over a period of 79 days from July 15 to September 30, 2010. The radar survey results showed that approximately 93 percent of targets during the day and 95 percent of targets during the night were detected at heights of 246 feet or greater (targets represent birds and bats, but cannot be distinguished) (NJAS 2010). They loved that study when it was a small scale model. They ignore it now. The group is not opposed to wind power, or renewable energy. The group is opposed to two 600’ floating wind turbines being placed within 2.5 miles of Monhegan, for 20 years. The group will do everything we can to amend or eliminate the legislation that designated the test site. There are currently no restrictions on how tall a turbine could be. They could come back next week with an 800’ plan. After that is hopefully accomplished, the group will work to help Monhegan and Monhegan Plantation Power District (MPPD) with its goals to reduce dependency on fossil fuels, while maintaining our energy independence. The Monhegan Energy Planning Committee (MEPC) has researched many possible energy options for Monhegan. A large scale solar farm seems the best fit for Monhegan’s needs. There are a lot of options that are realistically achievable. Block Island, Rhode Island has recently gone through the same thing Monhegan is facing; bait and switch, government corruption, and a small community getting pushed around by big business. Forbes magazine just put out an article about the project:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherhelman/2016/04/20/is-americas-first-offshore-wind-farm-a-real-revolution-or-just-another-green-boondoggle/
I can no longer sit back and let this happen to Monhegan. And It is not going to be easy. There are a few year-round residents that are in favor of the project. And some of them carry a bit of weight out here. But there are more of us that are in favor of UMaine choosing one of the other two test sites that were deemed suitable for their experiment. Both were next to uninhabited islands. And we are in favor of amending the legislation to limit what can be tested so close to Monhegan. The one thing that I have learned over the past 7 years, is that Monhegan has had an effect on people from all over the world. Our group is comprised of year-round residents, summer residents, fishermen, business owners, town officers, extended-stay visitors, “day-trippers”, and anyone, near and far, that has ever been touched by the magic that is Monhegan. We Are Monhegan
