I live in Farmington and have heard a lot about the New England Clean Energy Connect. As an electrical worker, I understand what the project is all about, I have one thing to say. Build the corridor!
NECEC will create more than a thousand megawatts of clean, reliable hydropower that will run from Quebec to Lewiston. That is a game-changer. This new energy will slash our dependence on fossil fuels which is good for our lungs and our wallets! We all know what happens when the weather gets cold and nasty…oil and gas prices go through the roof. But having a stable energy supply like hydropower will protect Mainers from seasonal price spikes. When the mercury plunges, the price of hydropower remains stable. The importance of that should not be overlooked, especially at a time like this when our economic future is so uncertain.
Anything that brings my electric bill down works for me, especially since Massachusetts taxpayers are footing the bill for the entire project and it won’t cost Mainers one red cent.
Count me in when it comes to the NECEC project. It’s a project being built by Mainers, for Mainers and that’s good for Maine.
Andrew Breau
Farmington
I automatically dismiss the opinion of anyone who feels CMP has any interest in lowering our bills. That, I promise you, will never happen.
Andy I see you’ve been drinking CMP’s koolaid
You haven’t heard enough apparently.. yes- its going from Quebec to Lewiston.. but the power is for Mass, Not Maine
Andy,
I know what happens lately when it gets cold and nasty….
The power goes out. Sometimes for days…
I wish CMP would stop spending millions on defeating a Citizens Referendum vote in Maine and fix the aging infrastructure instead.
Then we could all just keep our “power on.”
Well,,,
If you “actually” understood what the project is all about, you would not say that it’s “for Mainers”. Because it’s not.
You’re putting lipstick on this long term pig so that Spanish and Canadian companies can sell power to Massachusetts.
Not much for Maine in it.
You can move to Vermont and enjoy the corridor.
Andrew, don’t let the naysayers give you pause, they just have irrational hatred syndrome.
Incredible to see CMP’s 7 million dollars spent during the last quarter on propaganda, news paper “opinion pieces” and false advertisement counter accusing anyone who tries to speak up for what Mainers TRULY want. I can not stand by and watch all of these commercials, letters in the mail, And Instagram/Facebook adds that spew complete trash/lies. I can’t wait for the vote to shut down these greedy, lying, EVIL people within this massive corporation (based in SPAIN)
Wow Andy, talk about being misinformed ……. First, as pointed out by others, this power goes to MA and not Maine. Clean energy? Not a chance. You probably missed most of the scientific documentation that states the HQ source of power is on a level with coal fired plants. The windfall for ratepayers is a whopping 35 CENTS a month and clearcutting 3500 acres of land puts our local biomass production in jeopardy. But who is counting when we have these slick ads on every outlet possible telling us about all of the benefits. 1600 jobs? HAHAHA – for who? Mostly not for Mainers. We end up with maybe 38 at the end of this. Do me a favor, when you come to a gun fight bring something more than a piece of firewood.
Any hatred of cmp is well deserved but the opposition to this project is more diverse than that. It may line the pockets of Hydro Quebec and cmp but does nothing to help Maine. Any jobs it creates are temporary and comes at the expense of current job holders
Folks, the power enters the regional grid in Lewiston. The electrons cannot be directed to any one location, so yes, some of that power absolutely WILL be used right here in Maine.
It is outrageous that a legally permitted essential infrastructure project could potentially be shot down in a popularity contest. What does this say for any future economic development in Maine? Don’t want a bridge or highway? Vote it down. Don’t want a shopping center in your town? Vote it down. Don’t want a new industrial park, with multiple companies paying good wages to thousands of workers? Vote it down.
Does anyone remember the Maine Turnpike widening? It, too was put to referendum at the urging of well-meaning environmentalists, and voters passed legislation called the Sensible Transportation Policy Act. Maine launched the Zoom bus service, GoMaine carpooling initiatives, more Park and Ride lots, and the like.
Guess what? It was not nearly enough to address the increased traffic. Six years later, more legislation was passed, and a referendum held. This time voters approved it.
Maine and New England need this project. I personally do not think our environment can afford more years of pollution from fossil-fuel plants to our south and west. The clean power from this project will displace that dirty, costly energy with a cleaner option. I cannot for the life of me understand why the NRCM and certain other self-proclaimed environmental champions cannot see this.
As for the narrow strip of trees that would be removed: This is an industrial forest. It is logged continuously. The acreage for the new section of corridor would be (IIRC) less than one percent of the acreage that gets cut yearly for logging. New, shorter vegetation will grow underneath the lines and will provide good wildlife habitat. And my best guess is once the corridor is built, the vast majority of people won’t ever see it.
“It is outrageous that a legally permitted essential infrastructure project could potentially be shot down in a popularity contest”
So…kinda like Cape Wind?
The power goes out for multiple days, yet the light bill goes up. Somehow our usage increased when there wasn’t any power for almost four days. Nor was there anyone home when the power was restored. Their billing system seems a little off to me.
Folks might think about reading their meters for a couple or few payment cycles