The Maine Public Utilities Commission should focus on energy reduction for ratepayers in Maine. It should not permit the large offshore wind project that would increase the power rates until year 2020 or beyond.
Gov. Paul LePage should also be involved in the process and fight to keep electricity rates down.
The federal government grant money of $47 million for the offshore project belongs to the taxpayers of this country. If the project is as good as has been stated, private companies should be eager to fund and invest their money.
The benefits of the project are an estimate only, along with the $8.70 per year increase on standard power bills. Some of the people backing the project make it sound very beneficial to the state.
The environmental impact on thousands of sea birds could be very harmful. The area would have to have some restrictions on fishing vessels near the wind power site. The full-size wind turbines would not float the same as the smaller ones that were used for demonstration purposes.
Who would collect taxes on the site when completed, or would it be tax-free, sponsored by the University of Maine?
I haven’t heard of any offshore, large-scale wind projects off the coast of the United States, so the project would be a first, along with all the problems it could cause.
Richard McInnis, Rumford
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