Tag: Clean Energy

On Jan. 18, the Maine Public Utilities Commission made a decision that raises critical questions about how rural communities across the state receive and pay for electricity.
In a 2-1 vote, the commission denied Emera Maine’s request to acquire the Swan’s Island Electric Cooperative, a deal that would have provided more affordable electricity service to the Swan’s Island and Frenchboro communities.

The residents of two remote Down East islands, Frenchboro and Swan’s Island, pay some of the highest electric bills in the nation, and they’ve proposed to abandon their local electric cooperative to join with the mainland customers of a large utility who enjoy cheaper distribution rates.

Representatives from the Rockland Energy Committee joined The Chris Wolf Show on December 28, 2016 to talk about the Weatherize Rockland initiative, energy efficiency, and energy incentives for the local community.
Guests included committee representatives Larry Pritchett and the Island Institute’s Brooks Winner.

Do you have one of those leaky homes? If so, the Rockland Energy Committee’s Weatherize Rockland initiative can help you. Weatherize Rockland is helping local residents sign up for energy assessments, air sealing, insulation, and other energy services at discounts of up to 95%. Here are five reasons to sign up, or partner with home performance agencies in your area, to save money and make your home more energy efficient year round.
 

Most island communities do not have economies of scale or local fossil fuel resources, two key factors contributing to significant increases in energy costs relative to mainland peers. A case in point is two islands located off the coast of Maine—Isle au Haut and Monhegan, both of which are currently weighing their energy futures. The Energy Department and EERE are helping to address those challenges through the Energy Transition Initiative (ETI), which provides technical assistance and resources to support communities that want to achieve clean energy goals and in the transition to a clean energy economy.

On Swan’s Island and other islands, high energy costs have been a fact of life. Many places are considering how to change that, but the situation on each island is unique.
“About the only thing the islands in Maine have in common is that they’re islands,” Schwabe said.
Some, such as Swan’s Island, have connections to the mainland. Others generate all of their own electricity through a local utility and have no connection, such as Harbor Island, which guards Burnt Coat Harbor and sits in view of the Swan’s Island cooperative.