DON'T FALL FOR CMP'S LIES
DON'T REWARD CORRUPT CORPORATIONS AND POLITICIANS
WHAT IS THE CMP CORRIDOR?
Central Maine Power is owned by the Spanish energy giant Iberdrola, as a subsidiary of AVANGRID, Inc.
Iberdrola/AVANGRID/CMP is planning on building a power line through Maine from Quebec to provide power to Massachusetts.
CMP's powerline will include 53 miles of cutting through the unspoiled wilderness in northwestern Maine.
QUEBEC TO MASS
There Were Three Major Proposals For Hydro Quebec To Bring Power to Massachusetts
Through Vermont
Through New Hampshire
Through Maine
The Vermont Proposal Was Expected To Win.
but.....Massachusetts Chose The Less-Costly NH Proposal
The NH Regulators Denied the Permits, Citing The Damage To the Environment and Tourism.
Massachusetts Chose CMP's Proposal to Build the Power Line Through Maine.
Central Maine Power Devised An Elaborate Scheme To Force The Corridor Project On The People Of Maine.
Before The Citizens Of Maine Were Fully Aware Of The Extent Of The Corridor Project, The Stage Was Set For the Maine Public Utilities Commission (MPUC) To Approve The Project, Influenced By Iberdrola/AVANGRID/CMP Marketing And False Advertising.
CMP Created An "Environmental" Non-Profit Corporation (the Western Mountain And Rivers Corporation) to Lobby For CMP's Corridor Project.
CMP Paid To Have Biased "Economic Studies" Published
The Economic Studies Were Used to Influence the Maine Public Utilities Commission to Approve the Iberdrola/CMP Corridor Project.
CMP Falsely Claims That Maine Will Save $40 million in lower electricity costs, each year.
CMP Falsely Claims That They Will Reduce CO2 In Maine to the Equivalent of Removing 57,000 cars from Maine Roads and Highways.
CMP Falsely Claims That The Iberdrola/CMP Project Will Contribute $564 Million To the Maine Economy.
CMP Falsely Claims That They Will Invest $15 Million for Fiber Optics For Host Communities
CMP Falsely Claimed That They Will Provide 3,500 Jobs in Western Maine at Peak Construction
CMP Falsely Claims that NECEC Will Protect Maine From Seasonal Energy Spikes
CMP Deceptively Claims That Maine Will Receive $18 Million In Property Tax Revenues, to Lower Property Taxes
Fortunately, There Are Easy Alternatives for Massachusetts To Get Clean Energy
CMP needed a way to provide an illusion
of harmony with the environment.
They found it by creating
the Western Mountains and Rivers Corporation.
The next step was to make sure that the directors of
the Western Mountains and Rivers would support the CMP Corridor,
and to pay them well so that they would help promote CMP's Corridor.
August 2017
- WMRC was established as a non-profit.
September 2017
- CMP filed its application for state permits.
May 2018
- CMP gives WMRC $250,000.
The Western Mountains And Rivers Corporation is in Somerset County. The Somerset County Commissioners voted to support CMP's NECEC. One of the commissioners was a director of the Western Mountains and Rivers Corporation.
Heather Johnson was also a director of the Western Mountains And Rivers Corporation. Governor Mills supports CMP's corridor project. Governor Mills appointed Heather Johnson as Maine's Commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development.
Peter Mills, Governor Mill's brother, was also a director of the Western Mountains And Rivers Corporation.
Mills
CMP Paid To Have Economic Studies Written to Influence the Maine Public Utilities Commission To Approve the CMP Corridor Project
The reports describe CMP's view of the benefits of their corridor project, but they say nothing about the negative impacts to Maine's tourism economy, Maine's fish and wildlife habitat or the impact on future generations.
The reports also leave out that CMP has earned
the "Worst-In-Nation Customer Satisfaction Mark"
for three consecutive years and is an unreliable business partner.
Note that two of the documents say "Redacted", meaning CMP is hiding information that they don't want the citizens of Maine to see.
"NECEC Transmission Project:
Benefits to Maine Ratepayers"
Prepared For: Central Maine Power
Amount CMP Paid To Have This Written:
Amount paid: Undisclosed
Date Published: 27 September 20
The Principal Consultant for this document previously held management and power supply planning positions at Central Maine Power.
"The Economic and Employment Contributions Of The
New England Clean Energy Connect In Maine"
Prepared For: Central Maine Power
CMP Paid $35,000 to have this written.
Published in September 2017, at the same time that CMP filed its application for state permits to build the corridor.
“Independent Analysis of Electricity Market and Macroeconomic Benefits of the New England Clean Energy Connect Project”
The company that wrote this document, is based in Canada (the home of Hydro Quebec)
and in Massachusetts (where the energy from Hydro Quebec is going).
The Maine Public Utilities Commission paid $475,000 for this report on the "benefits", but did not have anyone look into the negative impacts of the project.
If permitted, CMP's corridor really will become as wide as the New Jersey Turnpike. CMP has tried to pretend that it won't be very wide, but that is another one of CMP's lies. Initially, it will be 150 feet wide, but CMP's permit allows for up to 300 feet wide. 300 feet is for future expansion for the next power line after this project is completed.
Per CMP spokesman John Carroll:
"Our real estate rights are 300' wide. You have to look ahead. We don't know what the future will call for. When you create a corridor you want to have the real estate for future projects," Carroll said.
Damage From The Corridor
CMP says “fewer impacts to the environment”.
Fewer impacts than what?
CMP will be cutting the corridor through
53 miles of forest to provide power for Massachusetts.
53 miles is the distance from
Newport to Greenville, from Skowhegan to Rangeley, from
Freeport to Waterville and from Waterville to Bangor.
CMP will build the corridor up to 300 feet wide.
Per CMP spokesman John Carroll:
"Our real estate rights are 300' wide. You have to look ahead. We don't know what the future will call for. When you create a corridor you want to have the real estate for future projects," Carroll said.
Image is from CMP's website
as of April 20, 2019
CMP WINS!
The U.S. States with the Most
and Least Power Outages - CMP Takes Maine To The Top of the Worst List
A GOOD FIT FOR MAINE? CMP THINKS SO
Pole Heights In Pownal and Durham
CMP's proposal says that the TYPical Above Ground HeighT (TYP AG HT) for the new 345kV poles will be 95 feet.
However, 345kV poles, per Transmission Hub (see link) are typically between 115 and 150 feet high.
Since no maximum is defined in the proposal, CMP could easily pull a "bait and switch". The poles could be much much higher than the stated 95 feet.
A GOOD FIT FOR MAINE? CMP THINKS SO
Very TALL Poles From Canada To Lewiston
CMP's corridor project is composed of five segments. Segment 1 from Canada to Lewiston includes 5.3.5 miles of new HVDC transmission line corridor within a 150 foot wide cleared corridor within a 300 foot wide right of way. The steel pole structures will average 100 feet tall.
CMP's proposal says that the TYPical Above Ground HeighT (TYP AG HT) for the new 500 kVDC poles will be 100 feet.
However, 500 kVDC poles, per Transmission Hub (see link) are typically between 145 and 180 feet high.
Since no maximum is defined in the proposal, CMP could easily pull a "bait and switch". The poles could be much much higher than the stated 100 feet.
CMP's claim of “Economic Growth” is one of CMP's biggest smoke and mirrors distortion.
When CMP says that they are increasing the state's GDP by $564 million, it means that that the cost of the new poles, cable, DC converter and substation upgrades will cost $564 million. All of that remains the property of CMP. Maine is not receiving $564 million, as CMP would like us to think.
The $15 million for broadband infrastructure is so that CMP can monitor the powerline. CMP is not simply donating $15 million to the towns for new broadband.
Image is from CMP's website
as of April 20, 2019
CMP marketing says that they are making a $200 million investment to enhance renewable energy development and gird reliability.
However, during a Q&A session with CMP in Pownal, ME the CMP spokesman said that the $200 million grid investment is needed for the transmission line to function for the corridor project.
At Pownal’s 4/22/2019 meeting with CMP, CMP’s spokesman indicated that no solar or wind energy will be permitted to provide energy into the 145 mile CMP corridor.
The $200 million is NOT being invested for renewable energy. The $200 million is for CMP's corridor project.
Image is from CMP's website
as of April 20, 2019
CANADIAN MEGADAMS & VOICES OF THE RESISTANCE:
WHY HYDROPOWER IS DIRTY ENERGY
CMP calculates that the citizens of Maine will save $40 million per year if we permit CMP to build the corridor to send the electricity from Quebec to Massachusetts.
In CMP’s eyes, our electricity bills will go down, amounting to $40 million per year.
This is a conveniently unverifiable claim from CMP.
It is just words.
In the unlikely event that it was true, it would only mean a savings of $2.56 per person per month. Enough to buy a coffee every month.
Do we really believe that CMP set up a $140 million rate relief fund and another $50 million for low income customers? Again, just words.
CMP has proven time and time again that their customers are unimportant.
Image is from CMP's website
as of April 20, 2019
CMP's Claims of More Jobs for Mainers
During the Pownal meeting with CMP, the CMP spokesman indicated that there have been a
lot of requests for CMP to make a commitment to hire local Mainers.
The spokesman said
“We have been reluctant to do that.
We have said that there is a preference for Mainers, b
ut for the major contracts, we'll let them out nationally.”
The spokesman continued
“Our expectation is there will be some local contractors, big contractors in Maine, that will bid.
There will be some contractors that will be national, that will bid.”
At that same meeting with CMP in Pownal, the CMP spokesman did mention that
there will be jobs for babysitters. He wasn't joking.
The contracts have gone to:
Irby Construction of Mississippi
Sargent Electric of Pennsylvania
Northern Clearing Inc. of Wisconsin
Cianbro Corporation in Maine has a partnership with the companies that
were awarded the contracts, though it appears that Cianbro's role is
minor in contrast to the out-of-state labor. The labor market in Maine is too tight.
The claim of 3500 jobs was just a marketing trick. Most of the 3500 jobs will come from out of state. CMP's marketing has recently reduced the estimate to 1600 jobs. The actual final number is closer to 38 jobs.
Image is from CMP's website
as of April 20, 2019
BILODEAU OPED:
LOCAL LOGGER QUESTIONS CMP CORRIDOR
I own a small business in Livermore Falls, and do mostly selective cutting of wood lots the old way, with a chainsaw and cable skidder.
In planning to build a new power line through our state, Central Maine Power claims that the project will bring money to the local economy. While there may be some jobs for Maine people while it’s under construction, just how many is the question. Furthermore, how many jobs will be permanent and have a lasting effect on Maine’s economy?
For starters, the winning bid for the clearing of all the trees was granted to an out-of-state company. I know there are plenty of competent land management and land clearing companies right here in Maine. Many are already listed as vendors with CMP.
Why, if this project is supposed to bolster the state’s economy and provide local jobs, has CMP contracted with an out-of-state company for land clearing? Not only does it bring some of its own workers, it even uses a lot of its own equipment. Some fuel is bought in bulk, limiting the sales for local fuel companies.
What concerns me the most is how the project is funded. CMP claims it comes at no cost to Maine people. I think we shouldn’t forget that CMP as an entity is funded by Maine people.
The forest products industry in Maine has taken a big hit these days, between the era of electronics and Internet, COVID-19, and the loss of the digester at the Jay mill. Many forest product companies are left wondering what to do. Maine’s forest products industry accounted for an estimated $2.7 billion of Maine’s economy in 2016. If any of the lumber is sold from the massive amounts of wood being decimated from the clearing of this project, it will drown the already-flooded wood commodity market.
The alternative is to chip in place, or chip and haul off. If that’s the case, how many tons of carbon-filtering, oxygen-producing, renewable trees will go to waste while being left to rot, producing methane gas? While normal amounts of wood waste left after a sustainable harvest is considered good for erosion control and for providing nutrients for trees left standing, decimation of miles of timberland to never have trees growing on it again does not promote a healthy sustainable forest.
In fact, one market that it will directly affect is the biomass industry. We have a plant right here in Livermore Falls. They burn a combination of otherwise wasted wood and clean building demolition to produce 284,000 net megawatt hours of electricity. This is done cleanly and makes use of a product that would otherwise take up space in landfills or be wasted in the woods. Not to mention the market it creates for local sawmills to sell waste product like slabs and sawdust, which keeps the cost of lumber down.
With this new corridor getting power from out of country, where lax regulations exist in the hydro industry, it threatens the ability for companies like this to compete in the power market. Not to mention the local property tax this entire ecosystem generates locally, as well as the local jobs this provides our community day after day and year after year.
Once the trees are harvested from the corridor, the only real lasting job left for Mainers is for the companies that annually or biannually hire workers to ride the miles of barren land on ATVs, spraying anything that is growing with herbicide down 100-plus miles of what was once a flourishing forested ecosystem.
The plan for this corridor has certainly prompted concerns from many of Maine’s citizens. As a logger, I would urge everyone to think about what’s really the best compromise for producing and distributing electricity, while doing it in a green and sustainable way.
When managed properly, trees are a renewable resource.
Is CMP managing the forest they “own” sustainably? Is the power line really “green?”
Bryce Bilodeau of Livermore Falls is a self-employed logger.
Another baseless claim from CMP is that their corridor project will reduce CO2 emissions.
In order to meet CMP's estimates, Massachusetts would need to shut down many of its 33 Natural Gas fired power plants.
According the the CMP spokesman, CMP can't guarantee that the power plants be shut down. That decision is up to the owners of those power plants. It is not the decision of CMP or Massachusetts regulators.
In addition, on May 31, 2019, the Pilgrim Nuclear power plant in Massachusetts was permanently shut down, removing 680 Megawatts of generation.
Massachusetts will need those natural gas power plants to stay online, even if a corridor to bring power from Quebec to Massachusetts is built.
Building the CMP corridor in Maine would actually result in slightly dirtier air, due to the miles of trees that will be lost that would not be absorbing CO2.
Image is from CMP's website
as of April 20, 2019
CMP Promises Tax Benefits?
CMP can throw out any number to say that they are providing tax benefits to Maine. CMP cannot be trusted. Lewiston is the only place that may financially benefit from CMP's corridor.
If Lewiston's mayor and city council want to sell out their citizens for money, that is their choice.
Most of the towns along CMP's corridor oppose it, and have chosen to not sell out.
Image is from CMP's website
as of April 20, 2019
During the Pownal meeting with CMP, the CMP spokesman said
that CMP is a taxpayer like us, and will negotiate the value of the substation.
In the past, CMP has been very successful in
reducing the value of their assets so that they will pay less.
CMP has proven time and again that they cannot be trusted and that they will do anything to maximize their profits at the expense of their customers, the towns and the State of Maine.
$85 Mil – CMP Estimated Value
$85 Mil @ $16.50/1000 = $1.4 Mil (Year 1)
$85 Mil @ $11.98/1000 = $1.0 Mil
$60 Mil – CMP Negotiated Value (est)
$60 Mil @ $16.60/1000 = $990K (Year 1)
$60 Mil @ $11.98/1000 = $718K
For Pownal, due to the school funding formula, there could be an increase in our property taxes, or a minor decrease at best. For Durham, the new revenue estimate is only $62,000 at most, if we can trust CMP's estimates.
CMP Claims Cleaner Air For Maine?
This is another deceptive tactic by CMP to try to show a benefit for Maine, when there is no benefit for Maine.
Maine has serious air quality issues, but mostly due to the prevailing winds across the United States. Most of the air pollution in Maine comes to us from the mid-western states.
Little air pollution blows from
Massachusetts to Maine.
CMP's will not improve the air quality for Maine, but it will increase the $$ for Spain's Iberdrola/Avangrid/CMP corporation.
Impacts on Fishing
TOWNS OPPOSED TO THE CORRIDOR
Mainers Want LOCAL Control On Permitting Decisions
For The CMP Corridor
Alna
Anson
Caratunk*
Chesterville
Dennistown
Durham
Embden*
Eustis
Farmington
Greenville
Industry
Jackman
Jay
Livermore Falls
Moose River
Moscow
New Sharon*
Pownal
Rome
Starks
The Forks
West Forks
Wilton
Woolwich
Rescinded Support Of The Corridor
Wiscasett
Franklin County Commissioners
Androscoggin County Commissioners
*moratorium