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S3:E8 - 53 Miles of Maine, Episode 5 of 5 - Bringing Two Sides Together
Welcome to the 5th and final episode of our series, 53 Miles of Maine, covering a very controversial transmission line to run through Maine carrying hydropower electricity from Canada into the New England grid that was approved by state and federal regulators but stalled by a pubic referendum.
Throughout this series, we have covered several different larger themes from this story that are playing out all over the country as it relates to our clean energy transition. We encourage everyone to check those out if you haven't already.
In this 5th and final episode, we have a special conversation I moderated between someone from each side of the debate over this project. Sandra Howard and Anthony Moffa, who stand against and for the project respectively, agreed to sit down together to discuss these larger themes after hearing the first 4 episodes. It is a rarity these days that we get people on opposite sides of any polarizing and emotional issue to sit down and talk, so I'm so grateful to both Sandra and Anthony for taking the time.
Our hope is that this can serve as a reminder that discussion and discord are so valuable in finding our way through this incredibly complex but equally critical transition off of fossil fuels in the years and decades ahead.
2 Aug 2022TRANSCRIPT
S3:E7 - 53 Miles of Maine, Ep 4 of 5
Today in Episode 4 of 53 Miles of Maine, we dive into the role competitive energy companies, such as NextEra, played in supporting the opposition efforts to the New England Clean Energy Connect.
In doing so we’ll breakdown the playbook pioneered by fossil fuel giant Koch Industries that is being used by big energy companies all over the country to stall or support opposition to projects that are not their own.
Whether or not that applied here in Maine and if so, how influential it was in the ultimate outcome is a subject for much debate and discussion. Supporters of the NECEC believe it played a significant role, while the frontline of the opposition cite that they only needed the funding from competitive energy companies in order to keep up with the marketing spend of Hydro Quebec and the NECEC.
All that and more today in Episode 4.
As a recap for the series so far:
Episode 1: Overview and timeline for the NECEC and how and why it got shut down in Maine
Episode 2: The growing conflict between renewable energy advocates and environmental conservationists
Episode 3: How and why our renewable energy transition will be decided at the Local level
Episode 4: The tools big energy companies use to shut down competitive renewable projects and if that applied in Maine
Episode 5: Final Recap, Coming Soon
30 Jun 2022TRANSCRIPT
S3:E6 - 53 MILES IN MAINE, Part 3 of 5
Welcome back to 53 Miles in Maine, our 5-part series covering a controversial clean energy project that got shut down by a pubic referendum in Maine in November 2021 and is now being decided in the courts.
In this series, we are looking into what happened in Maine as a lens into 3 broader themes impacting our much needed transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy when it comes to our electricity grid.
In Episode 1, we provided a detailed timeline of what took place in Maine
In Episode 2, we discussed why Environmental Activists & Clean Energy Advocates are increasingly at odds with these projects
And now here, in Episode 3, we are discussing why and how these big Clean Energy Projects are shifting from a solely Regulatory review process to a hybrid of a Regulatory + Public Review and how that played out here in Maine
In Episode 4, coming next, we will tackle our 3rd and final theme, the playbook big energy companies are using to stall and block clean energy projects that are not their own
The regulator system designed to govern these types of projects was not really built for the variety and volume we are seeing now as we shift of fossil fuels, let alone the new world order we are in where everything also needs to go through the court of public opinion. In the case of the New England Clean Energy Connect in Maine, they checked all of the regulatory boxes but were unable to convince the public.
This is especially important for renewable energy and the infrastructure needed to support it because so many of these projects will live and die at the hands of local support.
There are a lot of lessons learned here and we aim to bring this out to the forefront.
Here are a few documents and studies that are referenced or in support of the conversations in this episode:
Nationwide Local Infrastructure Study (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1YRKP1cB-a-eHmohbH4sjE4Cs0kBc9aq52FidgMogNG4/edit#gid=0)
Inside a recent episode
S3:E8 - 53 Miles of Maine, Episode 5 of 5 - Bringing Two Sides Together
Published 2 Sept 2022 · Transcript excerpt
[…] So I spent a lot of time thinking about it, but I have to say even I found myself confused at times by the communications that were coming out from all sides. So I'm happy to have this opportunity to continue the conversation. And Anthony is we're stealing some of your vacation time. So I appreciate that. […]
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