PUC Public Hearing on CMP Transmission Line
For those of you that haven't heard, this public hearing is about CMP's proposal to build a 145-mile transmission line through Maine to deliver power from Quebec to Massachusetts. It's a bad deal for Maine people and Maine’s environment. It will threaten the North Woods, wildlife, renewable energy development in Maine, and fail to reduce climate pollution.
That was the message of more than 200 people who showed up at PUC hearings a few weeks ago in Farmington and the Forks to voice their concerns about this proposal. If you have already submitted testimony, thank you! If not, the PUC is holding another public hearing, for Mainers who couldn’t make it to the Forks or Farmington to express their concerns.
What: Maine PUC Public Hearing to hear from Mainers like you. We hope you will join us and speak out at this hearing!
When: Wednesday October 17 at 5:00 p.m. Please note that the meeting time has changed.
Where: Hallowell (Public Utilities Commission, 101 Second Street)
Why: The rules say the PUC can’t grant a permit to CMP unless this power line meets a “public need.” But, this project isn’t about meeting any real public need. It’s a money-making scheme for CMP, a company that has repeatedly demonstrated that it can’t be trusted to meet the real public need: providing reliable service to its customers.
Maine needs more clean, renewable power generated in-state that benefits our environment and our economy. We need to tackle climate change pollution. We need to protect places and experiences that boost our tourism economy and that would be threatened by this power line. We need a power company that cares about its customers instead of about maximizing shareholder profits at its customers’ expense. This project threatens renewable energy development in Maine, doesn’t reduce climate pollution, and cuts through special remote places, and now, we need Mainers to speak out against this project by testifying about all of this.
If you are interested in attending or testifying, or if you have any questions, please reach out to me at Sophie@nrcm.org.