Penobscot Bay Blog: February 2017

Feb 26, 2017

FOAA 2016. ME Coastal Prog re Main AquaVentus April- November 2016

Maine Coastal Program's 11/22/16 response to FOAA request re Aquaventus/Volturnus. The FOPB request was for "Public records in custody of you or your staff dating from April 1, 2016 to November 14, 2016 that pertain to the Maine Aquaventus /Volturnus floating ocean wind turbines project, slated to occupy the Maine Offshore Wind Test Center." Below the links, see list of persons within these emails

Part 1 Articles and reports forwarded to each other

Full Part 2 All emails in one pdf file

Part 2A, Laura Singer to Matt Nixon 6/29/16 and 7/1/16

Part 2B Barbara Hitchcock to Singer & Singer to Hitchcock 7/5/16

Part 2C Barbara Hitchcock - Nixon 7/6/16

Part 2D Bensinger to Burrowes. 7/12/16 (twice)

Part 2E Barbara Hitchcock, Matt Nixon, Laura Singer, 7/5 & 7/6

Part 2F Beth Nagusky, Todd Burrowes 6/27/ 6/30, 7/18

Part 2G Nixon, Leyden, Burrowes, Marvinney. 7/18, 7/28, 11/1,

Part 2H FOPB FOAA request 11/14/16

State Agencies in emails

Kathleen Leyden <Kathleen.Leyden@maine.gov> Dir Maine Coastal Program (MCP)

Mark Bergeron <Mark.Bergeron@maine.gov> Dir DEP Bureau of Lands

Robert G. Marvinney <Robert.G.Marvinney@maine.gov> ME Geologic Survey

Patrick C. Woodcock <Patrick.C.Woodcock@maine.gov> Governor's Energy Office

Meredith Mendelson <Meredith.Mendelson@maine.gov> DMR Deputy Commissioner

Philip deMaynadier <Phillip.deMaynadier@maine.gov> DIFW Coordinator

Todd Burrowes <Todd.Burrowes@maine.gov> MCP federal consistency reviewer

Peggy Bensinger <Peggy.Bensinger@maine.gov> MDEP's Asst AG

Matthew Nixon <Matthew.E.Nixon@maine.gov> MCP GIS & Ocean Planning

Monhegan Residents in emails

* Barbara Hitchcock barbaramonhegan@gmail.com Monhegan resHitchcock House

* Laura T Singer <lsinger@maine.rr.com> Monhegan Resident

Wind Industry in emails

* Beth Nagusky <bnagusky@leedco.org> Lake Erie Energy Development ,Fmr Maine renewable energy czar

* Info@windindustry.com "website for the windindustry"

* Val Stori <val@cleanegroup.org> Clean Energy Group, http://www.cleanegroup.org/blog-author/val-stori/

Windpower, tidepower at 2013 Maine Fishermen's Forum

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management hosted an event at the 2013 Maine Fisherman;'s Forum

*Part 1. 13min

*Part 2 95min

*Part 3 20 min
*Part 4 Second session 1 hour

Feb 25, 2017

Maine ocean windpower events at the Maine Fishermen's Forum 2010 -2013

Maine Fishermens Forum ocean windpower events

* 2013

*penbay.org/audio/fishforum2013/ff2013_022813_boem1.MP3

*penbay.org/audio/fishforum2013/ff2013_022813_boem2.MP3

*penbay.org/audio/fishforum2013/ff2013_022813_boem3.MP3
*penbay.org/audio/fishforum2013/ff2013_022813_boem4.MP3

2012 Related bay blog article

*.boem/ff_2012_wind_video_soundtrackpt2.mp3

*.boem/ff2012_winpower_pt3_breakoutgrp5_cushman_1min_11sec.mp3

*.boem/ff_2012_wind_qa8b_kenfletcher_2min_50sec.mp3

*.boem/ff_2012_wind_qa7_4min_30sec.mp3

*.boem/ff_2012_wind_kenfletcher_guvsoffice_51sec.mp3

*boem/ff_2012_wind_kari_hege_mork_statoil_video_2min42sec.mp3

*boem/ff_2012_wind_kari_hege_mork_statoil_26sec.mp3

*boem/ff_2012_wind_qa9_1min_55sec.mp3

*boem/ff_2012_wind_johnweber_nroc1min48sec.mp3

*boem/ff_2012_wind_qa15_finalwords_2min30sec.mp3

*boem/ff_2012_wind_q_richardmelton_friendshiplobbait_1min_44sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_qa3_audience_answered_5min_45sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_rickbellance_richarcherbiz_10sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_qa6_paulanderson_edited_7min.mp3

* boem/ff2012_winpower_pt3_breakoutgrp4_tooley_1min_32sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_pt2_ken_fletcher5_1min _30sec.mp3
* boem/ff_2012_wind_pt2_ken_fletcher3_2min50 sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_qa13_showstoppers_kenfletcherothers_4min_55sec.mp3

* boem/ff2012_winpower_pt3_breakoutgrp1_6min9sec.mp3

* boem/ff2012_winpower_pt3_breakoutgrp3_bmacdonald_55sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_qa4_kari_hege_mork_statoil_onsize_1min.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_qa12_ron_huber_3min_43sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_qa10a_kari_hege_6min_2sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_qa8_glennlibby_1min_30sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_pt2_ken_fletcher4_1min.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_qa14_smallbizadmin_1_min.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_qa11_4min_30sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_pt2_ken_fletcher_2min.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_qa2_geolapointe_karihegemork_3min_28sec.mp3

* boem/ff2012_winpower_pt3_closing_comm_keliher_2min.mp3

* boem/ff2012_winpower_pt3_fishpanelintro_2min_45.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_peter_jumars_umaine_41sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_panel1intro_19mins.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_paulwillamson_mwii_75sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_john_weber_nroc_20sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_darryl_francois_boem_11min.mp3

* boem/ff2012_windpower_pt3_breakoutgrp_intro_47sec.mp3

* boem/ff2012_winpower_pt3_breakoutgrp2_patrice_3min_50sec.mp3

* /boem/ff2012_winpower_pt3_full_56min_47sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_qa5_jumars_edited_2min37sec.mp3

* boem/ff_2012_wind_qa10_kari_hege_1min26sec.mp3

* 2011
ff2011_offshore_wind_olympia_snowe3min.mp3

2010

* ff10_wind_peter_hughes_fishermensenergy_nj_12min.mp3

* ff10_wind_des_fitzgerald_principlepower_10min.mp3

* ff10_wind_neal_pettigrew_UME_11min.mp3

* ff10_wind_beth_nagusky_14min.mp3

* ff10_wind_george_lapointe_5min.mp3

* ff10_wind_deirdre_gilbert.mp3

* ff10_wind_addison_ames_vhaven_electcoop_10min.mp3

* ff10_wind_rob_snyder_island_institute.mp3

* penbay.org/monhegan/audio/dagher_offshore_2010_2011_3min14sec.mp3

Feb 23, 2017

Controversial plan for ramp and flat in bird-rich Watts Cove mudflat wins appeal

SAINT GEORGE. Last night the Saint George town office hosted the latest fight between attorneys sparring before the Planning Board for the two sides in a longterm struggle for and against keeping Watts Cove, a natural tidal flat, free of piers and floats. All are invited.   St George town office location map

The Saint George Board of Appeals meeting was called after shoreland property owners Bryce and Gail Molloy found the Town Planning Board on January 10, 2017 had ruled against them one more time again rejecting the application  put a ramp and float into Saint George's biodiverse Watts Cove.

This had followed the  December 15th decision by Saint George Board of Appeals to send the application back to the planning board. That decision followed the November 17, 2016 appeal by Bryce & Gail Molloy of the rejection of their second application on October 4th  to build a ramp with chained floats extending out from the shore of Watts Cove, a small intertidal embayment of the tidal Saint George River.

Saint George resident Matt Stern, a member of the Significant Wildlife Preservation Committee a prominent opponent of the Molloy plan, said that not all waterfront is the same.

"If you want a place to use powerboats and jets skis" he said, "maybe that shouldn't be done in a wildlife area that's a mudflat. Maybe you should have another place to do that." Listen to Matt Stern February 18th interview on WRFR Community Radio 22min.

According to Stern, Watts Cove's importance for wildlife is well documented by Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Stern and other concerned Saint George residents in the Significant Wildlife Preservation Committee commissioned environmental consultants Paul Leeper of Moody Mtn Env. (report)) and Sr Ecologist Richard Podolski PhD of the Ecology And Technology firm, (report) . Both identify Watts Cove and surrounds as high quality, highly productive estuarine shore and wading bird and shellfish habitat.

Ron Huber of Friends of Penobscot Bay noted that like many bay towns, Saint George's ordinance looks at all of its shorefront as having more or less the same economic and ecological value.

"We know that this is not the case", he said. "Communities need to adopt ordinances protective of their irreplaceable natural shoreland and marine habitats and scenic areas. This can be done without running afoul of laws and ordinances protecting landowners' property rights."

"The state has come up with ways to evaluate the quality of every town's scenic resources. This can help steer development away from what is irreplaceable," Huber said.

Stern noted that the ordinance" kind of looks at all waterfront as the same".

We are at a juncture," he said.

# #

Feb 22, 2017

Maine Legislators briefed 2/6/17 by UME ocean wind experts. Listen to Audio.

On February 7, 2017, UMaine professors Habib Dagher and Jake Ward gave the Maine Legislature's Energy Utility and Technology Committee a briefing on the status of the Maine Aqua Ventus 1 floating wind mills project proposed for state waters off Monhegan. Listen to either the complete briefing and Q &* A session or the briefing broken into sections

Audio in sections (Full 2/7/17 Offshorewind Briefing 53min)

Introduction 2 minutes

Habib Dagher Intro Pt One 8 min 29sec

Habib Dagher Intro Pt Two 10min22sec

Dagher Presents Pt One. 7min45sec

Dagher_describes test site 3min22sec

Dagher on driving cost down_ 4min

Dagher ends presentation.1min 40sec

Dagher & Jake Ward Q&A on progress of foreign floating windpower projects 1min42sec

Jake_Ward_final_Dagher 65sec.mp3

Dagher questioned about Statoil etc 5min27sec.mp3

Dagher is asked what legislature's role should be._2min 45se c.

Feb 20, 2017

Monhegan ocean windpower history:Legislators in 2010 developing Maine's offshore windpower law-AUDIO

Below are links to mp3 audio recordings of the Maine legislature's Energy Utilities and Technology Committee in March 2010 holding its historic public hearing and three worksessions on Maine's ocean windpower bill LD 1810, An Act To Implement the Recommendations of the Governor's Ocean Energy Task Force. (as passed into law)