The proposed tax would be $150 a year on hybrids and $250 on electrics. by Don Carrigan NewscenterMaine news story AUGUSTA (NEWS CENTER Maine) — Legislators may be hearing some tough talk from their energy-conscious constituents. The LePage administration is proposing a special tax on hybrid and electric vehicles, to raise more money for repairing Read More
Climate
Climate change and global warming pollution harm Maine people, wildlife, and our environment. Among the highest rates of childhood asthma in the nation, rising seas and severe storms battering our coastal homes and towns, warming and more acidic oceans threatening fisheries, too many “bad air days,” more and more tick-borne diseases, threats to our fall foliage and winter tourism industries—these are among the many health, environmental, and economic problems climate change pollution is causing here in Maine.
The Natural Resources Council of Maine is working to reduce climate-changing pollution by making Maine more energy efficient. We work to provide clean, renewable energy and cleaner more efficient vehicles that will reduce Maine’s contribution to air pollution and climate change to ensure Maine people and wildlife have clean air to breathe.
LePage-backed Bill would Slap Extra Annual Fee on Electric, Hybrid Cars
The transportation department says owners don’t pay enough gas taxes to the highway maintenance fund, but environmental groups and drivers say the state should find another way to fill the gap. by Peter McGuide, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story The LePage administration is proposing to make it more expensive to own a hybrid Read More
South Portland is Making History with Its Clear Skies Fight
It is yet another battle pitting big energy profits against the public’s right to a safe environment. by Jake A. Plante, resident of Brunswick and author of “Uncle Sam and Mother Earth: Shaping the Nation’s Environmental Path” Portland Press Herald op-ed BRUNSWICK — Sometimes history is made in our own backyard. That’s happening with South Read More
Panel on Wind Power Development Likely to Say What LePage Wants to Hear
No amount of study is going to convince the governor to reverse his strident opposition to wind generation, so why bother? by the Editorial Board Portland Press Herald editorial Last week Gov. LePage created a special commission to study wind power development in Maine and issue a report. This week, he told us what the Read More
Support of LD 1741, Resolve, Establishing the Commission to Study the Economic, Environmental and Energy Benefits of Energy Storage to the Maine Electricity Industry
Senator David Woodsome, Representative Seth Berry, and members of the Joint Standing Committee on Energy, Utilities & Technology, My name is Dylan Voorhees and I am the Clean Energy Director for the Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM). Thank you for allowing us to present this testimony. NRCM supports this legislation as a proactive approach Read More
Environmental Group Sues LePage, Says Wind Farm Ban is Unconstitutional
The Conservation Law Foundation says the governor’s action violates the constitutional separation of powers. By Tux Turkel, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story A regional environmental advocacy group has gone to court in an attempt to overturn a moratorium that Gov. Paul LePage imposed last week on most new wind energy projects in Maine. Read More
Wind Power Moratorium Reignites Tourism vs. Clean Energy Debate
by James McCarthy Mainebiz news story Gov. Paul R. LePage issued an executive order Wednesday putting the brakes on the state’s permitting of new onshore wind projects. In doing so, he’s renewed the longstanding debate over whether there’s greater value in Maine’s scenic mountains for tourism than for wind energy. His order also created the Read More
LePage Moves to Block Most New Maine Wind Energy Permits
By Christopher Cousins and Michael Shepherd, BDN Staff Bangor Daily News news story AUGUSTA, Maine — Gov. Paul LePage on Wednesday placed a moratorium on permits for most new wind turbines in Maine, a move that could reverberate regionally a day before Massachusetts is set to announce winners in a massive clean power procurement plan. Read More
LePage Blocks New Wind Energy Projects, Creates Secretive Commission to Study Impacts
The longtime critic of wind energy says he’s acting ‘to protect our natural beauty,’ and allows the new panel to craft regulatory changes without public scrutiny. By Kevin Miller, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage imposed a moratorium Wednesday on new wind energy projects in western and coastal Maine Read More
