BEP nixes appeal of Lincoln wind project
A group opposing the state's approval of First Wind's application for a 40-turbine wind power facility in the Lincoln Lakes region has lost its appeal.
The Board of Environmental Protection on Thursday sided with the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, rejecting arguments by the group Friends of Lincoln Lakes, which appealed in May, that the DEP ignored conflicting scientific evidence about the project's potential impacts on residents and wildlife, the Bangor Daily News reported.
The DEP in April approved a permit for Massachusetts-based First Wind to build the $130 million Rollins Mountain project on ridgelines in Burlington, Lee, Lincoln and Winn. Construction is expected to begin by fall of 2010. The company already operates wind-energy facilities on Mars Hill in Aroostook County and on Stetson Mountain in Washington County, and has several other projects pending.
The Rollins Mountain application was the first to be processed by the DEP under new rules designed to expedite review of projects in areas suited for wind power development, the paper reported. The Friends of Lincoln Lakes said the new rules stifled public input in the process.
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