Courtesy photo
Congressman Jared Golden
March 5, 2021
Golden demands Biden administration review of CMP power line project
Courtesy / New England Clean Energy Connect
U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine 2nd District, has asked for a review of the Presidential Permit for the CMP electricity transmission corridor, depicted here in a rendering.
U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine 2nd District, is urging the Biden administration to reevaluate the issuance of a Presidential permit for Central Maine Power Co.'s planned $950 million electricity transmission project.
Work has recently begun on New England Clean Energy Connect, a 145-mile-long transmission line from Canada, part of which would be placed through undeveloped areas of Maine's North Woods, Golden argues in a March 4 letter to U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm.
The two-page missive concerns a permit for the project issued in the final days of the Trump administration, as required for all infrastructure projects crossing international borders.
"I urge you to express my concerns and request an agency review of the issuance of a Presidential permit," Golden wrote. He also expressed concern about the Department of Energy's Environmental Assessment Finding of No Significant Impact by the project.
CMP directed a request for comment to Thorn Dickinson, president and CEO of NECEC Transmission.
"The New England Clean Energy Connect is aligned with the Biden Administration's agenda to combat the current climate crisis," Dickinson said in a statement emailed to Mainebiz.
"This project has been thoroughly reviewed by state and federal regulators and received all major approvals. NECEC is an essential clean energy infrastructure project that will increase the supply of renewable power available to Maine and New England. We look forward to working with the administration to help them advance their clean energy and infrastructure goals.”
Golden's concerns mainly surround the line's impact on forest and wetland ecosystems, as well as on the communities along the route.
He warned that placing new transmission lines in northern Maine will fragment the largest contiguous temperate forest in North America, and noted the expectation that forest in wetlands and vernal pool habitat will be removed to adhere to clearance specifications for overhead lines.
"The areas in which these activities will occur are in essential wildlife habitat for several endangered species and could adversely impact recreation and tourism benefits to local economy," he wrote.
He concluded with a plea to ensure a transparent and thorough permitting process, urging Granholm to "provide Mainers with the opportunity to engage your agency through a public comment process that is merited for the significance of this project."
The letter comes two weeks after opponents to the project gathered enough signatures to put the matter to a statewide referendum in November.
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