Politics & Co.
Two new studies didn't bode well for Portland's solar energy adoption or Maine's welfare system reform efforts. And new federal rules for trains carrying hazardous materials fell short in not regulating rail cars with smaller loads, even though they have caused explosions.
Ain't no sunshine in Portland
Portland is way behind in adopting solar energy to generate electricity, a new Frontier Group report says, prompting advocates to retrench in the battle for improved renewable energy policies. The environmental think tank ranks Portland 44th out of 57 U.S. cities for the amount of solar energy generated per person, the Bangor Daily News reported. As for total installed solar energy, the city ranks 55th. Not surprisingly, solar energy advocates used the study as a platform to criticize Gov. Paul LePage. He vetoed a bill that would have raised $1 million toward a state rebate program for those who install solar energy systems and electric heat pump systems.
Welfare study suggestions may be plagiarized
The state released a much-anticipated, 228-page study analyzing Maine's welfare programs and recommending several changes. But almost before the ink had dried, the group that wrote the study, Rhode Island-based Alexander Group, was accused of plagiarizing other sources. Gov. Paul LePage said in a statement that he may ask for a refund for the $925,000 study, according to the Portland Press Herald. The study was performed under a no-bid contract from the Maine Department of Health and Human Services last December, the Bangor Daily News reported. Ironically, the study includes recommendations to put more welfare recipients to work.
New rules for oil-carrying trains stop short
The director of the Maine Emergency Management Agency says new federal rules for trains shipping hazardous materials, such as crude oil, don't go far enough. The Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting said the new federal order requires train carriers to notify state emergency officials of the routes they will use to deliver crude oil from the Bakken shale region of North Dakota, and how long they will travel through each county. But the requirement only applies to trains carrying at least a million gallons of crude oil, even when trains with smaller loads have caused explosions, including a recent incident in Virginia. “It doesn't help us with a mixed train, if it's a train with other hazardous materials on it,” MEMA Director Bruce Fitzgerald told the investigative reporting center, “or if there's a train that doesn't meet that million-gallon threshold of 35 cars.”
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