We had heard about the windmills but when we asked how they would affect us if we bought the land, the town manager told us we wouldn't even see them, much less hear them because they were going on the front of the mountains. We believed them. That was our biggest mistake. At that time we had no idea that the town fathers had not even read the application that they had co-signed on or hired a lawyer to explain it to them. They had no idea what they had agreed to. They, in turn, had believed everything UPC had told them. The biggest lie of all was that there would be no noise or you had to be within 500'.to hear anything. I believe that is still in their propaganda. ...A close friend of ours wanted to buy ten acres of land from us for a house lot. After he saw what was happening he decided he definitely did not want to live with the windmills in his front yard. Sadly, we agreed with him.
Impact on People
Impact on Landscape
Maine
The WindAction Group (www.windAction.org)
Facts, analysis, exposure to industrial wind energy's real impacts
This useful paper discusses the response of those who view wind turbine visual simulations using virtual reality and those who see the same image as a 2-dimensional graphic. The study found that the VR rendering provided viewers more information to assess their "visitation experience." It was found that VR technology caused respondents, on average, "to have more negative reactions to the wind turbines." The introduction and conclusion of the paper are provided below. The full paper can be accessed at the document links on this page.
At the September 6, 2017 meeting of the Somerset County Maine Commissioners, the Board adopted Resolution 17 – 164 that publicly opposes any additional industrial Wind Development in Somerset County. The agenda for the meeting can be found here. The full resolution, as adopted, is provided below and can be accessed at the links on this page.
This draft decision prepared by the Staff for the Maine Department of Environmental Protection details why the Bowers Mountain Wind Park should be denied. The project consisted of 16 Vestas or Siemens 3.0 megawatt turbines (48 MWs in total). Following extensive hearings on the project the Department found the project would create an unreasonable adverse effect on the scenic character and existing uses related to scenic character in the area surrounding the project. The full draft order can be accessed by clicking on the links at the bottom of this page.
The State of Maine Board of Environmental Protection denied the application of Passadumkeag WInd Park LLC to construct a 14-turbine, grid-scale, wind energy development. The denial was tied to the impact of the turbines on Scenic Resources of State or National Significance. An brief excerpt of the order is provided below. The full order can be accessed by clicking on the link at the bottom of this page.
The Maine Land Use Regulatory Commission denied a permit for the 27-turbine (62.1 MW) Bowers Wind Energy facility proposed by Champlain Wind, LLC which is wholly owned by First Wind. The 27-page order denying the permit explains how the impact on scenic resources would be unreasonably adverse. An excerpt of the denial is provided below. The full document can be accessed at the links at the bottom of this page.
The Boyds Mars Hill, ME provided this letter to the residents of Byron and Roxbury, ME in hopes the voters of both towns would make informed decisions before agreeing to permit industrial turbines on their ridgelines. This letter is published here with the permission of Boyds.
Wendy Todd of Mars Hill, ME provided this letter to the residents of Byron and Roxbury, ME in hopes the voters of both towns would make informed decisions before agreeing to permit industrial turbines on their ridgelines. This letter is published here with the permission of Wendy Todd.
In my opinion [Mars Hill] is some of the prettiest acreage in Aroostook and I was very happy to come home to it, in fact…it was my dream. ... The turbines however, have changed most of that as the land that was once known for its remote nature, wildlife and solitude is now home to an industrial power plant. For anyone to say that a wind turbine facility has a low impact on the local environment… is irresponsible. Yet the industry and the media surrounding it seem insistent on making light of the problems that exist. The problems are real and they are hurting families emotionally, physically and economically. ...