Forum and Presentation: Doing Wind Right

Is it possible to develop land-based wind power as a renewable energy source for Maine while protecting the state’s ecological health, natural heritage, and scenic beauty? Where does AMC stand on wind power and how does it make decisions? Is the tradeoff between energy independence and natural vistas a real one? What are the facts about the possibilities and pitfalls of land-based wind power?

Join us on Thursday March 31 to hear a panel of speakers representing environmental groups and the wind industry discussing land-based wind power in Maine and its potential contribution to energy production; its ecological, scenic, and recreational effects; and its relative costs and incentives. The panel is David Publicover, AMC’s Senior Staff Scientist and wind power expert; Ted Koffman, Maine Audubon’s new Executive Director; a representative from First Wind, a developer of Maine wind farms; and moderator Maine State Representative Bob Duchesne, Chair of the legislature’s Natural Resources Committee.

The forum will be structured to be informative, balanced, and fair, and to help members identify the important issues, their relationships, and their tradeoffs. It is co-sponsored by AMC Maine Chapter and Maine Audubon and will be held on Thursday, March 31, 2011 from 7-8:30 pm at Maine Audubon’s Fields Pond Center, 216 Fields Pond Rd, Holden, ME 04429, about 15 minutes south of Bangor. The talk is free and open to the public. For more information download a Flyer_LandBasedWindPower or contact John Mullens