To: Committee on Energy Utilities and Technology
From: Patricia Rubert-Nason, Sierra Club Maine
Date: April 13, 2021
Re: Testimony in Support of LD 1332
Chairman Lawrence, Chairman Berry and Members of the Joint Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology. My name is Patricia Rubert-Nason and I write on behalf of Sierra Club and the over 20,000 members and supporters in Maine. Founded in 1892, Sierra Club is one of our nation’s oldest and largest environmental organizations. We work diligently to amplify the power of our 3.8 million members nation-wide as we defend everyone's right to a healthy world. We urge you to vote “ought-to-pass” on LD 1332.
According to the IPCC report and the best available science, we need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030 in order to stay on track to keep warming below 1.5℃. This is a daunting challenge requiring us to cut emissions every year by 7%, the same amount that emissions declined when the economy shut down due to coronavirus. To accomplish this goal we need to deploy renewable energy systems as fast as possible.
1.5℃ is not just a vanity goal. Reaching this target matters and will impact Maine directly. One of the things that makes Maine’s environment special is that we are at the boundary between northern and southern ecosystems. This special place increases the ecological richness of the Maine landscape, but also makes us vulnerable. Many species reach the northern or southern edge of their range in Maine. Significantly, when it comes to the discussion of climate change, many of our most iconic species, including moose, lobster and some trout, are near the southern edge of their range and are likely to disappear from Maine with continued warming.
In light of the climate crisis and the urgent need to decarbonize our energy systems, we believe it is imperative to remove barriers to renewable energy development. LD 1332 does just that by removing the limit of 10 meters or accounts on distributed generation resources developed in northern Maine.
On a more personal note, I am a resident of northern Maine, in the area that would be directly affected by LD 1332. I am heartened by the burst of renewable energy development in Maine, but I am concerned that, under the current rules, northern Maine risks being left out and left behind.
As a Sierra Club volunteer, and as a resident of northern Maine, I urge you to pass LD 1332 and allow the development of renewable energy in northern Maine under the same rules as the rest of the state.
Respectfully,
Patricia Rubert-Nason
Legislative Team Volunteer and Resident of Fort Kent