January 2022

---

 

“Even though our utilities are regulated by the Public Utilities Commission, they are profit-maximizing monopolies, shareholder-owned companies who are guaranteed a high rate of return on their investments by federal law. In the case of CMP and Versant, they’re owned by foreign banks and governments, and they operate to maximize investors’ profits—not the interests of Maine ratepayers.
 
Serving Mainers is not their top priority, by design. However, we the people bestowed this monopoly power, and most don’t know we can remove the privilege. A coalition of your neighbors and local organizations formed Our Power, and we need your help to bring power back to the people.” Read the entire article here.
 
We still need your help gathering signatures to put a consumer owned utility on the ballot in November! As Mainers, we deserve to vote on our energy future, and we need more signatures to put the Pine Tree Power Company up for a vote. With less than 1 month away, we need as many people to help as possible. You can find out where folks are gathering signatures or sign up to gather them at ourpowermaine.org/take-action.

Join us January 25th at 12pm as guest speaker Phil Coupe, Co-Founder of ReVision Energy, discusses the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy.
 
Did you know that two of Maine's largest oil companies are having solar and electric vehicle chargers installed at their gas stations because they think fossil fuels are ultimately doomed? The transition to clean energy is happening faster than most people realize, from solar-powered steel plants to electrification of local heavy construction companies. Electric snowmobiles, tractors, buses, ferries, cruise ships and planes now make it possible to achieve zero emissions across a wide range of previously polluting activities. Plus, solar electricity has become the cheapest form of energy over the past decade, positioning humanity to rapidly accelerate the transition to the better future we know is possible for ourselves and generations to come. Learn more by attending our event on 1/25.

Are you organizing for climate action in your community? Please join us for our second quarterly statewide meeting of climate and community action teams across Maine on January 20th at 5pm!

At this meeting, we will get to know each other and the projects our teams are working on. We will have presentations from various teams about their current projects, and space for folks to get feedback and support on their work. This is an ongoing space for information sharing, movement building, and community support on local projects all over the state! We hope you will join us. You can register and receive the zoom link here.

The Chapter Legislative Team has started meeting again in preparation for the Second Regular Session of the 130th Maine Legislature, which begins January 5, 2022 (and runs through April).
 
There are various priority bills that were carried over, and there are many other new bills that have been introduced. You can find out more on our website here. As always, we will send out action alerts for high priority bills if there is a public hearing or a vote that needs public action.
 
Our Legislative Team is made up of volunteers, and we are always trying to engage more advocates. The more of us involved in our democracy, the better! We talk through bills, strategize public outreach, draft testimony, and lobby legislators. If this sounds interesting to you, please reach out to Matt Cannon at matthew.cannon@sierraclub.org and keep an eye on our Events Calendar.

After receiving feedback from volunteers and thinking through our Chapter strategy, our Energy Team is now reorganized into three subteams: Transportation, Clean Energy (solar, offshore wind, etc.), and Building Electrification. These areas align with our national campaigns, and they allow us to focus our efforts in the energy sphere. 
 
As we ramp up efforts to address the climate crisis, we are looking for more volunteers to broaden our impact in this work. If you would like to be involved, please email Matt Cannon: matthew.cannon@sierraclub.org.

Sierra Club Maine has a long history in support of Sears Island as a natural resource at the head of Penobscot Bay. We have participated over the years in opposing multiple efforts at building various projects on the island, including a container port, an LNG terminal, etc. From 2007-2009 we participated in a planning process that preserved 660 acres of the Island under easement with Maine Coast Heritage Trust and managed by Friends of Sears Island. The subsequent upgrades to trails and information about the island have steadily increased visitation such that it is now seen as a great asset in that area of coastal Maine for school and recreational visiting. The island is on migratory pathways for multiple bird species, it harbors eelgrass beds and clam flats as well. The topography of the island will render it much more complex to develop than Mack Point just across the harbor which has ample areas available for development.

We support offshore wind, and we applaud the advent of well-sited offshore wind development by the Mills Administration. We need to scale our renewables significantly to meet our climate goals, and offshore wind in Maine is a critical resource and a potential economic driver. We also expect the DEP and DOT to comply with an all practicable alternatives analysis when making applications to develop staging areas for wind development and for an environmental impact analysis on port development as well. We support the conclusion of the Consensus Agreement from the Joint Use Planning Committee in 2008, which we participated in:  “Mack Point shall be given preference as an alternative to port development on Sears Island.” We look forward to learning more and continuing to engage in the process to ensure we develop offshore wind and meet our climate/renewable energy goals.

The length of the growing season (contiguous string of frost-free days) is one of the indicators of global warming that is quite sensitive to even small temperature increases. Here in Portland in 2021 we have experienced the longest growing season on record since 1973 at the Portland airport’s station KPWM, as shown in the graphic. The graphic illustrates the increasing length for the entire time of robust records of the National Weather Service, amounting to nearly 50 years. The line is a fit to the data, but it is clear that the last 10 years have been significantly above the average.  Remarkably, the record set in the year 2021 shows nearly a two-month increase in growing season compared to the first available years in the 1970s. Other National Weather Service stations around the state show similar, but not as pronounced, trends. Read the rest of David's article here.

Living in the Northeast, you're sure to have heard the advice to let your car warm up prior to driving in winter months. This misconception was framed around the fact that cars do get worse fuel economy with low temperatures- they are at least 12% less fuel efficient. Driving your car normally and avoiding hard accelerations will bring the engine to a warmer temperature faster, while also reducing wear and exhaust emissions. In reality, allowing your car to idle for only the time it takes you to fasten your seatbelt is adequate. In use, the engine will warm up faster and warm up the car's interior quicker as well. 

Do you have a green tip that you would like to have included in a future newsletter? Please share it with us here!

Here are some of the meetings and events we have coming up. We hope to see you soon!