Amended Wind Energy Bill Includes Permanent Ban On Wind Projects Within State Waters

MAINE PUBLIC • June 10, 2021

Governor Janet Mills angered Maine's lobster industry last year, when she proposed a 16-square mile "research array" of up to 12 turbines to be floated in federal waters 20 miles or more off the coast -- in a partnership with the University of Maine and international wind developers. This year she proposed a 10-year moratorium on wind projects in state waters where the majority of Maine's lobster fleet operates. Some fishermen said it did not go far enough. Rep. Billy Bob Faulkingham, a Republican and lobsterman from Winter Harbor, won a key committee's unanimous support for turning the governor's moratorium on near-shore wind projects into a permanent ban. Rep. Nicole Grohoski, an Ellsworth Democrat, says the compromise includes several measures designed to protect the state's fishing interests, while encouraging clean energy development.