- There are many questions floating around as to the benefits and drawbacks of a series of wind towers that has been proposed on a set of mountain ridges in Roxbury and Byron by Independence Wind, LLC, of Brunswick. The land is owned by Bay Root, LLC and managed by Wagner Forest Management. Independence Wind representatives have met with the Byron and Roxbury selectmen to discuss their plan, which calls for 20 to 25 wind towers on Flathead, Partridge, and Record mountains. Two experimental wind towers have been put up on the ridge to test the wind potential and provide data. "People are taking a wait and see approach," noted Byron selectman Steve Duguay in a telephone interview last week. "This is new to this area." While there have been a few concerns expressed with the required lighting on the towers and the noise they could generate, more information is needed before any conclusions can be drawn, according to town officials. "They are open," Duguay said in complimenting the company for meeting directly with the selectmen. "They are not trying to sneak something in the back door." Although the Byron Planning Board has not had the chance to meet with Independence Wind, the board is aware of the proposal and several members shared their thoughts on the project at a meeting on Sept. 6. "My own personal feeling is I could live with it if it's going to be generating power," said Dave Duguay. "What I would have a difficult time with is it's supposed to double our valuation." "I don't know how it's going to affect us tax-wise," said planning board member Irene Hutchinson. "Are we going to benefit from the power?" "We won't benefit directly," pointed out D. Duguay. "It's going to go into the grid." "I'm surprised they didn't approach the Byron residents," commented Melissa Plourde. "If it turns out they generate power, then I'm all for it." "I'm not proposing we go out and prevent it," said D. Duguay. "All I'm saying is if it's not done slowly enough and methodically enough so we can determine what kind of an impact it's going to have on our tax base, then we need to protect ourselves." Some towns have ordinances governing the height of structures, including Andover. In addition to the visual concerns, planning board representatives wondered if Independence Wind would come back in the future with another plan for more towers and if it would preserve the tradition of recreational ATV and snowmobile use on trails near where the wind farm would be situated. Byron is currently valued at $21 million. S. Duguay noted, "No one can tell what it's going to do to Byron's taxes. There's too many 'ifs.'" A total of 92 percent of Byron's land is in tree growth, and no one has been able to determine how the wind tower proposal would affect the amount of tree growth revenue. "The tree formula is so complex that nobody in Augusta understands it," said S. Duguay. Regarding the wind tower proposal, he pointed out that it was also unclear how it would impact revenue sharing or state aid. Independence Wind principals were scheduled to meet with Garland Pond campowners and are planning to hold public forums with Byron citizens. The company hopes to collect the data through the end of this winter, and the earliest that it could begin work on the towers is the fall of 2009 pending state permitting approval. "We've got plenty of time to express concerns and voice questions about the issues," concluded S. Duguay.
From the Rumford Falls Times