A Sad day in Mars Hill

by Terry Hamm-Morris

Monday June 19, 2006

Upon extensive research on the wind farm industry on the Internet, talking with the Cape Cod and Vermont citizens dealing with wind farms, I have reached this conclusion. They are masters of giving the public a half-truth then guiding us to an assumption that is not true, but one they want us to believe. They always cite the reduction of pollution they will be saving by the number of polluting cars.

What they omit is how they use the very lucrative "Green Credits" they earn with our tax dollars. There is a Green Credit commodities market where they are sold to the highest bidder. The purchasing business, most often highly polluting, is to our west. They buy the green credits, don't have to clean up their processes, then pollution comes back to Maine in the form of smog and particulates.

We can't eat the fish in our lakes and streams due to pollution that blows over us from the west. How is this green power? When supporting tax-subsidized wind turbine farms, we enable the pollution we see as a brown cloud on our horizon. We are also ruining Maine beauty.

Witness the blasting away of the backside of Mars Hill Mountain to put up 33, 425-foot wind turbines. Even the presence of falcons and eagles didn't stop the destruction of this Aroostook County landmark.

If Mainers think all citizens of Mars Hill wanted this project in our front yard, they're wrong. Town government informed us only after all the private land deals were signed. Some councilors and town management have leases and rental agreements with the wind farm company that are at the very least unethical. Greed by the few to the detriment of the many has worked perfectly in Mars Hill.

Beware, Carrabassett Valley; Redington Mountain is in their sights.