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Report: Maine's Solar Potential Going Untapped

Margaux Rioux

Alternative energy advocates today unveiled a national study which puts Maine's biggest city in a less-than-flattering light when it comes to the development of solar power. Environment Maine held an outdoor press conference near Portland's working waterfront, where despite wet and cloudy conditions, the message was that Maine has great solar potential.

"The fact of the matter is that Maine receives more sunlight than any other state in New England," said Environment Maine Director Emily Figdor.

Figdor was joined by local political and business leaders outside Becky's Diner, on the Portland waterfront, where eight solar panels adorn the roof.

Despite the commitment of Becky's and other businesses to solar energy, much of Maine's potential, says Figdor, remains untapped.

The report, called "Shining Cities," looks at the growth of solar power in 57 cities across America - including Portland - between 2011 and 2013, and talks about a "clean energy revolution." In just two years, says Figdor, the amount of solar power generating capacity in the country tripled. But she says Maine is missing out.

"Portland has just three watts of solar PV (photovoltaic) capacity per person, ranking the city 44th out of 57 cities studied," Figdor said. "Considering the cumulative installed solar PV capacity, Portland ranks third to last, just ahead of last-placed Billings, Montana, and Charleston, West Virginia."

And the reason for this poor solar ranking, says Congressman Mike Michaud, is poor state policy. "Maine definitely has to regain its footing as a leader in clean, renewable energy, which we have lost ground in the last three years," Michaud said.

The 2nd District Democrat is vying to unseat Republican Gov. Paul LePage in a three-way race this November. In his gubernatorial campaign, Michaud calls for Maine to cut its dependence on heating oil in half by 2030, in part by urging the development of solar and energy power.

"Not only is it the right thing to do - to address our climate change problems that we have - but it's also an economic benefit for the area as well," Michaud said.

Clean energy advocates used the "Shining Cities" report to criticize Gov. LePage's recent veto of an effort to re-establish Maine's solar rebate program, designed to incentivize home and business owners into installing solar panels. Critics say Maine's energy policy leaves it as the only New England state without policies to lower barriers to solar energy development.

But Patrick Woodcock, director of the Governor's Energy Office, says the solar rebate program is not the best use of public money. "You've got to understand that Maine is very unique," Woodcock says. "We have about 68 percent of our homes on oil. Most other states don't have that problem, and as a result, our energy policies must be aligned with our challenges."

Which he says means more emphasis on energy efficiency. Woodcock says he hopes solar power can play a part in helping Maine meet its energy challenges, but "right now, the best return for Mainers, and the people that call the Energy Office who are struggling with their bills, is to get an energy audit, put insulation in - and it is rarely to put a solar PV system on their home."

For independent candidate for governor, Eliot Cutler, however, the solar energy study "Shining Cities" illustrates the need for the state to move forward on renewable energy policy. "We need this in Maine, and it's been talked about and talked about and talked about for years," he says. "It's time to get moving."

Cutler's campaign initiatives include a proposal to create a finance authority that would provide capital to energy projects like solar, that would reduce energy costs over time.

"Maine's potential is tremendous," Cutler says, "but we need some encouragement, we need some business people who've had experience in this field, which I've had, and we will, I think, overtake the rest of the Northeast very, very quickly."

View the national study, Shining Cities: At The Forefront of America's Solar Energy Revolution.