October 31, 2014
Maine

Environmental Protection board tosses one Bingham wind project appeal

By Rachel Ohm, Staff Writer | www.centralmaine.com

A Carthage woman’s appeal was dismissed but another, filed by an environmental group, will go forward.

An appeal filed by an area resident opposing the Bingham wind project has been dismissed by the Board of Environmental Protection. Blue Sky West, the project developer, had filed a motion to dismiss.

The appeal, filed by Alice McKay Barnett, of Carthage, was one of two filed in reaction to the Department of Environmental Protection’s approval of the Bingham Wind Project in September. It stated that Blue Sky’s protocol for dealing with noise complaints related to the turbines is not adequate and asked the department to put in place a noise complaint hotline managed by local health officials.

In a decision handed down Friday, the appeal was rejected on grounds that Barnett would not be affected by the wind farm at her home in Carthage, more than 40 miles away. McKay Barnett did not return a request for comment Friday.

“The appeal documents do not state, or provide any evidence demonstrating, that the appellant would suffer a particularized injury as a result of the licensing decision,” wrote Robert A. Foley, chairman of the Board of Environmental Protection in the decision.

The dismissal followed a motion filed by Blue Sky on Oct. 28 asking the board to dismiss McKay Barnett’s appeal because she did not meet the definition of an “aggrieved person,” or person who would suffer as a result of a licensing decision.

The decision does not affect the appeal filed by Friends of Maine’s Mountains, on which the board has until Nov. 17 to rule.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2014/10/31/environmental-protection-board-tosses-one-bingham-wind-project-appeal/