Defending Water for Life in Maine » Features

At 1pm, LD 1671, An Act To Provide Funding to the Department of Transportation for a Feasibility Study of an East-west Highway, is scheduled for a public hearing and we want to be there!

We want to attract media coverage, and get our talking points out there. Then, we’ll move inside to attend the hearing.

Pre-Rally Rendevouz! 9am, Tuesday, February 14. Belgrade*.

Let’s meet to develop solid talking points, strategize our overall approach, make posters, and inspire each other!

*Place: 273 manchester road, belgrade, 04917

I’ll have some food and if someone can bring coffee and a coffee pot that’d be awesome.

Action items: Please sign up!

-Contact media:

-Develop talking points (at least send brainstorms via email):

-Bring banners and posters:

-Outreach and Bring people who will be impacted:

-If you can’t be there, write letters of opposition and email them to me. I will include them in our testimony at the hearing!

Thanks and can’t wait to see you and your posse there!!!

Links:

info: www.defendingwater.net/maine/east-west-highway/

bill:http://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/bills/display_ps.asp?paper=SP0570&PID=1456&snum=125

We are expressing opposition to the East-West Highway because:

1) It is dishonest to use taxpayer money to fund a private project. The east-west highway would be a private toll road.

2) The project does not bring any benefit to Maine. Its primary use will be as a highly expensive toll road for Canadian transport trucks heading to East coast ports. Not for tourists, or for Mainers.

3) The project exposes Maine to be used for foreign companies to make money on us. The highway would export profit from Maine, by opening Maine up to resource exploitation by multinational corporations that provide very few jobs if any, do not spend their profits in Maine, and do not pay taxes here. And for that harm, most Mainers will lose access to affordable land to make a living on, and reduce Maine’s tourist appeal, a significant source of income for Mainers.

4) The project will not create many jobs. This is a private project. During construction, more people may get employed. However, as Cianbro regularly performs huge infrastructure projects all over New England, we expect they will provide a high percentage of the work force. Many Cianbro employees live in Maine, and that is great, but we’re not looking at new job creation here.

Once the road is built, there may be a couple more gas station service jobs.

Wood chips for export to Europe, and jobs mining or bottling water, provide very few jobs compared to other local land uses. And for the protection of our beautiful state, the Way Life Should Be. What kind of jobs will be left for our children?

5) The construction of the highway, over 3 major rivers, multiple wetlands, and through old growth forest would be very damaging to the environment.

6) More roads are a waste of money in general. As we approach peak oil, everyone will drive less. Why spend more money on roads when we are just going to have less and less fuel? Climate change activists say put the money into lasting infrastructure projects to benefit people and communities that are not reliant on fossil fuel.

Contact:

Chris Buchanan

chris(at)defendingwater(dot)net

(207) 357-1443

East-West Highway Update: 1-27-2012

chris — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:02:12 +0000

Senator Douglas Thomas promoted the East-West highway to the Dover-Foxcroft selectboard on January 23rd. The Selectmen did not pass a resolution about the highway at this time, saying it was too early and there weren’t enough details. We ask: What exactly would the resolution be for? If you have more information, or can access the town notes, please let us know!

Visit the East-West highway page for all updates and actions: www.defendingwater.net/maine/east-west-highway

Here is the full article:

State senator pitches east-west highway proposal

By Stuart Hedstrom, Piscataquis Observer

DOVER-FOXCROFT, Maine — Having submitted a bill to fund a feasibility study of an east-west highway across Maine, Sen. Douglas Thomas, R-Ripley, discussed the proposal with the Board of Selectmen during a Jan. 23 meeting.

“It will connect to the new border station in Calais, and New Brunswick has already built a new superhighway to the border station,” Thomas said.

He said the highway would extend west across Maine, covering many areas where logging roads are in place now, to Coburn Gore and link up with Quebec. “It’s going to connect us to Canada. There are millions and millions of people in Montreal and we should be seeing some of that traffic.”

Thomas said his bill seeks approximately $300,000 for the feasibility study, using some federal planning money but no state funds.

“My understanding is it will be a four-lane highway and it’s going to be a private road,” he said, noting that a group of investors would fund construction, and tolls along the travel way would provide funding for the highway.

Thomas said Cianbro’s Peter Vigue has been researching the east-west highway concept, but the project would be open to bid. He said those involved in the project are hoping to get started by 2014, “and I’m guessing it will take a couple of years to build.”

“If we wait to do this with public money it’s not going to happen,” he added. “But if we can get this kind of commerce through this area, it’s going to help our economy.”

Thomas said the proposed highway “crosses the Interstate just north of Old Town, goes through north of Charleston, south of Sebec, south of Milo and it goes just north of Dover. But this isn’t set in concrete, this is a proposed map.”

“Someone’s got to have to plow that road, it’s going to need offices, and we are centrally located, and it’s going to need roughly 300 employees,” he added, referring to some of the possible economic benefits of the highway. “There would be $1.2 billion of construction money going into this area and people would be getting to work.”

Thomas said the proposal is now “in the concept stage and now we have to see if it’s even feasible.”

He said the study could take six to 12 months to complete.

The selectmen opted not to pass a resolution concerning the east-west highway proposal. “I think it’s too early,” Selectman Jim Annis said.

“I would just like to say the concept is intriguing but the devil is in the details,” Selectman Paul Matulis said. “I would say make an exit in this area. Otherwise what do we get out of this?”

via: http://bangordailynews.com/2012/01/27/news/piscataquis/state-senator-pitches-east-west-highway-proposal/?ref=latest

East-West Highway Update: January 20, 2012

chris — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:36:57 +0000

The Small Business Administration is looking to providing capital for “small businesses that need it.” There are two components of the article below that are noteworthy.

1) The SBA opened up a loan guarantee program to mission-based and community lenders. Three groups applied for the program in Maine and were approved: Coastal Enterprises Inc., the Eastern Maine Development Corp., and the Northern Maine Development Corp..

As a primary proponent of the East-West Highway, it is critical to monitor what the Eastern Maine Development Corporation does with these funds.

2) In addition, the head of the SBA, Karen Mills, expressed that the Obama administration has an infrastructure proposal on the table, which would mean $200 million in projects for Maine.

With a pre-existing relationship with EMDC, and the East-West highway project needing funding, we must monitor this “infrastructure proposal.” If anyone has information please let us know!

Visit our East-West Highway page for all updates and actions: http://defendingwater.net/maine/east-west-highway/

Here is the full article:

SBA seeks to increase capital for small businesses that need it, Mills says

By Matt Wickenheiser, BDN Staff

Posted Jan. 20, 2012, at 3:24 p.m.
Last modified Jan. 21, 2012, at 7:51 a.m.

photo by Joel Page

Karen G. Mills, administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration speaks Friday, Jan. 20, 2012 at the Portland Regional Chamber’s Eggs and Issues breakfast in Portland. Buy Photo

PORTLAND, Maine — As companies around the country seek to shake off the recession and grow, the Small Business Administration is bringing on new and different lenders to provide them with capital, the head of that federal agency said Friday.

Karen Mills, a Brunswick resident and administrator of the SBA, noted that her agency backed a record number of loans in 2011, hitting a total of $30.5 billion. Mills, speaking at the Portland Regional Chamber’s Eggs and Issues breakfast Friday, noted that there were still some capital areas that need work — specifically, small loans of $250,000 or less in underserved markets.

To address that need, she said, the SBA opened up its loan guarantee program to mission-based and community lenders. Three groups applied for the program in Maine and were approved, she said, Coastal Enterprises Inc., the Eastern Maine Development Corp., and the Northern Maine Development Corp.

Further opening access to capital is one way the Obama administration hopes to prod the economy toward growth. Another is through the president’s payroll tax cut proposal, which is aimed at both consumers and businesses, said Mills.

“That is important — if we want to come out of this recession, small businesses have to grow,” said Mills. “They’re not going to grow unless they have confidence. As I said to the president, the thing that gives small businesses confidence is cash in the balance sheet.”

Mills, a former venture capitalist, worked on economic development in Maine at the request of former Gov. John Baldacci until she was tapped by President Barack Obama in 2009 to head up the SBA. Last week, Obama elevated the SBA administrator position to a Cabinet-level post, giving Mills a seat at the table with his top advisers.

“I had a good week in Washington, as you might imagine,” said Mills. “It was a week ago today that the president asked me to be a part of his Cabinet.”

Mills said she was flattered by the elevation, and by comments made about her work by the state’s congressional delegation. However, what flattered her the most, she said, were the news headlines calling her a “Mainer.” Mills moved to Maine in 2001 when her husband, Barry Mills, took over as president of Bowdoin College.

“For those of us who are from away, we know there is no greater compliment than even for a small moment to be called a Mainer,” said Mills.

Mills noted that Maine had 620,000 jobs before the recession, and dropped to 590,000 after. Maine, she said, is never hit as hard in a downturn as many other states, but also never experiences the highs that other states do.

She said in addition to pushing for payroll tax cuts and increased capital flow, the administration has an infrastructure proposal on the table, which would mean $200 million in projects for Maine.

“$200 million in Maine is a big number — that’s the kind of investment we have to make now in order to continue to grow our companies here and make sure we’re competitive in places like Maine,” she said.

Mills said when she worked on economic development in Maine, she focused on building support for economic clusters — infrastructure and ties within specific sectors. A boat building cluster, making use of the state’s companies and composites technology infrastructure, was successful, she said.

“We used to be shoes and pulp and textiles, now we’re boat builders and disability insurers, and food — there’s a great food cluster,” said Mills. “We have blueberries, we have potatoes, we have seafood.”

She’s taking that same strategy in the work the SBA is doing nationally, she said. If you build the foundation for small business, give them the tools they need to be entrepreneurial, the skills, advice, capital and clusters, they can go forward and create jobs, she said.

“That’s how America is going to compete in the 21st century,” she said.

Wendy Wolf, president and CEO of the Maine Health Access Foundation, asked Mills about what the SBA was doing to make health care more affordable — a big limitation on growth, she added.

Mills said the administration’s Affordable Care Act does contain tax credits for small businesses, but noted that they were too complicated. She’s working with Health and Human Services and the Treasury Department to try to simplify them, she said.

But the real payoff, she said, would be the health insurance exchanges in each state. Today, she said, small businesses pay an average of 18 percent more for insurance than do big businesses, for the same coverage.

There has been no marketplace for small businesses to pool risk and seek competition for their insurance business, Mills said. The exchanges will provide that marketplace, and lower costs, Mills asserted.

David Barber, CEO of Barber Foods in Portland, noted that he had worked with Mills’ office when new U.S. Department of Agriculture regulations threatened the company. Mills’ staff worked with Barber and the USDA to tweak the regulations so the company would be able to continue operations.

“Our outcome was terrific, we actually became a poster child of how industry and government can work together to create something better,” said Barber.

Mills said a year and a half ago a new executive order required that agencies issue regulations specifically detail how they will not adversely affect small businesses, or note how they are being made flexible for small businesses.

She encouraged businesses who have a problem with a specific regulation to contact her office. Part of the responsibilities of the SBA, she said, was to ensure that unintended consequences of regulations don’t harm small business.

“That’s what we’re about,” she said.

via: http://bangordailynews.com/2012/01/20/business/administration-seeks-to-increase-capital-for-small-businesses-that-need-it-mills-says/?ref=latest

Defending Water Speaks with Rodney Butler of the Brewer Water Department

chris — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 19:12:14 +0000

January 17, 2012 | Denise Penttila

Defending Water for Life in Maine recently had the opportunity to speak to Rodney Butler, Supervisor of the Brewer Maine Water Department. Last fall 2 articles appeared in the Bangor Daily News about Mr. Butler leaving his job as the Code Enforcement Officer in Brewer. The first stated that he was leaving Brewer to take an engineering job with Nestle/Poland Spring. The next article stated that Mr. Butler was returning to Brewer to take the job as water district Supervisor.

Just 20 years ago Nestle came to Maine by buying out Maine’s local company Poland Spring and began expanding their empire by exploiting Maine’s weak laws and using their money and power to build their operations in spite of strong local opposition and legal battles brought against them by Maine citizens. This hostile take over of Maine’s groundwater, a finite resource, by Nestle/Poland Spring is the reason we at Defending Water for Life in Maine are working hard to identify what and where Nestle’s next moves will be.

When we read the stories about Mr. Butler in the Bangor Daily News we were concerned about his involvement with Poland Spring and wondered if Brewer would be the next town that Nestle would be looking to for further expansion. During our conversation Mr. Butler let us know that, he had briefly worked for Nestle/Poland Spring but he had decided to leave the Nestle engineeing job because it required him to be away from his family during the week. He firmly states that at this time he does not work for Nestle/Poland Spring. Also, that his goal as water Supervisor is to provide good, safe water for the people in Brewer. We appreciate his candid explanation of his job and of the turn of events in his work/life.

Defending Water calls on Maine towns and state government to strongly support transparent public water management and publicly-owned infrastructure to provide water for local use. We work to support local control in protecting water for the benefit of people and local ecosystems. Such local self-governance is the essence of democracy. We will continue to be vigilant in our work to locate, expose and fight against any threats to Maine groundwater by Nestle/Poland Spring or by any other entity which attempts to profit from exploiting Maine’s water which is our commonly held heritage or by our own state government promoting such exploitation.

We sincerely wish Mr. Rodney Butler much success as he works to provide good management and good water for the residents in Brewer.

East-West Highway Update 1-11-2012

chris — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 19:17:28 +0000

Update 1-11-12: Yesterday, LD 1671, the bill to fund the study was supposed to go into work session with the Finance and Appropriations Committee. However, it was moved to the Transportation Committee and we are now watching to see when the work session will be scheduled. Representative James S. Gillray (R-Searsport) is on the Transportation Committee. Note below that it was the Searsport selectmen asking for support of the highway.

Here is a link to the bill, LD 1671: http://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/bills/bills_125th/billtexts/SP057001.asp

Visit our East-West highway page for all the information:

http://defendingwater.net/maine/east-west-highway/

East-West Highway Update 1-7-12

chris — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 00:52:22 +0000

1) In a letter to Susan Collins, thanking her for passing a bill that increases the truck weight limits on the interstate, Searsport selectmen also asked her to consider supporting an East-West Highway through Maine.

If you live in Searsport, or know people who do, please talk to the selectmen about this decision.

Here is the article: http://waldo.villagesoup.com/news/story/selectmen-press-senator-for-east-west-highway-development/477526

2) Also, the Maine East-West Highway Map has been updated! Check it out: http://defendingwater.net/maine/maine-east-west-highway-map/

3) We found a copy of Peter Vigue’s powerpoint presentation from November 10. Here it is: http://www.emdc.org/document_upload/CIANBRO%20Presentation.pdf

East-West Highway Update 12-16-11

chris — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 18:22:38 +0000

Update 12-16-11: A nonprofit transportation research group out of Washington D.C., TRIP, released a statement identifying “Maine’s 50 most needed transportation projects for economic growth.” #3 was the construction of a new east-west highway. TRIP is sponsored by “construction businesses, insurance companies, equipment makers, labor unions and other transportation-related organizations.” We believe TRIP’s role is to encourage private funding of the study, since funding from Maine taxpayers would be highly controversial, as we face severe cuts on social services. Chris

see our East-West Highway page under “Get Involved” for all the info: http://defendingwater.net/maine/east-west-highway/

East-West Highway Update 12-12-11

chris — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 18:15:02 +0000

Update 12-12-11: This letter is the link between Vigue / Cianbro, Mobilize Eastern Maine / Eastern Maine Development Corporation / the Action Committee of 50, and LR2358…!

Brief summary: Cianbro doesn’t have the money for the feasibility study, and as part of this business group, wrote a letter to Legislators asking for an emergency bill (LR2358) to support funding. Senator Thomas had sponsored a bill to approve funding earlier that was voted down 2-8. This letter from EMDC was an appeal to reconsider. Thomas then sponsored the emergency bill and it passed 10-0.

Although Thomas is still encouraging all private funding of the project, LePage said that there may be money in the Maine Turnpike Authority Fund. To take taxpayer money at the same time as proposing huge cuts to social programming seems absurd. Chris

Letter to Legislators: http://www.emdc.org/document_upload/EastWestHighway2011.pdf

see our East-West Highway page under “Get Involved” for all the info: http://defendingwater.net/maine/east-west-highway/

Action Alert: East-West Highway Feasibility Study Moving Forward!

chris — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 18:47:11 +0000

LR 2358, An Act To Provide Funding to the Department of Transportation for a Feasibility Study for an East-West Highway, has been given the green light for consideration this session.

Background

The idea of a Maine East-West highway has been kicked around the Maine Legislature since 1981. However, public and/or private funding has never been provided to study the feasibility of such a highway or to finance its construction.

Canadian businesses want an East-West highway to move goods more cheaply from inland Canada to its eastern provinces and to a proposed Super-Port at Halifax, Nova Scotia, for export. Maine would be used as a throughway. But the highway could also accelerate the exploitation of Maine’s natural resources. Of particular concern to Defending Water in Maine, is the likelihood that the highway would make it economical for giant corporations to profit from cutting down Maine’s forests to supply wood chips to Europe as “green energy” and from exporting Maine’s water in bulk and in bottles to global markets.

Defending Water in Maine and others ask: How will increased truck traffic crossing the state benefit the people of Maine? Simply, it will not. But, it will benefit transnational corporations like Nestlé which can profit from using the highway to exploit and export Maine’s water to sell it around the world.

Why now?

Peter Vigue, CEO of Cianbro, Maine’s largest construction firm, has reignited conversations among business leaders about the East-West highway. The last time Vigue was vocal about the project was in 2007, when he proposed the private toll road from Coburn Gore to Calais. Vigue again is promoting the highway to be built on private land with other business leaders and with state legislators. Cianbro is poised to profit considerably, as the owner of this toll road.

Plans to construct the road are well developed. Cianbro has already identified a route, and contacted major landowners; however, Cianbro has yet to make public the route they are pursuing. See our website for a map of the most likely route http://defendingwater.net/maine/maine-east-west-highway-map/

Key business leaders appear unified, and are organizing influence.

Eastern Maine Development Corporation has formed Mobilize Eastern Maine, a new business leader group to promote economic development. They appear to be networking with community college educators. For instance, Washington County Community College (WCCC) is starting a new international commerce business program, stating that they anticipate the East-West highway and increased business at the ports.
The Summit to Connect Education and Business in Eastern Maine is hosting an event to reach out to educators on December 8. (Here is information on this event: http://www.emdc.org/?id=44&sub_id=188, and the new program at WCCC: WCCC creates new International Commerce Business program)

LR 2358 was just unanimously moved forward for consideration as an emergency bill by the Legislative Council for the upcoming second legislative session.

In 2007, Vigue said that, except for river crossings and connecting to the interstate, Cianbro didn’t need to go to the government for permitting, since this would all be privately funded on private land.

However, Senator Doug Thomas just sponsored a bill for a feasibility study. The bill summary states it, “would provide funding for an independent, investment-grade feasibility study to determine the need for and location of an east-west highway in Maine.” Bill sponsor, Senator Doug Thomas, said that, “a surprising amount of work has been done,” that this project is “doable”, and that this would be a boost to the Maine economy. (video of Thomas’s testimony: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzan7GYQSBI)

Action Items:

Join our east-west highway watch group. We will maintain a separate list of people who want more information on the development of this threat so we can continue to update you and network without burdening everyone on our listserv.

Identify Landowners. If you or someone you know has been approached about the highway running through their land, let us know! In the near future, we will be organizing to canvass the area as well and will need your help.

Contact your Local Representative and Senators, and the Members of the Transportation Committee re LR 2358. Some talking points:

There is no reason for this to be considered as an emergency bill. Even Rep. Thomas admits that this has been under discussion for 20 years. The “emergency” seems to be that Cianbro wants to move ahead.
Emergency legislation will not take into account potential environmental impacts of this highway, particularly impacts to Maine’s water and forests.
A feasibility study of the East-West highway as a private toll road should not be funded by potential investors. It is unethical to have an investor-funded study of a project that benefits investors. Any study must be unbiased, because we are confident that an East-West highway will not benefit Maine people, or the environment.
This bill is being rushed through to serve the interests of Cianbro, a private corporation, and Canadian businesses looking to cut transportation costs, without looking at the public interest of all Mainers. Will the cutting down of our forests, the selling of our water, and being a transport throughway be in the best interest of Maine residents now and in the future?
Here is a link to a sample letter: http://defendingwater.net/maine/2011/12/sample-letter-…mittee-members/

List of Transportation Committee Members:

Senators:

Douglas Thomas- R (sponsor) 277-3017 firewood@tds.net

Ronald Collins- R 985-2485 SenRonald.Collins@legislature.maine.gov

Bill Diamond- D 892-8941 SenBill.Diamond@legislature.maine.gov

Representatives:

Wayne Parry- R 286-9145 RepWayne.Parry@legislature.maine.gov

Alexander Willette- R 689-8332 alexander.willette@gmail.com

James Gillway- R 548-6372 RepJames.Gillway@legislature.maine.gov

Kimberley Rosen- R 469-3779 Kurlykim40@aol.com

Peter Rioux- R 659-2293 RepPeter.Rioux@legislature.maine.gov

Richard Cebra- R 693-6782 RepRich.Cebra@legislature.maine.gov