Federal regulators question Maine pulp company’s dam plan

Associated Press, Special to The County
6 years ago

AUGUSTA, Maine — Federal regulators last month challenged a Maine pulp company’s plan to get out of federal requirements by having the state take over one of its dams.

The dam straddles the U.S.-Canada border, and its future has attracted a flurry of attention from the Canadian government, environmental groups and homeowners on East Grand Lake who are concerned that a potential release of the dam could lower property values and harm the environment and local economy.

Republican Gov. Paul LePage traveled to D.C. to argue that federal regulations for such dams stifle business, and recently signed a law to have the state potentially own the U.S. side of the dam.

The dam’s owner, Woodland Pulp LLC, says the 30-year Federal Energy Regulatory Commission license it received in 2015 is far too costly and unnecessary for a dam that doesn’t produce power itself, but contributes to some power generation. The company argued those requirements shouldn’t apply if Maine owns the dam.

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