01/13/2008
But if Maine is going to reduce that dependence anytime soon, the state must quickly make better use of its abundant supplies of wood for heat, power and even vehicle fuels, Baldacci concluded after a conversation two weeks ago with businessman Les Otten.
As a result, Baldacci asked Otten to head a task force of business and state leaders to look for innovations that the two men ultimately hope may take big bites out of some of the highest fuel bills in the nation, the governor announced during his State of the State speech last week.
Best known for his time as a ski industry executive, Otten is now owner of Maine Energy Systems LLC in Bethel. He said he has been looking for investment opportunities in energy-related fields and gathering information during the past couple years.
Members of the panel have yet to be named, but state Conservation Commissioner Patrick McGowan said he hopes the task force will move quickly.
"It'll probably meet within the next couple weeks," McGowan said. "And we'll have some preliminary reports, I'd say, by the end of May."
Otten said he is convinced Maine can take advantage of cutting-edge ideas for alternative-energy production that could make this state a leader nationally and around the world.
"The Maine economy is being choked by the amount of money Maine residents have to pay to heat their homes," Otten said.
He said at least some of the shift to alternative energy sources can and should happen quickly -- both to save money and to brand Maine as a leader in the use and production of alternative energy solutions.
Lower fuel and energy costs would not only make a difference for the Maine economy and the pocketbooks of residents and business owners, Otten said, but taking an innovative approach could put the state on a worldwide map, attracting new business owners attracted by a forward-thinking state.
The opportunities for innovation are far-reaching, Otten said, although he suggested the change was likely to begin with smaller projects, like converting homes or other buildings to wood heat, while plans are laid for more ambitious changes or those requiring larger investments.
"We may be able to make significant changes in the way Maine heats itself," Otten said. "After that, maybe we should all convert to four-wheel electric cars we recharge because we're making so much wind power."
Of Maine's 550,000 homes, 450,000 heat primarily with oil. Those homes offer the state's largest, short-term opportunity for energy conversion, by using wood pellets or other low-grade forest products.
Baldacci said Mainers spend $1 billion a year on heating oil from foreign countries, money that "is leaving Maine." The Maine governor said his wood-to-energy initiative could reverse that, lower energy costs and benefit Maine businesses and the state's economy at the same time.
State energy czar John Kerry and Conservation Commissioner McGowan have been making a similar pitch for some time, he said.
Otten's selection to head the effort -- suggested by Bill Alfond, son of deceased philanthropist Harold Alfond -- may at first seem somewhat unusual, Baldacci said. But Otten has a knack for pushing new ideas and innovative solutions.
"We need agitation. We need friction," Baldacci said.
McGowan said the state harvests about six million cords of wood a year, yet Maine has more wood fiber standing as trees now than in the past 60 years, due to the closure of mills in the state. So, more wood for energy is available.
With that surplus, more wood fiber can be used to provide a steady supply, particularly to help public and nonprofit buildings like hospitals save money.
"If we had an efficient industry we could direct wood into pellet production to help at least those public entities if they had a long-term, low-cost, sustainable supply," McGowan said. "It'd help the taxpayers and help the buildings get good energy at low cost."
A briefing paper prepared by the Conservation Department last week says heat provided by wood-pellet fuels today compares with that produced by home heating oil, if oil were priced at $1.75 per gallon. Instead, oil prices this winter are well over $3 per gallon.
But the department's research also indicates wood-based fuels have a long way to go to match the convenience and necessary maintenance support that would make them competitive with more conventional fuels.
The report says the state should subsidize training and support for wood-burner technicians, provide the same tax breaks for conversions that are currently available for solar-energy installations, and the industry needs to work out delivery and storage options for bulk use of wood pellets currently available in individual 40-pound bags.
The plan calls for using public buildings like schools and state structures being planned for construction, or those whose heating systems could be converted to wood fuels, to be used as pilot sites. These buildings could demonstrate that new wood-fueled systems can be practical alternatives to traditional heating systems, both for businesses and homes.
Three schools already are using wood chips for heat or plan to do so, state officials said. State officials are helping to plan 21 new schools, but only two are considering wood as a heating fuel.
The Department of Conservation proposal also suggests the state may want to ask voters to borrow money to promote energy efficiency and replace heating systems in public buildings.
The Maine Forest Service and the University of Maine have applied for a U.S. Department of Energy grant to help pay for a "wood supply analysis to determine the amount of biomass that can be sustainably harvested."
Without federal funding the Forest Service would need $250,000 to do a wood-supply study, conservation officials said. If the federal grant is approved, the state would need to contribute $75,000 toward the project.
Forest-product producers, however, must be careful they do not collect so much of the low-grade wood from the forests that it damages the health of the woodlands. The state must avoid competing with the Maine's important pulp, paper and biomass-energy industries. Doing so could drive up the costs of raw materials, state conservation officials said.
A Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center study in November concluded that fuel from wood in Maine "has the potential to replace a large percentage of its own non-renewable energy use with renewable energy from its forests and become a much more energy self-sufficient state."
Executive Editor Eric Conrad contributed to this article.
Gary Remal -- 621-5642
gremal@centralmaine.com
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