PSNH power lines crossing the wetlands at Turtletown Pond Conservation Area in Concord, New Hampshire.

Many have made the argument that Northern Pass provides little benefit to New Hampshire, while the state has to bear all the negative consequences of the project. In this blog, I have relayed the fact that this power is earmarked for southern New England and that New Hampshire doesn’t need the power because we produce 70% more power than we use.

Yesterday, I posted an article on this Patch blog (http://exeter.patch.com/blog_posts/a-new-film-about-northern-pass-3cf34f43), and quickly received a comment questioning my logic behind The Power of Place. The commenter noted that NH’s electric rates are the 4th highest in the nation, and that while we produce more power than we use, Northern Pass would change the energy mix in the state and lower electric rates. After a few replies, it became obvious I could end up spending my whole day arguing with this guy, and I bowed out of the conversation (I’d rather talk to you guys!) But, by raising the idea of lower electric rates, I decided to do a little research.

According to the Northern Pass website, they predict that electricity costs in New Hampshire will be reduced by $25 – $30 million dollars annually. Assuming this transpires (and we’ve been promised these things before, without them actually happening), what does that translate to for the average residential consumer in New Hampshire? According to the US Energy Information Administration, residential consumers account for 28% of electricity use in New Hampshire. According to the US Census, New Hampshire had 514,000 households in 2010. So $30 million/514,000*28% = an average annual savings per household of $16.34 or $1.36/month. And this is a best case scenario believing Northern Pass’s figures.

So even if you are a cost-conscious citizen who wants lower electric rates, can you really say it’s worth the desecration of some of our most cherished landscapes for the cost of half a cup of coffee per month? Could you look a person in the eye and tell them you need to save that $16 a year and they just have to deal with these power lines ruining the sense of place they feel on land that’s been in their family for generations, or that they’ll just have to live with having the power lines right next to their home, creating a health risk for their kids? I don’t think so.

But wait, there’s more. According to this analysis by the Conservation Law Foundation, it is actually very likely that market forces will result in Northern Pass actually increasing residential electricity rates in New Hampshire in order to prop up the aging, expensive fossil-fuel power plants in the state. Sounds like a good deal to me.

There are less than 36 hours left to pledge to my Kickstarter campaign funding The Power of Place. I’m getting close to reaching my goal, and would be grateful for your support!

Cheers!
-Jerry

A hiker on the Appalachian Trail on the summit of Mount Moosilauke in New Hampshire’s White Mountains. Less than a mile up the trail, the hiker will encounter views of the Northern Pass right of way. (Jerry Monkman)

I just read this interesting article on the Scientific American website (http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=can-solar-challenge-natural-gas) that analyzes a report by Citigroup which shows that the cost of residential solar electricity is now equal to or cheaper than natural gas in several regions of the world, including the Southwest U.S., and that utility-scale solar will be cheaper than natural gas in just a few years. (There is also a related article on grist.org.) I won’t venture to guess how this affects the Northern Pass project, which will be carrying hydro-power, but it does make me think that Northern Pass is a project built on 20th century thinking and technology, when 21st century technology is viable and less harmful to the environment. As renewables like solar are trending towards becoming more cost-effective, possibly before construction even starts on Northern Pass, shouldn’t we be demanding that Northern Pass use more technologically advanced solutions that don’t irreparably scar the landscape so many of us cherish?

Funding for The Power of Place has reached 50% with just one week left in the Kickstarter campaign! If you’ve been meaning to pledge, now’s the time, as once the campaign ends next Thursday, you’ll no longer be able to lend your support to this important project (or reap the rewards that go with it.)

Cheers!
-Jerry

Some interesting news from Northern Pass today. As reported by New Hampshire Public Radio, “During a quarterly conference call Thursday officials at Northeast Utilities, the parent company of the Northern Pass project, said while they have a new route they still aren’t ready to say where it goes. ” You can read the whole story here: http://www.nhpr.org/post/northern-pass-says-it-still-seeking-consensus, but there are few points worth highlighting here:

1) This time, Northern Pass is promising that the new route will be announced in July.

2) Northern Pass has postponed construction of the project from 2015 to 2017 due to opposition.

3) According to a Northern Pass spokesman, they are still dealing with issues including the route, scenic impact and burying the lines, and “Once we feel we have a broad-enough consensus we will move forward.”

This is the first time I’ve read that they are seriously studying the potential for burying power lines along the route. It is also nice to see Northern Pass acknowledging the opposition and at least acting like they are taking the opposition’s concerns into account. So I see this as a positive development, but it also means that the those of us who value the New Hampshire way of life, and the scenic importance of places like the White Mountains need to continue to make our voices heard.

The cynic might say that the increased time line of the project is a tactic to wear down the opposition. I don’t necessarily believe that is happening in this case, but I do feel additional motivation to fund and produce The Power of Place, as it has the potential to become an important document for several years as debate about Northern Pass continues.

Another development regarding Northern Pass was announced today by The Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests (a.k.a SPNHF.) SPNHF has completed the purchase of a conservation easement on 295 acres of forest in Columbia, New Hampshire that connects the Nash Stream State Forest with conserved land at the Balsams Grand Resort in Dixville Notch. The easement effectively creates 65,000 acres of contiguously conserved land. It also prevents Northern Pass from bisecting this conservation  land, which appears to have been their intent. Thanks you SPNHF!

My Kickstarter campaign for The Power of Place has raised close to $11K from more than 150 backers thus far. I have a little less than two weeks to raise the rest of my campaign goal and make this important film possible. If you have the wherewithal and believe in the project, please pledge today. Thank You!

Cheers!
-Jerry

Tractor and view of McAllaster Farm.

On Monday, I introduced you to Lynne Placey in Stewartstown, who eloquently explained that holding on to land that has been in her family for generations was more important than any amount of money that could be offered to her by Northern Pass. Just down the road from Lynne is the McAllaster Farm, where Rod McAllaster owns a diary farm that has been in the family for four generations. Rod’s hill farm is one of the last dairy farms in the region, and he continues to farm despite difficult economic conditions because it’s in his blood and he loves the farm life.

Last year, he was offered $4 million dollars to sell his 900 acre farm to Northern Pass, but he couldn’t do it. His connection to the land is too deep and he wants to stay there for the rest of his life. He also realizes that many of his neighbors feel the same way and don’t won’t to live next to a high voltage power line, so he sold a conservation easement on his farm to the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests for under $900,000 with the hope that Northern Pass will not be able to proceed through Stewartstown without his land.

The McAllaster Farm in Stewartstown, New Hampshire.

Giving up more than $3 million to protect a way of life for you and your neighbors takes a lot of guts, particularly in Coos County, New Hampshire, where money is never easy to come by. Stories like Rod’s give me the inspiration to continue working to protect the wide swath of the New Hampshire landscape that is at risk due to Northern Pass.

To help me compel decision makers to stop Northern Pass, please pledge to my my Kickstarter campaign to fund The Power of Place by May 16th. Thank you!

Cheers!
-Jerry

A hill top hay field in Stewarstown, New Hampshire.

When Northern Pass opposition first started organizing in late 2010, many perceived them as Not In My Backyard types, or NIMBY’s, because they were thwarting the progress of a big project that affected them personally. While I believe that in some cases, individuals may have to give something up for the public good, the public good associated with Northern Pass is minimal in many people’s opinion. In my opinion, the public will be irreparably harmed by this project because of the scar it will leave on a large swath of the New Hampshire landscape.

But even if there is ample public benefit to a project, does that mean we should ignore the attachment to a place of those individuals in the path of progress. In the case of many opposing Northern Pass, they are fighting to maintain the integrity of places they love -places that have been a part of their family’s heritage for 50, 100, 150 years. Northern Pass would be happy to pay these people to pull up their roots and move out of their way, but these are places that people relate to on a daily basis and rely on for their well-being, peace of mind, and a connection to their own history.

Here’s an interview I shot with one such person in 2012, Lynne Placey of Stewartstown, New Hampshire:
I challenge our government and Northern Pass to listen to the stories of the people in the path of the right of way, as well as consider the millions of people who don’t live near Northern Pass, but feel a connection to these places from visits they have made with their families and friends over the last several decades.

Please pledge to The Power of Place by May 16th to help me tell this story. Thank You!

Cheers!

-Jerry