Maine looks to ‘whole-house’ heat pumps

BUILDINGS: New state incentives are pushing Mainers to adopt “whole-house” heat pump systems that make efficient electricity the primary home heat source and discourage the secondary use of oil or gas. (Energy News Network)

‍

GRID:

• Following a strong coastal storm and widespread flooding, over 300,000 outages are still being reported in the Northeast; most of the outages and flooding appear to be in Maine, although New Hampshire and Vermont communities are also assessing damage. (PowerOutage.US, Washington Post, NHPR, NBC 5)
• Some Mainers may not have power again until after Christmas, according to Central Maine Power and Versant. (Bangor Daily News)
• Central Maine Power faces a fresh wave of criticism over its communication with customers this week amid widespread outages. (Portland Press Herald)

‍

OFFSHORE WIND:

• Delaware begins negotiating with U.S. Wind over a lease to lay an underground power cable in a coastal state park for two proposed offshore wind farms projected to deliver over 1 GW of electricity. (WRDE, WBOC, WDEL)
• Federal officials issue a biological opinion that New Jersey’s Atlantic Shores offshore wind farm will likely “adversely affect” marine mammals but not seriously harm or kill them. (Associated Press)

‍

TRANSIT: Around $142 million in federal funds will go toward improving public transit and flood mitigation along a Pittsburgh highway. (Trib Live)

‍

SOLAR: More Maine towns are establishing rules and ordinances to limit and shape solar development within their boundaries, including Dixmont, where a recent ordinance requires solar applications to come with a decommissioning plan. (Bangor Daily News)

‍

FOSSIL FUELS: After a more than decade-long ban, a gas driller will be allowed to drill 11 wells in Pennsylvania’s Dimock Township, reviving water contamination concerns. (Associated Press)

‍

HYDROPOWER: In New York, a New Jersey renewable energy developer says it has had its preliminary permit application to build two hydroelectric plants at Sewall’s Island “accepted” by federal regulators. (NNY360)

‍

WORKFORCE:

• Vineyard Wind says almost 2,000 Massachusetts residents have worked on the $4 billion offshore project. (Boston Globe)
• In Maryland, a new program aims to teach thousands of middle and high school students about offshore wind jobs and simulate the work involved. (Salisbury Daily Times)

‍

CLIMATE: In New York City, data from the annual Central Park Christmas Bird Count shows warmer temperatures are allowing more southern, typically migratory species to stick around. (Gothamist)

‍