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| A waterfall deep in the Maine woods. This energy of this river was formerly used for log drives. |
- I've been following the bidding war to buy Ram Island Ledge Lighthouse on the edge of Casco Bay in Maine. Just as the bidding was set to close yesterday, a new bid came in for $185,000 -- giving other bidders another 24 hours to raise the stakes. We'll see what happens!
- Renewable home energy: Kaplan Thompson Architects and Keiser Industries LLC of Oxford, Maine have teamed up to design and manufacture modular net-zero homes: i.e. residences that are designed not only to minimize energy consumption, but also to be able to generate at least as much energy as they consume. Starting costs are around $205,000. The first models will be installed in an affordable housing development on Peaks Island in Portland -- but without the solar hot water and electric systems that will truly make later homes net zero.
- This Portland Press Herald article by Tom Walsh notes that plug-in electric vehicles rely on grid-purchased electricity to run, meaning that their fuel costs and that fuels' emissions characteristics will be determined by the policies affecting the overall electricity generation mix. Interestingly, he links former Maine Governor Angus King's current interest in land-based wind generation to Governor King's support for electricity market deregulation -- and the ISO-NE policies that mean that all resources get paid the marginal price of the last unit needed to clear to support load.
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