Falmouth Town Meeting Devil In Wind Turbine Details

For the past ten years, Falmouth and state politicians have never answered the question is the 5 million used to build Falmouth Wind II as approved by Falmouth Special Town Meeting in June 2009 the second town-owned wind turbine a grant or a loan?

Town Meeting Members and anyone watching the meeting in June of 2009 would have assumed the 5 million was a grant watching the presentation from town officials. After all, the rare meeting was called during the summer because time was running short to obtain American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 funds also known as fiscal stimulus funds.

Town Meeting Members were told: "The reason that we’re here this evening is we had to meet in order to comply with a recently announced deadline from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for the placement of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act funds to support the town’s renewable energy projects. This is the federal stimulus money that you’ve heard so much."

Town Meeting Members enthusiastically after the verbal explanation of Articles 1,2 and 3 approved all three articles.

If you read all three articles that were presented it shows all three articles gave the Select Board the power to accept grants but also to borrow the money. It wasn't the sweet deal as presented verbally to town meeting

First, the Falmouth Select Board after the Special Town Meeting worked with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection to arrange the 5 million dollar loan. MassDEP became the broker of the wind turbine loan to the Town of Falmouth.

Second, the federal government had given millions of dollars in stimulus funds to the State of Massachusetts which placed the money in the state reserve fund. MassDEP acting as the broker arranged a loan of 5 million dollars from the Massachusetts Clean Water Trust with the stipulation that Falmouth Wind II had to remain operational or the town owed the 5 million-plus interest.

Last, The courts shut down both wind turbines three years ago making the money a loan under federal regulations.

Important: Many people ask why the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection never enforced noise regulations in Falmouth or anywhere else in twenty-one other towns with megawatt wind turbines. The simple answer is they could not because they had arranged the Project Regulatory Agreement on Falmouth Wind II which required the turbine to remain operation or the money became a loan.

Who in town voted for a Project Regulatory Agreement aka a "power production agreement" brokered by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection with the Town of Falmouth on Falmouth Wind II? Answer --no one.

MassDEP became stuck in regulatory capture a sad economic situation that says regulatory agencies may come to be dominated by the wind turbine industry they are charged with regulating. The MassDEP was stuck between a rock and a hard place. The choice was to protect the environment and people around the wind turbines as they are charged or keep Falmouth Wind II operational as they the MassDEP brokered the Falmouth Project Regulatory Agreement.

The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection as far as any type of wind turbine noise enforcement is dysfunctional;

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Video of a verbal presentation and actual written loan agreement voted by Falmouth Special Town Meeting June 2009

FALMOUTH SPECIAL TOWN MEETING
Lawrence School Lakeview Avenue
Falmouth, Massachusetts
MODERATOR: David T. Vieira
TOWN CLERK Michael C. Palmer
Monday, June 29, 2009 7:00 p.m.

Link To June 2009 Special Town Meeting

http://www.falmouthmass.us/DocumentCenter/View/2606/June-29-2009-Minutes

Page 10 MR. WHRITENOUR: Good evening, Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you very much on behalf of the Board of Selectmen, here, for coming out on such a hot summer night. It’s very irregular. The reason that we’re here this evening is we had to meet in order to comply with a recently announced deadline from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for the placement of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act funds to support the town’s renewable energy projects. This is the federal stimulus money that you’ve heard so much.

VIDEO 42 MINUTE MARK -- "BACK OF BLUE PIECE OF PAPER" MOTION HANDED OUT PRIOR TO ARTICLE 2 -- WIND TURBINE II IS A LOAN

Page 24 Article 2 : move that the Town vote to appropriate the sum of $5 million for the purpose of designing and installing wind or solar powered photovoltaic energy facilities at the Wastewater Treatment Facility or at the Long Pond Pumping Station, or at either or both of them, and further that the Town Treasurer, with the approval of the Board of Selectmen, is Carol P. Tinkham (508) 759-9162 25 authorized to borrow said sum under the provisions of General Law Chapter 44, paragraph 7, sub 3b, or any other enabling authority, including borrowing from the Commonwealth’s Water Pollution Abatement Trust, the so-called state Revolving Fund, and to issue bonds and notes of the Town therefore, and further to authorize the Board of Selectmen to enter into any agreements and to execute any and all documents it deems advantageous on behalf of the Town for partial or full reimbursement of the costs associated therewith, or forgiveness of indebtedness incurred therefore, and to apply for and accept grants under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, said sums to be expended under the jurisdiction of the Board of Selectmen for the purposes of Article 2.

Video Falmouth Special Town Meeting June 29, 2009

The video starts at the twenty-minute mark after the advertising.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8LFk6JbxhU