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Why Electric Resiliency is Important for a Maine Island
Off the Coast of Maine there are thousands of islands. At one time over 250 Maine islands featured year-round communities, living off the land and ocean supported by fishing, lobstering, the sailing – shipping industry, carpentry, boat building and even granite quarrying for the buildings in the major east coast cities. As those industries changed or died out, one by one those island communities disappeared. Environmental organizations stepped in to take over the islands under special environmental easements and return them to their pre-civilized wild state.
Maine is now down to sixteen year-round island communities and many of those are seeing increased threats to their existence. For example, the community of Frenchboro has lost a significant amount of land from its tax base as an environmental easement has taken over a large portion of the land. The few families living out there do not generate enough tax revenue to maintain essential services. Some say it is only a question of time for Frenchboro.
Off the coast of Acadia National Park lie the Cranberry Isles. Originally, the Cranberry Isles thrived off the sailing and ship building industry and the rich fishing grounds around the islands. As sail was replaced with steam and then diesel shipping traffic migrated away from the Acadia region as a last port of call before crossing the Atlantic and large ship building moved elsewhere. The fishing changed as fish stocks dropped, and the island community adapted to lobstering as lobsters continued to migrate into the Gulf of Maine.
But the Cranberry Isles has also transitioned to other forms of cottage industries as entrepreneurs have located and set up their businesses on the islands. Thanks to the supply of electricity and internet the Cranberry Isles subsist on more than just fishing and small boat building. New businesses, such as restaurants, shops, communication-based businesses, and offices for energy and technology related companies whose representatives require steady access to internet zoom meetings and software programs.
These new businesses contribute to the important tax base for the islands that preserve the local services necessary to maintain life and these businesses. Electrical resiliency and reliability are now extremely important to keeping the vitality of life on the Cranberry Isles going. As resident and President of Islesford Circuits, Jeff Pease, says, “My business cannot afford a day without power and last year we had too many of them.” Jeff is member of the Cranberry Isles Community Solar Association which has been exploring ways to improve electric resiliency including the possibility of a microgrid.
As one might imagine, there are a lot of opinions about how improving electric resiliency should be undertaken on an island, and also, as one might imagine, the solutions may depend on the cause of the interruptions.
Here then is a table showing different electric resiliency solutions and whether they are effective (Yes) or not (No) at keeping power on during an interruption event.
| POWER CUT CAUSE | Car Hits Pole MDI | Tree Branch on Wire | Tree Downs Wire | Storm Damage to System | Flooded Access Point | Electric Imbalance on Islands | |
| RESILIENCY SOLUTION | |||||||
| Cut Trees on Islands | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | |
| Bury Electric Lines | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | |
| Install Insulated Wires | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | |
| Solar on Island Buildings | No | No | No | No | No | No | |
| Solar on Buildings with Battery* | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Microgrid** | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
*For the building with solar and battery only
**For all structures in the Microgrid Area
The Cranberry Isles is now in discussions, convened by the Island Institute, with Versant Power to identify the best resilient solution. We need your input.
Microgrid Definition:
A microgrid is a localized energy grid that can operate both connected to and independent from the main power grid. It's a self-sufficient system serving a defined geographic area, like a campus or a business center, by integrating various distributed energy resources (DERs) like solar panels, wind turbines, and energy storage. Microgrids offer enhanced reliability and resilience by allowing users to generate their own power and potentially operate during grid outages.
A Community Solar Solution for the Cranberry Isles
Submitted by, the Cranberry Isles Community Solar Association
Whether for the summer or for the whole year, those of us who have enjoyed living on the Cranberry Isles are at the mercy of the sea. Yet for the last thirty-five years, even though scientists have regularly testified to the US Congress about it, we have lived as if sea level rise and the dangers of an overly heated environment wasn’t an issue. Some of us may even have been in full denial. However, according to the Natural Resources Council of Maine, the Cranberry Isles have the highest percentage of land (31%) to lose in the coming years due to increasing ocean changes from the melting Greenland ice sheet. According to the Maine Climate Council the Maine Geological Survey is recommending the state prepare for a three-foot sea level rise by 2050, on top of the eight-inches seas have already risen since 1950.
This picture of the Blue Duck was taken during a recent king tide moment. Imagine what would happen to the Blue Duck and the Islesford Dock if we were to add three more feet of salt water. I think it is safe to say that just 29 years from now, with two feet of water sloshing across the floor of the Blue Duck and the Islesford Dock, that these structures would be nothing but rotting hulks, much like the old schooners in Wiscasset so many years ago. For those reading this, 2050 is in our lifetime and this future vision represents an awful legacy for us to leave for future generations.
At the IPCC meeting in Monaco in 2019 leaders agreed that choices made now are critical to our ocean’s future. I am hopeful that we can take actions beginning this year that will dramatically slow and maybe even begin to turn the clock back on climate change by eliminating the carbon emissions emanating from our insatiable appetite for energy.
Almost six years ago a group of concerned citizens on Mount Desert Island met and resolved to move the island to 100 percent renewable energy by 2030. The Town of Bar Harbor even declared a Climate Emergency and put out their own Climate Action Plan in 2019. Community members continued meeting across MDI forming an organization, A Climate to Thrive. It has spawned community action groups that are, themselves, exploring Community Solar programs around the island. In fact, there are now five Community Solar projects scattered around Acadia National Park including on the outer island of Isle au Haut.
Citizens on the off-shore island of Isle au Haut have been at it for longer than six years, and they are going even further than their neighbors on MDI. They are cutting the power cable to the mainland, so to speak, and constructing a microgrid, complete with energy efficient heat pumps, solar, battery, and a control system capable of operating the entire island from emission-free energy. Isle au Haut, MDI and Bar Harbor are presenting a powerful witness to what communities can do when they put their mid to it.
What should the citizens of the Cranberry Isles do on a grouping of islands that are considered the most vulnerable in Maine to sea level rise? The answer seems so clear to many that we formed a Community Solar Association to advocate for a Community Solar program for the Cranberry Islands. The Cranberry Isles Community Solar Association is comprised of five or six citizens of the community, meeting regularly to discern and discuss what they and their neighbors want to do regarding solar.
There are a number of opinions. One might suggest that Mainers approach this problem in the typical independent way most Americans do – by doing our own thing. If we believe in renewable energy, we can put solar up on our own home or we can invest in a Community Solar farm somewhere else, or we can simply ignore the issue and assume someone else will take care of it. Unfortunately, we are all living in the same boat. Even if we take care that our side of it is sea-worthy, but there are holes in it on the other side, we are all surely going down with the boat no matter what some of us do.
It is the opinion of the Cranberry Isles Community Solar Association that whatever we do, we should act together in it. The good news is that we don’t have to do it alone and we don’t have to invent some new technology or approach. We can see the way from the others on MDI and Isle au Haut. If we act now there may even be some funding to support our plans.
There is a Community support opportunity from the Island Institute to help us research the issues that need to be resolved. The issues are those that we believe are important for the success of our solar program. Research areas could be (but are not limited to) the following:
Assessment of Solar/Renewable Potential on all Structures, and/or Fields
Interconnection Issues
Battery Storage Potential
Financing
Electric Underwater Cable Assessment and Alternatives
Energy Efficiency Opportunities in the Homes
Electric Vehicles
Water Issues - Electric Pump Requirements
Once we agree on what help we need, our proposal to the Island Institute is due by February 15.
That is why, over the course of the last several weeks, we have been asking and seeking answers for questions about solar energy from the island community. One of the concerns, of course, is that if we seek to power the whole town with solar energy, where would we put the solar arrays? While some might support solar in a large field, is it fair to others who would be exchanging the view out their front door to that of solar panels?
Perhaps there is an alternative way says Kay Aikin of Dynamic Grid in Portland Maine. According to Microgrid Knowledge, (https://microgridknowledge.com/isle-au-haut-microgrid/) Dynamic Grid is supporting the microgrid on Isle au Haut with a dynamic electricity pricing scenario that helps keep the solar energy and the energy use on the island in check. Isle au Haut recently received a $211,000 grant from the USDA to help pay for their system.
Kay Aikin proposes something even more innovative for the Cranberry Isles which would resolve the large field array problem. In addition to an aggressive energy efficiency program, including the use of heat pumps, battery storage and dynamic electricity pricing, she says we could meet the Cranberry Isles solar energy burden with a fully-integrated solar rooftop program where every southern exposed roof deploys solar modules. This takes the Isle au Haut microgrid a step further, and Kay believes there is potential partial funding in it for us.
According to Kay, the projected carbon intensity for Isle au Haut is going down by 76% and islanders are projected to save 30 – 40% in energy costs (electricity and oil). We might not see that level of savings, since Isle au Haut residents pay $0.42 per kWH, about double our electricity rates. But, she says, even if electricity costs stayed even, we would see other savings, perhaps as much as 20%. And with a battery storage system we could stop worrying about the regular power outage issues on the island. We could even cut the cord like Ilse au Haut.
However, we must provide Kay with the following:
Survey of All Buildings including the number of homes
How Many Are Solar Capable
Topographical Grid Map
Loads of Each Building – But an Aggregate Load for the Entire Community Could Work
Since there is that proposal due to the Island Institute by February 15, we might consider asking them to help us gather the information to Kay Aikin to put her program together for us.
Is this something we could get the collective will of the Town of Cranberry Isles to do?
The Cranberry Isles Community Solar Association
The Cranberry Isles Community Solar Association is a non-affiliated collection of Cranberry Isles citizens and people who care about the Cranberry Isles and is dedicated to the premise that moving to renewable energy for the islands is in the best environmental and energy saving interest for the community. We believe also that connecting the solar aspirations of many collectively is the best solution for the entire community. To do so, the organization is seeking to understand the will of the community with respect to solar energy and the environment of the islands it serves.
We meet every month to discuss the best ways to engage the Cranberry Isles Community, to engage with the larger Community Solar teams on MDI and learning from those ahead of us, how best to integrate a solar solution into the islands electric system.
We are seeking any and all interested in a solar solution that will save energy costs and the environment. If you are interested in joining us, please contact Alden Hathaway, ahathawaypecem@gmail.com, 540-207-3142; or Jeri Spurling, jerited@spurlingdesign.com, 207-244-7408.
The Thwaites Glacier
The Thwaites Glacier is called the doomsday glacier because it is literally holding back a massive ice flow on the Antarctic land, that, once the glacier has melted will allow the ice flow to rapidly fall into the sea. We are told that the Thwaites has been acting like a cork holding back this ice flow. It is, unfortunately, melting very fast as it is sitting on the ocean floor, surrounded with relatively warm water. It is said by many to be near a point of imminent collapse. When that happens seas will suddenly rise 3 - 5 feet, as the ice flow on Antarctica rapidly tumbles into the sea. Some are saying to expect these changes to happen in less than ten years.
A couple of years ago I posted this picture of the Marsh of the eastern end of Little Cranberry, courtesy of our own artist, Katie Whitaker Chaplin, and the likely view if seas suddenly rose 3 -5 feet. I was hoping to get an invitation to the town meeting of 2021 to discuss what our response to future sea level threats should be. And when I say future threats, the Town of Cranberry Isles is listed by a Maine Island risk assessment as being most at risk for losing the most land under rising seas, than any other island community off the Maine coast.
So what should our response be? I am suggesting that it is important for all of us to do what we can to lower our carbon footprint, and one way we can do it is by using solar on our homes and making them near net zero energy users.
Alden Hathaway
Cranberry Isles Community Solar Association
ahathawaypecem@gmail.com, 540-207-3142
