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Electricity Rates Rise for Maine Residents
2021 was a year of highs and lows, especially if you look at electricity rates for Maine residents and business owners. CMP customers have now faced a double-digit increase in electricity rates as of August 1st. Why did the rates increase last month for CMP customers? Is there anything Mainers can do to offset these newly adjusted bills? As we dive into utility rates, we pause to ask ourselves, could there be a better way to power Maine communities? In August 2021, CMP customers faced a double-digit rate increase. It comes as a tough blow for Mainers with CMP accounts. The rate increase…
Eco-Friendly Travel Tips To Consider Before Your Next Trip from Maine Community Solar
Sustainable travel is possible, and we’re here to tell you about all the eco-friendly ways you can improve your traveling practices! We have broken it down to 5 key elements, thoughtful planning, packing with care, transportation and stays, eco-activities, and the mindful traveler. We hope these tips come in handy your next trip! Book your trip right: If you use travel sites or booking agents, choose an eco-friendly travel agent or booking site to plan your trip. Support struggling communities: After a natural disaster, communities need economic support and your visit could actually be beneficial in stimulating their economy. Traveling to a popular…
Eco Friendly Home Practices: Gardens & Composting
Composting is a great first step toward living sustainably. Why should we compost and how do we get started? What does and does not belong in a compost pile? By composting at home, you are helping decrease the amount of food waste that goes into a landfill, creating natural fertilizer, and lowering the amount of methane gas in the world!
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Community Spotlight: ReTreeUS and Maine Community Solar partnering for a sustainable future
Supporting Maine’s sustainable future is at the core of what we do. That’s why we partnered with ReTreeUS in honor of Earth Day to plant a fruit orchard at Georgetown Central School. The school orchard represents many of the things that are important to our mission and our business – education, community, the environment and supporting other like-minded organizations. ReTreeUS worked with students and faculty through scattered showers to plant the orchard. The Georgetown Central School’s Garden Club is led by ReTreeUS member, in the planting of the first tree in their orchard! The students really dug in and literally broke new ground…
Community Solar Sparks Local Attention
The Portland Press Herald recently published an article about the abundance of community solar options for Maine residents. While it’s great Maine businesses and consumers have so many options, the number of choices, different people presenting them, and the newness of community solar programs can lead to confusion.
Feature Friday: Little Harbor Window
Little Harbor Window has spent the last 38 years manufacturing windows and doors from sustainably harvested Mahogany for high-end residential and institutional projects. That kind of longevity comes with a sense of place and a role in the larger community that’s reflected in the way they run their business. Their quality craftsmanship and service are evident in their business success, but their commitment to their community speaks to something deeper than profit margin. James Eaton, the company’s founder, shared this with us. “We send scrap wood to two different outfits that build wooden toys for underprivileged children. One of the groups employs disabled people to…
Feature Friday: Furbush-Roberts Printing
Welcome to the first Maine Community Solar Feature Friday, we are thrilled to introduce you to Furbush-Roberts Printing! Furbush-Roberts Printing is a family-owned commercial printer in Bangor that is leading the way in sustainable business practices and has recently joined Maine Community Solar in our mission to make Maine a leader in renewable energy by enrolling in a local community solar program. They have been in operation since 1938, and have four generations standing behind the business. Companies with that kind of longevity often see the value in sustainability for future generations. Their team members pride themselves on personalized customer service and specialized…
Feature Friday’s with Maine Community Solar!
We’re on a mission to make Maine a leader in sustainability and clean energy and we can’t do it alone. Your participation in community solar for your business and other sustainable business practices are essential to economic growth and an environmentally responsible future for all Mainers. That’s why we’re launching Feature Fridays. We’re excited about partnering with you and we want to tell everyone about your business. If you’re interested in us sharing your sustainability stories, just let us know! Request More Information on Feature Fridays: Submit Your Business Application for Feature Friday’s Power Your Business With 100% Clean Renewable Energy
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Great Community Solar Resource for Mainers
The Maine Office of the Public Advocate has a great page of resources about community solar that include a video, common questions and a one-page handout. If you are considering community solar for your home or business, it’s worth spending some time on this page. https://www.maine.gov/meopa/electricity/community_solar Video link: https://vimeo.com/489543711
Impacts of Community Solar on Maine’s Economy
Maine’s Net Energy Billing program and community solar are delivering triple bottom line impacts for Maine’s economy, residents and the environment according to a recent study. These programs are driving economic growth, saving customers significant money and helping Maine reach its environmental goals. Read more about these benefits in the article below. http://www.communitysolaraccess.org/new-study-release-maines-solar-program-provides-significant-cost-savings-job-creation-and-emission-reductions/
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Changing the Clean Energy Equation
For years consumers and businesses have been interested in solar energy, especially as prices and costs have plummeted over the past decade. Unfortunately, on-site and rooftop solar installations have some pretty big barriers to entry. The costs to purchase an array can be prohibitive to many and, even with financing, the payback can be drawn out. Add in challenges with site orientation, building ownership, permitting and maintenance and that math often just doesn’t work for many people … until now. The growing availability of community solar programs has changed the equation for any business and consumers interested in using clean energy. They can…
Community Solar by the Numbers
Community solar programs can often seem confusing to consumers and businesses. Here’s an example using the average monthly electric bill in Massachusetts, which was about $125 in 2019, according to the US Energy Information Administration. Imagine a family who uses exactly $125 of electricity every month, and signs up for an equivalent share of community solar power at a 10 percent discount: Say that household’s share in a community solar farm generated $150 of electricity in a sunny month, like August. They’d pay $135 to the solar farm and have no electric bill that month — plus they’d receive a $25 credit toward a…
Why is community solar growing in Maine?
The first community solar farm in Maine just came online in October 2020 but the concept is already growing fast in terms of interest, education and projected capacity. This rapid growth is fueled in part by recent legislation but also by the environmental ethic that many Mainers and local businesses have. Maine passed legislation in 2019 to encourage the development of community solar and other small renewable energy facilities establishing goals of 80% renewable energy by 2030 and 100% by 2050. A key portion of this legislation provided for Shared Net Energy Billing. This allows you to benefit from the renewable energy produced on a…
How it Works
It starts with a community solar project that is developed in your area. Developers seek out customers like you that value clean energy and the cost savings it can provide. During the enrollment process, the developer will look at your average energy usage over the past 12 months and allocate enough kilowatts to offset up to 100% of your monthly electric bill. The energy produced by the community solar farm is delivered to the electricity grid, and the solar credits you’ve earned through your subscription are deducted from your monthly utility bill. The developer of your community solar farm bills you separately for…
What is Community Solar?
Community solar provides the benefits of renewable energy without the upfront costs. Community solar is a program for the community! Instead of the solar farm creating revenue by selling the energy to the utility, consumers and businesses buy the energy through a subscription. People subscribe to the energy created in the solar farm that offsets the power they use. The utility recognizes each subscriber as providing clean power to the grid and the subscriber receives credits that, in many cases, zero out the existing utility bill. Subscribers pay the community solar company for the electricity produced by their subscription at a cheaper rate…
Maine Community Solar is created by Roundhouse Media with the goal of educating Maine consumers and business owners about the benefits of community solar then enroll them in the appropriate program.