AUGUSTA, Maine — Maine Republican gubernatorial candidate Paul LePage held a press conference Monday to discuss the potential closure of the Shawmut Dam in Skowhegan.
LePage accused Gov. Janet Mills of planning to close the dam, which he said would also mean the closure of the Sappi Mill right next door.
After a regular licensing review on July 15, the National Marine Fisheries requested a 90-day extension from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to consider additional information related to fish passage on the Kennebec River, according to the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.
The dam is owned by Brookfield Renewable, which submitted this licensing application.
The DEP continued by writing in an email that it "has drafted a denial, without prejudice, of Brookfield's October 18, 2021 Water Quality Certification application. This action on Brookfield’s request for certification is not based on the technical merits of the request. It also does not forecast any potential future decision by DEP on Brookfield’s Water Quality Certification request."
The closure of the dam is still being reviewed by the state and federal agencies, including the Department of Environmental Protection and Marine Fisheries Services.
LePage also speculated that if the dam were to close, it would also lead to the closure of the Sappi Mill in Skowhegan, causing Somerset County to lose up to 750 high-paying jobs.
"The result of the Mills administration decision to destroy our hydropower is that Maine ratepayers will be saddled with higher electricity rates for the foreseeable future," LePage said Monday at the press conference.
He added the decision would also cost people in Fairfield and Skowhegan property tax dollars.
Mills disagreed with these claims, and a spokesperson on behalf of the governor wrote this in a statement:
“Governor Mills grew up not far from Skowhegan. She understands how critical the Sappi Mill is to Skowhegan, the surrounding region, and the state of Maine. It provides good-paying jobs to Maine people and is an important tax base for local residents. As one of the last remaining pulp mills in the state, it is also an integral component of our forest economy supply chain, supporting landowners, loggers, and truckers, among others."
The Maine DEP added that Brookfield is still refining its relicensing proposal.