The tactic employed by those who took away the Penobscot Nation’s right to the river that bears their name, for good reason, is currently being employed by those who wish to block the transmission of clean energy generated in Quebec through Maine.

Where right to the Penobscot River is concerned, a cabal of corporations looking to ease restrictions aimed at eliminating pollutants from that river (to ensure the Penobscot have access to healthy fish) decided the easiest way to resolve the matter was to convince local municipalities that it burdened them too.

Led to believe the Penobscot Nation’s right to clean water could cost them considerable expense in water treatment, those municipalities would petition the state to stake claim to the river.

Where the New England Clean Energy Connect is concerned, a similar cabal of corporations concerned by the losses they’ll incur when that project is completed convinced some citizens and municipalities alike that its construction would burden them. As with the previous example, these corporations would encourage them to petition the state to take action and foot the bill.

In fact, a recent ad suggests oil and gas companies are responsible for 95% of the funding supporting Question 1. These findings were presented by Maine Public Television and by Mainers for Fair Laws, respectively.

Additionally, the Iroquois Nation in Quebec will lose funding if Question 1 is successful and the NECEC project is not completed, as they receive a portion of the profits Hydro-Quebec earns from electricity generated on their territory.

Jamie Beaulieu, Farmington