5 Town Dam Committee: Representatives from the 5 Town Dam Committee met at the Bucksport Town Office on Wednesday, December 18th to discuss new developments regarding Bucksport Mill LLC’s petition to abandon the Toddy, Alamoosook, and Silver Lake dams.     Outreach Enhancements  The group discussed enhanced efforts to increase public awareness of the status of the dams and to encourage citizens to contribute to funding the costs incurred by the 5 Towns for legal representation in our discussions with the current dam owner.  In addition to the current effort to distribute our bi-weekly statement via print media,  email, website posts, and Facebook page postings the group is looking for additional avenues to engage with citizens.    Ownership Models It is recognized that the Silver Lake dam is very unique in that it is a public water supply and also provides cooling water for an electricity generating plant.  Its future most likely will follow a different path from that of the Alamoosook and Toddy dams.     The four towns abutting Alamoosook Lake and Toddy Pond believe the State of Maine should conclude that there is sufficient justification (regional recreational value; important fish, bird, and other wildlife habitat) for the state to assume ownership of the dams. However, the towns also believe that developing an alternative ownership contingency plan is prudent given the uncertainties and time frames involved. Thus the four towns associated with Alamoosook and Toddy have been working with our local legislators to have special bipartisan legislation introduced in the state legislature that would create waterfront protection districts that would have the authority to 1) own and operate the dam creating the relevant body of water (Alamoosook and Toddy) 2) assess special taxes/fees on property owners fronting the respective water body and those with deeded access, and 3) potentially incorporate a provision for mandatory contributions by abutting municipalities to defray a portion of the dam ownership costs.   There are numerous local water districts formed by similar legislation that provide potable water within the defined district area, charging water rates to users in order to generate funds for operating and capital costs.   Although these districts are not the preferred outcome, the four towns believe that, if successfully formed, they would provide a long-term solution to maintaining the dams and the lake/pond water levels, since the taxing authority would provide a relatively certain, stable source of funds for operations. Private ownership of the dams exposes both the property owners and the municipalities to a variety of risks, such as inadequate funding, a new petition to abandon the dam, bankruptcy, and lack of representation/control by the property owners.   While creating this entity can be done via legislation at the state level, Implementation of this effort would be completely subject to municipal voter approval.  The group will seek public input on the details of the design and will be gauging the public support for such an entity.     Legislative Support Steve Bishop - HD 17 Representative, and David Haggan Senate District 10 along with HD- 36 Representative Kim Haggan attended the meeting.  All three pledged support for the bipartisan legislation and offered their assistance in working with DEP to gain support for the Towns.    

Joint Statement 5 Town Dam Committee

11/6/24 JOINT STATEMENT 

5 TOWN DAM COMMITTEE 

(SILVER, ALAMOOSOOK, TODDY) 

Representatives from the 5 Town Dam Committee met at the Bucksport Town Office on Wednesday, November 6th to discuss the new petition filed by Bucksport  Mill LLC seeking to relinquish ownership of the  Silver Lake, Alamoosook, and Toddy dams.  

On November 1st, the DEP accepted the petition as complete despite the fact that much of the information about the current conditions and costs associated with the dams was lacking.   We have altered DEP to our concerns and are asking that they follow up with additional information requests.  All organizations represented in the Committee have communicated to the State that without detailed information on the dams, it is impossible to have any meaningful consultation related to ownership.

Bucksport Mill LLC has announced a public meeting to be held on Thursday, November 14th at 5 PM.  The meeting will be at Maine Maritime Academy’s training facility in Bucksport on the old paper mill site. The format for the meeting is still unclear but all interested parties are strongly encouraged to attend and be prepared to ask questions.  

Section 908 of the statute requires that each municipality must consider and act on the issue of dam ownership at a public town meeting. The meeting must be held no later than 60 days after the municipal officers receive notice.  This does NOT mean that the towns will be deciding on taking ownership, it will be the beginning of the conversation and an acknowledgment that no decision can be made without having all of the information we have been requesting from the owner.   Each of the 5 Towns will be scheduling meetings for their citizens.  Penobscot’s will be December 3rd, Bucksport’s December 12th, and Orland’s will be December 13th at 6:00pm.  Surry and Blue Hil will schedule theirs soon.  Details of the meetings will follow.

Finally, Orland, Penobscot, Surry, and Blue Hill have secured joint legal representation with the Portland firm Norman Hanson & Detroy.  With the help of the Toddy Pond Association and the Alamoosook Lake Association our towns are seeking contributions to our legal defense fund.  We are working hard to prevent the current dam owners from walking away from the dams with no repercussions.  If you can contribute, please send a check to the Town that represents you.  Your help is greatly appreciated.