Green Mountain Power has declared its decision to conserve over 2,700 acres of land area located in the Northeast Kingdom, as part of its Kingdom Community Wind Project based in Lowell Mountain.
The project will provide electricity to an estimated 24,000 homes in the region. Green Mountain Power distributes, sells, transmits and generates electricity in Vermont has over 96,000 customers.
The Chief Executive Officer of Green Mountain Power, Mary Powell stated that the 2700 acres conservation would mitigate the impact on the 159 acres caused by the project. By serving as an important habitat, the conserved land area would provide an opportunity to not only offset the effect of the project but also provide connectivity to neighboring conserved land areas. Powell also added that renewable energy was pivotal in the Vermont area and though the construction of such power generation plants have a huge impact on the environment, the organization would put in more effort to reduce the impact.
The Public Service Board approved the company’s proposal to conserve the wildlife habitat and ecology in over 1662 acres located in Eden. Additionally, Green Mountain Power will also conserve around 1070 acres of land area in Lowell Mountain. This plan was executed in accordance with the easements clause set in the 21 turbine Kingdom Community Wind Project proposal approved by the Public Service Board in May 2011.
As noted by the Public Service Board, the easements will protect and conserve ecological balance and serve as landscape connectivity between Green River reservoir habitat blocks and the Lowell Mountain.