Baldacci appoints new energy czar

AUGUSTA – Hoping to re-establish Maine’s reputation as a leader in the use of home-grown renewable power, Gov. John E. Baldacci has appointed Beth Nagusky as the state’s new energy czar.

Nagusky, 50, was charged by the governor with evaluating current energy consumption policies in the state and devising a strategy that will eventually reduce the state’s dependency on out-of-state and foreign energy sources. As the director of the new Governor’s Office of Energy Independence and Security, Nagusky will essentially be a department of one, receiving some technical assistance from the State Planning Office and operating on an annual budget of around $80,000. The money was earmarked for an unfilled position in the Public Advocate’s Office within the Maine Public Utilities Commission.

A former attorney with the Natural Resources Council of Maine, Nagusky has held high-profile positions with the PUC and the Independent Energy Producers of Maine. A resident of Litchfield, she helped draft the Maine Sensible Transportation Policy Act and has been a longtime proponent of state policies emphasizing energy efficiency and renewable power.

While remarking that everyone brings their life experiences to the job, Nagusky politely sidestepped a reporter’s question Tuesday regarding how she would balance the governor’s wishes to create more in-state power generation projects – such as a hydroelectric plant on a major river – against the desire of many environmentalists to keep the state’s rivers running unimpeded to the sea. Nagusky said she would have to check with the administration, and Baldacci staffer Dick Davies said such scenarios would have to be handled on “a case-by-case basis.”

“But I’m clearly aware of the tension between those who want to remove dams for whatever reasons and those who want to keep dams to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to provide clean energy,” she said. “So, there is a tension.”

Baldacci, who is on vacation, issued a prepared statement explaining the state had abolished its Energy Office in 1990 and that it was time for state government to acknowledge the inherent links among the economy, the health of the environment and the energy choices made daily by all Mainers.

“Maine government has let energy issues slip from the top of our agenda and fall through the cracks.” Baldacci said. “Energy related functions have been dispersed throughout state government into at least a half dozen different agencies, with little to no coordination. We have missed valuable opportunities to save money, create quality jobs for Maine people, support rural communities, and reduce unhealthy and harmful air emissions. And Maine’s dependence on foreign energy sources, including oil from the politically volatile middle East, has increased. We are more vulnerable now than we were just five years ago to energy price spikes and supply shortages or disruptions.”

In addition to evaluating current state energy consumption practices, Nagusky will attempt to find $1 million in savings that can be achieved through conservation efforts. She also will try to increase the state’s use of “green power” sources at more than 800 state buildings. Green power is electricity generated through renewable resources.

“It’s hydro and biomass,” Nagusky said, explaining the sources of electricity generation.

Emphasizing that Maine was once a leader in energy efficiency, conservation and renewable power, Nagusky said the state has reduced its commitment to achieving those goals over the past decade. By coupling those priorities with policies that promote fuel diversity in the state, Nagusky said, Maine will be able to craft its own “insurance policy” against power shortages and price increases.