This is in response to Stephen Singer’s article “How much money has been spent to subsidize heat pumps in Maine?» published in the Press Herald on October 12. I am a green real estate agent. I research, consult and teach building energy efficiency and renewable energy.

Every winter, we spend $40 million on the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program to keep Mainers warm. With the bipartisan contribution of the Maine Climate Council, we are moving Mainers toward self-sufficiency. How?

Energy-efficient electric heat pumps reduce fuel costs, literally making housing more affordable. Heat pumps pay for themselves even faster thanks to rebates, which are tiered to help low-income households even more with the upfront cost. Efficiency Maine Trust guarantees a high return on every dollar invested in programs.

My inner Sheldon Whitehouse has a few charts I’d like to show you now: the billions Mainers spend importing fossil fuels; the hundreds of billions American taxpayers spend rebuilding after storms; the tens of billions taxpayers spend on fossil fuel subsidies; the tens of millions that fossil fuel companies spend to lobby politicians; sea ​​level rise in the Gulf of Maine, poised to cause the complete loss of Maine beaches, valuable coastal properties and tourism if we do not all fully commit to the clean energy transition. And I’m just getting started, but I have to leave it at that.

Weatherization, electrification, renewable energy, and stricter energy codes in the built environment are essential to the future existence of Maine’s lands, ecosystems, and economy, as well as the well-being of future generations.

Julia Bassett Schwerin
Cape Elizabeth

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