Sandra聽Howard grew up in coastal Maine, but she spent her summers in the state鈥檚 northwestern mountains, among pine-covered summits, freshwater ponds, and frothy rivers. Her family鈥檚 property in the town of Caratunk, where she鈥檚 been a registered whitewater guide for over 20 years, is half a mile from the Appalachian Trail. Howard often hikes the AT to nearby peaks, like Pleasant Pond Mountain. From the summit, she sees sweeping hills, deep green forests in summer and brilliant hues in autumn, and thru-hikers who鈥檝e made their way up from Georgia. 聽

So when she learned last summer that those vistas might be marred by a massive power line, she was alarmed.

The proposed project, known as聽 (NECEC), is a 145-mile transmission line winding down from the Canadian border through Maine鈥檚 forests, and would ferry hydroelectric energy from Canadian dams to the New England grid. It would cross the聽AT three times within a mile, south of Moxie Pond and about 130 miles聽from the trail鈥檚 momentous conclusion at Mount Katadhin, impacting views from several overlooks.

Howard guides for local outfitter Northern Outdoors,聽whose headquarters聽doubles as聽a popular spot for AT hikers to grab a beer. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a certain awe in thru-hikers, especially those who are coming from the South,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey鈥檝e just hiked on these regions where there are a lot of reminders of civilizations, road crossings, and infrastructure. What I鈥檝e heard from them is that Maine is more noted for having that backcountry experience.鈥�

Many of the opponents of NECEC鈥�65 percent of Maine residents are not in favor of the project, 鈥攚orry, like Howard, that the line will threaten this scenic character.聽Maine鈥檚 northern woods have been relatively spared from development. They have a legacy of sporting camps; offer hiking, rafting, fishing, kayaking, snowmobiling, and other recreational opportunities, all of which support a robust outdoor industry and local economies. While the exact impacts of the line are up for debate, those who oppose it fear it would bifurcate 鈥渨hat is basically the largest expanse of undeveloped forest in the eastern United States,鈥� said David Publicover, a staff scientist at the .

According to Publicover, a 鈥渓ong, linear feature like this鈥� creates an 鈥渋mpediment to movement for many species,鈥� decreases inland forest, and increases edge habitat. Species such as the American marten, the scarlet tanager, and other migratory songbirds, dislike open areas like those below a powerline, and require mature forest canopy to thrive. The National Audubon Society has identified these woods as the largest 鈥済lobally significant bird area鈥� in the continental U.S. It is also a region uniquely resistant to climate change, in part because of its ecological connectivity and intactness. NECEC would cross hundreds of wetlands and streams, a dozen waterfowl and wading bird habitats, and be placed near one remote pond. This would permanently alter what is 鈥渙ne of the few areas in the eastern United States that is sufficiently intact and natural to maintain viable populations of almost all native species,鈥� against the project. The local economy relies on these natural resources聽to support its vibrant recreational and tourism industries.

NECEC is a joint proposal between Maine鈥檚 energy utility Central Maine Power聽and the Canadian energy behemoth Hydro-Qu茅bec. The energy would enter the regional New England聽grid and聽be paid for by the state of Massachusetts to bolster the state鈥檚 renewable energy portfolio.

Why Massachusetts? Because in 2008, the Massachusetts legislature committed to reducing its carbon emissions 25 percent below 1990 levels by 2020, and the state鈥檚 has decided Canada鈥檚 rivers are the way to keep that promise.

That requires cutting a new 53-mile long, 150-foot wide corridor from聽Beattie Township, Maine, to The Forks,聽Maine, and expanding 92-miles of an existing corridor between The Forks to Lewiston, Maine. The already has power lines, but those towers are lower than the tree canopy. The new corridor would be wider and its towers higher than the canopy, making it much more noticeable from viewpoints. Central Maine Power鈥檚 parent company, Avangrid, has proposed relocating this section of the AT, but there have been no agreements with trail managers at this time.

鈥淚鈥檓 certain that if I were to hike this section of the AT and stand on the summit of a mountain, my scenic vista would include those towers and a swathe of emptiness,鈥� said Theresa York, a citizen of Farmington, Maine, at a聽 on the project. 鈥淭hat would certainly keep me and others from hiking that section of the AT again.鈥�

Janet Mills, Maine鈥檚 new democratic governor, endorsed NECEC in February, while holding a pound of carbon in her hand, proclaiming that the line would keep 80 million of those black carbon cubes out of the atmosphere.

But environmental groups, like the聽听补苍诲听, argue that Hydro-Qu茅bec could divert energy from existing markets in Ontario or New York to Maine to put into the Maine transmission line for Massachusetts, which would mean no new renewable power, or no reduced emissions. 鈥淗ydro-Qu茅bec has a history of shifting energy resources around,鈥� said Sue Ely, an attorney at the Natural Resource Council of Maine. 鈥淚f we鈥檙e not reducing climate change, then we shouldn鈥檛 deal with the costly impacts of infrastructure.鈥澛�

Hydro-Qu茅bec鈥檚聽communications advisor Lynn St-Laurent wrote in an email that Ely鈥檚 comments are an 鈥渙ver simplistic view of how wholesale energy markets operate.鈥� Plus, Laurent asked, 鈥淲hy would Hydro-Qu茅bec spend large amounts of time and energy to bid for and negotiate a contract, only to offset profits from sales over NECEC by reducing profits from its other interties?鈥�

Indeed, other environmental groups like聽the , the Acadia Center, and the聽 have faith that Hydro-Qu茅bec will generate new energy for NECEC. That鈥檚 because right now, Hydro-Qu茅bec has so much water churning through its dams, it has spillover鈥攈ydro-speak for unused energy鈥攚hich Laurent confirmed. Sean Mahoney, director of the Conservation Law Foundation鈥檚 Maine Advocacy Center, has argued that it鈥檚 cheaper for Hydro-Qu茅bec to harness that lost energy by updating and adding infrastructure, rather than shifting resources. In that scenario, NECEC would combat global climate change, and supporters believe this should be a priority over the local impacts of building the line.

鈥淲e must take aggressive action to cut carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 to avoid catastrophic climate impacts,鈥� . 鈥淟ow-carbon hydropower, like that offered through the Clean Energy Connect project, is part of a much needed, comprehensive strategy to address this urgent threat to our way of life.鈥�

In short, those who support the project aren鈥檛 cold-blooded capitalists; they鈥檙e environmentalists, too.

鈥淚 love the outdoors. I spent most of my life hiking, canoeing, fishing, paddling,鈥� said David Hyde of Pownal, Maine, another citizen testifying at the project鈥檚 public hearing. But, he said, 鈥淚f we鈥檙e serious about addressing the removal of carbon from our atmosphere and maintaining a regular supply of electricity, we need to make some tough decisions.鈥�

There are other incentives for the state as well. Not only is Massachusetts footing the project鈥檚 bill, but with more energy entering the regional grid, electricity聽rates will fall, lowering costs for Maine ratepayers. NECEC would allocate millions of dollars to upgrade broadband fiber optics in western Maine, fund more environmentally-friendly heating in Maine homes, and install electric vehicle charging stations around the state. Over the course of its construction, the project would create 1,600 jobs. All of these benefits are estimated to be worth about $258 million dollars to Maine over 40 years.

Currently, NECEC is going through a complicated regulatory process. The project has received approval from Maine鈥檚 Public Utilities Commission,聽.

But it鈥檚 hard to say whether they are. Dizzying in its details, the project raises questions like:聽Must we make major compromises to immediately combat climate change, or should we fight for our ideal solutions, even if they take longer?

鈥淚 feel a lifelong connection to Maine,鈥� Howard said. 鈥淧eople drive hours and hours to this region to escape infrastructure. More and more it鈥檚 difficult to find places like that.鈥�

It鈥檚 tough to stomach, but a greener future may mean compromising聽more of the remaining places we cherish.

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