On the brink of hydrogen future:

Maine's First Renewable System is Underway

Wiscasset, Maine – The Maine State Fire Marshall's office and the Wiscasset Planning Board have given their approval to plans for a hydrogen demonstration system at The Chewonki Foundation in Wiscasset, Maine, placing the state firmly on the map as a leader in renewable energy innovations and technology. Groundbreaking of the system, which will be the first of its kind in New England, began on October 26. Project completion is scheduled for late spring 2005.

Multiple Maine companies and organizations have collaborated and donated their time to draft the system plans which met all applicable fire and safety codes. OEST Associates, Inc. of South Portland, created the site plans and structural engineering drawings; Fire Risk Management, Inc., in Bath, provided technical expertise to meet code requirements; Results Engineering, Inc. of Saco, designed the electrical control system; Maine Oxy of South Portland and Auburn, offered design recommendations; The Hydrogen Energy Center of Portland and The Chewonki Foundation of Wiscasset designed the overall system and provided project management support.

Peter Arnold, Chewonki's Pathways Project Coordinator praised the project, saying: "This partnership between forward-looking businesses and the nonprofit sector to educate the public about hydrogen as an alternative to fossil fuels has proven very powerful. I am proud that our work together will move the United States one step closer to a solution to climate change."

Calen Colby, P.E., Senior Project Manger of OEST Associates, noted, "Every engineer has a civic duty to protect the public and the environment. Helping ensure that the design of this hydrogen power system is safe and environmentally clean has been very rewarding to me personally and professionally."

The hydrogen demonstration system being installed at The Chewonki Foundation's Center for Environmental Education will allow for renewably generated electricity to power an electrolyzer, which produces hydrogen from water. The hydrogen will be stored until it is needed to provide electricity during power outages or demonstrations. Upon demand, the hydrogen will flow to fuel cells installed inside the Center. The system will store enough hydrogen to provide four days' backup power to the Center. Details about the project may be found at www.chewonkih2.org

The Chewonki Renewable Hydrogen Project was conceived as an educational demonstration to show how hydrogen is generated, stored, and then used as a fuel. Educational materials and programs being developed as part of this project will be available for students, educators, engineers, builders, government leaders, public safety officers and others with an interest in learning about hydrogen technology and the role it may play to address global warming. Hydrogen information will also be added to Chewonki's Renewable Energy Tour. Tours may be arranged by contacting Peter Arnold at 207 882-7323. All tours must be scheduled in advance.

The Chewonki Renewable Hydrogen Project is a partnership between the Hydrogen Energy Center of Portland, Maine, and the Chewonki Foundation of Wiscasset, Maine, both 501 (C) 3 non-profit organizations. Major funding for the project has been provided through grants from the Maine Technology Institute and the Renewable Resources Matching Fund.

The Chewonki Foundation is a nonprofit educational institution established in 1962 and located on a 400-acre peninsula in Wiscasset, Maine. Chewonki is dedicated to helping people grow individually and in community with others by providing educational experiences that foster an understanding and appreciation of the natural world. Chewonki's leaders challenge participants both physically and intellectually with activities that build self confidence, a sense of community, and a greater awareness of the inter relatedness of the world around us. The Chewonki Foundation offers summer camp programs; wilderness trips for teenagers and adults; residential, school-year environmental education programs; traveling lessons in natural science to schools; and a residential semester program of academic study for 11th grade students.

The Hydrogen Energy Center based in Portland, Maine, is an all-volunteer nonprofit organization working toward a sustainable energy economy based on renewable hydrogen through public education, advocacy, technology demonstration and job creation.