If you look at a map of the border between Maine and New Brunswick, you’ll see a tiny island home to the easternmost city in the United States: Eastport, Maine. The island may boast only 1,300 residents, but it handles more than its fair share of problems. Perpetually battered by big storms, the community has faced power outages where even the backup generators failed. 

Now, Eastport is chasing energy resiliency. The community wants to reduce its dependency on connection to the mainland by building out a microgrid that solar and tidal energies would power.  

Eastport’s work toward energy self-sufficiency started in earnest in 2021. That was the year the community received a federal Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership Project grant, which the island’s leadership used to develop the island’s energy generation and storage capacity. A community-driven effort is now working to get a microgrid up and running. 

A microgrid is a small, localized electrical network that can connect to a main power grid or be isolated to function separately. Unlike a larger power grid, microgrids typically deliver power generated by distributed energy resources like solar panels, energy storage systems, and wind turbines. However, they may also use traditional power sources like natural gas systems. Microgrids are used nationwide, from providing power after a natural disaster to being a hospital backup system in case the primary grid fails. 

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Eastport’s microgrid would stay connected to the power grid on the mainland and simply run as a regular part of energy production. But if disaster strikes, the microgrid can go into isolation mode and keep powering Eastport for three to four hours, which is the typical duration of the island’s power outages. The microgrid’s availability would reduce generator dependency and disruption caused by being disconnected from the mainland.  

The community would power its microgrid with its existing solar power generation capacity and the tidal energy infrastructure it hopes to develop soon. Solar is a well-known power source, but tidal energy is relatively uncommon. Tidal energy uses the natural ebb and flow of the ocean’s tides to spin turbines or other mechanisms that can convert the energy of moving water into electricity. In an island community like Eastport, the opportunities for tidal energy generation are plentiful. 

Eastport’s situation emphasizes the need for an all-of-the-above energy approach. The island community has abundant opportunities for tidal energy, while rural communities in Iowa benefit from wind turbines. No two states or communities are exactly alike—resource availability and pragmatic solutions will vary from place to place. By embracing all energy sources, we can advance clean power sources in the United States while allowing communities to implement the technologies and resources that suit them best. 

The views and opinions expressed are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of C3.