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10/31/2019
Portland proclaims 40th anniversary of Earth Day "A Day of Recognition for Andy Linehan"
Portland proclaims 40th anniversary of Earth Day "A Day of Recognition for Andy Linehan"
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April 22, 2010
PORTLAND, Ore. — The City of Portland today honored Iberdrola Renewables' Andy Linehan, former Director of Wind Energy Permitting, by proclaiming April 22, 2010, the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, "A Day of Recognition for Andy Linehan" in Portland.
Linehan died in January 2010 at age 54 after a long battle with cancer. He championed wildlife issues almost to the end. He worked with the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to help Iberdrola Renewables in October 2008 become the first US wind power company to voluntarily adopt an Avian and Bat Protection Plan. The company now conducts pre- and post-construction studies at the company's US wind farms whether or not those studies are required. Iberdrola Renewables is the second largest owner of wind farms in the US with more than 3,500 megawatts currently in operation and a pipeline of 24,500 megawatts of projects in various stages of planning.
"Iberdrola Renewables was honored to provide Andy a platform to do his good work on behalf of our company, the entire wind industry and the world," said Ralph Currey, CEO of Iberdrola Renewables. "It is now all of our jobs to carry forward the many responsible efforts that Andy began."
Linehan was a founding board member of the American Wind and Wildlife Institute and was appointed by the president in 2007 to a federal advisory committee preparing recommendations for the USFWS on wind power. On March 4, 2010 the committee submitted its recommendations to the Secretary of the Interior, dedicating the document to Linehan to recognize "Andy's contributions to the Committee's Guidelines and his tireless efforts to build agreement on many issues related to wind and wildlife. In honor of Andy's leadership and inspiration, this agreement is dedicated in his memory."
The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) presented Linehan with the AWEA Special Achievement Award for his exemplary contribution to the advancement of the wind industry in 2007. Now AWEA has established the annual Andrew Linehan Award for Environmental Excellence to recognize individuals in the wind industry "who contribute to the responsible siting and permitting of individual projects, who tackle wildlife issues proactively and who work to establish and advance, as Andy did, the highest environmental standards for the industry."
Born in Paris in 1955 to a US Foreign Service officer, he grew up in the US, Canada, Australia, Liberia, Ghana and Sierra Leone. Linehan earned degrees from Reed College and Princeton University and worked with Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., the Peace Corp, the federal Bonneville Power Administration and the Portland office of CH2M Hill before joining PPM Energy, now Iberdrola Renewables.
In addition to his national role in the clean, renewable energy industry, Linehan's local civic activities included presidency of the Portland City Club. He was appointed by the Portland city council to the Citizen Campaign Commission, which helped develop and modify Portland's ground-breaking publicly financed election campaigns, and he was active in his Laurelhurst neighborhood association.
Friends have established the "Andrew Linehan Scholarship" fund at Reed College in his memory.www.giving.reed.edu. Click "Give Online" and use the "Comments" field to direct your gift to the Andrew Linehan Scholarship. Contribute by phone at 877-865-1469, noting the fund.
Contact:
Art Sasse, Director, Communications & Brand, Iberdrola Renewables, 503-796-7740
Paul Copleman, Media Relations, Iberdrola Renewables, 207-641-2805
About Avangrid: Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE: AGR) aspires to be the leading sustainable energy company in the United States. Headquartered in Orange, CT with approximately $44 billion in assets and operations in 24 U.S. states, Avangrid has two primary lines of business: networks and renewables. Through its networks business, Avangrid owns and operates eight electric and natural gas utilities, serving more than 3.3 million customers in New York and New England. Through its renewables business, Avangrid owns and operates a portfolio of renewable energy generation facilities across the United States. Avangrid employs approximately 8,000 people and has been recognized by JUST Capital in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 as one of the JUST 100 companies – a ranking of America’s best corporate citizens. In 2024, Avangrid ranked first among utilities and 12 overall. The company supports the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals and was named among the World’s Most Ethical Companies in 2024 for the sixth consecutive year by the Ethisphere Institute. Avangrid is a member of the group of companies controlled by Iberdrola, S.A. For more information, visit www.avangrid.com.
About Iberdrola: Iberdrola is one of the world's biggest energy companies and a leader in renewables, spearheading the energy transition to a low carbon economy. The group supplies energy to almost 100 million people in dozens of countries. With a focus on renewable energy, smart networks and smart solutions for customers, Iberdrola’s main markets include Europe (Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, France, Germany, Italy and Greece), the United States, Brazil, Mexico and Australia. The company is also present in growth markets such as Japan, Taiwan, Ireland, Sweden and Poland, among others.
With a workforce of nearly 40,000 and assets in excess of €141.7 billion, across the world, Iberdrola helps to support 400,000 jobs across its supply chain, with annual procurement of €12.2 billion. A benchmark in the fight against climate change, Iberdrola has invested more than €130 billion over the past two decades to help build a sustainable energy model, based on sound environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles.
