Wind Power News: North Carolina
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They are the products of the organizations or individuals noted and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch.
State approves wind farm near wildlife refuge
State officials have approved a proposed 49-turbine wind farm in Eastern North Carolina that critics worry could kill migrating birds from the Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge nearby. The N.C. Utilities Commission said Thursday that it had no legal authority to reject the Pantego Wind Energy Facility, which would spread over 11,000 acres in Beaufort County. But the state commission said the wind farm can’t move ahead until it receives state and federal environmental permits and meets other strict conditions. . . .
Panel OKs wind farm
A state utilities panel on Thursday approved plans by Invenergy to build an 80-megawatt wind farm in the eastern part of Beaufort County. The N.C. Utilities Commission granted the company a certificate of public convenience and necessity that gives the go-ahead to Pantego Wind Energy LLC, a subsidiary of Invenergy, for the project, planned for 11,000 acres near Terra Ceia and Pantego. Invenergy, in a statement released to the Washington Daily News following the ruling, praised the utilities commission and . . .
State approves Pantego wind farm, seeks to protect Pocosin birds
State officials gave their approval today to build a 49-turbine wind farm in Eastern North Carolina that critics worry will cause bird kills of tundra swans and other migratory birds that like to roost nearby at the Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge when visiting the state for the winter. The N.C. Utilities Commission said it had no legal authority to deny approval to the Pantego Wind Energy Facility, which would spread over 11,000 acres in Beaufort County. But the state . . .
Wind power conference set for Charlotte
Wind energy advocates are prepping for a regional wind power conference in Charlotte next week that’s set to draw several hundred participants from Georgia, Virginia and the Carolinas to discuss an endless natural resource that has so far failed to yield benefits. The 2012 Southeastern Costal Wind Conference is sponsored by a wide range of interests, including Duke Energy, Clemson University’s Wind Turbine Drivetrain Testing Facility, and Stevens Towning Co. (a marine transportation service that would presumably benefit from offshore . . .
OLF opponents set sights on proposed wind farm
PANTEGO — Eastern North Carolina residents don’t think they’re tilting at windmills as they press for a stringent environmental review of plans in Beaufort County to build 500-foot tall wind turbines near federal refuges that attract hundreds of thousands of geese and swans during the winter. Some of the same groups and people who successfully fought Navy plans for a jet landing field in the general area four years ago are now focused on a proposed wind farm with 49 . . .
Offshore wind turbines at least 5 years away
Despite a glowing report from the governor’s Scientific Advisory Panel on Offshore Energy, wind turbines most likely won’t be constructed off the North Carolina coastline for at least another five years, experts say. “It’s not an industry that happens really fast,” said Brian O’Hara, president of the North Carolina Offshore Wind Coalition. “With the permitting and environmental studies that have to take place, the earliest we would see something off our coast is probably in the 2017-2018 time period.” The . . .
North Carolina offshore turbines “at least 5 years away”
Experts from the North Carolina Offshore Wind Coalition have said that wind turbines very likely will not be constructed off the North Carolina coast for at least five more years. According to Brian O’Hara, president of the NCOWC, “It’s not an industry that happens really fast. With the permitting and environmental studies that have to take place, the earliest we would see something off our coast is probably in the 2017-2018 time period.” The findings were released by Governor Ben . . .
Wind farm decision near
The N.C. Utilities Commission is nearing a decision on an 80-megawatt wind farm proposed for the eastern part of the county by a subsidiary of the nation’s largest private owner of wind-generated energy in the country, state and company officials told the Washington Daily News. The commission could rule as soon as this month on an application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity to give the go-ahead to Pantego Wind Energy LLC, a subsidiary of Invenergy, for the . . .
Pamlico residents sound off on wind energy, ferry fees
BAYBORO — An otherwise light Monday night of business for Pamlico County commissioners did include three speakers, with topics that included promoting the county, the downside of wind energy and a citizen’s voice against proposed ferry fees. The promotional video about the county focuses on its three distinct historical traits — fishing, farming and forestry. The video was the work of Jayne Robb, the county planner and Candy Bohmert, a community leader who works for the Pamlico County Soil and . . .
Renewable mythology
In its February newsletter, Carteret-Craven Electric Cooperative tells customers they will soon have the chance to buy electricity from Duke Energy Renewable’s 6.4-megawatt Murfreesboro Solar Project in Hertford County — and it will cost more — practically double what they pay for electricity now. “CCEC’s Board of Directors approved the ‘solar rate’ of 18.71¢ kWh (kilowatt hour),” said the newsletter. “CCEC’s standard rates are 8.9¢ kWh during non-summer months (November through May) and 9.98¢ kWh during the summer (June through . . .
