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England
30 Jan 2009
Offshore wind turbines turning again
Britain’s first wind farm built out at sea will continue to play an important role in the development of offshore wind technology, it was claimed yesterday.
Power company E. ON officially re-commissioned its Blyth offshore wind farm after the two turbines had stood idle for almost three years because of technical problems.
The pioneering facility was the first of its kind in the UK when it started producing power in 2000, and – despite its problems – has helped prove that operating wind ...
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England, Letters
02 Feb 2009
CPRE worried about wind farms
Your report on wind farms is timely and welcome ( The Journal, January 26). However, we must point out that in Durham, you have not mentioned the following wind farms.
In the Sedgefield Borough Council area: Walkway, seven turbines operational; Butterwick, 10 turbines approved; Red Gap, nine turbines, scoping document submitted; Foxton, three turbines; AI wind farm, 10 turbines, scoping.
In the Darlington Council area: Newbiggin, nine turbines, scoping; Moorhouse, 10 turbines, scoping. Teesdale: Bolam, seven turbines, scoping. Stockton and Hambleton: Hilton/ ...
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Saskatchewan
02 Feb 2009
Wind farm on Bruce Power's agenda
A potential nuclear plant in Saskatchewan would involve more than just reactors.
“We have always advocated that a generation mix with all sources is the best way to go,” said John Peevers, a spokesman with Bruce Power.
In 2002, one year after Bruce Power took over its facilities on the Bruce Peninsula in Ontario, it built the Huron wind farm in close proximity to its nuclear facilities.
And while the power coming ...
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Vermont
04 Feb 2009
Vt. PSB rejects wind challenge
The Vermont Public Service Board has denied Ridge Protectors Inc.’s request for discovery and hearings on the certificate of public good being issued for a wind generation facility in Sheffield.
In Wednesday’s decision, the board denied the challenge brought by Ridge Protectors. The service board’s clerk, Susan Hood, sent the decision to interested parties.
The case relates to the Aug. 8, 2007, Public Service Board’s issuance of a certificate of public good which granted conditional approval of a wind generation facility by ...
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Washington
04 Feb 2009
Wind farm project may expand; Company wants to lease state trust land in the Columbia River Gorge
A Bingen-based company that hopes to build a 70-megawatt wind farm on a backcountry ridge near Underwood has asked the state to explore the expansion of the project north onto 2,560 acres of state trust land.
The Saddleback Wind Project would rise on logged-over industrial lands behind Underwood Mountain, just outside the north boundary of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area.
The original proposal by SDS Lumber Co. called for installing 42 wind turbines along a roughly north-south alignment on its ...
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Massachusetts
04 Feb 2009
Cape Wind ready to rev up
Cape Wind could begin to set up financing for its plan to build 130 wind turbines in Nantucket Sound as early as this spring, according to a company official.
The U.S. Minerals Management Service issued a largely positive environmental report for the project last month and a formal approval of a lease for the project could come as soon as two weeks. Combined with several permits already issued by the state and a pending decision on all other local and state ...
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U.S.
04 Feb 2009
Dark days for green energy
Wind and solar power have been growing at a blistering pace in recent years, and that growth seemed likely to accelerate under the green-minded Obama administration. But because of the credit crisis and the broader economic downturn, the opposite is happening: installation of wind and solar power is plummeting.
Factories building parts for these industries have announced a wave of layoffs in recent weeks, and trade groups are projecting 30 to 50 percent declines this year in installation of new ...
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Scotland
04 Feb 2009
Best green power for Uist revealed
Study pinpoints small wind projects and biomass schemes for North Island and Berneray
Small-scale wind developments and biomass projects have emerged as the best options for generating renewable energy on North Uist and Berneray, according to a feasibility study.
The report was commissioned by the North Uist Partnership, an organisation set up in 2001 to look at sustainable community development.
And just two medium-scale turbines would be enough to make the islands carbon-neutral, the study states.
The report comes prefaced by the stark ...
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Minnesota
04 Feb 2009
Company to unveil wind farm proposal
Could produce enough power for 50,000 homes
Clay County residents will get a glimpse tonight of details for a proposed wind farm that could bring 134 turbines and 27 miles of new access roads.
The Noble Flat Hill Windpark, located about 12 miles northeast of Moorhead, would be capable of generating 201 megawatts of electricity, enough to power to more than 50,000 homes.
Details of the proposal will be presented at a public meeting at 6:30 p.m. at the Glyndon Community ...
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Letters, Maryland
04 Feb 2009
One wind monstrosity would wreak havoc on us
Enclosed is an email I sent March 2, 2008, expressing my opinion of the idea of putting any industrial wind farms in the smallest part of a small state in a big country. My objections haven’t changed, and they are as pertinent now as when I wrote in opposition to the placement in Maryland public forestland:
I am strongly opposed to the useless destruction of any portion of the Garrett/Allegheny 75 percent forestlands, in order to plant wind turbine farms on ...
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Kansas
04 Feb 2009
Moratorium talk still blowing
Ellis County commissioners discussed the possibility of implementing a moratorium on wind development in the county again Monday.
Commissioner Glenn Diehl reiterated he would not support a long-term moratorium.
“There’s no way I’m going to impact any … future projects,” Diehl said. “It would have to be extremely short-term if we decide on one — less than six months.”
The commission will continue to seek counsel about the issue ...
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Wales
05 Feb 2009
Protesters go it alone to oppose Gwynt-y-Mor windfarm
Campaigners fighting against the Gwynt-y-Môr offshore wind farm will take their case directly to the High Court in London even though a barrister says the government didn’t break the law in giving it the go-ahead.
Protest group Save Our Scenery (SOS) is going it alone in fighting the decision.
“The councillors reluctantly decided to take the legal advice that there is no case for a review, but we think that whether or not there is a case, should be decided by a ...
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Wales
05 Feb 2009
Wind power 'not hitting target'
The Welsh Assembly Government has “little hope” of hitting its 2010 renewable energy target, claims the Liberal Democrat environment spokesman.
Mick Bates, chair of the assembly’s sustainability scrutiny committee, said there was a “stifling lack of progress” in wind farm development.
The assembly government has pledged to increase green energy by 10% by 2010.
It said £6.5bn worth of renewable energy projects were either planned or underway in Wales.
But Mr Bates, the Montgomeryshire AM, said there was “little hope” of reaching the target.
He ...
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Maine
05 Feb 2009
Proposed wind project delayed; Residents in the town of Dixmont say they need more time
They voted Wednesday night in favor of a 180 day moratorium on industrial wind farms by an overwhelming count of 111 to 20.
The company Competitive Energy Services is considering a ridge in Dixmont as a potential site for turbines.
Many people at the meeting said they’re not against the idea of wind power but given all of the potential effects of such a project they say it is reasonable to wait, and let everyone have a chance to get ...
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Wisconsin
05 Feb 2009
Citizens give senator earful about turbines
More than 50 people packed the meeting room Saturday morning at the Calumet Fire Station in Pipe to give State Senator Joe Leibham an earful-primarily about what they view as negative effects of wind turbines in the Johnsburg area.
Leibham, a Republican ...
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Ontario
06 Feb 2009
Whirling controversy
HOUGHTON — The ringing in his ears and the constant headaches started about a year ago.
Ross Moulton has been to his doctor many times and underwent a CAT scan, but so far therre is no diagnosis, no reason for his illness.
The 65-year-old soybean and corn farmer has his own suspicions, however.
“I’d like to see a test done to see how much stray electricity is in the air,” says Moulton, who lives on the eastern edge of Norfolk County’s wind ...
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England
06 Feb 2009
Villagers angry at turbine plan
Angry villagers have started a campaign against the revised proposal for two wind farms in Northamptonshire after the previous application was withdrawn.
People in the villages of Bozeat, Lavendon and Harrold, near the county border with Bedfordshire, originally launched the campaign in 2006, and energy provider Npower Renewables withdrew the plans last year due to their concerns.
But a revised proposal has been submitted to the three authorities covering the area, known as Nun Wood, and campaigners are gearing up for ...
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England
06 Feb 2009
Protestors battle Silloth windfarm plan
Protestors this week lobbied a public inquiry into plans for a £10 million Silloth windfarm they say will “blight” the landscape.
More than 50 people packed into the Wave Centre, Maryport, on Tuesday to hear an inquiry into NPower Renewables Ltd plans to build four 396ft turbines at Park Head Farm.
The four-day inquiry, expected to finish today, came after Allerdale Council refused permission for the turbines in December 2007 after more than 1,000 local objections.
Residents and businesses believe turbines ...
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England
06 Feb 2009
Wind farm will cost local tourism jobs, campaigners claim
People ighting a planned wind farm say jobs in the area could be lost if the scheme gets the go-ahead.
They claim that the erection of five 126m turbines on Matlock Moor, 3km north-east of Matlock, would have a negative impact on the landscape and put tourists off coming to the area.
Residents have now joined forces to form a protest group called Action Against Matlock Moor Wind Farm Proposal and are seeking legal advice on how best to fight ...
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Editorials, Wisconsin
06 Feb 2009
Keep wind farm decisions local
It’s becoming increasingly difficult to determine which way the wind is blowing in the continuing debate over who should oversee wind farm developments in Wisconsin.
Manitowoc County is among the government entities at the center of a battle over regulation of small wind turbine projects.
A Madison environmental group — RENEW Wisconsin — says local wind farm ordinances often are overly restrictive, and deter developers ...
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Maine
06 Feb 2009
Many attend wind power forum
FARMINGTON — A large crowd of people ignored subzero temperatures to fill the University of Maine at Farmington’s North Dining Hall this morning at the Western Maine Legislative Caucus, as a three-person panel addressed one of the most heavily debated subjects in Maine.
The forum, titled “Racing for the Wind: What does it mean for western Maine?” featured State Sen. Peter Mills, Central Maine Power’s President Sara Burns and Franklin County Commissioner Fred Hardy discussing the economic viability of wind power ...
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England
07 Feb 2009
Vale windfarm meeting
Debate over a proposed windfarm continues to rage but the planning process has stalled because the developers failed to pay the correct fee.
Ridgewind wants to build eight turbines in a field outside Bottesford but has yet to pay the full amount for its application.
A spokesman for Melton Council said: “The windfarm application is currently on hold pending receipt of the correct fee and amended site location plan. Once this has been received a further consultation exercise will be carried ...
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England
09 Feb 2009
More opposition arises to UK wind turbines
A tiny village with just 70 residents could find itself surrounded by seven huge wind turbines.
Energy company Npower Renewables wants to build the structures — which local people claim would measure up to 125m ...
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California
10 Feb 2009
Retirement costs top supervisors' agenda
Skyrocketing retirement costs, a wind energy project and an additional method for keeping tighter tabs on onshore oil facilities are slated to be discussed today at what appears to be another marathon meeting for the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors.
In preparation for the fiscal year 2009-10 budget, the supervisors will receive a report describing how severely strained future budgets will be because of rising retirement costs.
The county’s contributions will increase ...
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U.S.
11 Feb 2009
White House wants wind farms in oil plan
The Obama administration will set aside an “oil and gas or nothing” approach to energy exploration on the outer continental shelf and consider proposals for offshore wind farms alongside plans for new drilling, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said yesterday.
Salazar said he will revamp the process for writing a new five-year plan for oil and gas exploration in that zone, which generally extends three to 200 miles ...
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Letters, Ontario
11 Feb 2009
Turbine 'music' a song and dance
Re: Ratepayer wants wind farm resolution rescinded, Barry’s Bay This Week, Jan. 28
To the Editor,
Where oh where to begin?
The paragraph where we are told that “wind power is a renewable energy resource … with no emissions … erected by a leading company … more than 3,300 units in operation and an extended chain of consultants, engineers and specialists to advise it”, sounds like it was procured ...
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England
13 Feb 2009
E. ON to appeal wind farm decision
E. ON has today announced it is to appeal the East Riding Council’s decision to refuse consent for its Tedder Hill wind farm near Roos, Yorkshire.
The initial application for a 6.9MW, three turbine wind farm was rejected in August following a tie-break decision in which the council chairman cast the deciding vote.
Jonn Barnes, project developer for E. ON in the UK, commented: “We were naturally disappointed with the council’s decision as we firmly believe that Tedder Hill is an ideal location ...
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England
13 Feb 2009
Alnwick wind turbines approved
A swathe of moorland in Northumberland will be carpeted by 28 giant turbines after the Government yesterday approved plans for a second wind farm in the area.
Anti-turbine protesters claimed valuable landscapes north of Alnwick will be wrecked by a `vast industrial installation’ following the green light for the cluster of 125m-high structures.
Yesterday Oxfordshire-based RidgeWind Ltd was given the go-ahead to build 10 turbines at Wandylaw near Chathill by communities and local government secretary Hazel Blears.
She allowed the company’s appeal against ...
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South Carolina
13 Feb 2009
Wind is power? Sandifer says no
CLEMSON — While experts agree that the state of South Carolina will need more energy sources in the near future, arguments usually ensue on how to do just that.
Following the ninth annual ThinkTEC Innovation Summit in North Charleston, Clemson director of business development, Elizabeth Colbert-Busch and other experts, stated that the Palmetto State has the potential to power more than 1 million homes and create a surge in jobs with the help of wind.
“If you do the math, wind power ...
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New Zealand
13 Feb 2009
Time to talk the talk on Turitea
Turitea wind farm is the most significant resource consent application affecting Palmerston North’s environment in 50 years or more, according to city lawyer John Maassen.
That’s why it’s critical decision-makers are presented with the best possible information.
Submissions by the community are necessary, valuable and influential, he told a meeting of about 100 people at the Palmerston North Convention Centre last night.
The meeting was organised by Palmerston North City Council to help people make effective submissions to a government-appointed board of inquiry ...
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Maine
13 Feb 2009
Town blocks plans for towers
MOUNT DESERT — Following news that several wireless communication company representatives were in town scouting possible locations for cell phone towers last week, selectmen unanimously voted to place a moratorium on communication towers Monday.
The moratorium prohibits all new towers, monopoles and tower-mounted wind turbines for the next 180 days.
Selectmen are not against communications towers, said chairman Patrick Smallidge, they merely need to time to consider how best to regulate them.
Interest in erecting the communication towers and wind turbines on private ...
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Ontario
13 Feb 2009
Wind farm faces protest
Coun. Chris Lewis wants to get the province’s attention with a large rally against offshore wind turbines.
“This fight is far ...
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Massachusetts
14 Feb 2009
FAA: Turbines pose risk to radar
The Federal Aviation Administration issued a report yesterday warning that Cape Wind Associates’ proposed wind farm could interfere with radar systems monitoring air traffic over Nantucket Sound.
The FAA’s “Notice of Presumed Hazard” warns that the 130 proposed turbines could have an “adverse physical or electromagnetic interference effect upon navigable airspace or air navigation facilities.”
The report warns the rotating blades of the turbines could cause unwanted “clutter” in radar systems.
To correct the problem, the FAA study recommends an upgrade of the ...
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Editorials, Ontario
14 Feb 2009
Premier should use caution
Premier Dalton McGuinty is poised to ram through legislation that could make it impossible for ordinary citizens to object to wind turbines, solar panel fields and biofuel plants on the grounds they’re essential to Ontario.
This is a disturbing turn and should give every civil libertarian pause.
Speaking in London Tuesday, McGuinty said the new Green Energy Act his government will soon introduce will prevent the “not-in-my-backyard syndrome” ...
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Scotland
16 Feb 2009
Gravir residents opposed to convertor station
The decision by planning councillors to award planning permission comes in the face of furious opposition ...
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New Zealand
16 Feb 2009
National to investigate Meridian's deal with Doc
A deal made between Meridian Energy and the Department of Conservation over a controversial windfarm will be investigated before the Government responds to ethical questions raised.
DOC is standing by the confidential 2007 deal, which reportedly involved a payment of $175,000 by Meridian to the department in return for DOC not opposing the Project Hayes windfarm near Ranfurly in Central Otago.
The Environment Court has been hearing submissions over a bid by Meridian to gain resource consents for the $2 billion windfarm.
Conservation ...
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Rhode Island
17 Feb 2009
Wind-turbine plan proposed in Narragansett
People hiking out to Black Point or the Camp Cronin fishing access in Narragansett may one day find something new on the rugged and scenic coastline — large commercial wind turbines.
The state Department of Environmental Management, working in cooperation with the Town of Narragansett and the City of Providence, is looking for proposals ...
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North Dakota
18 Feb 2009
Commission hears about wind farm operation
The Stutsman County Commission heard information ...
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Illinois
19 Feb 2009
18 turbines set to spin; all eyes turn to DeKalb
DIXON – The winds of approval blew east Tuesday as the Lee County Board sanctioned 18 potential wind turbines, leaving DeKalb County the last word on the project’s remaining 132 turbines.
If DeKalb County gives its OK, the turbines will be built in Alto and Willow Creek townships in Lee County’s northeastern corner.
NextEra Energy Resources, the company leading the project, said the turbines would be erected this summer, with a targeted completion date in December.
Board member Dick ...
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Wyoming
19 Feb 2009
County wind regs may contradict themselves
Natrona County may have another problem with its commercial wind farm regulations about distances separating towers and houses, according to a homeowner near the proposed wind farm on the former Texaco refinery site northeast of Evansville.
“It would take my whole property,” Stan Mundy said Tuesday.
One paragraph in the regulations states wind turbines and their towers must be at least a quarter-mile away ...
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Scotland
20 Feb 2009
Giant energy cable to run under the Minch
Plans to construct two huge sub-sea energy cables to export electricity ...
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U.S.
21 Feb 2009
Next up: a renewable portfolio standard?
Advocates of renewable energy got the stimulus package of their dreams, packed with tax credits and grants and loan programs intended to restart their industry. Now they are turning their attention to the next item on the wish list: a national renewable portfolio standard. President Obama has called for 10 percent of the nation’s electricity to come ...
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Letters, Ontario
23 Feb 2009
Make concerns known to Premier McGuinty
Everyone in Ontario should be very grateful for your editorial in The Observer on Feb. 14 in which you point out the potential threat to our democracy.
By calling a new piece of legislation, just about to be introduced to Parliament, “The Green Energy Act,” Mr. McGuinty is hoping that erosion of rights of the public and local municipalities, called for in the Bill, will either “fly under the radar” or be “forgiven” simply by labelling it “green.”
Comments made ...
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Letters, Prince Edward Island
23 Feb 2009
Separate power corridor needed
Very shortly Maritime Electric will be transporting power ...
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New Zealand
24 Feb 2009
Further verdict against windfarm
Opponents of a windfarm proposed for the Te Waka range north west of Napier, hope a second rejection of the scheme by the Environment Court will mean an end to it.
Unison Networks resubmitted a slightly smaller proposal after being knocked back by the Environmental Court and then the High Court for a windfarm with 37 turbines.
Unison reduced the original number to 34 turbines.
A Landscape Preservation Society has spent almost $150,000 in fighting the project for almost four years. It ...
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Massachusetts
24 Feb 2009
Council agrees to take another look at turbine law
NEWBURYPORT — The City Council will re-examine the ordinance they passed last summer that regulates the installation of wind turbines in the city. Councilor Greg Earls raised questions about setbacks allowed under the law, density and how the public is notified about the possibility of a structure going up in their neighborhood.
Councilors unanimously agreed to send the measure back to its Planning and Development subcommittee after about 15 neighbors ...
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Letters, Ontario
25 Feb 2009
How did the meeting go in Essex?
How did the meeting go in Essex?
Very, very well. I think we turned the tide.
I am SO grateful for John Harrison, Carmen Krough, Bill Palmer and David Colling for driving all that way and speaking. I tell you I was almost in tears at the end of the night.
We had banners and signs and, like the landowners in past meetings, we did not hold back our gut responses to what was being presented. ...
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Opinions, U.S.
25 Feb 2009
Outsmarting the smart grid
The latest delusion about energy is the “smart grid.” This bright new technological miracle will once again help us overcome the realities of physics and allow us to live in a world run on wind and sunshine.
Al Gore, Thomas Friedman, Amory Lovins and Silicon Valley are the predictable originators of this story, but – as always – corporate America has quickly jumped into the game. Ever eager to show they are “green” and hip it is, General Electric ...
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Editorials, Virginia
25 Feb 2009
Wind energy debate whips up knowledge base on controversial issue
Wind energy is becoming a new and controversial buzz word across the region.
Lately, just about everyone seems to have an opinion on windmills. Many are speaking out against the windmill project proposed for East River Mountain, and many others are speaking in favor of the wind turbine development. Readers of the Daily Telegraph are also taking this debate one step further. They are doing their homework. They are researching wind turbines, and providing compelling arguments on everything ...
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Illinois, Letters
26 Feb 2009
Say no to the DeKalb-Lee wind farm
The recent application by a Florida Power affiliate for a “Special Use” permit to construct 152 wind-farm towers here, gives us a great concern for our land, and for the future growth potential of the Shabbona-Lee area.
Our family has owned two farms, in the heart of the proposed wind-farm area, for a quarter of a century. If approved, the 40-story towers, will forever change the aesthetics of these communities.
More damaging, however, is the permanent loss in land value, that will ...
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New Hampshire
26 Feb 2009
Wind park hedges its finances; Noble asks to proceed despite money issue
While a state attorney filed testimony that a proposed wind energy park has no financing plan, the park’s owner offered to accept conditional permission to build.
Executives ...
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Denmark
27 Feb 2009
Too much green energy at night
Danish wind turbines are now producing so much energy that they may have to be stopped at night in order to avoid excess production duties.
In October, turbine owners will have to pay an excess production duty of DKK 1.70 for each kilowatt of energy produced during evenings and nights when there is too much electricity on the market.
“The last thing that we want to do is to stop a wind turbine. But we may have to. No-one wants to produce ...
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Letters, New York
27 Feb 2009
Turbines will upset Hammond’s way of life
The very thought that wind turbines could be installed along the St. Lawrence River at Hammond is sickening. It will destroy a whole way of life. I am the granddaughter of Del and Nellie Haas, who lived at 70 Church St., Alexandria Bay, and the niece of Raymond and Mary Haas, who lived at 86 Church. My mother, Helen Haas Gormley, was born and raised in the beautiful Thousand Islands.
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California
28 Feb 2009
Protest planned over Hatchet Ridge Wind Project
Saying its blades will leave eagle blood in the air and on the ground, opponents of the Hatchet Ridge Wind Project are planning a protest rally.
“It just really needs to be relooked at,” said Radley Davis, a member of the Pit River Tribe and one of the protest organizers.
The protest will be at noon Friday in front of the Shasta County Administration Center, organizers said.
The Shasta County Board of Supervisors denied appeals to the project — which will result in ...
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England
28 Feb 2009
Turbines 'would close yoga centre'
A yoga centre has warned that nearly 40 jobs could be lost if plans to build four wind turbines nearby are allowed to go ahead.
The location of the British School of Yoga was carefully chosen to provide peace and tranquillity for the centre. But its owners believe that environment would be shattered by the 340ft turbines if they were erected just 430 yards away.
They say they would have to relocate from the site close to the old Dunsland Cross railway ...
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Massachusetts
28 Feb 2009
State shields 700 acres
The state plans to protect over 700 acres of ridge line in the Hoosac Mountain range from any future development, including wind turbines, as the Berkshire Natural Resources Council continues to create a corridor of land connecting the Florida and Savoy Mountain state forests.
Part of the plan calls for a major hiking trail for North Berkshire.
The City Council received a letter from the state Department of Conservation and Recreation on Tuesday, notifying the city that it plans to place a ...
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New York
28 Feb 2009
Developers seeking to run power line through Madison County link their aims to Obama's
The developers of a controversial high-voltage power line project are tying their efforts to President Barack Obama’s goal to plant more than 3,000 miles of new transmission lines nationwide to promote renewable energy and create jobs.
New York Regional Interconnect published an advertorial in the Albany-area publication The Capitol this week, which called on elected officials to support its $2.1 billion project “at a time when our deeply stressed state budget would be hard-pressed to pay for a large infrastructure upgrade.”
“In ...
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California
28 Feb 2009
Group protests Hatchet Ridge Wind Project
A group of protesters opposed to the Hatchet Ridge Wind Project are holding a rally outside the Shasta County Administration Center this afternoon.
Felix Naranjo of Arcata holds a sign that says “Eagles carry prayers to the creator” at a protest of the Hatchet Ridge wind project this afternoon in front of the Shasta County Administration Center. Photo by Dylan Darling / Record Searchlight
The noon gathering, which drew support from as far away as Arcata, was expected to ...
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Editorials, Massachusetts
28 Feb 2009
A 292-foot mistake
Newburyport — There’s no doubt that Mark Richey had nothing but good and green intentions when he erected an industrial wind turbine to generate electricity for his wood-working factory in the city’s industrial park. And there’s no question that city leaders who ushered in that project — first with a wind turbine ordinance and then with a Zoning Board of Appeals special permit — believed they were putting Newburyport in the lead of local communities that support alternative and ...
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Australia
28 Feb 2009
Wind farm power plan predicted to blow down South Coast
South Coast wind farms could become a reality after the NSW Government yesterday nominated the region as a preferred location for the green power industry.
The Government also announced plans to expedite the approval process for companies proposing to invest in wind energy in the region.
On day two of Premier Nathan Rees’ job summit, held at The Mint in Sydney yesterday, delegates turned attention to ideas for a green workforce and how to create an environmentally and economically sustainable employment future.
Mr ...
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England
28 Feb 2009
Wind turbines up for debate
More than 1,000 people have already registered comments about the proposed giant wind turbines at Cheverton Down, a packed public meeting heard.
The meeting, called by Brighstone Parish Council, on Wednesday night, saw more than 100 residents cram into Wilberforce Hall in the village where details of the proposed scheme were outlined by IW Council planning bosses.
Bill Murphy, head of planning, said members of both Shorwell and Brighstone parish councils would be invited on a site visit to an area ...
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New Jersey
28 Feb 2009
Meeting tries to eliminate power line fears
VIENNA — No, high voltage power lines won’t increase human or animal risks to cancer or lightning strikes, nor threaten to destroy acres upon acres of private property, wetlands or forestry, officials at Delmarva Power and its parent company, Pepco Holdings Inc., assured residents at a public hearing on an electric transmission system proposed for a 27-mile stretch through Dorchester County.
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Rather, the Mid-Atlantic Power Pathway could all but eliminate so-called blackouts, increase energy capacity by up to 500,000 homes and ...
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Letters, Ontario
28 Feb 2009
Taking part in debate good for everyone
In our democratic province, the voice of every citizen needs to not only be heard but listened to.
It is simply wrong for Premier Dalton McGuinty to ignore opposition to wind farms and other green energy programs or dismiss it simply as NIMBYism.
This may surprise many people who know me because I advocate for healthier, cost-effective and sustainable solutions to our energy needs rather than fossil-fuelled options such as a peaker power plant.
You could be a real estate agent who is ...
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Letters, North Dakota
28 Feb 2009
Stutsman County officials acting correctly on wind farm issues
Statements made by Ted Weisman of Florida Power and Light and Rep. Mike Brandenburg, R-Edgeley, before the Stutsman County Commission (“Commission hears about wind farm operation, Feb. 18) merit a response.
Weismann said he is unaware of any county with similar setbacks that has a wind turbine — the implication being that, if Stutsman County implements setbacks, it will see no wind energy development.
FPL executive John DiDonato made a more explicit public statement in 2005 after Spring Valley Township in Dickey ...
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England
28 Feb 2009
Villagers aim to blow wind mast off course
Families opposing plans to build a “monstrous” wind turbine are to grill representatives behind the scheme.
They have called a public meeting to tell officials from Severn Trent Water exactly what they think of the company’s proposals.
It has applied to East Staffordshire Borough Council to erect a wind testing mast at a sewage works on the outskirts of Checkley.
The proposal is for a single structure with a maximum height up to 428ft (131 metres).
But residents say the development would destroy the ...
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Ontario
28 Feb 2009
Wind farm proposed for Forest
Five more wind turbines could begin turning on the horizon just east of Forest if a $25-million proposal gets the green light.
Forest Wind Power Inc. is seeking approval for a 10-megawatt project between Cedar Point Line and Hickory Creek Line in Lambton Shores, said Rochelle Rumney, an environmental assessment specialist with M. K. Ince and Associates.
The Waterdown, Ont. consulting firm is working with the landowner.
“We’re almost ready to issue the final environmental screening report,” Rumney said, adding, “We’re just going ...
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England
28 Feb 2009
Windfarm would 'spoil recreation'
The primary planning officer for Rochdale remained adamant that plans to build a controversial windfarm on moors above Littleborough would encroach on the openness of the moors.
In day six of a four-week- long public inquiry into the Crook Hill windfarm application, Richard Butler gave evidence on behalf of Rochdale Council to support its objections against building the 125m high wind turbines.
He also raised concerns that the rural character of the area would be spoilt by the development, which would include ...
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Illinois
28 Feb 2009
AA is OK with Dist. 79 turbine plan
Wind turbine projects are picking up speed in Lake County.
Fremont Elementary District 79 has cleared a hurdle in its quest to build a wind turbine that would provide electricity to school buildings, with the idea of saving money.
District 79, which serves students in the Mundelein and Grayslake areas, recently received Federal Aviation Administration approval for its application to build the wind turbine.
Meanwhile, the potential for what’s believed would be Lake County’s first wind farm is being studied east of ...
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Kansas
28 Feb 2009
Officials ask for end to wind tax exemption
Wind turbines in Kansas could be taxed by the state and local governments under legislation supported Friday by a group of western Kansas officials.
A bill before the House Taxation Committee would eliminate the lifetime property tax exemption granted to renewable energy resources and technologies in 1998.
The Kansas Legislative Policy Group, a coalition of 30 county commissions in western Kansas, offered the sole testimony in support of the change Friday.
Several wind developers opposed repealing the exemption outright, saying it could make ...
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Blogs, Massachusetts
28 Feb 2009
Whose fault is that 292-foot wind turbine?
That 292-foot high wind turbine is quite a sight, isn’t it? Try NOT looking at it when you ride through that section of Newburyport.
The Current hit the target when they referred to it as, “A 292-foot mistake,” on their February 27th editorial page.
But whose mistake was it? The editorial leaves the impression that Mark Richey and his “experts” tricked the city council. We’re to believe that these experts, employed by the wind turbine proponents, minimized the negatives and ...
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California
28 Feb 2009
Demonstrators still hope to block Hatchet Ridge project near Burney
Opponents of a wind power project planned for a ridge near Burney gathered outside of the Shasta County administration building Friday to voice their concerns about eagles that will be killed and land that will be altered by giant turbines on Hatchet Ridge.
“That’s our sacred land and it’s going to go away,” said James Hayward Sr., one of the protest’s organizers and co-chair of the Advocates for the Protection of Sacred Sites.
The protest of the 103-megawatt Hatchet Ridge Wind Project ...
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California
28 Feb 2009
Protestors oppose wind turbines' effects on bald eagles
The “Hatchet Wind Project” is sailing forward in Shasta County, but opponents say the wind turbines are a death trap for sacred birds of prey.
Protestors took to the streets of Redding Friday and they say they won’t go down without a fight.
The wind project atop Hatchet Ridge near Burney has already been approved by the Shasta County Board of Supervisors, but there’s a strong environmental opposition.
Wildlife researcher Jim Wiegand says “Green energy is ...
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Maryland
27 Feb 2009
County refusing wind energy permits
CUMBERLAND — Allegany County government is refusing to accept any permit related to industrial wind energy facilities until the state Public Service Commission determines the fate of a project atop Dan’s Mountain.
The PSC conducted a public hearing Jan. 21 at Frostburg State University to gather public input on a U.S. Wind Force project that could see the construction of up to 29 wind turbines. The hearing addressed whether to grant or deny a request by Dan’s Mountain Wind Force LLC, ...
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California
27 Feb 2009
Tower of power: Hovering helicopters a hassle
There’s something in the air over the northeastern edge of Santa Clarita Valley — helicopters.
Loud helicopters.
Southern California Edison contractors are using the choppers to erect new power lines, and it’s the constant chop-chop-chopping of their motors that has some residents wondering how long the noise will last.
It may be at least another month.
“This morning it (sounded) like a war zone,” said Noel Borensztegn, who lives in Saugus south of the Bouquet Reservoir.
He said the choppers rattled the walls of his ...
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Australia
27 Feb 2009
Rees to ease the way for wind farm projects
The State Government is to pave the way for a speedy roll-out of wind farms across NSW by relaxing development controls throughout much of the State.
The Federal Government wants as much as one-fifth of Australia’s energy to come from renewable sources by 2020, which is expected to lead to a big rise in investment in wind turbines throughout NSW.
The Premier, Nathan Rees, said yesterday the big beneficiary would likely be wind farms, which he said would generate as much as ...
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Editorials, Vermont
27 Feb 2009
Earth, wind and fire
Like a vampire emerging from his crypt, with one hand thrusting into the air out of the darkness, an issue many local residents felt — or at least hoped — was truly dead and buried is back for a second visit.
The issue we refer to of course, is the advisory vote on the installation of wind turbine energy on Little Equinox. Three years ago at Town Meeting, a protracted debate on a specific wind energy proposal resulted in a narrow ...
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Massachusetts
27 Feb 2009
Windmill bylaw 'wide open,' says Giger
GROTON — The lure of wind powered electric generation in Groton has spurred town planners to prepare an amendment to the zoning bylaws to regulate the location, construction and use of such devices in the future.
Once wording for the proposed amendment is finalized, the measure is expected to be submitted to residents at annual town meeting for consideration and adoption, hopefully preempting any attempt to site a wind-powered generator in town before regulations are in place.
“It’s kind of wide open ...
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Newfoundland and Labrador
27 Feb 2009
Stephenville council sticking to its guns on wind turbines
Stephenville Town Council is sticking to its policy of not permitting wind turbines in residential areas.
At a council meeting Thursday, Mayor Tom O’Brien repeated the town’s stand on the issue which has generated a lot of reaction with correspondence coming locally and even internationally.
The mayor said while council passes no opinion on health concerns associated with wind turbines, their reason for turning them down is safety concerns and aesthetics.
“These turbines are often not effective unless mounted on towers that run ...
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Pennsylvania
27 Feb 2009
Water authority wants to test Jackson’s wind
MUNDYS CORNER — The Greater Johnstown Water Authority wants to test the winds atop Rager Mountain before deciding whether to erect a turbine or two there, Jackson Township officials said Thursday night.
The authority owns about 950 acres on the mountain, and putting up turbines could be very lucrative.
“The purpose is twofold:? To generate income and to generate electricity for our filtration plants and stuff like that,” authority board Chairman Ed Cernic Sr. told The Tribune-Democrat.
A turbine could generate $400,000 to ...
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New York
27 Feb 2009
Cattaraugus County Legislature included on wind farm panel
LITTLE VALLEY — The Cattaraugus County Legislature will be represented on a panel that will work with town and school delegates to set up a tax-exemption policy for the Cattaraugus County Industrial Development Agency’s wind farm projects.
A blanket state tax exemption for wind farms and other alternative energy systems was lifted in the county by the Legislature in 2008 following a lengthy debate. The action opened the door to tax collection by local authorities but also means wind developers will ...
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Vermont
27 Feb 2009
Vermont Electric to buy Sheffield wind power
Three days after announcing a deal with Burlington Electric Department, Vermont Wind LLC said Thursday that Vermont Electric Cooperative, Inc. has agreed to buy 50 percent of the Sheffield wind farm’s power.
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Under the 20-year agreement, the utility will also purchase renewable energy certificates from the 40-megawatt wind project.
Vermont Wind, which plans to build 420-foot tall towers housing the turbines, was granted a Certificate of Public Good by the state’s Public Service Board in 2007. The Vermont Supreme Court affirmed the ...
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Letters, New York
27 Feb 2009
Turbines will upset Hammond's way of life
The very thought that wind turbines could be installed along the St. Lawrence River at Hammond is sickening. It will destroy a whole way of life. I am the granddaughter of Del and Nellie Haas, who lived at 70 Church St., Alexandria Bay, and the niece of Raymond and Mary Haas, who lived at 86 Church. My mother, Helen Haas Gormley, was born and raised in the beautiful Thousand Islands.
>From the day I was born I spent summer vacations at ...
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Pennsylvania
27 Feb 2009
Que regulations could impact 42-turbine wind farm
QUEMAHONING TOWNSHIP — Supervisors finalized the county’s strictest wind turbine ordinance during a public meeting on Thursday attended by residents and a wind energy representative.
Jeffrey Rinehart, project manager for Horizon Wind Energy, said the ordinance would affect the company’s plan to build the largest wind farm in the county, some 42 turbines, in the northern part of the township.
“As far as we’re concerned, it’s pretty tight,” Rinehart said. “We have to go back and see how it impacts the useable ...
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New York
27 Feb 2009
Clayton wind panel gets Cornell expert's advice on turbines
CLAYTON — The town’s wind committee heard its second and possibly final expert at its meeting Thursday.
Paul G. Carr, engineering professor at Cornell University, Ithaca, and one of the founding principals of Bernier, Carr and Associates, Watertown, gave the committee more information on noise and safety setbacks.
Clayton’s standing law, like many in the state, uses a 50-decibel limit for sound from turbines. That is the suggestion made by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.
“Much of the siting ...
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New York
27 Feb 2009
Turbine noise dissected; Expert says low frequencies are produced
LAFARGEVILLE — At its meeting Tuesday night, the Orleans wind committee got confirmation from an expert that turbines produce low-frequency noise and could cause health problems.
The committee held a conference call with Richard R. James, principal consultant at E-Coustic Solutions, Okemos, Mich. Mr. James has more than 35 years’ experience and worked on revising the International Electrotechnical Commission’s standard for measuring turbine sound levels. He worked with George W. Kamperman, consulting engineer in acoustics at Kamperman Associates Inc., Wisconsin Dells, ...
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New York
27 Feb 2009
Hartsville blocks wind
Could it be a long, long year for wind developers in Hartsville?
The town board in Hartsville, at a special meeting Wednesday, voted to place a moratorium on all industrial wind development project approvals.
According to town Supervisor Steve Dombert, there are three main areas the town board would like to review before any project is approved:
• A review of financial assistance the town will receive.
• A review of how noise from turbines could impact the local population and property values.
• A ...
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