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Illinois
31 Dec 2009
Complaints breeze in as wind turbines take off
NextEra Energy Resources plans to “officially commission” its 145-tower wind farm in southwestern DeKalb County by the end of this week, although the turbines in the southern part of the county have been harnessing wind and turning it into electricity for a few weeks.
That’s keeping in line with the company’s goal of having the wind farm operating by the end of 2009, said Neil Palmer, a representative for NextEra. The company applied for the permits for the wind farm in ...
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Virginia
31 Dec 2009
Highlanders threaten lawsuit over wind project, again
MONTEREY — Highland citizens, bolstered by the recent wind energy project injunction in West Virginia, sent county officials their third, and perhaps final, warning.
In a letter sent today (Wednesday, Dec. 30), attorney James Jennings Jr. told the Highland board it must require Highland New Wind Development LLC to obtain a federal incidental take permit to avoid legal action.
The Dec. 8 decision by a U.S. District Court judge in the case against Beech Ridge Energy, he said, “not only confirms Highland ...
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Maine, Opinions
31 Dec 2009
Which way is the wind blowing us?
The Copenhagen climate conference ended in disarray but succeeded in pointing out the enormity of the challenges and international discord around climate change. More importantly and of greater concern to me, it showed how monetized this particular scientific notion has become, and this does not auger well for the reasoned discussion we will really need.
Lost in the clamor are the nuances of opinion that are vital to understand what is really going on. Close reading of the Intergovernmental Panel for ...
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Massachusetts
31 Dec 2009
Developer tries to calm turbulence over wind turbines
Puts appeal on hold, changes Cohasset plan to address concerns
COHASSET – Two industrial wind turbines that failed to garner Planning Board support last summer will be back up for discussion next Wednesday, after their developer agreed to put a court challenge on hold and resubmit the proposal with some modifications.
The Planning Board gave the original proposal for two 450-foot turbines, on top of the Graham Waste landfill site off Route 3A, a 3-to-1 approval last June, but all four ...
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North Carolina, Opinions
31 Dec 2009
2010-to be continued
Will 150-foot long fiberglass wands magically spin electricity ...
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Ontario
02 Jan 2010
Wind turbine debate swirls
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Mexico
04 Jan 2010
Emprenderán proyecto en México de energía eólica empresas
{European wind energy companies undertake project in Mexico -- Two companies ...
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Ontario
06 Jan 2010
Moratorium urged for wind farms
The provincial government should place a moratorium on wind farm projects until an independent health study can be done, a Leamington councillor said Tuesday.
“I just really think the province has moved way too quickly on this stuff,” said Coun. John Paterson.
“There’s less information out there than there should be before you start sticking the wind farms up that are going to be here for a long time.”
On Monday Leamington council passed a resolution ...
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Press releases
06 Jan 2010
Academics question ‘green’ initiatives on cutting carbon footprint
ScienceDaily (Nov. 29, 2009) — Global carbon markets may well have been hailed as the saviour of the planet by reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but in many ways they are doing more harm than good, according to new evidence.
In fact, two academics have compiled a book which argues that measures put in place to reduce carbon emissions following the Kyoto Protocol Treaty on climate change have only made matters worse.
Launched to tie-in with next month’s United Nations Climate Change Summit ...
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Maine
07 Jan 2010
Wind-power moratorium passes
BUCKFIELD — In an almost unanimous vote, over 100 residents passed a six-month moratorium on wind-power development at a special town meeting Wednesday night.
A petition signed by 118 people was filed by James Parker, who lives on Streaked Mountain and is an abutter to the site for three proposed wind turbines. Parker said there are 20 homes within 1 mile of the site.
Parker said when he learned a developer had received a permit to install a test tower eight months ...
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Maine
07 Jan 2010
Wind power moratorium approved in Buckfield
Residents of the town, where a three-turbine project is proposed for Streaked Mountain, say they need time to assess the noise impact.
Residents in the town of Buckfield last night approved a six-month moratorium on wind-power development. The vote was initiated by a petition filed by James Parker, who lives on Streaked Mountain next to the site of a proposed three-turbine wind project, according to the Lewiston Sun Journal.
“We need time to decide a proper distance that is safe,” the paper ...
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Scotland
07 Jan 2010
Opponents to fight go-ahead for Beauly-Denny power line
Campaigners have vowed to challenge the go-ahead for the controversial £350 million Beauly-Denny power line, which its supporters say will unlock Scotland’s vast store of renewable energy.
Energy Minister Jim Mather formally announced the green light for the project in the Scottish Parliament yesterday, nearly three months after the decision was first revealed by the Sunday Herald.
The upgraded 137-mile-long line will pass through some of the country’s most beautiful scenery to carry the huge additional loads of electricity expected to be ...
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New York
07 Jan 2010
Judge doesn’t OK wind-energy project
A mid-December vote by a Steuben County Town Board that allows a controversial wind-energy project to go forward will stand, for now, without a judicial stamp of approval.
In a ruling released this morning, state Supreme Court Justice Stephen Lindley declined to give his legal imprimatur to a 3-to-2 vote by the Prattsburgh Town Board in favor of a legal settlement with Ecogen Wind LLC.
Buffalo-area Ecogen had sued the board in November to force approval of a 16-turbine wind farm in ...
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West Virginia
08 Jan 2010
Pinnacle wind project’s PSC deadline Monday; Federal court decision on similar development could impact all of Allegheny Front
KEYSER, W. Va. — The West Virginia Public Service Commission is scheduled to issue a decision in the next few days on a wind energy developer’s application to build wind turbines in Mineral County.
The deadline for the decision is Monday, but it could come as soon as the end of this week, according to commission spokeswoman Sarah Robertson.
Pinnacle Wind Force, a subsidiary of Greensburg, Pa.-based US Wind Force, filed an application March 17 for a permit to build up to 23 ...
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New York
08 Jan 2010
Thruway Authority seeking wind energy information
Gov. David Paterson and the New York State Thruway Authority have announced that the Thruway Authority will issue a request for information ...
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New York
10 Jan 2010
Steel Winds project will add six windmills
Six new windmills will be built on the old Bethlehem Steel site this year, and the state is announcing plans to study construction of other windmills — although smaller — at local Thruway interchanges.
First Wind, the company behind the Steel Winds project at the former Bethlehem Steel site, plans to build four new turbines on the Hamburg side of the site and two more in Lackawanna, according to First Wind spokesman John Lamontagne.
“We hope to build sometime this year, I ...
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Ohio
10 Jan 2010
Bowling Green wind farm might grow
BOWLING GREEN: The wind whistles with few obstructions over the very flat farmland of Northwest Ohio.
Anyone standing outside is buffeted by the winds that power four towering turbines west of Bowling Green at what is Ohio’s only utility-size wind farm.
Surrounded by cornfields and flanked by a landfill off U.S. Route 6 in Wood County, the three-bladed towers produce a maximum of 7 megawatts of electricity, enough for about 1,850 households.
Nine Ohio communities — including Cuyahoga Falls and Wadsworth — are ...
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New Zealand
10 Jan 2010
Wind knocked out of battlers
Opponents of a planned Central Otago windfarm say their David and Goliath fight with state-owned energy company Meridian has bled them dry.
Heavily in debt ...
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Maine, Ontario, Press releases, Health, Noise
11 Jan 2010
Wind turbines can cause adverse health effects: North American wind industry
Ontario — Society for Wind Vigilance (SWV) has released its analysis of the American and Canadian Wind Energy Association–sponsored report on adverse health effects ...
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New Mexico
12 Jan 2010
Plan for turbines runs into trouble
TAOS — A proposal for a grid of 400-foot-high wind turbines miles northwest of Taos has hit some turbulence.
The wind farm plan by Taos Wind Power LLC, was blocked by the Taos County Commission last week when it reversed earlier approval by the county Planning Commission.
A neighboring ranch and subdivision had opposed the proposal on environmental, health and aesthetic grounds. But in its written report on the project, the County Commission also cited confusion over Taos Wind Power’s organization and ...
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Utah
12 Jan 2010
Commission denies wind ordinance
It was standing room only at Monday’s public hearing during the Iron County Commission meeting addressing a proposed wind ordinance amendment recommended by the Iron County Planning Commission.
The ordinance was not passed, at the urging of the public, so further studies could be conducted relating to fire hazards, erosion impact and power transmission corridors associated with wind farms.
The original wind ordinance was passed in February 2008, but it has undergone changes during the past 10 months to create protected zones ...
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Scotland
12 Jan 2010
Two wind energy projects approved
Tens of thousands of homes will be supplied with electricity ...
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Letters, Wisconsin
13 Jan 2010
Wind turbines are an ugly, noisy nuisance
My daughter recently had a basketball tournament in Lomira.
On our way home ...
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Michigan
14 Jan 2010
Group incorporates to oppose offshore wind farm
A group of people opposed to construction of a 100-square-mile wind energy farm in nearby Lake Michigan incorporated this week and next week expect to fill Shelby High School’s auditorium and Ludington High School’s auditorium with people for informational meetings scheduled by the companies proposing the project.
“I have never seen more people with such an interest level,” Jeff Hoenle, who was selected president of Lake Michigan POWER Coalition this week, said about his group. “And everything I keep hearing and ...
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Ontario
14 Jan 2010
Study funded by wind energy industry questioned
Still poised to respond to any renewed efforts by CASA Engineering and Construction to build a wind project in the St. Columban area, Huron East Against Turbines (HEAT) is cynical about a report ...
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Australia
14 Jan 2010
Lines put wind up ’em
Landholders in Victoria’s west face a raft of powerlines running across their properties to meet an expected boom in wind farms in the region.
Some 20 new wind farm proposals have been approved by the State Government and will require kilometres of new powerlines to connect them to the existing electricity grid.
One is the Mt Mercer wind farm, south of Ballarat, where up to 80 landowners will be affected by plans to build a new above-ground powerline stretching about 40km.
Powercor ...
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Ontario
15 Jan 2010
Wind turbines meeting called
The Municipality of West Grey is taking a stand against the proposed wind turbines coming to the area. In a resolution approved on Monday afternoon, the municipality is requesting the Province of Ontario to put a moratorium on the proposed wind turbines.
Before a handful of concerned residents of West Grey in council chambers at the municipality of West Grey, councillors passed their own resolution, with plans to send it to MPs and MPPs, as well as surrounding municipalities of West ...
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Scotland
15 Jan 2010
Clearances jibe over wind farm decision
A Caithness councillor this week compared the Scottish Government to “a modern-day Patrick Sellar” over its decision to grant approval for the Baillie wind farm, west of Thurso.
Landward Caithness representative Robert Coghill said the go-ahead would be “devastating” for the residents near the 21-turbine development and stressed the Scottish Government had granted consent although the planning application was rejected by the Highland Council and opposed by many in the community.
Mr Coghill said he was against the development as it is ...
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South Dakota
15 Jan 2010
PUC sets public hearing on PrairieWinds project
PIERRE — The state Public Utilities Commission has another big wind project to consider. This time it’s a vast grid of 101 wind turbines proposed for the central South Dakota counties of Aurora, Jerauld and Brule.
Known as PrairieWinds, the wind farm would produce 151.5 megawatts of electricity, according to plans filed by Basin Electric Power Cooperative.
The PUC has siting-permit authority over wind projects of 100 megawatts or larger.
The commission will hold a March 1 public hearing at White Lake. ...
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England
15 Jan 2010
Campaigners in Stinchcombe lose monitoring mast battle
Campaigners are furious at council leaders after they lost a crucial planning battle over a wind farm.
Members of Save Berkeley Vale believe Stroud District Council’s (SDC) decision not to request an informal public hearing over the plan to erect a temporary 70m-high wind monitoring mast worked against them.
Instead a Government-appointed planning inspector relied on written representations and a walk around the site at Standle Farm, Stinchcombe. And this week he overturned SDC’s refusal and allowed green energy firm Nexgen ...
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Massachusetts
15 Jan 2010
Wind Power in Savoy; Board hears project analysis
SAVOY — The report ...
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Letters, Massachusetts
17 Jan 2010
Wind Act encourages profiteering
The Wind Energy Siting Reform Act moving through the state Legislature asks the citizenry to give up home rule, our political right, so wind energy developers and their banking partners can make quick money ...
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Ontario
19 Jan 2010
Council seeks wind farm moratorium
West Grey is seeking support ...
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Massachusetts
19 Jan 2010
State historical commission calls for ‘good faith’ second look at Berkshire East turbine specs
CHARLEMONT — The state historical commission has weighed in on the proposed 331-foot-tall, 900-kilowatt wind turbine planned for Mount Institute at the Berkshire East Ski Area, saying that, as designed, it “will have an adverse effect on the Charlemont Village Historic District.”
The news comes in a letter dated Jan 6 ...
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Michigan
20 Jan 2010
Many questions go unanswered at wind farm public forum
SHELBY — Lots of questions, but not all of the answers were presented as supporters and opponents filled the Shelby High School Auditorium Monday night to learn more about a proposed 1,000 megawatt wind farm in Lake Michigan.
Scandia Wind and its partner Havgul Clean Energy of Norway made the second of their public presentations to construct a $3 billion to $4 billion wind farm between 1.4 and 3.7 miles off the Oceana and Mason county shorelines. The third of three ...
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Michigan
20 Jan 2010
State has serious reservations about Scandia location, process
LANSING — Scandia Wind/Havgul Clean Energy’s proposal for a 100-square-mile offshore wind farm ...
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Letters, Ontario
21 Jan 2010
Wind doesn’t mask turbine noise
In Saturday’s story on wind turbine noise ( “Noise annoys,” Jan. 16), Kingston and the Islands MPP John Gerretsen is quoted as saying that the new Ontario turbine noise regulations (40 decibels and a minimum 550-metre setback) exceed those of all other jurisdictions.
He is wrong. Germany, for instance, has a nighttime noise limit of 35 decibels, significantly lower than Ontario’s limit. This limit automatically pushes the setback ...
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Scotland
22 Jan 2010
No appeal for Ballindalloch windfarm plans
Developers won’t appeal the decision to refuse the controversial Ballindalloch windfarm.
Stirling Council’s planning panel had voted unanimously to reject npower renewables’ application for a nine turbine windfarm on the land near Balfron in November.
Planners cited long-term detrimental impact on the amenity of people living nearby and significant adverse impact on the landscape.
But despite the, the developers still had the option of appealing to the Scottish Government to overturn it.
This week, however, the company confirmed it would not be pursuing that ...
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Maine
22 Jan 2010
Aroostook County wind farm gets DEP green light
First Wind has won a permit ...
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Maine
24 Jan 2010
Wind power overpowers its neighbors
VINALHAVEN — Cheryl Lindgren was excited when the three wind turbines down the road began turning in November, but within days her excitement turned to disbelief. The sound at her house, a half-mile or so away, wasn’t what she had expected. As she sat reading in her quiet living room, she could detect a repetitive “whump, whump” coming ...
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Maine
27 Jan 2010
Environmental activist asks court to halt offshore wind power project
Rockland — A Rockland man, who for much of the past two decades has tackled a variety of environmental issues, has gone to court to halt the proposed demonstration wind power project off Monhegan Island.
Ron Huber claimed in his appeal filed Jan. 26 in Knox County Superior Court that the designation of waters off Monhegan as a test site violates his constitutional rights to practice his religious stewardship of Penobscot Bay.
Huber claimed the Maine Department of Conservation failed to meet ...
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Maine, Press releases
27 Jan 2010
Maine’s ‘Offshore Wind Rush’ challenged in Maine Superior Court
Penobscot Bay activist’s lawsuit calls for orderly growth of Maine offshore wind energy research and development.
Court asked to temporarily suspend recent decision by state submerged lands chief authorizing wind energy test center off Monhegan.
Calling the bureau action "woefully premature" and "part of a Gulf of Maine Wind Rush" fostered by New England's burgeoning ocean wind energy industry, conservation activist Ron Huber has asked the court to rule on whether two recently passed state laws, 12 MRSA 1868 "Identification of Offshore ...
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Vermont
27 Jan 2010
Vt. group forms to fight big wind projects
Montpelier, Vermont – January 26, 2010
“It looks to me like the classic case of big business pushing their way into our community,” said Mike Klopchin of Clarendon.
It was opposition ...
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New York
27 Jan 2010
Windmill moratorium proposed in Aurora
The Aurora Town Board is considering a six-month ban on wind-powered turbines because its code lacks any provision to govern wind-energy conversion systems.
The board set a public hearing for Feb. 8 and said it has a resolution drafted for the moratorium proposal. The issue also will be discussed by the town’s Planning Board at its meeting next Wednesday.
The town’s interest in reviewing windmills was spurred by a recent proposal ...
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Maine
28 Jan 2010
Eastbrook reviews wind power options
EASTBROOK, Maine — A handful of local municipal officials and a few residents got an advance look Tuesday night at what kind of effect a large-scale wind farm might have on their town, which has fewer than 400 year-round residents.
One scenario floated at the meeting, which included attorneys and planners representing the town and the firm that hopes to erect the turbines on Bull Hill, included the creation of a community benefit fund that could generate more than $2.5 million ...
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Wyoming
28 Jan 2010
Harnessing the wind
Residents are divided about a proposal to build up to 200 wind turbines in southern Albany County.
The proposed Hermosa West Wind Energy Project would be located on 11,000 acres of private and state land near Tie Siding on the western side of U.S. Highway 287, running ...
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Letters, Vermont
29 Jan 2010
Famous quotes from former wind advocates
The following are famous quotes from former wind advocates:
“Wind turbines don’t make good neighbors,” Enxco’s John Zimmerman admitted at a meeting in Lowell, Vt.
“The noise from the 11 550-kilowatt Searsburg turbines is significant a mile away,” said Rob Ide, the director of Energy Efficiency for the Department Department of Public Service in Vermont.
Enxco’s New England representative, John Zimmerman also said, “When there is heavy rime ice build up on the blades and the machines are running you instinctively want to ...
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England
29 Jan 2010
Planning inspector rejects South Molton windfarm appeals
Planning permission for two proposed wind farm developments near South Molton has been turned down by the Planning Inspectorate, it has been announced today (Friday).
The proposals for nine wind turbines at Paul’s Moor, Knowstone, and four wind turbines at Bickham Moor, Oakford, have been the subject of a public inquiry, that opened in June last year.
Developers Airtricity and Coronation Power appealed against the non determination of their applications by North Devon Council and Mid Devon District Council.
Despite acknowledging the ...
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Scotland
29 Jan 2010
Windfarm noise levels challenged
Noise level claims about a possible windfarm development have been challenged.
A pressure group said clarification was needed after a community council was told people would only hear the turbines if they were “standing underneath them”.
Galloway Landscape And Renewable Energy highlighted an “admission” by the British Wind Energy Association that ‘noise from modern wind turbines is normally clearly audible on a windfarm site’.
GLARE was reacting to a statement from Gillian Cropper, project manager for Cheshire based Community Windpower Ltd’s plan for ...
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Scotland
29 Jan 2010
Drumclog 11-turbine windfarm given go-ahead
Plans for an 11-turbine wind farm near Drumclog were this week given the go-ahead.
The scheme on the slopes of Bankend Rig, to the southwest of the Glengavel reservoir, had attracted 303 letters of objection.
Concerns included visual impact, high noise levels and road disruption through Strathaven during the transportation of the turbines.
However, the windfarm accords with Government renewable energy policy and is expected to generate 14.3 megawatts of electricity.
An access road to the site which lies near the East Ayrshire border ...
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Massachusetts
29 Jan 2010
Orleans wind project loses out on grant
ORLEANS — The town’s plans to get a turbine up and running in the watershed was dealt another blow this month when the project didn’t receive grant funding.
“It’s unfortunate,” said Assistant Town Planner John Jannell.
Jannell said he would go before selectmen in the coming weeks to see if they want to pursue the $2.3 million municipal wind project entirely with town funds or partner with Cape and Vineyard Electric Cooperative.
The town requested up to $570,000 from Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, ...
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Massachusetts
29 Jan 2010
Setbacks slow wind-harnessing effort in Provincetown
PROVINCETOWN — The challenges facing wind energy here got a little steeper Monday when selectmen were informed that a developer interested in erecting a wind turbine next to the Mt. Gilboa water tank had pulled out.
Blair Galinsky, a principal with Mass. Wind, a private development company slated to meet with selectmen to discuss the Mt. Gilboa proposal, told town officials there were several obstacles to proceeding at this point. Chief among them were the loss of leadership in the effort ...
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Illinois
29 Jan 2010
Residents voice concerns about wind turbines
KINGS — Ogle County residents and public officials have a lot to consider regarding wind turbine projects after hearing about first-hand experiences with them Tuesday night at Kings School.
A gym full of about 80 residents, including several locally elected officials, heard from DeKalb County residents about their personal experiences with industrial wind projects and the effects turbines have had on their lives.
The meeting Tuesday night was hosted by Ogle Wind The Fourth Community, a group comprised of area citizens who ...
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Colorado
29 Jan 2010
You can’t see the wind, but some want to own it
The wind power industry fears bipartisan legislation that would make the wind blowing across your land a private property right unto itself could upend an industry just finding its groove in Colorado.
Though bill sponsor Rep. Cory Gardner, R-Yuma, said state law already allows wind rights to be separated from the surface rights to a piece of private property, the bill would make the law explicit, allowing wind rights to be “severable” from surface rights.
That means wind would be treated like ...
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Ohio
29 Jan 2010
Middleburg Heights council continues to question fairground wind turbine
MIDDLEBURG HTS. — City Council continues to ask questions about the proposed wind turbine at the Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds.
It was expected to vote Tuesday to accept the proposal of CBLH Design, Inc. to provide a visual analysis of the application of the Cuyahoga County Commissioners and the fair board for the 280-foot turbine, slated for the parking lot off Bagley Road. The study will cost $5,600 and take five to six weeks to complete.
The county received a $1 million grant ...
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Wales
29 Jan 2010
D-Day for Pentre Tump windfarm plan
Radnorshire residents who have had to wait seven and a half years to find out if a windfarm will be built on a hill above their homes, will discover next week if it will be given the go-ahead.
The application for three turbines at Pentre Tump, near New Radnor, was initially submitted to Powys County Council in August 2002 by NPower before it was taken over by the Cornwall Light and Power Company.
It is finally due for consideration by the county ...
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England
29 Jan 2010
Plan for Berrier wind farm should be rejected, expert tells inquiry
An international environment specialist has urged the inquiry into a windfarm on the edge of the Lake District to reject the plans.
Sir Martin Holdgate, who was director general of the International Committee for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources between 1988 and 1994, spoke out against proposals for the Berrier Windfarm at a hearing yesterday morning.
He was also the chief environmental scientist in the Department of the Environment, and recently wrote a study on Cumbria’s capacity for renewable energy.
However, ...
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Michigan
29 Jan 2010
Thumb named primary wind zone
LANSING — The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) took two steps this week that will greatly affect the Thumb region.
The first was when the MPSC on Wednesday designated the Thumb area as a primary wind energy zone. The zone consists of parts of Bay, Huron, Saginaw, Sanilac and Tuscola Counties. This area was as Region 4 by the Michigan Wind Energy Resource Zone Board in an Oct. 15, 2009 final report. Per state law, the Wind Energy Resource Zone Board ...
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Ontario
29 Jan 2010
Township supports moratorium on wind energy projects
Asphodel-Norwood – Council says the province should impose a moratorium on wind energy projects until a study of their impact on human health is carried out by an independent third party.
Asphodel-Norwood declared its stance this week by supporting a resolution by the Township of Mapleton calling for the Ontario Ministry of the Environment to put a moratorium in place.
Late last year Mapleton council received a petition signed by more than 250 people who are concerned about possible health issues related ...
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Letters, North Carolina
29 Jan 2010
North Carolina wind energy article misinforms readers
The recent article “N. C. Senate reviews wind energy ban” contained a great deal of misinformation.
The article claimed Senate Bill 1068 banned wind energy and the 1983 Ridge Law exempted wind turbines–those claims are false.
The Ridge Law exempts single windmills attached to a parent building–500-feet commercial wind turbines didn’t exist in 1983. Senate Bill 1068 doesn’t ban wind energy–it limits turbine size on protected ridges.
It’s curious that N. C. field adviser for Appalachian Voices Austin Hall, who has frequently condemned mountaintop coal ...
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Scotland
29 Jan 2010
Standingfauld windfarm would create more than 1,000 HGV journeys, claims objector
Construction work on a planned £26 million giant windfarm in scenic Perthshire could take six to eight months.
More than 1500 journeys by heavy goods vehicles along narrow country roads and up to 66 “exceptional loads” could be required as sections of 100m-high turbines, as well as mobile cranes and other construction equipment, are delivered to the site between Muthill and Braco.
That has prompted road safety fears from the Standingfauld Environmental Action Group (Seag), set up to oppose the development.
Welsh-based West ...
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Ontario, Press releases
29 Jan 2010
West Grey Seeks Moratorium on Industrial Wind Turbines
As Mayor of the Municipality of West Grey, on behalf of the Council and citizens of West Grey, I am calling upon the Province of Ontario to place an indefinite moratorium on industrial wind turbines in the Municipality of West Grey and other Ontario municipalities.
The Council of the Municipality of West Grey, as its meeting held on January 11, 2010 passed the attached resolution regarding industrial wind turbines and is seeking all Provincial Ministers, MPP’s, local and area MP’s and ...
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U.S.
30 Jan 2010
Wind power capacity grows at record pace, but industry jobs actually fall
America’s wind energy industry enjoyed a banner year in 2009, thanks largely to tax credits and other incentives packed into the $787 billion economic stimulus bill. But even though a record 10,000 megawatts of new generating capacity was created, the number of workers employed in manufacturing wind power actually went down – a setback for President Obama’s pledge to create millions of new “green jobs.
Obama has long pitched green jobs, especially in the energy, transportation and manufacturing fields, as a ...
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Texas
30 Jan 2010
Power lines coming soon
In the near future, a large electric transmission line will be built through Young County. The only question is where?
Oncor Electric Delivery hosted a public meeting Tuesday at the Graham High School cafeteria to discuss the proposed transmission line project with the members of the community it will possibly impact.
Members of nearly 200 households turned out to learn more about the project that might end up in their backyards. Oncor plans to install approximately 100 miles of transmission line across ...
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California
30 Jan 2010
Three county energy projects debated; Border-town residents still smarting over Powerlink
A battle between backers of wind projects in the mountains east of San Diego and those who say big windmills don’t belong in rural communities because they damage the environment is being taken up by state and federal agencies working on a tight deadline.
Opponents and supporters of three big projects clashed this week at standing-room-only meetings in small towns just north of the U.S.-Mexico border and about 70 miles east of San Diego.
At issue: which factors state regulators and federal ...
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Ontario
30 Jan 2010
Looking for answers
A city councillor doesn’t know what to expect when Horizon Wind Inc. makes a deputation before council Monday.
Coun. Linda Rydhom said she wants to know why the company’s proposed 18-turbine wind farm has moved closer to Loch Lomond Ski area and Neebing residences since entering into a lease agreement for 17,000 acres of land with the city in 2007. The Big Thunder Wind Park was supposed to be closer to the former Big Thunder site and further away from people, ...
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New York
30 Jan 2010
Jefferson County board moves wind-tower PILOT to the floor
In a move that has implications for northern Oswego County, the Jefferson County Legislature’s Finance and Rules Committee opted Tuesday evening to make no recommendations on a payment-in-lieu-of-tax agreement for the Galloo Island Wind Farm project. Instead, the committee sent the resolution to the full floor of its legislature.
The vote was a 3-3 tie with Jefferson County Legislature Chairman Kenneth Blankenbush breaking the tie in support of moving the resolution for all legislators to consider. In county governments, it is ...
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Michigan
30 Jan 2010
Third wind-energy facility proposed for Mason County
LUDINGTON — The major wind-energy proposals just keep on coming for Mason County.
Only nine days after a public meeting was held in the county concerning a proposed offshore wind farm, Consumers Energy Thursday announced plans to develop a 100-megawatt land-based wind-generating facility at various sites in the county. A third commercial wind farm is also being considered for sites on Huron-Manistee National Forest land in Mason County’s Grant Township.
Consumers Energy’s project in Mason County, officially called the Lake Winds Energy ...
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South Dakota
30 Jan 2010
Commission approves power line agreement
The Brookings County Commission on Tuesday approved a revised franchise agreement for the Buffalo Ridge II wind project. The agreement allows Buffalo Ridge II LLC to “construct , maintain and operate electrical transmission lines and facilities in Brookings County” for the Buffalo Ridge II wind farm for a period of 20 years.
The application is a standard procedure for any energy or utility company embarking on a project that involves building power lines on public right-ofways in the state. A public ...
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Rhode Island
30 Jan 2010
FAA approves 3 wind turbines for Providence wastewater facility
PROVIDENCE — The Federal Aviation Administration has approved the installation of three, 360-foot-tall wind turbines at the Fields Point Wastewater Treatment Facility on the Providence waterfront.
The Narragansett Bay Commission, which operates the plant, still needs approvals from several other agencies, but it hopes to have the turbines up and running by October 2011.
The turbines are estimated to cost $12 million. The commission is applying for state energy grants to cover part of that cost.
The FAA approval was a major hurdle, ...
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Massachusetts
30 Jan 2010
Salazar to visit wind farm site
It is not exactly the best time of year for a boat ride, but the chilly weather is not stopping U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar.
Salazar is scheduled to visit the area Tuesday to meet with representatives from the region’s two Indian tribes and to see firsthand the location for the proposed Nantucket Sound wind farm.
According to Salazar’s office, he will spend part of the day onboard a boat touring the area around Horseshoe Shoal where Cape Wind Associates LLC wants ...
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England
30 Jan 2010
Council welcomes wind farm decision
North Devon Council has welcomed the decision to dismiss plans for a wind farm at Knowstone.
The council originally opposed the application, for nine wind turbines at Three Moors in Knowstone, in 2008. However, the applicant then lodged an appeal, which resulted in a public inquiry last June.
Yesterday (Friday) the Planning Inspector made his decision, agreeing with the council that the proposals should not go ahead.
Among the reasons were because the proposed development would be seriously harmful to the character and ...
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Illinois
30 Jan 2010
Wind farms: Financial windfall, or destruction of rural land?
The topic: Construction of wind turbines in Newtown, Sunbury and Nevada townships
What happened?
Iberdrola Renewables plans to construct a minimum of 150 approximately 400-foot tall turbines within a rural area of Livingston County called Cayuga Ridge. This area includes Newtown, Sunbury and Nevada townships just southeast of Streator. Horizon Wind Energy also plans to build turbines within this area. These projects would connect a line of wind farms that extend to the south of Marseilles.
As Judy Campbell looked out to the ...
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England
30 Jan 2010
An ill wind for turbine protestors
People in Lower Earley need to “wake up” to the reality of five wind turbines on their doorstep, according to a newly-formed campaign group.
Plans for the windfarm at the Rushy Mead site south of the M4 have been on the cards for years but developer Partnership for Renewables (PfR) is now potentially just months away from submitting a planning application, prompting concerned neighbours to act.
Householders Against Rushy Mead (Harm) has invited sleep scientist Dr Christopher Hanning to its public meeting ...
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Scotland
30 Jan 2010
Second attempt at met mast for proposed windfarm
Wind Energy (Newfield) Limited have received renewed permission from Dumfries and Galloway Council for a 60 metres high meteorological mast at Newfield Moor near Lockerbie.
It comes a year after vandals risked their lives to damage one of the two met masts on the site above Sibbaldbie, near Balgray Hill, north west of Lockerbie.
They unbolted guy-wires holding the structure in place and left it to the elements to bring it crashing to the ground.
The monitoring equipment worth £20,000 was rendered useless ...
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