Wind Power News: October 2004
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch in its noncommercial educational effort to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch. They are the products of and owned by the organizations or individuals noted and are shared here according to “fair use” and “fair dealing” provisions of copyright law.
Wind Gauge Opponents Sound Off
LYMAN NEW HAMPSHIRE The Lyman Zoning Board of Adjustment heard strong opposition to a proposed wind anemometer tower from a majority of residents during a public hearing Wednesday night. The board called the hearing to accept comments on a request for a zoning variance filed by UPC Wind Partners, LLC of Newton, Mass. The Massachusetts developer hopes to erect a wind measuring device on a 160-foot tower in order to monitor prevailing winds during an 18-month period. Timothy Caffyn, project . . . Complete story »
Investigating a Turbine Tragedy: Bat deaths could threaten green image of wind power
The 2003 study, aimed as much at birds as bats, unexpectedly found that the Mountaineer wind turbines on Backbone Mountain killed an estimated 2,092 bats. Tuttle, not involved in that study, called the 2003 bat kill “by far the largest bat mortality event I know of worldwide and, as far as I know, the biggest mortality event of any animal.” The 2004 bat kill could be even worse. Complete story »
Investigating a turbine tragedy; Bat deaths could threaten green image of wind power
Bats and ridgetop wind turbines are a deadly combination, recent research at a Tucker County wind power site confirms. A second round of research this summer at the Mountaineer Wind Energy Center near Thomas shows that the 44 wind turbines there killed at least as many bats as scientists found last year, said Merlin Tuttle, director of Bat Conservation International in Austin, Texas. The 2003 study, aimed as much at birds as bats, unexpectedly found that the Mountaineer wind turbines . . . Complete story »
