Wind Power News: July 2007
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 power ardour cools
On the lush land along the north shore of Lake Erie and south shore of Lake Huron the fertile soil returns hundreds of tonnes of corn, barley and wheat, but lately a new kind of farm is sprouting up. Alongside the expansive hectares of traditional crops, mammoth steel towers with spinning blades are springing up from concrete roots planted firmly in the soil. Wind turbines dwarf everything around them – most are equipped with 40-metre blades and stand as high as . . . Complete story »
Plan for wind mast as high as Big Ben
A wind monitoring mast nearly the height of Big Ben could be built in Aberdeen. The company behind the city’s planned offshore windfarm wants to test weather conditions on the coast. It has submitted an application to put up a 295ft (90m) mast at Tarbothill Farm a few miles north of Bridge Of Don. If it gets the go ahead from the city council, the mast will be built on open land close to the shore. Aberdeen Offshore Wind Farm – . . . Complete story »
The price of protest
Legal bills that run into hundreds of thousands of pounds could put pressure on councils to back unwanted wind turbine developments, protesters fear. Tynedale Council have set aside £200,000 to pay for an inquiry that is to be held into three wind farm planning applications in the district. The council is facing the inquiry because it objected to the proposals, but objectors in other areas fear their councils may feel pressured into passing proposals because of the cost of going . . . Complete story »
Residents may get windmill compensation
Stalled plans to build new high-efficiency wind turbines could get a jump start thanks to a The government is drafting a proposallan to pay residents compensation if wind turbines placed near their homes depreciate for decreased property values Property owner resistance over plans to replace the country’s 5000 existing wind turbines with fewer, larger, high-efficiency models has the government suggesting that homeowners living in the shadow of the 150-metre giants be compensated for lost property value. Most politicians and citizens . . . Complete story »
Row as inquiry delays windfarm plan
Hundreds of jobs and massive economic benefits could be threatened by a public inquiry into a giant windfarm on Lewis, it was claimed yesterday. A final decision concerning the proposed 53-turbine scheme at Eisgein may not be made until 2010 after news that the Scottish Executive wants to fully examine conflicts between its close proximity to a National Scenic Area (NSA) and its potential economic benefits. The executive has refused to confirm things, saying the “matter is still under consideration”. . . . Complete story »
Energy bill: tilting at windmills
Green may be in vogue, but that doesn’t mean utilities want the government forcing them to build windmills. It could happen. Rep. Tom Udall, D-N.M., proposes making the biggest utilities across the nation acquire 20% of their electricity from renewable energy sources like wind, solar and geothermal power by 2020. The plan is gaining momentum as the House of Representatives readies for debate on a massive energy bill this week. “We’ve had growing support over the last 10 days,” says . . . Complete story »
Kansas' energy future contains coal and wind
With a lump of coal in one hand and the prairie wind in the other, Kansas is marching into its energy future. The state is poised to approve one of the largest coal power plants ever built west of the Mississippi, even as officials announced plans last week for transmission lines designed to encourage more wind farms. To utility companies and key officials, this is the right direction. They say the state must embrace an energy mix of coal and . . . Complete story »
Alberta set to double wind-power generation
The Stelmach government foresees nearly doubling the amount of wind-power generation allowed in Alberta, says Energy Minister Mel Knight, even as the province remains the only jurisdiction in Canada to cap the production of wind energy. Industry groups are demanding the province go further than raising the amount of production permitted and remove the cap. Alberta’s Electric System Operator introduced in 2006 a limit of 900 megawatts of wind-energy generation because it was uncertain whether wind conditions and patterns could . . . Complete story »
Quebec moves to forefront of Canada’s rapidly growing wind industry
The nationalization of Quebec’s hydroelectric power in the 1960s was the crowning achievement of Rene Levesque, then a Liberal energy minister, who later became the first Parti Quebecois premier. More than 40 years later, some suggest the province should follow in his footstep and nationalize a booming new industry – wind power. Government-owned Hydro-Quebec has become a symbol of Quebec’s pride and know-how and developed into the largest single electricity producer in North America. The utility has a virtual monopoly on . . . Complete story »
Conservation Is More Effective Than Wind Energy
The International Energy Agency (IEA) projects that if the world’s nations pursue carbon-reducing plans they are currently considering, then in 2030 there could be 18 times more electricity generated from the wind than there was in 2004. But because of continuing growth in demand, that would still represent less than five percent of the world’s electricity production. In the U.S., the Energy Information Administration (EIA) of the U.S. Department of Energy projects that wind’s share of electricity production will be . . . Complete story »
