September 28, 2011
Vermont
Vermont
Stay of Lowell project denied
by Chris Braithwaite, The Chronicle, 28 September 2011
by Chris Braithwaite, The Chronicle, 28 September 2011
Opponents of the industrial wind power project on Lowell Mountain lost another legal round Tuesday when the state Supreme Court denied their motion for an emergency stay that would have halted construction.
The court’s two-sentence ruling gave no reason for its decision. The four justices gave lawyers for the Lowell Mountain Group and the towns of Albany and Craftsbury 15 days to file their brief on the underlying appeal, which is still before the court.
The attorneys argued that the state Public Service Board erred when it changed its mind and allowed the developer, Green Mountain Power, to begin construction before it obtained easements to parcels of land on the mountain that would permit wildlife to move around.
Meanwhile construction on the mountain, which began September 6, is moving swiftly.
“Blasting has begun this week as crews are continuing to build the work roads that will eventually be used to carry the turbines to the ridge,” Green Mountain Power spokesman Dorothy Schnure said in a September 21 e-mail.
“By the middle of the week preliminary road work will be complete to the ridge. From there work will begin on constructing the crane path along the ridge.”
Ms. Schnure said there are 13 Vermont-based firms working on the project. Two-thirds of the 117 workers involved are Vermonters, she added.
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2011/09/28/stay-of-lowell-project-denied/