| Wind Watch is a registered educational charity, founded in 2005. |
Wind Power News: December 2015
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.
Campaigners’ joy as turbine plan shelved
Plans to create what would have been the first windfarm of its kind in Scotland on rural farmland near Pitscottie have been abandoned. Edinburgh-based Temporis Wind had lodged an application with Fife Council for three 46m shrouded turbines on Ladeddie Hill. But the plans prompted dozens of objections and the MoD expressed its concerns about the possible effect of the turbines on radar in the area. The turbines, which are manufactured by the American company Ogin International, use a much . . . Complete story »
GMB union say figures show UK needs nuclear and gas-powered energy plants
Wind turbines produced just 10 per cent of their energy capacity during almost a fortnight of the last three months, it was claimed yesterday. Monitors tracking the energy generated from Britain’s wind farms found 12 days when output dropped to 10 per cent of capacity or less, according to the GMB union. It said its ‘wind watch’ figures demonstrated that Britain could not rely on renewable energy and needed nuclear or gas-powered plants to ensure its supply. Britain has invested . . . Complete story »
High profile Powys wind farm decisions quashed by High Court
Two high profile windfarm decisions are to be “revisited” after the High Court sensationally quashed both rulings just months after they were made. Four highly publicised windfarm applications were turned down by the UK Government in September following a public inquiry after huge protest campaigns. An application to install 35km of new power lines was also refused by the UK Government which gave the go-ahead for the re-powering of the existing windfarm at Llandinam. However, two decisions made by the . . . Complete story »
Local opposition to wind energy projects
People worldwide are generally in support of wind energy as a source of power generation. Different consumer polls on wind energy taken in different nations indicate that there is a high level of support for the industry, and its benefits derive from its status as a clean source of energy that has a high level of efficiency. However, despite this praised public perception, grassroots organizations opposing wind energy have continuously sprouted near the sites of wind farms and have given . . . Complete story »
People of the Year: Dr. Ron Holland is reluctant crusader in effort to protect local ridgelines
He’s hardly a natural born rabble-rouser, and those who’ve encountered the mild-mannered, preternaturally calm emergency room doctor have most likely been surprised by his passion when it comes to protecting Northeast Kingdom mountains from industrial wind developers. But Dr. Ron Holland has found himself at the forefront of the battle against big wind as Irasburg’s representative to the Public Service Board (PSB) proceedings. When the doctor first started looking into the wind debate himself, he was neutral on the topic. . . . Complete story »
Stark Co. places moratorium on wind farm applications: Permits will not be considered until 2018
The Stark County Commission voted unanimously to stop accepting applications for wind farm conditional-use permits for a period of two years at a regular meeting Tuesday at Stark County Courthouse. The move comes after the commission approved the 87-turbine Brady Wind Energy Center by Florida-based NextEra Energy Resources for southern Stark County during a special meeting Dec. 22. Commissioner Jay Elkin brought up the idea, saying that there were a multitude of wind energy companies besides NextEra that had expressed . . . Complete story »
Lightning strike knocks out wind turbine
Lightning knocked out one of SSE’s wind turbines at SSE’s Richfield Wind Farm in Bridgetown during the run up to Christmas. The company said the lightning strike damaged a blade on a single wind turbine shortly before 10 p.m. last Tuesday night. It said the turbine was safely shut down and the ‘practised emergency response procedures were activated’. The area around the turbine was secured and SSE service technicians dealt with the incident. ‘The company is working closely with the . . . Complete story »
What’s up with St. Cloud’s VA wind turbine?
What’s up with the wind turbine at the St. Cloud VA Hospital? Unfortunately the answer is, ‘not much.’ I moved back to Minnesota almost three years ago and have not seen that sucker turn. Never having heard the story, I decided to find out why. Here’s the short answer. Completed in 2011, the wind turbine was part of a Veterans Affairs effort to provide clean, renewable energy to some of it’s facilities – St. Cloud included. Although almost fully paid for, . . . Complete story »
Yates survey reveals opposition doubles support for wind energy project
YATES – By most estimations this year, opposition to a wind energy project in Yates and Somerset has far outpaced support. It was visible from signs in yards, public outreach and meetings at town halls. After being asserted in personal anecdotes and smaller calculations, a survey compiled by the town of Yates gives the largest impression of where residents stand on the proposed Lighthouse Wind installation. And most are against it. Sixty-five percent of the more than 1,100 respondents said they . . . Complete story »
Yates survey shows 66 percent oppose wind project
The survey results are in and about two thirds of the 1,187 respondents said they oppose the proposed Lighthouse Wind project by Apex Clean Energy. That company has submitted a preliminary scoping document to the state Public Service Commission. The company says it wants to build up to 71 large-scale wind turbines in Yates and Somerset. Yates residents, in a survey mailed just before Thanksgiving, were asked 10 questions, including, “Based on your knowledge of Lighthouse Wind, are you in . . . Complete story »
