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Wind Power News: Texas
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch in its noncommercial educational mission to provide information about industrial wind energy development to readers seeking such information. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch. They are the products of and owned by the credited organizations or individuals and are shared here according to “fair use” and “fair dealing” provisions of copyright law. The original articles, links to which are provided, may have additional links and photos and other media that were not included here.
Paxton ends wind turbine blade dumping, forces cleanup
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has secured a temporary injunction stopping companies from accepting shipments of wind turbine blades. The injunction against Global Fiberglass Solutions and other affiliated entities also forces the companies to begin cleanup of two facilities in Sweetwater, where thousands of discarded turbine blades have been illegally stockpiled. “This is a victory for protecting the land, health and safety of the people of Texas,” Paxton said. “No new wind turbine blade shipments will be accepted at these illegal . . . Complete story »
I stood inside a “wind turbine graveyard” – and it changed how I feel about green energy
Picture this: endless fields of massive white blades, twisted and stacked like forgotten giants under the Texas sun. I drove out to Sweetwater expecting a quick look at some old wind tech, but what I found hit differently. These weren’t just scrap; they told a story the green energy hype often skips. Stepping amid the piles felt eerie, like wandering a relic of good intentions gone messy. Let’s unpack what I saw and learned there. You might rethink a few . . . Complete story »
Wind farm bankruptcy in Clay County
Shannon Wind Farms, located in Clay County, filed for bankruptcy in January, causing commissioners to take a look at the budget. The Wind Farm project received an abatement from Clay County Commissioners in 2015, with operations starting the same year in December. The abatement was in its final year, with a payment of $1.5 million to be paid out to Clay County for 2026. Shannon Wind Farms filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Clay County has hired a bankruptcy attorney and . . . Complete story »
Four indicted in Sweetwater wind turbine blade dumping probe; cleanup not yet started
Massive piles of decommissioned wind turbine blades that have sat for years in and around Sweetwater are now at the center of a criminal case, with local officials saying indictments have been issued and more work remains before cleanup can begin. The City of Sweetwater, the Sweetwater Police Department, Sweetwater Economic Development and the Nolan County District Attorney’s Office held a press conference Thursday, to provide an update on the status of the wind blades at the location, outline actions . . . Complete story »
Lightning strike suspected in Stephens County wind turbine fire this morning
One of the large La Casa Wind Farm/Nextera wind turbines recently installed in the southeastern portion of Stephens County caught fire early this morning, Saturday, Feb. 14, as a thunderstorm moved through the area. The Breckenridge Fire Department said the likely cause of the fire was a lightning strike. The fire, about 18 miles southeast of Breckenridge and about 5 miles due north of Ranger, was reported to the Breckenridge Fire Department at about 7:30 a.m. The BPD responded to . . . Complete story »
Texas Attorney General files suit over illegal wind turbine blade dumping
Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against Global Fiberglass Solutions of Texas, LLC, Global Fiberglass Solutions of Texas, Inc., GFSI-MHE Manufacturing of Texas, LLC, Donald Lilly, & Vo Dynasty, LLC. for their role in illegally dumping thousands of wind turbine blades and materials at two disposal sites in Sweetwater, Texas. Clean Energy That Wasn’t So Clean According to the Office of the Attorney General, various wind turbine companies hired Global to break down, transport, and recycle turbine blades. . . . Complete story »
Wind turbine demolition underway in Taylor County
Hundreds of wind turbines are being demolished in Taylor County over the next 6 weeks. Wind energy company AES is in the process of removing nearly 300 wind turbines from a property off FM 126 and FM 89 in southwest Taylor County after county commissioners declined to renew a long-standing tax abatement. Video from citizens near the property show the turbines falling with aid of explosives. A truck driver on site to relocate the fallen windmills told KTAB and KRBC . . . Complete story »
Wake loss limits value of wind turbines
Mulling a problem with the positioning of wind turbines and the production decrease resulting from the turbulence within wind farms, the question has arisen whether they will ever be as valuable a contributor to the electric grid as they were originally hyped to be. The turbulence cuts production by 30-35 percent of what would it be if the turbines were more cannily spaced and it is said to be an issue of computational fluid dynamics that was not understood when . . . Complete story »
Freight train collides with truck hauling wind turbine section: 2 killed, 3 injured
Two Union Pacific employees were killed and three people were injured when a freight train collided with a tractor-trailer and derailed in a small West Texas city, authorities said Thursday. The train derailed around 5 p.m. Wednesday in Pecos after the collision at a railway crossing, authorities said. Union Pacific, based in Omaha, Nebraska, said Thursday that two employees had been killed. Pecos Police Chief Lisa Tarango said the other injuries were minor. Although hazardous materials were being carried aboard . . . Complete story »
Opposition mounts against wind energy project
Opposition to the proposed wind farm in Fayette County continues to pick up steam. Apex Clean Energy has been speaking with landowners about leasing property for a utility-scale wind energy project. The company is targeting a 50,000 acre area north of Schulenburg. A huge crowd of about 400 showed up Freyburg Hall on Sunday, June 23, for a meeting of concerned landowners. Besides the aesthetic concerns about 600 ft. tall windmills dotting the countryside, landowners raised questions about the impact . . . Complete story »
