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Wind Power News: Press releases
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.
Northern long-eared bat reclassified as endangered under the Endangered Species Act
The Service recognizes that the change to endangered status may prompt questions about establishing ESA compliance for forestry, wind energy, infrastructure and other projects in the range of the northern long-eared bat. Complete story »
Crawford Neighbors United hail vote
In what turned out to be a real life David versus Goliath saga, citizens in Crawford County, Ohio dealt a crushing defeat to a major energy corporation that had planned a wind power facility in portions of the county. Using a newly passed law known as Senate Bill 52, and in response to intense public pressure, commissioners earlier in the year had declared the County a “Restricted Area”, which prevented wind farm development of a large industrial scale. That in . . . Complete story »
Wind turbine wakes can impact downwind vegetation
Denver, CO. – The trails of disturbed air produced by wind turbines—known as wakes—can alter downwind temperatures and humidity, and a new U.S. Geological Survey study has demonstrated for the first time that wakes can impact vegetation in the vicinity. The study’s insight into the effects of wakes from wind turbines on vegetation is an important first step to understanding how wind energy affects terrestrial ecosystems. Wind energy is rapidly and globally expanding, with five-fold increases since 2010 and predictions of . . . Complete story »
Conservation groups to rally against proposed Sears Island wind turbines
SEARSPORT – Friends of Sears Island, along with members of Islesboro Islands Trust, Sierra Club Maine, and others, will present a rally for Sears Island on Saturday, Oct. 8, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., in the parking lot of Mermaid Plaza, 1 East Main Street in Searsport (the building with the blue roof on the right as you enter town from Belfast). The public is invited to attend and learn more about Maine Department of Transportation’s proposal to develop a . . . Complete story »
Website shines a light on offshore wind farms
(NEWPORT, Ore) Protect US Fishermen, an informal coalition of more than two dozen organizations concerned about the environmental and economic impacts of proposed offshore wind farms in the Pacific Ocean, launched a new website on Monday. Visitors to protectUSfishermen.org will find details not only on the current push to place wind turbine farms off the coast of Oregon, but also learn about the sustainable seafood industry and its positive impacts on the economy and food security. For those wishing to . . . Complete story »
Wind farm Jüchen A 44n: turbines to be dismantled; new wind farm to be connected to the grid in 2023
As the responsible company, Nordex has drawn up a dismantling concept for the Jüchen A 44n wind farm with support of RWE, the city of Jüchen and the utility company NEW. The concept comprises the complete dismantling of the existing wind turbines and safe demolition of the concrete towers. A new wind farm is then to be built on the same site and connected to the grid in 2023. The dismantling is required due to structural defects identified in the . . . Complete story »
Study warns of energy losses connected to larger offshore wind turbines
GOLDEN, COLORADO – ArcVera Renewables claims that energy losses from offshore wind plants caused by long-distance wakes are much greater than expected. Using high-fidelity long-range wake loss modeling, the company’s study at the New York Bight offshore development sites found that commonly used engineering wake models under-predict energy losses due to external wakes. It called for more research into the phenomenon. The study found that velocity deficits of up to 1 m/s, or 10%, persist up to or beyond 100 km . . . Complete story »
New evidence shows massive and rapid expansion of illicit rare earths industry in Myanmar, fuelling human rights abuses, environmental destruction and funding military-linked militias
New satellite analysis from Global Witness reveals over 2,700 rare earth mining sites in northern Myanmar by March 2022, covering an area the size of Singapore. Myanmar now world’s biggest source of supply of heavy rare earths, used in green energy technologies including electric vehicles and wind turbines, as well as smartphones and home electronics. Illegal rare earth mines in northern Myanmar poisoning surrounding land and waterways, harming local communities, wildlife and environment. Mines are funding military-linked militias that control . . . Complete story »
Tama County farmer challenges Board of Supervisors action reaffirming outdated commercial wind energy ordinance
TOLEDO, Iowa – On June 22, Plaintiff Richard W. Arp, a fourth-generation Tama County crop and livestock producer who farms near Clutier, filed a petition for declaratory judgment against the Tama County Board of Supervisors in the Iowa District Court in and for Tama County. A declaratory judgment is a binding judgment from the Court to determine the rights and obligations of each party. Arp, a member of the Tama County Against Turbines LLC (TCAT) coalition asks the Court to . . . Complete story »
Offshore wind farms expected to reduce clam fishery revenue, study finds
An important East Coast shellfish industry is projected to suffer revenue losses as offshore wind energy develops along the U.S. Northeast and Mid-Atlantic coasts, according to two Rutgers studies. The studies, which appear in the ICES Journal of Marine Science (here and here), examined how offshore wind farms planned for the eastern United States could disrupt fishing of the Atlantic surfclam, a major economic driver from Virginia to Massachusetts that generates more than $30 million in direct annual revenue. Total . . . Complete story »
