A battle is brewing between Baltimore County and such community organizations as the Pikesville-Greenspring Community Coalition over windmills in residential neighborhoods. The county is devising regulations allowing windmills with restrictions. But PGCC and other community groups are opposed to windmills in people's backyards.

Like prospectors who discovered gold in the old West, developers, business owners, and homeowners are rushing to stake their claims to free, renewable energy by putting up wind turbines. As more of the structures sprout, however, local, state, and federal authorities are struggling to close the gap between old regulations and relatively new technology.

As Island towns refine and strengthen their regulatory authority over local wind turbine projects, the Martha's Vineyard Commission (MVC), as the Island's comprehensive land use planning agency, is considering the extent of its role in the process. MVC executive director Mark London said this week that the commission is closely watching two key pieces of state legislation that will influence development of wind power on land and sea.

A Georges Township man wants a Fayette County judge to nullify recent changes to the zoning ordinance related to windmills, claiming that officials "intentionally stifled" public comment on the matter. Thomas J. Bozek sued this week in Fayette County Court, and wants the amendments to the zoning ordinance - on June 25 and on Thursday - to be thrown out. ...On June 25, commission Chairman Vincent Zapotosky and Commissioner Vincent A. Vicites voted to amend the ordinance to allow windmills/wind turbines as a permitted use in certain zoning districts.

A wind-power moratorium on just a portion of a town doesn't make sense. That's according to the Jefferson County Planning Board, which considered Cape Vincent's proposed six-month moratorium for wind power development in the lakefront and river front districts at its meeting Tuesday afternoon. The members of the board approved a townwide moratorium, which was not presented to them, rather than the town's proposed partial moratorium.

Kingsville council has approved the sites for 19 wind turbines east of Cottam but delayed a decision on three others because of concerns over two nearby air strips. Council agreed Monday to 19 site-specific bylaws for turbines as the public got to see Brookfield Power Corporation's location for 22 wind turbines. ..."Flying by these would be dangerous," Ronald Bell said Tuesday. Turbulence is the concern.

A proposed ordinance amendment that would increase height restrictions and allow smaller wind turbines in town will be the subject of a public hearing at Tuesday's meeting of the Planning Board. Draft amendment language would allow "a small wind energy installation" of up to 80 feet, with approval granted by the town's codes enforcement office, Town Planner Kris Hulstedt said Tuesday. Larger installations would be allowed only with a special permit from the Planning Board.

The Nelson County Planning Commission took comments from the public at its July 22 meeting on a proposed ordinance that would regulate small wind turbine energy systems used for electrical generation within Nelson County. ...The ordinance came about because there are several people in the county interested in using small wind energy systems.

The town board heard overwhelming opposition Monday night to a proposed law governing wind farms. Almost 175 people filled the Hammond Central School gymnasium, with 45 speaking against the law and seven supporting it. Concerned Residents of Hammond President Nancy J. Parrish said the new law was nearly the same as the version her group took to court last year.

The Town Council voted in favor of a three-month ban on wind energy development Monday after a public hearing on the measure. The move came on the heels of a six-month moratorium on wind energy facilities that ran out this month. The first ban was meant to prevent development while the Planning Board reviewed the portion of the town's zoning law that regulates wind energy generation facilities at the Town Council's request.

A request for an injunction to stop construction of a wind farm has yet to be heard in DeKalb County court as lawyers seek a way for an out-of-county judge to hear their case. Attorneys for Citizens for Open Government asked Presiding Judge Kurt Klein to assign a circuit judge from outside the county to the case. The 16th Judicial Circuit includes DeKalb, Kane and Kendall counties.

Residents living near a recently installed wind turbine in Libertyville will continue to fight what they say is a harmful presence in their neighborhood. Members of Citizens for the Protection of Libertyville, a grass roots group centered east of where the turbine is located, are scheduled to address the village board today regarding the 120-foot structure at Aldridge Electric Inc., 844 Rockland Road. "Our goal is to get them to rescind those special ordinances designed for Aldridge and start over again," said Dave Gates.

It's been in the works for more than a year and now, it's fate lies in the hands of the Judge Richard St. Clair. Will he decide in favor of moving forward with the controversial 150-turbine wind farm in Wolverine Canyon? Or, will Bingham County have to go back to the drawing board? ...Petitioners believe a wind farm can't go in Wolverine Canyon because it's zoned for natural resources or agriculture. They see wind turbines as industrial, not natural.

With rising heating oil costs and electric bills, and the push for more environmentally friendly energy, it's to be expected that there will be more folks like Thorn hoping to harness the power of wind. One has already surfaced: Jerry Collier told the Victor Town Board a few weeks back that he has been thinking about putting up a turbine on his Rawson Road property. But Collier will have to wait, as the Victor Town Board has just enacted a six-month moratorium on wind turbines while it looks at getting local codes on the books to regulate them. It's a wise move on the board's part.

The mayor and council recently approved a first reading of the ordinance that would allow personal wind turbines as tall as 165 feet in Frostburg's backyards. At the Aug. 20 public meeting, the city officials are scheduled to have subsequent readings and a vote on the matter, though some talk has surfaced about postponing that action until September. "A structure this high is equivalent to a 16-story building," Bambacus told the elected officials in an e-mail.

Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett must approve the Stockyard Hill Wind Farm, under national laws, before it can go ahead. The project has gone to the Federal Government because it has been found likely to have significant environmental impact. It now must be assessed under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.

The future of the Mt Stuart development was in doubt for several months earlier this year after its original developers, NZ Windfarms Ltd, pulled back on taking it to the next level before selling the project to the Central Otago company Pioneer Generation.. The resource consent application for the nine-turbine wind farm attracted 15 submissions with all but one opposing the application.

Prattsburgh town officials will meet Tuesday to consider hiring a sound expert to draft a general noise ordinance aimed at regulating wind turbines. The board's action followed an initial report by Seth Waltz, president of Avl Designs, Inc. of Pensfield, on his preliminary study of noise in Prattsburgh, the neighboring town of Naples and wind farm in Cohocton operated by First Wind.

Round two of the reviews of the environmental assessment of the proposed St. Lawrence Wind Farm took up where round one ended. Like the first draft, the supplemental draft environmental impact statement has a high number of comments - more than 60 by state officials and members of the public.

Sen. Tim Mathern, D-Fargo, is asking the North Dakota Public Service Commission to reconsider its approval of several turbine locations for a wind farm near Luverne to accommodate concerns from neighbors. In a letter sent last week, Mathern asked the commission to consider imposing longer setback requirements for four turbines located near a bed-and-breakfast as well as a dogsled operation.