http://www.windaction.org/ facts, analysis, exposure of wind energy's real impacts en-us Windaction hourly 1 http://backend.userland.com/rss http://www.windaction.org/articles/22100 Tue, 14 Jul 2009 11:00:37 GMT Cheyenne Wind developers have asked the Department of the Interior to review Wyoming's sage grouse protection policy in light of the state's recent hard-line stance against building wind farms in important habitat areas for the chicken-sized birds. ...Wind developers say they're concerned that Wyoming's position could "abruptly halt wind energy development in Wyoming's sage-grouse 'core areas'. http://www.windaction.org/articles/22100 http://www.windaction.org/articles/22134 Fri, 10 Jul 2009 17:24:21 GMT A utility company on Friday agreed to a settlement of more than $10 million following the electrocution of dozens of eagles, hawks, owls and other birds in Wyoming. PacifiCorp pleaded guilty to 34 violations of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael Shickich in Casper ordered the utility to pay a $510,000 fine and $900,000 in restitution. http://www.windaction.org/articles/22134 http://www.windaction.org/articles/22056 Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:23:33 GMT The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says it opposes construction of any wind farms in Wyoming's core sage grouse population areas, a position that wind developers say could have a chilling effect on their plans in the state. Brian Kelly, supervisor in the agency's Wyoming field office, made the comments in a letter Tuesday responding to an inquiry from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department. http://www.windaction.org/articles/22056 http://www.windaction.org/articles/22132 Thu, 02 Jul 2009 17:10:55 GMT The federal government has charged PacifiCorp and Exxon Mobil Corp. in two unrelated cases with killing scores of migratory birds in Wyoming, according to court documents filed last week in U.S. District Court in Cheyenne. PacifiCorp, which does business in Wyoming as Rocky Mountain Power, is charged in a 34-count criminal information document with the deaths of 38 golden eagles at power poles in six counties from December 2007 to February 2009. http://www.windaction.org/articles/22132 http://www.windaction.org/articles/21798 Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:53:46 GMT Federal officials are again delaying whether to list sage grouse in 11 Western states as threatened or endangered -- leaving in limbo until at least 2010 a spate of industries that could face sweeping restrictions if the bird is protected. The chicken-sized grouse ranges from Montana to California alongside livestock grazing, oil and gas drilling and an increasing number of wind power turbines. http://www.windaction.org/articles/21798 http://www.windaction.org/articles/21635 Thu, 18 Jun 2009 03:06:17 GMT The mining industry must fight the federal climate legislation Congress is now considering and seek investment in carbon capture technology, National Mining Association President Hal Quinn said Thursday. Quinn addressed the Wyoming Mining Association convention in Laramie. http://www.windaction.org/articles/21635 http://www.windaction.org/articles/21455 Thu, 04 Jun 2009 00:52:22 GMT Development of wind energy and sage grouse protection are on a collision course in Wyoming, where state officials are worried that a future Endangered Species Act listing for the chicken-like bird could ruin the golden egg laid by the Obama administration's renewable energy mandates. ..."The bird does well in the existing conditions that are out here. It's the new threat from wind energy that has got us so worried," said Aaron Clark, special adviser on energy infrastructure to Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal (D). "I don't think you could justify a [federal endangered species] listing for that bird in Wyoming without the threat from wind development." http://www.windaction.org/articles/21455 http://www.windaction.org/articles/12767 Mon, 19 Nov 2007 23:35:49 GMT Kevin Luke of Buford-based Z-4 Energy Systems wants to develop a way to save wind energy for when the wind's not blowing. He's working on a commercialization plan for wind-powered water pumping, incorporating compressed air storage. Luke points out that wind is variable and energy storage is needed to provide controlled, consistent water pumping. He seeks to use air compressors, similar to those found commercially, powered by a wind turbine rotor. The driving force behind his efforts is that the wind blows at variable speeds and when there is not enough wind to turn the turbine, the stored air can continue to be used to pump the well. Currently, wind electric and solar powered systems use lead acid batteries for storage, which don't perform well in the cold weather and have a short lifespan. http://www.windaction.org/articles/12767 http://www.windaction.org/articles/6277 Fri, 10 Nov 2006 22:49:10 GMT Greenblatt noted that while wind power could produce impressive amounts of peak energy during strong gusts, the biggest problem was wind power’s intermittency. The problem could be addressed by a process called compressed air energy storage, where excess energy could be used to pump compressed air into underground storage facilities that could include abandoned mines. When the wind was not blowing, he said, the compressed air could be tapped and combined with the burning of natural gas to create high-efficiency electrical generators approximating the efficiency levels of coal-fueled power plants. http://www.windaction.org/articles/6277 http://www.windaction.org/articles/5166 Sun, 17 Sep 2006 22:04:32 GMT But Manchin's proposal went a step beyond talk and ideas, setting out a concrete way to begin attracting more money to development of ethanol, biodiesel, solar, wind or biomass electricity generation. “I've always been told the $35, $40 range (per barrel of oil) is where alternative fuels become viable” Manchin told The News-Record after a tour of Arch Coal's Black Thunder mine. “Let's find that benchmark ... I don't see another way.” http://www.windaction.org/articles/5166 http://www.windaction.org/articles/3912 Thu, 13 Jul 2006 13:17:47 GMT WASHINGTON -- Federal officials vowed this week to boost renewable energy production on federal lands in the West, but wind and geothermal industry officials criticized the administration for a lack of openness and support leading to delays in some of their projects. http://www.windaction.org/articles/3912 http://www.windaction.org/articles/3805 Fri, 07 Jul 2006 12:14:22 GMT Energy corridors should enhance markets for both fossil-based energy as well as wind and other renewables, as the federal government prepares for a wave of electrical transmission and pipeline construction across the West. http://www.windaction.org/articles/3805 http://www.windaction.org/articles/22131 Mon, 13 Jul 2009 14:57:16 GMT Wyomingites should be very careful before jumping on the renewable energy bandwagon. There is no doubt that wind and solar will play some role in our future energy requirements. We need to take a methodical and well-thought out approach to protect the wide open spaces that we all enjoy here in our state. http://www.windaction.org/articles/22131 http://www.windaction.org/articles/20847 Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:58:17 GMT New Interior Secretary Ken Salazar went overboard when he said recently that windmills off the East Coast could generate enough electricity to replace most, if not all, of the coal-fired power plants in the country. ...It is clear that the new administration is changing the nation's energy policy, putting more focus on renewables and clean energy. But coal has clearly not been taken out of the equation, even though we're not likely to see construction of many more traditional coal fired power plants. http://www.windaction.org/articles/20847 http://www.windaction.org/articles/20673 Wed, 08 Apr 2009 20:50:32 GMT New Interior Secretary Ken Salazar went overboard when he said Monday that windmills off the East Coast could generate enough electricity to replace most, if not all, of the coal-fired power plants in the country. ...it's impractical to think that the coal-fired power industry -- which supplies about half of the nation's electricity -- could be displaced by wind turbines. http://www.windaction.org/articles/20673 http://www.windaction.org/articles/19371 Mon, 29 Dec 2008 16:21:55 GMT This has been known to fry wind turbines. With snow, ice and frigid weather, winter creates complications for renewable energy, as I wrote last week. But for Ralph Brokaw, a Wyoming rancher with both cows and wind turbines on his land, the worst hazard is not the ice that his blades can throw off in the winter. Rather, it is lightning strikes on the towers. http://www.windaction.org/articles/19371