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/19287 Wed, 24 Dec 2008 22:40:33 GMT Twenty 1.5-megawatt wind turbines at the Kaheawa wind farm owned by First Wind dwarf a pair of SUVs in the West Maui Mountains near Maalaea, Maui. http://www.windaction.org/articles/19287 http://www.windaction.org/articles/5125 Fri, 15 Sep 2006 18:32:47 GMT Hawaiian Electric built the state's first wind farm in the 1980s in Kahuku, but technical problems, common at the time, forced the company to abandon it in the early 1990s. Wind turbine technology has since improved, and developers are again turning their focus to the area. http://www.windaction.org/articles/5125 http://www.windaction.org/articles/4147 Fri, 28 Jul 2006 19:42:32 GMT The South Pointe wind plant was built in 1986 and later abandoned http://www.windaction.org/articles/4147 http://www.windaction.org/articles/4146 Fri, 28 Jul 2006 19:40:46 GMT The South Pointe wind plant was built in 1986 and later abandoned http://www.windaction.org/articles/4146 http://www.windaction.org/articles/4145 Fri, 28 Jul 2006 19:38:56 GMT The South Pointe wind plant was built in 1986 and later abandoned http://www.windaction.org/articles/4145 http://www.windaction.org/articles/4144 Fri, 28 Jul 2006 19:35:58 GMT The South Pointe wind plant was built in 1986 and later abandoned. http://www.windaction.org/articles/4144 http://www.windaction.org/articles/467 GMT http://www.windaction.org/articles/467 http://www.windaction.org/articles/514 GMT http://www.windaction.org/articles/514 http://www.windaction.org/articles/23892 Sat, 31 Oct 2009 18:48:11 GMT Proponents of small wind systems got a lift this week when the county attorney said a proposed bill designed to streamline the permitting process would not open the county to legal or financial liability should an applicant's windmill kill an endangered seabird. The announcement, delivered by Deputy County Attorney Ian Jung, who specializes in planning issues and advises the Kaua‘i Planning Commission. ...While Jung's statement could go a long way to resolving one issue standing in the way of the bill's passage, there are several other factors that have yet to be addressed. http://www.windaction.org/articles/23892 http://www.windaction.org/articles/23453 Wed, 30 Sep 2009 09:50:19 GMT Most Molokai residents who attended last Thursday's meeting would be happy if the deal never went through. First Wind's current plan calls for the installation of up to 20 turbines on Hawaiian Homestead land in Ho`olehua, followed by as many as 60 turbines on Molokai Ranch land. http://www.windaction.org/articles/23453 http://www.windaction.org/articles/23125 Fri, 11 Sep 2009 21:46:19 GMT The Oregon developer looking to erect wind turbines on a Kahuku ridge is moving forward with permitting for the project. West Wind Works wants to put up 10 wind turbines for a project it's calling Na Pua Makani, which is expected to generate 25 megawatts of renewable energy. http://www.windaction.org/articles/23125 http://www.windaction.org/articles/22211 Sat, 18 Jul 2009 15:45:07 GMT "The real issue is that you have a high penetration wind environment" in the electric utility, says Juan de Bedout, the global technology leader for power conversion systems at GE Global Research in New York. That means the amount of energy on the island that comes from unstable wind is very high in proportion to the total demand for power - 15 to 30 percent. http://www.windaction.org/articles/22211 http://www.windaction.org/articles/21558 Sun, 14 Jun 2009 14:50:20 GMT Maui Electric Co.'s sales, measured in kilowatt-hours, are down nearly 10 percent this year, a drop that tracks closely with declining visitor arrivals, said company President Ed Reinhardt. Before the island's economic downturn and fewer visitors coming to the island, MECO had been forecasting that it would need its next increment of firm power generation in 2011. Earlier this year, because of declining demand, it revised that forecast to 2014. http://www.windaction.org/articles/21558 http://www.windaction.org/articles/21554 Sun, 14 Jun 2009 13:26:30 GMT There are several costly projects pending, and while some developers say even today money will be available, the closer the project, the further off the lenders seem to be. Money problems have stalled two projects being pursued by Kent Smith and his partner, Hilton Unemori - a biomass generator at Hamakua on the Big Island that was to have been fueled by eucalyptus wood and an expansion of Kaheawa wind farm on Maui. http://www.windaction.org/articles/21554 http://www.windaction.org/articles/21192 Tue, 12 May 2009 14:29:29 GMT Kilauea farmer Sam Pangdan sensed change was in the air when it came to erecting wind turbines on his property. Nearly a year and a half later, he is still waiting for that change to blow through the county Planning Commission, which worries the alternative energy resource could be a hazard for endangered birds and bats. "We have competing interests between clean energy and birds," said Commissioner Hartwell Blake, at a commission meeting last month. http://www.windaction.org/articles/21192 http://www.windaction.org/articles/20918 Sat, 25 Apr 2009 17:20:07 GMT Kahuku resident Kent Fonoimoana said he feels a proposed site for wind turbines to generate electricity is too close to his home. "It's not good if it's right here," he said, noting that West Wind Works LLC's site is about a quarter mile away. "It's going to have a negative impact on property values." http://www.windaction.org/articles/20918 http://www.windaction.org/articles/20871 Thu, 23 Apr 2009 16:04:19 GMT First, he ripped out the pineapples. Then he put up Four Seasons hotels and luxury homes. Next, he envisions 200 windmills towering next to a Hawaiian beach. ..."It's a place a lot of people use for hunting deer, fishing and diving," said Robin Kaye, 62, a retired photographer who lives on Lanai. "Why should this island be the power generator for Oahu? Let them build a wind farm there." http://www.windaction.org/articles/20871 http://www.windaction.org/articles/20380 Wed, 18 Mar 2009 18:30:37 GMT Hawaiian Electric Co. announced a plan Tuesday to buy wind energy from both Lanai and Molokai. As part of the proposed arrangement, Castle & Cooke will scale back its Lanai wind farm from 400 megawatts to 200. The overall deal could be considered in its infancy, considering all the steps that must fall into place, including environmental impact studies and land acquisition on Molokai. http://www.windaction.org/articles/20380 http://www.windaction.org/articles/20279 Thu, 05 Mar 2009 13:28:35 GMT The draft environmental impact statement for the expansion of Kaheawa wind farm is open for public comment. Since the project is next to the existing farm overlooking Maalaea, much of the information parallels the studies done for the project that went into operation in 2006. The expansion, proposed for 333 acres of state land, would be smaller than Kaheawa I: 14 1.5-megawatt towers, compared with 20 currently in operation. http://www.windaction.org/articles/20279 http://www.windaction.org/articles/18409 Wed, 08 Oct 2008 17:29:45 GMT Winds of doubt are swirling around one Northeast-based wind farm developer with projects in Hawai'i. Newton, Mass.-based First Wind (formerly known as UPC Wind) has found itself one of the targets of an ongoing investigation conducted by the New York attorney general's office. ...The probe of is of special interest to island energy and business affairs, since First Wind has built and operates a wind farm on Maui and has designs for more farms on Moloka'i and on O'ahu. ...While First Wind enjoys a good reputation in Hawai'i, developments in towns like Cohocton provide a less savory picture of the wind developer. Which image will be believed may depend on the results of the New York AG office's investigation of the firm, which have not yet been released. http://www.windaction.org/articles/18409