The turbine is located on a hill at the Kittery Transfer Station. When it went into operation in October, town officials expected it to produce enough electricity to save about $15,000 a year. But town Manager Jon Carter says the 50-kilowatt turbine has fallen well short of the energy production goal. Carter says from October through May the turbine produced less than 15 percent of what was expected.

As much as $50,000 in tools and equipment have been stolen from the TransCanada wind energy project site under construction in northern Franklin County, state police said Tuesday. The theft was reported Saturday.

A Lincoln-based property owner's group is appealing a Maine Department of Environmental Protection permit issued for a $130 million industrial wind site on Rollins Mountain in Burlington, Lee, Lincoln and Winn. The Friends of Lincoln Lakes charges in the appeal that DEP officials and project applicant First Wind of Massachusetts failed to fully consider the impact that noise, vibrations and light flicker generated by the 40-turbine wind farm would have on humans and wildlife.

International energy companies are looking at Maine to test new designs for massive wind turbines and support structures that would float in deep water, out of sight of the coast and in line with the strongest breezes. Two of the businesses have been attending monthly meetings of Maine's Ocean Energy Task Force, which must identify up to five offshore demonstration sites before year's end.

A legislative committee on Thursday endorsed a massive energy bill that would revamp Maine's efficiency and conservation programs but could slow down Gov. John Baldacci's plan for "energy corridors" through the state. ..."Maine should not simply be a pathway for them to get their power out of New Brunswick without us seeing some benefit from it," said Rep. John Martin, an Eagle Lake Democrat and the committee's co-chairman. New Brunswick-based Irving Oil has expressed interest in the energy corridors.

Families who live on a portion of East Ridge Road and Mountain Road on the backside of Mars Hill say, at times over the past two and a half years, they've lived with unbearable noise. They feel their complaints have been ignored. Read and watch their story as reported by WLBZ Channel 2 in Maine.

People wanted to know whether it would be beneficial for the town to enter into such an agreement with a wind-power company. "It's solely the town's decision," Rogers said. "No TIF money can go into the general fund, because a TIF is designed for qualified projects that create economic development."

Members of the State and Local Government Committee voted 8-3 Monday morning in favor of a bill that would allow Carrabassett Valley to move forward with the annexation of Redington Township. The original proposal, sponsored by Sen. Walter Gooley, R-Farmington, was amended to include the entirety of the township in the annexation process instead of just a portion.

The ruling upheld the findings of Freedom's code enforcement officer Jay Guber, dismissing an appeal by Steve Bennett and two other residents with land abutting the three-turbine Beaver Ridge Wind development. The suit claimed that developers Beaver Ridge Wind had not "substantially commenced" work on the project when a six-month building permit expired Dec. 26, 2007.

A summer-long transit of trucks loaded with wind turbine components may play out differently than expected after it was determined that most of the loads are smaller than anticipated.

Proponents of renewable energy projects, such a wind or hydroelectric, may find support in a new provincial bill. At the same time, municipalities could find their bylaws overruled with the proposed Green Energy Act, said David Royston, solicitor for the District Municipality of Muskoka.

The town of Freedom continues to work on the question of how to tax three wind turbines built last fall. Before any taxes can be levied, the town must decide how much the development is worth. In a statement submitted to the town, Beaver Ridge Wind LLC - named for the location of the wind development - declared the cost of the turbines to be $9,765,826, or $2,170 per kilowatt.

Now a bill in the Legislature would make Maine the first state in the U.S. to have utilities pay premiums, through long-term contracts, to small producers using solar, wind, hydro and other green energy sources. Supporters say it would create thousands of jobs and help wean Maine from its dependence on imported fuel. Sounds good, but who would pay the cost of these above-market rates?

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection issued First Wind of Massachusetts a permit Tuesday to build a 40-turbine industrial wind site for $130 million on Rollins Mountain in Burlington, Lee, Lincoln and Winn. "The Department finds that the applicant has demonstrated that the proposed project will provide significant tangible benefits to the host community and surrounding area,".

Town Councilor Thora House didn't like fellow Councilor Rod Carr's being accused of ethical misconduct, but that wasn't what changed her vote to award First Wind of Massachusetts a state tax break last week, she said Sunday. ..."I changed my vote for two reasons," House said Sunday. "I opposed it the first time because I believed that Lincoln could have a better deal.

Residents packed into a legislative committee room Wednesday afternoon agreed on one thing - the bill receiving a public hearing was about a wind project, not a simple land annexation. ...The drive behind the move comes from Endless Energy, a company that has twice had its plans for a 300-acre wind farm in the region denied by the Land Use Regulation Commission. LURC oversees the permitting process for Maine's unorganized townships.

Town Councilor Rod Carr recused himself from a 4-2 vote awarding First Wind of Massachusetts a 20-year tax break Monday after he was accused of a conflict of interest in working as a paid lobbyist for landowners who would benefit from the project. ...Carr denied any unethical conduct, saying that he was "really disappointed" at being accused after more than 20 years of honest public service to the town. He recused himself after a 15-minute recess in which he unsuccessfully attempted to telephone his attorney for advice.

Søren Hermansen, the spokesperson for Samsø Island-Denmark's alternative energy island-was back in Maine last month. Hermansen first came to Maine as a guest of the Island Institute last November where he gave presentations to packed audiences in Portland and Belfast and to island communities. During his recent visit, Hermansen addressed the Governor's Offshore Energy Task Force ...Hermansen's recommendations, based on the last decade of his experiences on Samsø Island, are to start small, invite the public to participate and educate, educate educate before scaling up.

Questions about wind turbines or tax increment financing did not appear anywhere on the warrant Saturday, but a pair of ongoing lawsuits relating to the Beaver Ridge wind development affected discussion of the town's budget for legal services. Last year, Freedom appropriated $25,000 for legal fees and spent $18,000 on the two ongoing lawsuits. This year the budget committee again recommended setting aside $25,000.

About 90 voters in Montville followed suit with Thorndike at town meeting Saturday, March 28, at the Montville Town House, and enacted a six-month moratorium on wind development projects. The issue of potential wind power developments stirred a lengthy discussion. Article 11 asked voters to enact an ordinance titled "Moratorium on Wind Power Development for the Municipality of Montville." According to the draft ordinance, which was included in the town report, the moratorium would target large-scale commercial wind developments.