The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission will accept public comments in response to a document on the health effects of wind turbines and the issue of wind turbine setbacks. The comment period is in response to "Public Health Impacts of Wind Turbines," a document prepared by the environmental health division of the Minnesota Department of Health. The public comments will help the PUC determine whether or not to change the current setback conditions.

The Clay County Commission approved an ordinance Tuesday that establishes standards stricter than state law on where wind turbines can be erected and how noisy they can be at night. The new rules apply to projects not regulated by the state, which are those that generate less than 5 megawatts of power.

A new 201-megawatt wind farm will be built near Lakefield next year, according to an announcement Monday by enXco. Though details of where the 134 wind turbines will be placed has not yet been provided, the Lakefield Wind Project is expected to be operational by the end of 2010.

A moratorium issued last week by the Austin City Council gave city employees 120 days to finalize a draft ordinance concerning the construction of wind turbines within city limits. It is an issue that three Austin residents find imperative to the process of becoming more energy independent.

Unclear guidelines of where residents can erect wind turbines on their property has caused gridlock on the Otter Tail County Board. The issue came to a head after two residents requesting to erect wind turbines left the county's Planning Commission struggling to decide if the permits should be approved. The Planning Commission turned to the county commissioners for direction, suggesting a possible six-month moratorium on wind turbine permits.

An Illinois developer has scrapped plans to build a 100-megawatt wind farm in Winona County, after determining a potential site wasn't windy enough to turn a turbine. ...Sprawling wind farms like the one proposed in Harmony aren't likely to crop up in Winona County, Grover said. That's because this area's topography prevents wind speeds from reaching desired levels, except on bluffs and ridgetops.

Mower County officials have reached a settlement with wind-farm developer enXco in which the California-based company will provide $125,000 to repair township roads damaged while constructing more than 100 turbines near Grand Meadow.

State regulators plan to vote today on a Wisconsin utility's plans to build a massive wind farm in southern Minnesota. Wisconsin Power & Light Co., a subsidiary of Madison-based Alliant Energy, wants permission to start the first phase of the farm on 32,500 acres just north of Albert Lea in Freeborn County. Plans call for scores of turbines that would generate about 200 megawatts of electricity.

The bent tree wind farm project has been in the works since 2003. Now the Wisconsin Power and Light Utility Company is looking to secure a permit in Minnesota to begin construction on the project. But not everybody is happy.

Wind energy may be the wave of the future, but many Goodhue County residents still wonder what it means for them. More than 150 people attended a wind energy forum Thursday in Wanamingo sponsored by the Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation and the Southwest Initiative Foundation.

State regulators plan to vote Thursday on a Wisconsin utility's plans to build a massive wind farm in southern Minnesota. Wisconsin Power & Light Co., a subsidiary of Madison-based Alliant Energy, wants permission to start the first phase of the farm on 32,500 acres just north of Albert Lea in Freeborn County. Plans call for scores of turbines that would generate about 200 megawatts of electricity.

How tall is too tall? That's a question the city of Woodbury has been studying and discussing for the last calendar year in relation to an alternative energy ordinance it is expected to vote on this summer that would regulate the size, scope and location of wind turbines in the city limits.

Austin City Council members unanimously approved Monday an ordinance prohibiting the issuance of permits for constructing wind turbines used for generating electricity. The moratorium will give the time needed for city staff to finalize a draft ordinance establishing specific development standards for constructing such towers.

Paul White has a keen interest in the public hearing set for 11 a.m. July 14 before the Clay County Commission, where an ordinance regulating small-scale wind projects will be discussed. White is president of Project Resources Corp., the company behind the Lakeswind Power Plant, a proposed wind farm that would include part of Clay County. ..."It could kill our project,” he said.

A Minnesota Department of Health analysis of possible health effects from wind turbines concludes that annoyance and diminished quality of life are the most frequent complaints from nearby residents. The "white paper," a review of available scientific research, notes that people vary greatly in their sensitivity to noise, with penetrating, low-frequency sounds posing the most problems.

Mike and George they each invested about eighty thousand dollars to put up the 120 foot machines. They got a substantial subsidy from the state and will each get a four thousand dollar tax write off each year. But it's still a big investment. Mike says, "we're looking somewhere into the 8 to twelve years payback time. And there are permits to acquire and a wind assessment that needs to be done.

The proposed New Ulm Wind Project in Nicollet County cleared another hurdle last week.The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission accepted the application of New Ulm Public Utilities to place five wind turbines in Lafayette Township.

The wind industry in Minnesota, which faces greater challenges than a calm day, may need to look into one of the old superstitions for help. The immediate problem in Minnesota, as elsewhere, is not variable access, old transmission systems or storage capacity — all hardy perennials. It is a clogged-up capital market that has frustrated developers of the renewable resource.

As the number of wind turbines scattered along the South Dakota skyline continues to grow, moving the energy they provide out of the state requires a fundamental change. Dusty Johnson of the state Public Utilities Commission puts it simply: A local power transmission system has to become national. Trying to transmit wind power to more populous states is not a new problem. But when federal regulators recently approved generous incentives for a proposed 3,000-mile, high-voltage transmission system, they kept alive a potential solution to at least part of the problem.

About 130 people attended a public information meeting on a proposed 60-megawatt wind farm hosted by the Office of Energy Security (OES) Wednesday evening in Barnesville. ...The purpose of the public information meeting was to answer any questions and to hear opinions on the proposed project, said Larry Hartman, OES project manager. Hartman added that as a member of a neutral government body, he couldn't comment on the nature of the meeting.