The winds are blowing up a storm over the future of wind turbines in the mountains. A rapidly changing bill to permit wind turbines in the mountains was altered by several co-sponsors to now feature a ban on all wind turbines in western North Carolina. The bill is in committee today before going to a Senate vote.

The measure, approved by the agriculture, environment and natural resources committee, requires permits for windmills on the coast. Wind is part of a 2007 state law that mandates increased production from renewable energy sources. But mountain turbines were dropped, said Sen. Charles Albertson, who sponsored the measure, because some lawmakers worried about the effects on tourism and aesthetics.

State lawmakers held off voting Tuesday on a proposal to ban wind power development in the mountains of western North Carolina. The delay was met with relief by wind power advocates who harbor dreams of erecting windmills in the Appalachian mountains, home to some of the best wind energy resources in the nation.

Legislation to get consideration today would restrict wind turbines on ridge tops from being more than 35 feet tall, a cap opponents said would kill a budding industry. ...Ridge-top protections in North Carolina date back to 1983 when all 25 mountain counties adopted rules banning tall structures on ridges 3,000 feet or higher.

North Carolina senators are looking more closely at how to balance the growing demand for green energy with environmental protection, development and tourism.

And there are still plenty of people in North Carolina who believe harnessing the coast's winds holds great potential to meet at least part of the state's future energy needs. But any proposal to build an offshore wind farm today would run into an obstacle that could be a tougher challenger than the economics of cheap oil and not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY) protests.

A layoff in Lexington appears to contradict President Obama's initiative to generate employment through increased green energy production. Officials blame bad timing for the decision to cut jobs at PPG Industries, a Pittsburgh-based specialty products manufacturer that supplies to the wind energy industry. The company announced Friday that 110 of the 420 employees at its Lexington fiberglass plant will be let go by June 30.

Wind over waters less than 100 feet deep could supply at least 20 percent of the electricity needs of most coastal states, the Interior Department report says. Erecting wind turbines in shallow water would be cheaper and easier than in deep water. But allowing North Carolina's first commercial-scale wind turbines won't be a quick or easy decision.

Wind over waters less than 100 feet deep could supply at least 20 percent of the electricity needs of most coastal states, the Interior Department report says. Erecting wind turbines in shallow water would be cheaper and easier than in deep water. But allowing North Carolina's first commercial-scale wind turbines won't be a quick or easy decision.

It's taken nine months of public hearings, multiple drafts and countless e-mails of information, but Carteret County finally has an ordinance regulating wind turbines and communication towers. ...The ordinance allows utility-scale turbines up to 550 feet tall and requires a setback of 6 feet for each foot of height - a maximum setback of 3,300 feet. The ordinance also addresses noise from turbines and shadow flicker and has separate standards for turbines under 200 feet tall and for private residential turbines.

The long-awaited tall structures ordinance that will regulate wind turbines and communication towers in the county is set to receive a vote Monday night from the County Board of Commissioners. The board will hold its monthly meeting at 6 p.m. in the boardroom of the administration building. ...The tall structures ordinance has been in the works since March, when commissioners approved a nine-month moratorium on tall structures, such as windmills, in response to a proposed wind farm in the Down East community of Bettie.

With lots of information still to digest, materials to read and some changes to be made, the County Board of Commissioners took no action Tuesday night on the proposed tall structures ordinance that will regulate wind turbines and communication towers in the county. ...The public hearing follows months of other public meetings held by the County Planning Commission during the development of the ordinance. A nine-month moratorium was approved in March following concerns of wind farm proposal in the Down East community of Bettie.

It was a substantial platform on 16 pilings in the Pamlico Sound, built by a collaborative of North Carolina academic research scientists. A fiberglass instrument house was bolted to the platform, a wireless communication system and an antenna were in place, and a wind turbine and high-efficiency solar panels had just been installed. A product of a state initiative to spur innovative research, the 18- by-18-foot structure was ready for the installation of cutting-edge data collection instruments. That is, until a 71-foot steel trawler plowed it all down.

On a day when the North Carolina coast was buffeted by gusts approaching 40 mph, it seemed only appropriate that coastal regulators spent much of Thursday talking about how to turn that wind into energy. But a regulatory roadmap on how to harness that estimated 1,400 megawatts of natural, renewable and domestic energy in the state's coastal and sound waters remains as choppy as the surf just down the road from where the N.C. Coastal Resources Commission was meeting in Brunswick County. "We didn't want to get caught flat-footed if and when a project comes before us," CRC Chairman Bob Emory said. "But today also showed us the challenges we face to get ready."

Carteret County planners were hit with both praise and criticism this week as work continued on a draft ordinance that would regulate wind turbines and other tall structures in the county. A resident who has followed the development of the ordinance closely and called for provisions protecting the public's safety defended the results of their work. ..."It is not the planning commission's responsibility to find an acceptable location for utility-scale wind turbines in our county if none exists. They are, however, responsible for making sure utility-scale turbines stay out of unacceptable locations."

The County Planning Commission was able to finish Thursday reviewing the wind turbine section of the draft tall structures ordinance but still has to go over the communication towers portion. The commission agreed during its special meeting in the boardroom of the administration building to keep the maximum setback for the tallest of utility-scale wind turbines at 3,300 feet. And after three hours of deliberation, the board was ready to make a recommendation on the wind turbine section to county commissioners with only one significant change regarding wind speed.

The County Planning Commission is due to take on the draft tall structures ordinance again Thursday, but a Down East property owner who has a proposed wind farm waiting in the wings says the newest setback regulations for utility-scale wind turbines are too constraining. The planning commission meets at 5 p.m. Thursday in the boardroom of the administration building in hopes of approving a recommendation for the tall structures ordinance, which addresses wind turbines and communication towers, to forward to the County Board of Commissioners before the moratorium on tall structures expires in November. ...The draft originally put setbacks at 1,600 feet or 2.5 feet times the height of the turbine, whichever is greatest, for turbines between 200 and 550 feet tall. With the 3,300-foot-setback, seven properties in eastern Carteret County would still be able to have several utility-scale wind turbines, according to a map compiled by the County Planning Department. Those properties include Luken's Island Timber, Weyerhaeuser Co., Open Grounds Farm, N.C. Coastal Federation, United States of America and more.

N.C. State University was selected by the National Science Foundation to lead a $28.5 million research initiative to transform the nation's century-old power transmission system into a "smart grid" network that will be able to store energy from solar power, wind farms and other alternative resources.

The wind turbine section of the county's draft tall structures ordinance is going back to the planning department for changes in setbacks for utility scale turbines, waivers and more after a thorough reading Thursday night by the County Planning Commission. The issue garnered mixed feelings from the public during the planning commission's special meeting in the boardroom of the administration building, as some supported the draft ordinance and the proposed setbacks in it while others felt their earlier comments regarding human health near wind turbines "fell on deaf ears."