The attached two documents include the MD Public Service Commision's (PSC) proposed Siting Guidelines for wind energy facilities in MD, and a detailed critique of this draft by Dan Boone, a conservation biologist with nearly 30 years of professional experience involving wildlife biology, forest ecology, and biodiversity protection.

Denmark (population c. 5.4 million) is a leading pioneer in renewable energy. Since 1985 it has set up about 3,100 MW of wind capacity. Of this 420 MW are sited offshore (Nielsen, 2004), and more is planned for the near future (Bendtsen and Hedegaard, 2004). Over the same period many small gas- or bio-fuelled CHP plants were deployed, primarily for local district heating but also to produce electricity. Interest in solar power is also considerable.

Issued on September 1, 1998 by The Initiative Group and signed by more than 100 German University professors, the Darmstadt Manifesto On the Exploitation of Wind Energy in Germany demands the withdrawal of all direct and indirect subsidies in order to put a stop to the exploitation of wind energy.

The manifesto claims that the exploitation of wind energy promotes the type of technology which is of no significance whatever for the purpose of supplying energy, saving resources and protecting the climate. The money could be put to far more effective use in increasing the efficiency of power stations, in ensuring effective energy consumption and in funding scientific research into fundamental principles in the field of energy.

The Darmstadt Manifesto is directed in particular at politicians, environmental organisations and the media.

E.ON Netz GmbH manages 7600 megawatts of wind generation in Germany, representing 41% of the installed capacity for wind in the country. According to this report, wind operated at 18% capacity on average, with the lowest generation of 8 megawatts occurring in May 2005.

This document includes discovery questions and responses between Windaction.org and Deerfield Wind.

The Department of the Interior's Inspector General conducted a review of BLM's management of land leased for solar and wind projects. The findings of the IG highlighted significant failures of the Bureau related to poor monitoring of projects. Nationally, BLM has more than 30,000 acres currently under wind ROW and more than 31,000 acres under solar ROW. In addition, BLM has identified almost 21 million acres of public lands with wind energy development potential, and more than 20 million acres that have the potential for solar energy development.

Q. Please state your name and position.

A. My name is Charles Simmons and I have been retained to provide assistance to Highland Citizens in regard to the application of Highland New Wind Development, LLC to construct a wind generation facility in Highland County.

Editor's Note:This testimony provides an excellent description of how a grid works- particularly the role of 'economic dispatch' and 'spinning reserves'. It also addresses the methodology for estimating emissions savings and numerous other topics of interest.

Jon Boone is a intervenor in a Maryland Public Service Commission windpower case (No. 9008). On September 16, 2005, he formally submitted his direct testimony in this case. His testimony and attachments cover the gamut of issues surrounding the wind industry.

The main reason given for imposing wind turbines upon us is that they displace fossil fuel carbon dioxide (CO2) emission. The BWEA claims that wind generation displaces 0.86 tonne CO2 per megawatt-hour (MWh) of coal-fired CO2 emission. This is deliberately misleading. The true figure is the displacement of emission from the average of "coal-fired + gas-fired" generation. It is 0.58 t CO2 per MWh.* These two figures are absolute maxima as they are not corrected for the emission of CO2 by the reserve generation necessary to back up intermittence of wind. This is now accepted as at least 0.3 to 0.5 times the installed wind generating capacity.