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/opinions/24185 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:43:11 GMT Testimony from Ohio Power Siting Board staffer Stuart Siegfried on Wednesday in Columbus left no doubt that Champaign County is a lost little dog in the state's fledgling process to begin certifying industrial scale wind utilities in Ohio. Siegfried showed a disturbing lack of understanding of OPSB's own process with regard to determining whether to certify Buckeye Wind's application to site 70 wind turbines of up to 492 feet in height on Champaign County's east side. http://www.windaction.org/opinions/24185 http://www.windaction.org/news/24184 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:05:15 GMT Wind developer Ecogen has filed another lawsuit against a local municipality in an attempt to erect electricity-producing wind turbines. The lawsuit was recently filed in state Supreme Court in Rochester against the Prattsburgh Town Board and other town officials. It is similar to legal action the company is taking against the town of Italy in Yates County, which has refused to grant Ecogen permission to build wind turbines there. http://www.windaction.org/news/24184 http://www.windaction.org/news/24183 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:49:20 GMT A year after the collapse of the equity financing market for large wind farms, state leaders and private developers are eyeing community-scale projects as an opportunity to grow the number of turbines in the state. But while communities may be good candidates for wind projects - with a strong, steady demand for electricity and the ability to raise taxes as collateral - just who will ultimately back these developments is still an unknown. http://www.windaction.org/news/24183 http://www.windaction.org/news/24182 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:46:35 GMT Bruce County is calling on the province to study the health effects of wind turbines. "The province has stated that they are not going to do a health study. We're going to encourage them with a letter hoping that they will do an independent study for the health concerns that are out there now and possibly down the road," said Huron-Kinloss Mayor Mitch Twolan. http://www.windaction.org/news/24182 http://www.windaction.org/news/24181 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:41:20 GMT A wind energy development company has sued a second town board in an attempt to force through a large wind farm without the approval of local elected leaders. Ecogen Wind LLC filed a lawsuit Monday against the town of Prattsburgh, Steuben County, claiming town leaders have improperly thrown roadblocks infront of the wind farm. The company brought a similar legal action this month against the neighboring town of Italy in Yates County. http://www.windaction.org/news/24181 http://www.windaction.org/news/24180 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:31:11 GMT The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission announced Thursday that it has approved a $161 million loan to the company building the Montana Alberta Tie Line between Great Falls and Lethbridge. The Western Area Power Administration will loan Toronto-based Tonbridge Power Inc. - the project's developer - money with funds from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009, also known as the federal stimulus bill. http://www.windaction.org/news/24180 http://www.windaction.org/news/24179 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:11:11 GMT Debate about the development of wind power within the town of Sackville has been widespread in the last two months, as the introduction of bylaws by the planning commission were tabled before the town council. The by-laws cover both turbines for individual use, and wind farms, with a generation capacity exceeding three megawatts. At the council meeting on November 9, the by-laws passed by a vote of 4-3. http://www.windaction.org/news/24179 http://www.windaction.org/documents/24178 Fri, 11 Sep 2009 18:03:26 GMT Ben Hoen, Dr. Ryan Wiser, and others conducted a national study to determine the impact of industrial-scale wind turbines on nearby property values. The preliminary conclusions of the report were announced in 2007, however, no report has been released. Windaction.org had an opportunity to review the study's methodology and provide comments to Hoen and Wiser. Our comments can be accessed by downloading the file at the bottom of this page. http://www.windaction.org/documents/24178 http://www.windaction.org/news/24177 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:01:37 GMT Folks living in Dixmont voted Thursday night on an ordinance that would regulate wind power development in their town. The issue arose when a company began looking into the prospect of placing ten wind turbines along Mount Harris in Dixmont. For the past nine months the local planning board has been researching the effects of such projects on residents living nearby. http://www.windaction.org/news/24177 http://www.windaction.org/faqs/24176 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:38:28 GMT http://www.windaction.org/faqs/24176 http://www.windaction.org/news/24175 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:27:10 GMT Though a final decision has yet to be made, the Blaine County Commission made it clear this week that it does not favor allowing wind energy facilities in the "scenic corridor," the area visible from state Highway 75. It's the biggest issue the commission faces while continuing deliberations on a proposed ordinance regulating wind energy facilities. The meeting Tuesday at the Old County Courthouse in Hailey was the fifth public hearing on the issue and another, possibly the last, is set for Tuesday, Nov. 24, at 2 p.m. http://www.windaction.org/news/24175 http://www.windaction.org/news/24174 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 06:21:30 GMT Two years ago, a company started looking into the potential for placing wind turbines along Mt. Harris in Dixmont. Since then, local residents have been talking about what that could mean for them-- and Thursday, the issue comes to a vote. Mt. Harris Wind had plans to build about ten turbines along this ridge in Dixmont, says project partner Andrew Price. http://www.windaction.org/news/24174 http://www.windaction.org/news/24173 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 04:39:28 GMT The Westport Alternative Energy Committee (AEC) has decided to hire an engineering consultant to conduct preliminary assessments of two parcels of town-owned land to determine if they would be suitable locations for a municipal wind turbine project. The AEC voted unanimously Thursday to ask Atlantic Design Engineers of Sandwich to look at two specific sites ...to gauge whether or not they would be suitable for a commercial-sized turbine installation. http://www.windaction.org/news/24173 http://www.windaction.org/news/24172 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:37:39 GMT Two large masts have been cut down and a wind speed recorder stolen from the Flimby Hall Farm wind farm site. The masts were cut down last week, according to Maryport police. Samantha Crosby, West Energy's project manager for the Flimby site, said that the company believed the act was vandalism rather than a protest. http://www.windaction.org/news/24172 http://www.windaction.org/news/24171 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:01:20 GMT After two months of talks, National Grid Plc said Wednesday it still has not agreed on a contract to purchase electricity from the first of Deepwater Wind LLC's two proposed offshore wind farms. Although it was the second time in recent weeks the state's dominant utility rejected an offer from Hoboken, N.J.-based Deepwater, an executive with the company said the filing with the R.I. Public Utilities Commission (PUC) may not stop the project from moving forward. http://www.windaction.org/news/24171 http://www.windaction.org/news/24170 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:25:18 GMT Despite contentious debate last week over whether the town should open itself up to wind energy proposals at all, council decided in the end it was best to put the needed regulations in place instead of leaving the town without a strategy to guide a sector that is fast developing around the world. Coun. Margaret Tusz-King said the new wind power regulations, which were approved as part of Sackville's new zoning bylaw last Monday night, include "stringent limitations on how and where turbines will be erected." http://www.windaction.org/news/24170 http://www.windaction.org/news/24169 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:22:00 GMT In an interview Wednesday, Huron County Commissioner Kurt Damrow said Monday's public hearing is the last chance for local units of government, including townships that have control of their zoning and have a wind turbine ordinance, to speak to the State of Michigan in regard to maintaining local control over setback requirements and noise limitations for wind developments. "What's on the line is whether local units of government will have a say in zoning, specifically (regarding) setbacks and noise," Damrow said. http://www.windaction.org/news/24169 http://www.windaction.org/news/24168 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:04:12 GMT An Ohio Power Siting Board staff member admitted under cross examination Wednesday that the board has no obligation to consider the concerns of the public or intervenors in the Buckeye Wind case. Stuart Siegfried, of the Efficiency and Renewables Division of the Department of Energy and Environment, testified that he was responsible for compiling and editing the OPSB staff report on the project that was issued Oct. 13, in compliance with the deadline to do so 15 days before the public hearing at Triad that was held Oct. 28. http://www.windaction.org/news/24168 http://www.windaction.org/news/24167 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 19:47:02 GMT Gov. Ted Kulongoski ordered a hurry-up review Tuesday of Oregon's incentives for renewable energy companies in the face of ongoing criticism of the tax breaks. ...The governor's request comes on the heels of an investigation by The Oregonian that revealed state officials downplayed the estimated cost of the incentives before they were expanded by the 2007 Legislature at Kulongoski's urging. http://www.windaction.org/news/24167 http://www.windaction.org/opinions/24166 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:13:25 GMT The recent acknowledgment by the National Geographic Society that the Berkshires are one of the earth's 10 greatest tourist destinations (Berkshire Eagle Nov. 19) is a significant distinction. It highlights that our primary attraction is an intact natural landscape. ...Today the commonwealth's secretary of energy and environmental affairs has authored proposed legislation which has the potential of seeing over 700 wind turbines built on the Berkshire's commanding ridgelines. http://www.windaction.org/opinions/24166 http://www.windaction.org/news/24165 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:03:47 GMT Arran-Elderslie has passed a new noise control bylaw. The bylaw will prohibit and regulate excessive noise and associated vibration, said chief administrative officer/clerk A. P. Crawford. There is no enforceable noise control bylaw in the municipality, she said. Three pre-amalgamation bylaws for Chesley, Tara and Paisley, now more than 10 years old "are all out of date and contain invalid references due to amendments to provincial legislation," she said. http://www.windaction.org/news/24165 http://www.windaction.org/news/24164 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:25:23 GMT Another wind farm is planned for Schuylkill County. The proposal will come up Wednesday night at a zoning meeting at the North Schuylkill High School. There is opposition from people who live near the proposed site for the giant windmills. Even from a few miles away wind farms are hard to miss. They're usually located on mountaintops. http://www.windaction.org/news/24164 http://www.windaction.org/news/24163 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:19:47 GMT The Public Service Commission conditionally approved a wind energy project in Garrett County Wednesday, the third expedited application it has moved forward. Synergics Roth Rock Wind Energy LLC and Synergics Wind Energy LLC plan to build a 20-turbine facility on Backbone Mountain, generating 50 megawatts of power. http://www.windaction.org/news/24163 http://www.windaction.org/news/24162 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:12:17 GMT Salisbury officials have only recently become aware that 10 wind turbines could be built less than a quarter-mile off Salisbury Beach if the state's draft Ocean Management Plan were adopted. A serious concern of both Salisbury Selectman Jerry Klima and Planning Board Chairman Don Egan is that after only recently seeing a map showing the turbine area less than 1,500 feet from shore ..."I never saw anything like this before that from the state," Klima said yesterday. http://www.windaction.org/news/24162 http://www.windaction.org/opinions/24161 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:07:50 GMT Thanks to the foresight and enlightened public policy of the Yorkshire Town Board, the 30 megawatt (MW) project (approximately 15 turbines) proposed in Yorkshire has blown away. Nowhere in New York state have turbines been erected prior to the enactment of a local town law. Fortunately, the Yorkshire Board did an extensive cost-benefit analysis and correctly determined the negative impacts of industrial wind turbines in residential areas far exceed the limited economic benefits to the community. http://www.windaction.org/opinions/24161 http://www.windaction.org/news/24160 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:13:14 GMT The town Planning Board asked the Town Council not to hold a public hearing next week on a proposed wind development zoning ordinance, citing missing information. ..."On initial blush through the law, it looks satisfactory," Chairman Richard J. Edsall said. "But after a more thorough examination, I saw there was an error made in the law, a section left out." http://www.windaction.org/news/24160 http://www.windaction.org/opinions/24159 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 16:09:04 GMT With yesterday's counting of absentee ballots that pushed Urban Hirschey ahead of five-term incumbent Thomas Rienbeck, the three towns where commercial wind-development policy became something of a local referendum have sent a loud and clear message to wind farm developers and their rabid supporters: wind politics is local. ...Hammond resident Brooke Stark assessed the town election and why the incumbent board was rejected in the Nov. 4 story in the Times: "They really have done a lot," she said. "But I think they got complacent and were not interested in educating the community about something they'd already made up their minds about. They wanted the wind law to go forward and that was that. People got fed up with that, and every time we felt that our voices were being shut down, it provided more impetus to get active." http://www.windaction.org/opinions/24159 http://www.windaction.org/news/24158 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:01:29 GMT Despite pressure from the governor and other state officials, National Grid has again rejected a proposal to buy clean power from a developer proposing to build a $200-million wind farm off Block Island. In a letter filed late Wednesday afternoon with state regulators, Rhode Island's largest electric utility said it would not agree to the latest offer from Deepwater Wind for power from the eight-turbine wind farm that would provide electricity to Block Island because the price is still too high. http://www.windaction.org/news/24158 http://www.windaction.org/opinions/24157 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:19:34 GMT For many of those who have organized the effort to gain maximum local control over wind energy projects in nearby state waters, the superficial argument is that Islanders should decide what affects them. In fact, the underlying motivation is the determination to block developments that will change what we see and hear when we look out from the shore. It is a not-in-our-backyard argument. And, that's exactly the right argument for Islanders to make. The calculations that must form the foundation for a decision on such things as wind energy developments on or near the shores of Dukes County are tricky and crucial. http://www.windaction.org/opinions/24157 http://www.windaction.org/news/24156 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:16:07 GMT The Selinger government is considering a bailout deal to rescue the financially floundering wind farm slated to be built near St. Joseph. Following some pointed questions from Tory MLA Cliff Graydon during a committee hearing late Tuesday night, Finance Minister Rosann Wowchuk acknowledged Pattern Energy has approached the government for funding and that the province is considering it. http://www.windaction.org/news/24156