The state Public Service Commission rejects four appeals against a proposed wind farm in Greenbrier County. The Chicago-based company hopes to start construction this year on a the 300 (m) million-dollar project. Invenergy plans to build the 124-turbine Beech Ridge Energy wind farm in northern Greenbrier County.

Shenandoah Mountain is fit with high-quality breezes and a location near population centers, a necessary combination for wind farms such as the one being sought by a West Virginia firm, a wind expert said. ...Politicians will have their say, too, if the local project moves forward. Del. Todd Gil-bert, R-Woodstock, said his office would be making inquiries soon, but that more knowledge of wind energy is needed before he can form an opinion on it. "I'm one of the biggest proponents for trying to get off the dependence on oil," he said, "but the fact of the matter is, the most cost-efficient energy sources we have are traditional ones, not alternative ones."

A challenged $300 million wind farm proposed for a site in Grant County is a public utility immune from any lawsuit seeking to stop its construction, state Supreme Court Justice Brent Benjamin said. Benjamin disagreed with a majority opinion filed by the court to allow a lawsuit filed by a group of homeowners to proceed. The wind farm is to include 200 turbines spread over 10 miles. The Supreme Court's 4-1 decision overruled a Grant Circuit Court judge's dismissal of the lawsuit.

A recommendation on a proposed ordinance that could regulate the development of windmills along East River Mountain has been delayed until June. The Tazewell County Planning Commission delayed action on the proposed mountain ridgeline ordinance Thursday ...The planning commission is mulling over changes recommended by a tall structures steering committee.

Gov. Joe Manchin proposed legislation for the special session that would temporarily bar siting new wind farms near airports.

While representatives of U.S. Wind Force were asking the Mineral County Board of Education Tuesday for their endorsement of the proposed Pinnacle Wind Farm, a member of the Allegheny Front Alliance asked them to think very, very carefully before they make any decision.

The Grant County Board of Education has once again reaffirmed its support for a controversial mountaintop wind power project. BOE members recently agreed to submit a legal document in defense of the project, which is being challenged in court by some of its detractors. Known as a “brief,” the document will be filed with the state Public Service Commission and Supreme Court of Appeals. The brief was approved on a 5-0 vote during the BOE’s recent meeting at the Union Educational Complex. Action came after a presentation by Dennis DiBenedetto, prosecuting attorney. DiBenedetto told board members the brief won’t cost them anything and will largely restate arguments in favor of the project already made by the BOE. Some of these arguments include a welcome for $45 million in tax revenues to be gained over the project’s lifespan.

The debate over proposed windmills being placed in Randolph and Barbour counties came to the Elkins City Council meeting Thursday night. Although a proposed ordinance to express council's opposition to the AES' Laurel Mountain windmill farm project was on the agenda, council took no action. The resolution was not prepared for council to take a vote and a debate started within the crowd following a informational presentation by West Virginia Green Energy Alliance representative Joel Martin. "There has been a fairly focused campaign to distribute information that is not accurate," Martin said. "The project will not lead to a disaster on the mountains." ...Beckwith also asked Martin what affects the windmills would have on the ecology and environment. "I cannot guarantee that there will be no destruction," Martin responded.

Wind farming or strip mining? Which energy extraction method should be used on Coal River Mountain? Residents of Clear Fork, Marsh Fork and other Raleigh County areas, with the support of environmental and community organizations such as Coal River Mountain Watch, the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition, Appalachian Voices and the Sierra Club, asked the Raleigh County Commission Tuesday to support a proposed wind farm, which they say offers more long-term economic, social and environmental benefits to the county.

The Mineral County Commission moved Tuesday to go on record in support of the proposed Pinnacle Wind Farm. The support, however, is not unanimous. After going into executive session to discuss "legal matters," which they later said related to the proposed contract in which WindForce will agree to commit itself to a "floor" for tax revenue to be generated by the project, two of the commissioners said they felt it was time for the county to commit to a position.

Despite an ongoing court challenge, developers expect to connect the NedPower Mount Storm wind farm to the state's power grid by this fall. NedPower's Dave Myers says turbines will begin producing power as they're hooked up one at a time come October. Right now, he says, developers are putting up 300-foot towers, installing equipment and doing other work on 82 turbines. Shipments of the turbine's 150-foot blades are expected to begin soon.

Citing 14 months of review by the Allegany County Planning and Zoning Commission and four months of their own scrutiny, the county's commissioners voted quickly and unanimously Thursday to make more restrictive the rules for developing industrial wind turbines. The emergency changes to Code Home Rule Bill No. 2-09 diminish the possibility that US WindForce will construct a wind farm atop the northeastern end of Dan's Mountain.

"Wind energy is something that is on the horizon," remarked Bland County Administrator Jonathan D. Sweet. "With technology constantly changing, we have to look at our zoning ordinance to address that." According to Sweet, the Bland County Board of Supervisors and the Economic Development Authority took a recent field trip to Grant County, W.Va., to see wind turbines in action. The Bland County Planning Commission will follow suit.

A key factor in any decision the commissioners might make regarding the proposed amendments to the county zoning code could involve the recently adopted LaVale Region Comprehensive Plan. The proposed changes would impact any future industrial wind energy venture, Stakem noted, but only the Dan’s Mountain project has open permits with county government. Lewis said last week, and Stakem reiterated Monday, that the LaVale planning area does not permit industrial wind turbines.

Allegany County staff on Tuesday rejected half a dozen suggestions or critiques by US Wind Force regarding proposed amendments to the county zoning code. US Wind Force President Tom Matthews has said the loss of any more turbines to the planned Dan's Mountain project would eliminate the project from being a viable one.

The state Public Service Commission acted properly when it approved a proposal to build 124 giant wind-power turbines along 23 miles of Greenbrier County ridges, the state Supreme Court ruled Monday. Justices issued a unanimous, unsigned opinion that turned down challenges of the PSC decision filed by opponents of the $300 million Beech Ridge Energy LLC project. "We believe that the commission did not ignore or revise its rules, nor did the commission improperly interpret an unambiguous regulation," the court said in its 39-page ruling.

The Public Service Commission’s Aug. 28 ruling permitting 124 industrial wind turbines in Greenbrier County drew a quick response from MCRE (Mountain Communities for Responsible Energy). MCRE spokesman Dave Buhrman said, “We concur with wind opponent Jon Boone who states, ‘Industrial wind is a distraction issue—distracting from the heavy lifting required for meaningful change in our energy practices.’”

Elkins City Council has set a special call meeting for 4 p.m. Thursday with plans of passing a resolution opposing the Laurel Mountain Wind Farm project proposed by AES. City officials said Tuesday that after checking with the West Virginia Ethics Commission, no public comment period will be required for the meeting. A resolution was on council’s March 4 agenda. However, that document was not prepared in time for a vote. During that meeting, West Virginia Green Energy Alliance representative Joel Martin gave an informational presentation which sparked more than two hours of discussion between his group and those opposed to the wind project.

Thursday evening, Elkins City Council formally voted against a proposed 125-Megawatt wind farm that would stretch across Laurel Mountain though Barbour and Randolph Counties. The vote will not play a direct role in determining the fate of the project. The West Virginia state Public Service Commission will have the final say on the issue, which will not be voted on for several months. None of the proposed wind turbines would be constructed in Elkins city limits. Residents attending Thursdays meeting say they support the council's opposition to the project.

Property values were at the center of a court case that pits homeowners against a planned $300 million wind farm in West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle that one lawyer labeled a "brothel on top of the hill." The state Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in a case that pits a group of property owners against NedPower Mount Storm LLC and its owner, Shell Windenergy Inc. The companies want to build a 10 1/2-mile string of 200 wind turbines along a ridge top in Grant County. Residents claim the project would severely damage the value of their property. The companies argue the 330-foot-tall turbines will not only bring economic gain to the area, but the homeowners' concerns have already been dismissed by the state Public Service Commission.