Cape Wind Associates LLC faces yet another hurdle in its eight-year quest to build a wind farm in Nantucket Sound. A decision on whether to list Nantucket Sound on the National Register of Historic Places is now in the hands of the National Park Service. A ruling to list the Sound would not automatically kill Cape Wind's proposed wind farm, but it could lead to delays in the project's construction, as the project would be forced to meet new requirements.

Despite significant opposition in Western Massachusetts, state environmental affairs secretary Ian Bowles is pushing hard to get a controversial wind-turbine law passed before the legislative session ends on Nov. 18. The bill could benefit a wind-energy firm, recently relocated to Boston, whose chief executive helped co-author the proposed law and whose financial backers have close ties to the Obama administration.

Harvard inked a deal yesterday to purchase 10 percent of annual electricity consumed on its Cambridge and Allston campuses from a leading wind provider in New England. This agreement, in which Harvard will acquire over 30 million kilowatt-hours of renewable energy, slates the University to become the largest institutional buyer of wind power in the region, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. ...Harvard will purchase 50 percent of the energy produced from First Wind's soon-to-be constructed wind farm in northern Maine for the next 15 years.

A company that builds upscale vacation condos has brought at least a temporary halt to the Brodie Mountain wind turbine project in the Berkshires, in which the town has a 6 percent stake. Texas-based Silverleaf Resorts was recently granted an injunction in connection with a lawsuit it filed two years ago, alleging that a permit for an access road to the project had expired.

U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said his department will "hopefully" decide by the end of the year whether to approve plans for what may be the nation's first offshore wind farm along the coast of Massachusetts. The Interior Department is working toward an "expeditious conclusion" of the approvals needed for Cape Wind in Nantucket Sound, Salazar said today. "We'll have a final decision to be made hopefully by the end of this year," he said.

Two weeks ago, Patriot Renewables LLC told the Savoy Selectmen that it intends to build an eight-turbine wind farm in the mountain town. On Tuesday, the company set its sights on Adams as well. Todd Presson, chief operating officer of Patriot Renewables of Quincy, met with Town Administrator Jonathan Butler to inform him that the company is in the "very entry level" stages of expanding the project across the border into Adams.

Consultants working for Silverleaf Resorts said Wednesday that the $46 million Berkshire Wind Project in construction on top of Brodie Mountain threatens the potential for their $62 million time-share condominium project in development at the base of the mountain. Silverleaf is calling on Berkshire Wind to relocate three of its 10 turbines that are within 150 feet of the Snowy Owl Resort condo project's property line, said Chris Hodgkins, a consultant for Silverleaf and a former state representative for southern Berkshire County.

Two weeks ago, Patriot Renewables LLC told the Savoy Selectmen that it intended to put an eight-turbine wind farm in the mountain town, and on Tuesday they set their sights on Adams as well. Todd Presson, chief operating officer of Patriot Renewables, met with Adams Town Administrator Jonathan Butler to inform him that the company is in the "very entry level" stages of expanding the project across the border into Adams. "The site, as envisioned right now, will consist of 16 turbines," Butler said "I believe the breakdown is six in Savoy and 10 in Adams.

Former state Rep. Mark Howland, owner of a Freetown-based wind turbine company that was shut down for misleading consumers, has failed to pay nearly $500,000 in restitution to the state Attorney General's Office. A consent agreement reached last October set a deadline of Oct. 9, 2009, for Howland of WindTech-Co. to pay $488,000 in restitution. Howland notified the agency on Oct. 8 that he would not be making the payment, said Attorney General's Office spokeswoman Jill Butterworth.

Businessman Michael Bedard isn't just blowing hot air about wind turbines. ...Bedard plans to head before the park commission again in December with updated plans for building a wind turbine in North Attleboro. He did not want to go into specifics about the plans until after giving the presentation.

Construction on Berkshire Wind's $46 million wind turbine project atop Brodie Mountain has been halted indefinitely because of a dispute over its access road. Silverleaf Resorts Inc., which plans a $42 million vacation condominium project at the foot of Brodie Mountain, contends Berkshire Wind's 2004 road permit had expired because it took more than a year -- the life of the permit -- for "substantial construction" to begin, according to the injunction order issued last week by the Massachusetts Land Court in Boston.

Construction of 10 wind turbines along Brodie Mountain has stopped after Massachusetts Land Court issued a temporary injunction against Berkshire Wind Power Cooperative Corp. late last week. The injunction, obtained by abutter Silverleaf Resorts Inc. as part of a pending lawsuit, prevents Berkshire Wind from using part of a road that crosses private property in Lanesborough leading up to the site of the project. Tyler Fairbank, chief executive officer of EOS Ventures, Berkshire Wind's communications and public relations firm, said Tuesday that the injunction is temporary while a Land Court judge reviews a suit filed by Silverleaf about the validity of a special permit for the access road.

The Massachusetts National Guard took a giant leap toward generating its future electricity needs through wind this week with about half of its proposed turbines approved by the Federal Aviation Administration without restrictions. The FAA approved eight of 17 sites at the Upper Cape military base on Thursday, saying they pose no adverse effects to aviation.

The discovery of wetlands on the Chase Road site where two wind turbines are proposed means the project has to be temporarily placed on hold, proponents said Monday night. Word came the same night that an estimated 75 opponents came out in protest of the $9.5 million project, targeted for the 137-acre Chase Road site.

Starting on Monday, travelers in northern Berkshire County will be sharing the road with giant pieces of 10 wind turbines that will be transported to Brodie Mountain for the construction of the $46 million Berkshire Wind Project. Transporting the wind turbine parts is expected to take three weeks. ...Connection to the grid and the start-up of power generation is anticipated to take place in the spring.

Trucks carrying wind turbine components bound for the ridge line of Brodie Mountain will join traffic along Routes 43, 7 and Brodie Mountain Road beginning next week. Acting as spokeswoman for the Berkshire Wind Project, Betsy Strickler of EOS Ventures -- a renewable energy company, said Thursday project equipment will begin moving on Monday from Stephentown, N.Y.

A question of jurisdiction from the Old King's Highway committee has halted preparation work for Cape Cod Community College's 380-foot wind turbine project. The Barnstable Old King's Highway Historic District Committee believes the project requires a certificate of appropriateness in order to proceed. The entire college campus falls within the historic district, which extends from Route 6 northward. ...In an e-mail, college director of communications Michael Gross confirmed that the project is stopped.

Although the public hearing was the fifth and last in the comment phase of the state's process, state officials said they would plan to come back for further less formal discussions with Islanders. The public comment period for the draft plan ends November 23. "We would like to say to the governor, yes we can, but it's ‘we' - you have to come and talk to us," Dukes County manager Russell Smith said.

The Air Force has scrapped a ribbon-cutting ceremony scheduled to celebrate its new 1.5-megawatt wind turbine while it waits for essential parts sitting in a New York port, a spokesman said yesterday. ...It's unclear when the Air Force will be able to move the parts to Massachusetts, he said, so the celebration and turbine are on hold indefinitely.