www.windaction.org | Impact on Landscape

Wind farm neighbors voice concerns
May 19, 2013 by John Davidson in The Gadsden Times

Residents of Owls Hollow Road gathered Saturday to share their opinion on the proposed wind farm on Lookout Mountain by Austin, Texas-based Pioneer Green Energy. Their opinion was simple and to the point - not here, not now, not ever.

Also filed under [ Impact on People| Alabama]

Proposed wind turbine farm in McCain Valley met with opposition
May 7, 2013 by John Carroll in ABC TV 10 News

Boulevard Planning Group chair Donna Tisdale did not mince words. "It's immoral, unethical and in my opinion, unlawful," she said. Tisdale and the others were in front of the County Administration Building on Monday calling attention to a vote that the county supervisors will cast on Wednesday.

Also filed under [ Impact on People| California]

Lawmaker leads charge against turbines
May 3, 2013 by Katherine Wei in The China Post

"If InfraVest continues to neglect the danger its wind turbines pose to the local residents, they should get out of Taiwan," said Lin, stating that the promotion of green energy should be a common priority of the government and all societies, with an actual plan that is safe yet eco-friendly.

Also filed under [ Impact on People| Asia]

Wasatch Wind discusses impact of proposed wind farm
May 1, 2013 in San Juan Record

Representatives from Wasatch Wind discussed their proposed wind farm at an Open House held concurrently with the Monticello City Council meeting on April 23. According to Wasatch Wind representative Julie Mack, the purpose of the event was the help local residents visualize the impact of the wind farm on the Monticello area.

Also filed under [ Impact on Views| Utah]

Normandy faces new assault
May 1, 2013 by David Chazan in The Times

The plan to build a huge offshore wind farm within sight of land has upset veterans and their families and has triggered protests from environmentalists ...Seventy-five wind turbines, each almost 190m high, would be built nine to 14km out to sea. Construction is to begin in 2015, a year after the 70th anniversary of the landings.

Also filed under [ Impact on Views| Europe]

Opponents of Bowers Mountain wind site complain about effect on views
May 1, 2013 by Nick Sambides Jr. in Bangor Daily News

A scenic impact expert testifying before the state's top environmental agency on Tuesday said First Wind's proposed wind project "comes as close as being unreasonably adverse" in its potential impact on Bowers Mountain as any he has seen.

Also filed under [ Impact on Views| Maine]

Wind farm policy aims to protect rural areas
April 29, 2013 by Andrew Whitaker in The Scotsman

Proposals to protect large parts of wilderness and unspoilt land in Scotland from controversial wind farm developments will be unveiled by government ministers today. The new guidance will include maps, drawn up by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH)

Also filed under [ Impact on Views| UK]

Wildlife Embarrassing snafu at Ocotillo Express Wind Project
April 29, 2013 by Chris Clarke in ReWire

This isn't the first time that reports have surfaced of workers at the Ocotillo Express Wind site failing to hew to the highest standards of professionalism. In February, Pattern's construction manager Russell Scott Graham was arrested by Imperial County Sheriffs deputies after allegedly assaulting and threatening Parke Ewing, a local opponent of the project.

Also filed under [ Impact on People| California]

Wind Power Honeymoon Over
April 28, 2013 by Sam Shriver in Hometown Stations

While many in the area embraced the new green wind power it's "honeymoon over" for Hoaglin township trustees Wayne Kemler and Milo Schaffner. Kemler and Schaffner want Iberdrola Renewables to pick up the tab to pave 3 and a half miles of Hoaglin township roads that they say weren't properly repaired.

Also filed under [ Erosion| Ohio]

Native American Heritage Commission declares Ocotillo wind site a sacred site; asks attorney general to weigh legal action
April 26, 2013 by Miriam Raftery in East County Magazine

By a 4-0 vote, with the remaining commissioners absent, the NAHC voted to grant requests by Viejas and Quechan tribes to declare the 12,400 acre Ocotillo wind project site a sanctified Native American sacred site. Further, the commissioners voted unanimously to ask California Attorney General Kamala Harris to research if legal action can be taken.

Also filed under [ Impact on People| California]

Protesters ‘delighted' as plan for wind turbine north of Grantham rejected
April 24, 2013 in Grantham Journal

Those standing in opposition to the proposal were supported by comments from English Heritage which warned the turbine would have a "harmful effect on the setting and significance of a number of highly graded, nationally important designated heritage assets" including Belton House, Bellmount Tower, The Church of St Mary at Marston and The Church of St Peter at Foston.

Also filed under [ Impact on Views| UK]

Tribal Commission seeks enforcement action against Pattern project
April 23, 2013 in North American Windpower

The California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC) has declared the area surrounding the Ocotillo Wind Energy Facility, located in Imperial Valley, Calif., as a sacred Native American site and is seeking assistance on enforcement options from the office of the California Attorney General.

Also filed under [ Impact on People| California]

Hearing set for Antrim Wind offer
April 22, 2013 by Brandon Lawrence in Monadnock Ledger-Transcript

Town officials will hold a public hearing on Monday to decide whether or not to accept a one-time payment of $40,000 from Antrim Wind Energy for "acceptable compensation" for negative visual impacts a wind farm would have had on the town. In February, the N.H. Site Evaluation Committee voted down a proposed 10-turbine wind farm due to negative visual impacts the turbines would have had on the area and the town.

Also filed under [ Impact on Views| New Hampshire]

Renewable power's green vs. green battles continue
April 22, 2013 by Alex Guillén in The Politico

The conflicts are bound to grow as renewable projects spread, some environmental advocates say. "Certainly, there's going to be a lot more wind farms than there have been historically," ABC spokesman Bob Johns said. "And the problem is that we have seen no reason to believe that areas of conflict are being avoided - in fact, quite the opposite. They're walking right into it, leading with their chin on some of these."

Also filed under [ Energy Policy| USA]

Opponents of Searchlight wind energy project file federal lawsuit
April 21, 2013 by Thomas Mitchell in Watchdog Wire

Earlier this month, attorneys filed in U.S. District Court of Nevada what we will call for the sake of brevity Bundorf v. Salazar. (Searchlight wind suit) The suit accuses former Interior Secretary Ken Salazar of acting in "a manner that is arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, and contrary to law" when he granted permission for construction of an 87-turbine wind farm east of Searchlight on 19,000 acres of Bureau of Land Management land.

Also filed under [ Impact on Wildlife| Nevada]

Locals see red over 'green' development; Critics say renewable energy plan threatens desert
April 21, 2013 by Jim E. Winburn in Daily Press

Johnson Valley resident Betty Munson says the plan threatens "over 22 million acres of desert - from the Mexican border all the way up to Inyo County." Munson proposed an alternative: Limiting solar projects to areas already developed to prevent further industrialization of the High Desert.

Also filed under [ California]

Basin & Range Watch joins in lawsuit
April 19, 2013 in Basin and Range Watch

The 30-page complaint says that the environmental impact statement (EIS) "presents a one-sided and incomplete portrait of the proposed project and its likely adverse environmental impacts." "The Project would pose significant adverse harm to a wide array of sensitive and protected species -- including desert tortoise, bighorn sheep, golden eagles, bald eagles, and resident and migratory birds and bats -- through direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts."

Also filed under [ Impact on Wildlife| Impact on Views| Nevada]

Lawsuit filed against wind energy project near Mojave Preserve
April 19, 2013 by Chris Clarke in ReWire

Plaintiffs charge that the project, to be built by Duke Energy, would (in the words of the suit) "pose significant adverse harm to a wide array of sensitive and protected species ... including desert tortoise, golden eagles, bald eagles, and residential and migratory birds and bats... through direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts" which weren't adequately addressed.

Also filed under [ Impact on Wildlife| Nevada]

Lawsuit calls BLM's analysis of Nevada project 'one-sided and incomplete'
April 19, 2013 by Scott Streater in Greenwire

Environmentalists and three Nevada residents are suing the Interior Department over its approval of the Searchlight Wind Energy Project, arguing the wind farm would sit in an area of the Mojave Desert that would cause widespread damage to sensitive wildlife habitat.

Also filed under [ Impact on Wildlife| Nevada]

In New Ad, Vallee Hits Sanders on Wind Development
April 19, 2013 by Paul Heintz in Seven Days

The Maplefields owner and gasoline distributor has ponied up $10,000 to run a new, 30-second attack ad on WCAX-TV for a week, according to the station. In it, Vallee accuses Sanders of seeking to "industrialize our mountains with giant wind turbines." "Once we sacrifice our mountains to big corporate interests, it will change Vermont forever," the ad's narrator says.

Also filed under [ Impact on People| Vermont]