A group of environmental organizations and opponents of wind energy projects say they likely will file suit if the federal government approves the proposed Nantucket Sound wind farm. A 60-day notice of violations of the Endangered Species Act was sent this week to Massachusetts Secretary of State William Galvin and to the U.S. Interior Department and other federal agencies that have reviewed Cape Wind's plan to build 130 wind turbines in the sound.

Cape Wind critics threw up an eleventh-hour roadblock this week, accusing two U.S. government agencies that approved portions of the proposed offshore wind energy project of violating federal laws. "We put them on notice," said Lisa Linowes, executive director of the Industrial Wind Action Group, which tracks the benefits of wind energy projects. Her group and eight others filed a 60-day notice of violations with U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar.

Public testimony on the draft habitat conservation plan for the Kaheawa Wind Power II Wind Generation Facility will be taken at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the meeting room at the Pacific Whale Foundation at the Shops at Ma'alaea. The Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and Wildlife will conduct the hearing.

Developers of a new power line in western North Dakota are spending $500,000 to make sure whooping cranes don't run into it. Minnesota Power is building the 22-mile line in Morton and Oliver counties. It's supposed to connect a new 75-megawatt wind farm to the Square Butte electric substation near Center.

The future of Nevada is tied to the future of the sage grouse because the bird lives in a lot of the same areas that are expected to be used for wind, solar and geothermal energy. And although the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decided not to add the bird to the endangered species list Friday, it acknowledges that federal protection is warranted. The agency basically said it was precluded from adding the bird to the list because species that are more threatened are being given priority.

The finding shows the government is willing to protect sage grouse but not willing to do what's necessary, said Jon Marvel, executive director of the Hailey, Idaho-based Western Watersheds Project. "None of the actions proposed to date are mandatory, and that undermines the commitment for improving conditions for sage grouse," Marvel said.

Wildlife conservationists and energy developers alike found some encouragement in Friday's announcement that the sage grouse won't be listed as a threatened or endangered species. Many agreed that such a listing would have had a chilling effect on the agriculture and minerals industries, which are the foundation of Wyoming's economy.

The iconic sage grouse that once roamed the western U.S. plains in great numbers ...will not be listed under the Endangered Species Act, but the department will put special emphasis on preserving the chicken-sized bird on lands where oil companies want to drill and wind companies want to erect their massive turbines.

The Interior Department said Friday that the greater sage grouse, a dweller of the high plains of the American West, was facing extinction but would not be designated an endangered species for now. Yet the decision in essence reverses a 2004 determination by the Bush administration that the sage grouse did not need protection, a decision that a federal court later ruled was tainted by political tampering with the Interior Department's scientific conclusions.

The U.S. Department of Energy has committed to guaranteeing a $117 million loan for a wind farm that hopes to break ground this year in the hills across from the shrimp farms near Kahuku. At 30 megawatts, the project would be the largest wind energy endeavor undertaken on O'ahu and would include an innovative battery system to help with electricity load stability.

The federal government has concluded that building two wind turbines with 120-foot-long propellers atop Turkey Point does not threaten eagles, other raptors or bats. But some birding groups that missed the opportunity to weigh in on the project when public comment was invited believe the environmental impact assessment is flawed.

A lot of Westerners are watching whether the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is about to pursue Endangered Species Act protection for the greater sage grouse. A finding is expected by week's end and the oil and gas, livestock and wind energy industries _ to name the bigger interests concerned _ all have an enormous stake in whatever the agency decides.

Joint state Senate committees passed a bill that would set a minimum distance between residences and wind turbines in an agricultural district. A couple of Kahuku residents said they were encouraged that lawmakers were listening to their testimony, but continued to be worried about a proposed buffer of 1,000 feet, which in their view is too short.

The controversial Bald Hills wind farm that catapulted the endangered parrot to fame in 2006 is under renewed scrutiny, after it was quietly granted permission to make its turbines more than 20 per cent taller. ...''This is a significant change and there's no environment effects statement. All the modelling that's been done for approvals was done on a previous arrangement,'' he said.

Idaho and the federal government have signed an agreement that offers incentive and protection for ranchers and landowners who voluntarily take conservation steps to improve the plight of the sage grouse. ...Todd Tucci, attorney for Advocates for the West, said the bigger challenge is dealing with sage grouse habitat on public land, where wind energy development, oil and natural gas drilling and cattle grazing pose thornier policy questions.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is gathering information for a review under the National Environmental Policy Act of the proposed Buckeye Wind power project in Champaign County, Ohio, and of a proposed Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) developed by EverPower Wind Holdings, Inc., to "conserve" the endangered Indiana bat.

Viennese wild animal experts are investigating after an imperial eagle was discovered cut to pieces close to wind turbines in Burgenland last weekend. ...The eagle was discovered by a hunter on Saturday.

A massive wind farm proposed for Lanai has been anticipated as a major potential source of green power for Honolulu, but it remains a controversial project on the Pineapple Isle. Castle & Cooke Resorts has proposed to erect as many as 200 wind turbines on 12,800 acres on the remote northwestern end of the island and lay an undersea cable that would send the power to Oahu. While some support a project that could be a revenue-generator for the island's biggest employer, many express deep concerns.

Large-scale renewable energy technologies are critical for Kaua‘i to achieve sustainability, but proposals to convert the abundant resources of wind and solid waste to electricity still have unresolved questions. The two technologies were not included in $1.5 billion of private capital investments recommended by the final draft of the Kaua‘i Energy Sustainability Plan that was released this past week and presented to the Kaua‘i County Council and the public.

Cities and counties across the United States have been busy the past couple years passing ordinances that allow homes, farms and businesses to install small wind energy systems, or turbines, to meet their electricity needs. Maui County could be next, thanks in part to a bill proposed Tuesday by Council Member Mike Molina, who holds the Makawao-Haiku-Paia residency seat.