A group fighting the Shaffer Mountain Wind Farm in Somerset and Bedford counties rallied Monday in the state Capitol for more-aggressive regulation of wind-energy companies. Laura Jackson, chairwoman of Save Our Allegheny Ridges, joined concerned citizens from nine counties, including Somerset, in Harrisburg to urge legislators to pass siting regulations for turbines. No state or federal guidelines are in place regarding where turbines can be located.

... wind power has recently come under attack by groups that say it will ruin undeveloped areas and threaten wildlife. ...The opposition from citizens groups follows a statement last week by the Pennsylvania Biological Survey, which said wind turbines must be "properly sited" or they could destroy birds and bats. The nonprofit survey group didn't see wind energy development as suitable on many state-owned lands "where natural resource conservation is a major goal," especially land owned by the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

"Common sense dictates that erecting wind turbines in the path of migrating birds puts the birds at greater risk, and frankly, we are stupefied that the proponents of this project can't see that and are clinging stubbornly to their plan", Ciarlante said. Thousands of migrating raptors including American Bald Eagles, Eastern Golden Eagles and Hawks transit the Shaffer Mountain ridge every spring and fall and would be put at great risk by the whirling blades of the GAMESA wind turbines.

A Press Conference has been scheduled for 12 noon on Monday September 17, 2007 in the rotunda of the Capitol in Harrisburg to protest the statewide push by the Rendell Administration to turn hundreds of miles of Pennsylvania's forested ridge tops into industrial wind facilities. Groups from across the state will be addressing the various concerns that wind power facilities pose to Pennsylvania's wild areas, wildlife, tourism, historical resources, and viewscapes.

Opposition to the Shaffer Mountain project turns on the old Realtor's mantra of "location, location, location." The wind turbines would be built near the Bedford County line and in the watershed of Piney Run and Clear Shade Creek, two of the state's 28 exceptional value streams -- a designation reserved for creeks with the highest water quality and biological diversity. ... The project [..] also raises hard questions for environmentalists and regulators about the expected expansion of wind-power projects and the need to balance their benefits against potential environmental harm.

The Pennsylvania Biological Survey has gone to bat for the bats in a swirling policy debate over whether commercial wind power development should be permitted in state forests. The debate pits advocates of wind power as an alternative energy source against those who fear that windmills are harmful to bats and birds.

Ed Jasulevicz had a point to prove when he donated the framed photograph he shot at Meadow Run Lake to the township in May. His point? Bald eagles are here. If anyone didn't believe him, he needs only to look at the 12-by-14-inch framed picture of a bald eagle sitting on the iced lake that now hangs in the municipal office. "Oh, they're here," Jasulevicz said later. "You'll see the eagles flying around by the water. We see lots of hawks by the lake." The controversy over the bird started brewing during township meetings months earlier. Some residents disputed eagles are anywhere near the township. Other residents debated wind farms and whether the turbines would harm eagles or other birds. The Pennsylvania Game Commission is wondering the same thing. The commission is set to hire a new employee who would investigate mortality rates in birds and bats caused by wind turbines.

OGLE TOWNSHIP - Local conservation groups are working to document the health of a number of streams that face potential impact from both future wind turbine and mining projects...... Shortly after, the first of 192 fish was scooped out of the water, stunned by the electrical pulse emitted by Kagel's rig. Among the catch were 21 trout, some so small they were indicative of natural reproduction, said Reckner, the program director for the stream team. Finding that sections of Piney and Cub Run sustain the natural reproduction of trout species has led to them being classified as exceptional-value by the state.

Last month the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service removed the bald and golden eagles from the federal Endangered Species List. While eagle populations have grown in every state, we also learned last month that five species of common birds in Pennsylvania are declining at an alarming rate. According to Audubon Pennsylvania, the golden-winged warbler population has declined an astounding 98 percent since 1967, followed by the Eastern meadowlark (86 percent), wood thrush (62 percent), American bittern (59 percent) and ruffed grouse (22 percent). Three of the species depend on forest habitats, one lives in wetlands and the fifth resides in agricultural areas. Five different birds, three different habitats and they are all suffering. That's not good.

The controversy over the bird started brewing during township meetings months earlier. Some residents disputed eagles are anywhere near the township. Other residents debated wind farms and whether the turbines would harm eagles or other birds. The Pennsylvania Game Commission is wondering the same thing. The commission is set to hire a new employee who would investigate mortality rates in birds and bats caused by wind turbines. Wind turbines in some areas have caused bat mortality rates to increase, said Tim Conway, the commission's Northeast Region information and education director.

State officials expect a decision in six months on whether to allow development of commercial wind-power facilities on state forest land. The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources has been considering the idea for several years. Legislative approval is needed to allow commercial windmills in any of the 20 state forest districts which cover more than 2 million acres. If DCNR and Rendell administration officials give the idea a green light, they would need to find a state lawmaker to sponsor enabling legislation.

Using a radio transmitter the size of a shelled pea, John Chenger is studying an endangered bat population that hibernates in an abandoned rail tunnel near the Allegheny Tunnel on the state Turnpike. On April 17, he and his associates at Bat Conservation and Management of Carlisle joined with Sanders Environmental Inc. Centre Hall to tag 15 Indiana bats as the came out of hibernation. "We're trying to figure out where they go," Chenger explained. "Do they go five miles? Do they go 300 miles? It just isn't very well understood at this point."

The Pennsylvania Game Commission today signed cooperative, voluntary agreements with 12 companies to avoid, minimize and potentially mitigate any adverse impacts the development of wind energy may have on the state's wildlife resources.

Pennsylvania Game Commission Executive Director Carl G. Roe will sign cooperative, voluntary agreements with seven companies to avoid, minimize and potentially mitigate any adverse impacts the development of wind energy may have on the state's wildlife resources at a public signing ceremony at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, April 18, in the auditorium of the Game Commission's headquarters.

The survey hasn't lessened the concerns of Rick Koval, of the Fish and Boat Commission's state Timber Rattlesnake Site Assessment and Inventory. Koval said there is a historical den site a mile away and another "robust" den area five miles away. Timber rattlesnakes have a range of five miles, and Koval has seen them three miles from the site. "Will there be an impact on timber rattlesnakes? It depends. If there is a gestation or den site nearby, the answer is yes," Koval said. Surveys for birds, bats, and rare and endangered plants have been completed. The bird and bat surveys, commissioned by the Pennsylvania Game Commission, found the project would have no "biologically significant impacts" to birds, no eagles nest at the site and no federally endangered Indiana bats were located at the site. The state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources commissioned the rare and endangered plant survey, which concluded the project would not harm any of the plant species or ecological communities. Koval said the bird and bat surveys are inconclusive because there are rare or threatened species that exist nearby. He said there have not been surveys conducted of moth or invertebrate species, including several located at the site. "These wind farm projects are still new to the Eastern U.S. and there's a lot of unknowns," Koval said. "When you have seven miles of roads, transformers, power lines, tons of concrete and the turbines, there's going to be some impact. There needs to be more research during the appropriate seasons to determine how much impact."

NEW PARIS - Residents determined to stop the Shaffer Mountain Wind Farm have issued a notice of intent to file suit with federal and state agencies over environmental concerns. The notices were mailed March 2 by environmental attorney Bradley Tupi who is with Tucker/Arensburg Attorneys, Pittsburgh, and is representing several families within the project area. "We're still in the information gathering stage, but my job is to do whatever I can to protect the interests of my clients out there," Tupi said. Among their concerns is that the project, which will run along the Allegheny Front of the mountain, will impact migrating bird populations including that of the endangered Bald Eagle and Eastern Golden Eagles, he said. Another potential issue is the possible damaging of the Ethel Creek spring head, which provides high-volume, high-quality water for a local fish hatchery, he said. The move gives the residents 30 days with state agencies and 60 days with federal agencies to file suit, he said.

Two bird specialists familiar with the Pennsylvania Game Commission efforts to protect wildlife from wind turbines offered cautious support, although each found things they didn’t like. A bat specialist was more critical. Keith Bildstein, director of conservation science at the Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Berks County, likes the draft agreement that would establish rules wind-energy developers would voluntarily follow. But he would prefer that the Game Commission impose an immediate moratorium on wind farms being built on high-risk sites, meaning places where wind turbines would be most dangerous to birds and bats. “We need to begin development of wind power at low-risk areas,” Bildstein said. “Do pre-construction and post-construction monitoring. Find the problems.”

The Pennsylvania Game Commission is on track with plans to create what it believes is the nation's first voluntary cooperative agreement with wind-energy developers to protect birds and bats. Wind-energy developers and outside wildlife advocates have prepared a draft agreement that would impose rules on the fast-growing industry before irreparable damage is done to bird and bat populations, said William A. Capouillez, director of the Bureau of Wildlife Habitat Management, the Game Commission. "We have broad powers under Title 34," Capouillez said, referring to the 1987 law that authorizes and empowers the Game Commission. "I tell them: Would you rather have the voluntary agreement or Title 34? We could do zero tolerance on bird kills."

Golden eagles have ridden the winds that whip across Pennsylvania’s Appalachian ridgetops for centuries, soaring northward to breeding grounds each spring and southward to hunting grounds each fall. Up until now, the eagles have encountered relatively few obstructions during their migrations across the state. But with energy companies scrambling to erect 400-foot windmills that convert those ridgetop winds into electricity, conservationists fear hundreds of eagles could be killed by a technology widely regarded as environmentally friendly. ‘Pennsylvania’s ridge and valley province plays an important role in the development of wind power and as a migratory corridor for eastern golden eagles,'’ said Dan Brauning, supervisor of the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s wildlife diversity section. ‘’That could mean the future of this small population of eagles hinges on our ability to make responsible and informed decisions concerning the development of wind farms.'’ Wind power is the world’s fastest-growing source of electricity. And with 153 megawatts of wind generation already in place — enough to power about 70,000 homes — Pennsylvania is the top wind power state east of the Mississippi. By 2020, state projections say Pennsylvania could be home to 3,000 megawatts of wind generation, which would require about 2,000 windmills statewide. The expected onslaught of wind farm development has state wildlife and environmental officials scrambling to develop regulations that ensure damage to birds and other wildlife is kept to a minimum. Currently, wind power developers are not required to conduct any wildlife-related studies, leaving regulation of the fast-growing industry largely to local zoning officials.

Game commission wants to make sure birds won’t be harmed by new energy-producing windmills on the Appalachian ridge. Looking through 10-power binoculars from the south lookout at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary years ago, I watched a golden eagle soaring past a red-tailed hawk and a red-shouldered hawk. “Wow,” I wrote in my journal, “golden eagles are BIG.” Since then I have harbored a long-distance, at least a quarter- mile to a half-mile away, love for golden eagles. Unrequited or not, golden eagles deserve our protection, if not our love. Eastern golden eagles are a distinct geographic and genetic population, allowing the Pennsylvania Game Commission to list them as “Pennsylvania vulnerable” for conservation purposes. Their population is remaining stable or rising slightly, with partial evidence being the fall 2006 migration numbers recorded at hawk-watch sites along Appalachian ridges, going from north to south: Bake Oven Knob, 130; Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, 170; Second Mountain, 127; Waggoner’s Gap, 275; Allegheny Front, 222. (For more on the counts, see www.hawkcount.org.)