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Jack Kenworthy, head of the company that wants to bring another major wind project to the Northeast Kingdom, once again promised to abide by the wishes of voters in Brighton, Ferdinand and Newark.
Game Commission withdraws its proposal to extend protections to some bat species
October 6, 2012 by Shannon M. Nass in Post Gazette
October 6, 2012 by Shannon M. Nass in Post Gazette
In January, the wildlife service updated its bat mortality estimate, claiming that at least 5.7 million to 6.7 million bats have been lost to white nose syndrome, prompting agency director Daniel Ashe to call it an "unprecedented wildlife crisis."
"The problem I have with wind in particular is it's being done wrong in this state. You don't rape a pristine environment in exchange for intermittent power that has to be subsidized by the taxpayer to be built and by the ratepayer in order to be maintained," said Sen. Joe Benning, R-Caledonia County.
State advocate poised to support town in wind case
October 4, 2012 by Candace Page in Burlington Free Press
October 4, 2012 by Candace Page in Burlington Free Press
Public Service Department Commissioner Elizabeth Miller, whose department represents the public in cases before the Public Service Board, said she expects to deliver on Gov. Peter Shumlin's promise to support towns that vote not to allow wind turbines within their borders.
Environmental commissioner blasts Ontario's avian mitigation efforts
October 3, 2012 in North American Windpower
October 3, 2012 in North American Windpower
Miller says there are "significant shortcomings" in Ontario's current siting guidelines that put birds and bats at risk. He notes that approximately 75% of documented bat fatalities at wind turbines in North America are migratory bats, yet the provincial guidelines lack any criteria for identifying and avoiding bat migratory stopover areas during the selection of wind power sites.
Also filed under [
Impact on Wildlife|
Canada]
State advocate poised to support town in wind case
October 2, 2012 by Candace Page in Burlington Free Press
October 2, 2012 by Candace Page in Burlington Free Press
The state Public Service Department is poised to oppose a developer's first step toward constructing a wind energy project in the town of Newark after townspeople voted overwhelmingly against accepting turbines in their community.
Also filed under [
Energy Policy|
Vermont]
Gord Miller’s report said no new wind farms should be constructed in the province’s 70 designated Important Bird Areas (IBA). One of those IBAs is located on the south shore of the County.
Miller said there are two areas in which the government needs to improve guidelines to enhance protection for both birds and bats.
Green Mountain Power is putting up a number of turbines that will generate power to thousands of homes on Lowell Mountain in Vermont.
It's a project Lieutenant Governor Phil Scott supported, but was taken back by it during a recent bike trip. ...Now he wants the state to put a two-year moratorium on any new projects.
By a vote of 94 to 6, Hubbardton residents voted against the article on industrial wind, a measure by town officials to strenghen its position against the construction of industrial and commercial wind turbines on the ridgelines east of the town.
"Indiana bats are beginning to slip away from us," said Mollie Matteson, a bat specialist with the Center for Biological Diversity, which this spring petitioned the White House for national action on the disease outbreak. "At this point, every remaining Indiana bat is a precious survivor.
In Newark, industrial wind critics welcome Shumlin's support
September 28, 2012 by John Dillon in Vermont Public Radio
September 28, 2012 by John Dillon in Vermont Public Radio
Governor Peter Shumlin is on record as saying he won't support a wind development if a town votes against it.
That's what happened recently in Newark, when voters overwhelmingly approved changes to the town plan to ban ridgeline wind projects.
Wind power becomes issue in Lt. Governor race
September 21, 2012 by Bob Kinzel in Vermont Public Radio
September 21, 2012 by Bob Kinzel in Vermont Public Radio
The future of wind power in the state has become a key issue in the race for Lt. Governor.
Incumbent Republican Phil Scott supports a two year moratorium on all major wind developments in order to study the environmental impact of these projects.
On the heels of Windham officials' contention that large-scale wind is "expressly forbidden" by the town plan and in zoning bylaws, Atlantic Wind LLC this week sent a rebuttal to the Vermont Public Service Board.
The letter takes issue with Windham's ban, questions its role in the permitting process and also argues that the test towers would not burden or damage the town or the environment.
The vote was 169 to 59 in favor of the resolution, the town plan was amended to identify specific ridgelines, highlands, and bodies of water as having particular scenic, wildlife, and recreational value. The plan asserts that large-scale industrial and commercial development is inappropriate in the town. The plan states that no commercial or industrial development should take place at elevations greater than 1700 feet. The plan states that no commercial or industrial structures should exceed 125 feet in height.
Wind farm proponent hears environmental fears
September 20, 2012 by Lauren Day and Charlie McKillop in ABC News
September 20, 2012 by Lauren Day and Charlie McKillop in ABC News
Dozens of residents who turned out to yesterday's meeting about plans to build far north Queensland's biggest wind farm say their questions remain unanswered.
RATCH Australia, with partner Port Bajool, wants approval for the Mount Emerald Wind Farm, which includes more than 75 turbines near Walkamin on the Atherton Tablelands.
Tortoises manhandled for solar in Mojave roils environmentalists
September 20, 2012 by Ken Wells in Bloomberg News
September 20, 2012 by Ken Wells in Bloomberg News
The Bureau of Land Management estimated the project would kill or dislocate about 38 tortoises. Construction had barely begun two years ago, though, when so many tortoises turned up that work was halted for a reassessment. By the end of June, the count was 144, 67 of them juveniles. The BLM found that many more could be uprooted or harmed as the project proceeds.
Amid statewide debate, Newark revises plan to block industrial wind
September 20, 2012 by Kirk Carapezza in Vermont Public Radio
September 20, 2012 by Kirk Carapezza in Vermont Public Radio
The town of Newark has amended its town plan to make clear that it does not support industrial wind development.
During a special town meeting on Monday, voters approved an advisory resolution 169-to-59.
Newark residents amend town plan to oppose wind
September 18, 2012 by Ash Nixon in Caledonian Record
September 18, 2012 by Ash Nixon in Caledonian Record
A large turnout of residents at a special town meeting Monday swiftly gave a message to the developers of a hoped-for wind project here: by a nearly 3-to-1 margin, the voters amended the town plan, stating the majority of residents do not want to play host to an industrial-scale wind turbine installation.
Also filed under [
Zoning/Planning|
Vermont]
Turbine developers moving forward, for now, after town says no
September 18, 2012 by Joel Banner Baird in Burlington Free Press
September 18, 2012 by Joel Banner Baird in Burlington Free Press
A special vote Monday night in the town of Newark delivered an unambiguous message to developers: Commercial-scale wind projects are unwelcome on those Northeast Kingdom ridgelines.
Seismic surveys could be disorientating the whales and driving them to their deaths on the beaches of Fife and Angus, Scotland, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society said.
A number of vessels have been carrying out the high-tech scans in the Firth of Forth and North Sea in recent weeks.
Seventeen pilot whales died after a mass beaching in the East Neuk of Fife earlier this month.
Also filed under [
Impact on Wildlife|
UK]