RSPB Scotland put in written objections and supported Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) in giving evidence to a public local inquiry which finished this week, opposing what could be enormously harmful impacts of the proposed 14 turbine windfarm at Stacain, near Dalmally, in Argyll. RSPB Scotland believes the area is entirely inappropriate for a wind farm, and ministers should reject the application. The importance of the area for golden eagles, which are synonymous with Scotland's wild beauty, is such that it is almost certain to soon be proposed for designation as a Special Protection Area (SPA). If this goes ahead it will then be strictly protected under Scots and European law.

In a much anticipated report that could affect every Floridian's pocketbook, a consultant hired by the state says solar power could be a competitive source of electricity by 2020 in many scenarios, but it will cost considerably more than new nuclear power and natural gas, the main sources of power for present customers of Florida Power & Light. Biomass -- things like plant waste, wood chips and garbage -- will be a financially viable source in all scenarios, but wind isn't likely to be much of a factor in Florida.

More than 30 people expressed their concerns about a massive power line upgrade project proposed by Central Maine Power at Lewiston City Hall Monday night during a public hearing before Maine's Public Utilities Commission. About 70 people were present. ...Nearly all of those who spoke before Commissioners Jack Cashman, Sharon Reishus and Vendean Vafiades were apprehensive about the project, anticipating noise pollution, loss of property value and health risks.

The permitting disputes demonstrate some of the hurdles that renewable energy developers face not just in California, but nationwide, and cast a light on the difficulties policy makers face in trying to balance clean-energy development with other environmental goals. "There has to be some reconciling of two very important societal values: protection of wildlife including birds, and moving forward with some haste to get alternative energy going," said Doug Anthony, deputy director of the Santa Barbara County Planning and Development Department's Energy Division.

An internationally known bat researcher, however, says tens of thousands of bats are killed annually by wind turbines in the US. Unless researchers are monitoring a site, says Boston University professor Thomas Kunz, bat fatalities often go undetected, because their bodies are lost in the brush or eaten by scavengers. In a November 19 lecture sponsored by the Rhode Island National History Survey, Kunz, director of BU's Center for Ecology and Conservation Biology, labeled wind energy "brown," not green. He also warned that high numbers of bat fatalities may cause populations of insects to increase dramatically.

The rush to build "green energy" is dividing environmental groups, many of whom believe such projects will irreparably harm ecologically sensitive habitat. ...If millions of acres are razed for solar plants, swaths of wildlife habitat will be eliminated, putting the desert tortoise, the Mojave ground squirrel and the American badger at even greater risk, conservationists say.

The controversy surrounding wind farms will be reignited this week when the government agency charged with protecting the environment reveals plans to build up to 80 wind turbines along some of the nation's most picturesque rivers.

A planned wind project near Hanna in Carbon County has raised concerns from some about how it might affect natural and cultural resources in the area. The Medicine Bow Conservation District and the Hanna Historical Society asked Horizon Wind Energy not to harm natural or cultural resources when building its 154-turbine wind project.

Pauley's preliminary survey of experts identified four primary 'drivers' that could affect future wildlife populations. They are: expanding rural subdivisions, energy development, invasive nonnative species and climate change. ...Much of the meeting, which wrapped up Friday, highlighted ongoing research efforts to understand the potential impacts of energy development -- from fossil fuels to wind farms -- on sage grouse, songbirds, elk, mule deer and other species across the state.

The Laramie-based Biodiversity Conservation Alliance released a 50-plus page study on Friday, offering recommendations for places in the state the group deems most suitable for wind power development. The report also outlines locations that should be avoided, and the places where the group says developers must tread carefully, for environmental reasons.

The presence of the federally-endangered Indiana bat may delay plans to install wind turbines in southern Logan County, but shouldn't have an impact on Champaign County, said a wind company representative Friday. "We are aware of the bat being found and we're working closely with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources," said Michael Speerschneider with Everpower Renewables.

More than 100 Tulsans were blindsided by the news they'll lose their jobs at the start of the new year in an industry thought to be one of a few bright spots in our economy in crisis. Wind energy is a relatively new industry to this part of the country. ...The managers of the Tulsa plant would not comment on camera. But, the corporation released a written statement: "The plant closure is due to wind farm developers' difficulty in receiving financing. And due to that lack of financing developers are forced to delay upcoming projects."

That summer in Delaware, Bluewater Wind finalized its contract to build a wind farm of 70, 130-meter-tall turbines 13 miles off the coast of Delaware. After a 59 percent rate hike in state energy prices, state legislators passed House Bill 6. This consumer retail act mandated the creation of a new power plant within the state of Delaware. ...According to the [Bluewater] Web site, "There were no significant negative impacts found on fish, flora and fauna." Delaware Audubon Society Conservation Group is showcased in supporting the project, saying it's safe for birds. ...[Thomas Kunz] says there is evidence suggesting that the offshore wind turbines Bluewater proposed to build would attract bats, causing them to die.

Details of a wind farm on rugged hills southwest of Brooklyn have been made public. The 28-turbine proposal for Long Gully will be discussed at public meetings in Wellington this week before a resource consent application is lodged with the city council in mid-December. State-owned Mighty River Power would own and operate the farm and Windflow Technology, a Christchurch turbine manufacturer, would construct it.

When investor Boone Pickens put a hold on a huge wind power project in the Texas Panhandle that he had announced in the spring, he wasn't alone. A number of wind power developers and researchers say the ongoing credit crisis, together with transmission congestion in West Texas and falling natural gas prices, will slow the state's breakneck expansion of wind capacity. ...But there also is a peculiar wrinkle in wind power's finance that makes the current environment doubly challenging. "Most wind projects in the U.S. are funded by investors with an appetite for tax benefits," said David Groberg, vice president of Invenergy Wind, a Chicago-based company with 690 megawatts of wind capacity in Texas.

Wind farms could be having a radical impact on North Sea wildlife, a new study warns. ...In a paper published this month in the Journal of Marine Systems, Goran Brostrom, of the Norwegian Meteorological Institute, warns that generating power at sea threatens marine life.

The cost of offshore wind farms has continued to soar, Centrica said, leading the company to review the economics of its £4bn wind power investment programme. The spiralling costs of offshore wind threaten to derail the government's renewable energy plans, which rely heavily on offshore turbines because of the difficulty and delays in obtaining planning permission for onshore wind farms.

Babcock & Brown Ltd.'s fight to avoid becoming Australia's next victim of the credit crisis may depend on convincing bankers that it can sell assets in a market where others have failed. Babcock slumped 51 percent in Sydney trading since Nov. 6, when ABN Amro Holdings NV analyst John Heagerty said the owner of wind farms and real estate may breach loan agreements next year. ...Babcock said June 16 it was "confident'' the wind assets would be sold this year -- an assumption Heagerty said may prove too optimistic. "The sale of Babcock's wind assets is likely to be postponed further given the difficulties for the acquirers in obtaining financing,'' he said.

Wind farms are blowing land values off course, slashing property tags by up to a third in some areas and lifting others by as much $50,000 per turbine. A new study shows the presence of wind turbines significantly influence land values - but it's not all bad. The study co-incides with a new push by the Federal Government to speed up the building opf wind farms across Australia. Ballarat-based value Alan Hives said there had now been enough sales of property featuring or near wind farms to draw some conclusions of their impact on property values.