Jill Stull from Portage says her life and farm have turned upside down ever since some unwelcome neighbors moved in 2006. "We want the noise to stop. I want my husband to be able to sleep in our home," Stull said. The noise she's referring to is from the six turbines surrounding her 100-acre farm. At least once a week, Stull says she can hear and feel the turbines humming, and it's a sensation she says comes at irregular intervals.

The town wind law committee created to produce a zoning amendment to deal with wind farms added a sound measurement protocol and changed setbacks from roads during its meeting Thursday afternoon. The sound protocol came from recommendations from the acoustical engineering firm Cavanaugh Tocci Associates, Sudbury, Mass., based on a wind development zoning law written for the Association of Towns and rules for noise studies written by Cape Vincent resident Clifford P. Schneider.

Planners at Cannock Chase Council have had to fork out the cash for a report about the noise impact the three proposed turbines for Bleak House open cast mine site would have. The decision on the application for the site between Heath Hayes and Chase Terrace has now been delayed until next year because the noise consultants require more information from Harworth Power.

"Given the principles and ethics that I live by, I cannot continue to work at the township with a clear conscience. It is a conflict of interest for board members to vote on issues that they have a financial interest in, it is morally wrong to deliberately embarrass fellow board members at public meetings, and elected officials are not suppose to use the office to further their own personal agendas," Bolten's letter reads. "The voters of Lake Township have spoken, and the majority has shown their support for this type of government. I, however, cannot be a part of it." Much of the community's divisiveness stems from possible wind projects in the area.

Opponents of a proposed four-turbine wind farm in North St. Eleanors have received the support of the Medical Society of Prince Edward Island to delay the project pending a health investigation. In a letter to the city's mayor and council, long-time Summerside physician Paul Kelly made formal application to city officials that they delay the project calling for four wind turbines on the former landfill site in St. Eleanors. ..."The Medical Society of Prince Edward Island has been asked to address the issue of setback distances associated with wind turbines," he said.

Forty-six turbines are being tested at Michigan's second commercial wind park in Huron County, and towers that could bring more windmills are being installed in Tuscola and Mason counties. ...Consumers Energy officials also were to announce the start of construction today on three meteorological towers in Tuscola County and four others in Mason County, bordering Lake Michigan. The utility expects to finish construction of the 180-foot-tall "met towers" by the end of the year, officials said. In addition, Consumers Energy will refurbish two existing towers it has purchased in Mason County.

Andrew Randall lives in King's Dyke, Whittlesey, with his pregnant partner Rachel Barford and one-year-old daughter Aimee, just 100 yards from the towering machine. He said the constant noise from the turning blades is causing sleepless nights and stress for Rachel, who is four months pregnant. Mr Randall (23) said: "Rachel's stressed all the time and she can't cope with the lack of sleep. I'm concerned about the health of the baby. ..."We've got a hot tub in the back garden, but it's a waste because we can't go out there, it's just too noisy."

Construction of the 35 windmills in the second phase of what will be one of Pennsylvania's largest wind farms is completed and should be in operation before the end of the year, an official with Gamesa Energy USA said. News of the anticipated startup comes as sound experts working on behalf of Portage Township completed the study setting the level of the existing - ambient - noise at and near North Allegheny Wind Farm, which is adding nine turbines to the skyline in the Blue Knob area of the township.

Wind energy is the latest rage in going green and in shifting the United States away from fossil-based energy supplies. And more wind turbines are coming to Oregon. It is even required by law. But with giant wind turbines now looming nearby, the Eaton's fear the rapid move to clean energy will come at the expense of their health. The problem is something called "Wind Turbine Syndrome."

Wind turbines could soon be allowed to dot Holland's skyline, but there will be limits. ...Federal Aviation Administration regulations won't allow larger commercial wind turbines because of height limits near Tulip City Airport, Ottawa Executive Airport and Park Township Airport. The restriction is based on a formula that says the closer a turbine is to an airport, the lower to the ground it must be.

The winds of change may soon be coursing through Oceana County in the form of alternative energy. Voters in Elbridge Township Tuesday approved a zoning ordinance change that will permit construction of a $120 million commercial wind farm. The referendum on the wind farm passed 323-78.

Not long after the wind turbines began to spin in March near Gerry Meyer's home, his son Robert, 13, and wife, Cheryl, complained of headaches. They have trouble sleeping, and Cheryl Meyer, 55, sometimes feels a fluttering in her chest. Gerry is sometimes nauseated and hears crackling. The culprit, they say, is the whooshing sound from the five industrial wind turbines near the 6-acre spread where they have lived for 37 years.

Members of the committee formed to produce a zoning amendment to deal with wind farms want specifics. During a meeting Thursday afternoon, the committee agreed to ask the acoustical engineering firm Cavanaugh Tocci Associates, Sudbury, Mass., to evaluate the noise-measuring methods in different laws. That firm panned Hessler Associates' ambient noise study in BP Alternative Energy's draft environmental impact statement for the Cape Vincent Wind Farm. "My request would be that these documents should be sent to Cavanaugh and Tocci for their review," said Richard Macsherry, Tibbetts Point.

Paul Lehto, Calumet Township supervisor, said Wednesday the township board of trustees has been considering the possibility of establishing rules allowing the development of wind power in the township for residences and businesses. "We are developing two ordinances," Lehto said. The two ordinances would apply to small wind turbines, which would be used predominantly by residences, Lehto said, and large turbines, which would probably be used for businesses.

Imagine sections of the Great Lakes dotted with rows of gleaming, 12-story turbines, blades whirring in the stiff breeze as they generate electricity for homes and businesses onshore. It's only an idea - for now. But government regulators are bracing for an expected wave of proposals for offshore power generation in a region that never seems to run short of wind. Despite its allure as a plentiful source of clean energy, they say, offshore wind power could affect the aquatic environment and commerce.

The popularity of alternative energy will be tested Tuesday in West Michigan when voters in Oceana County's Elbridge Township decide whether to permit construction of a $120 million commercial wind farm. John Deere Wind Energy and Michigan Wind LLC of Big Rapids want to erect 30 wind turbines ...The township board in August approved a zoning ordinance change that allowed the project to proceed. But township resident Don Wierenga launched a successful petition drive to put a referendum on the issue before all township voters.

[T]here are some negatives associated with the increasingly popular form of alternative energy, according to a University of New Hampshire expert. But the cons - mainly noise and vibrations from the rotating turbines - are generally things people can live with, UNH assistant professor of geography Mary Lemcke said. In South Berwick, a 300-foot-high ridge across from Marshwood High School is being eyed as a possible location for a wind farm. A Cape Neddick-based alternative energy company is conducting a yearlong wind study there with the hopes a wind farm would be viable. For Wisconsin resident Gerry Meyer, however, the sound of five 400-foot-tall wind turbines located within three quarters of a mile of his home is simply unbearable.

Connecticut-based project developer Noble Environmental has sold both phases of its 159MW Noble Thumb wind farm to John Deere and has laid off an unspecified number of staff. The move appears to be part of a company effort to raise cash and reduce costs. New Energy Finance could not reach a current spokesperson for comment. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved the sale of the Noble Thumb project on October 14, according to a commission document. The two companies first notified FERC of their intentions on August 27.

As the government of P.E.I. prepares plans to triple wind-power generation on the Island, grassroots opposition to the developments is growing. Many of those wind turbines are planned for West Prince, the area that currently has the largest wind energy production in the province. Monday night, about two dozen West Prince residents gathered to discuss strategies for lobbying the province to take more care about where the turbines are placed.

Connecticut-based Noble Environmental Power began building a 46-turbine wind park near Ubly in July.The state's second commercial wind park has changed hands, but construction is expected to be complete by the end of the month. The company announced Monday that the park has been sold to John Deere Wind Energy ...News of Noble's troubles has been blowing across the Thumb; the company also is under investigation by the New York attorney general for bribery and other allegations.