Following action taken by the Mahanoy Township supervisors, nuisance laws, particularly in regard to dilapidated buildings, are becoming stricter. "We are amending our present ordinances to make them stricter. It is not fair to neighbors to have to live next door to these places," said Chairwoman Sharon Chiao following the meeting. She did not name specifics of the amendments. ...The supervisors agreed to approve the plans for Phase 2 of the Locust Ridge Wind Farm as soon as an agreement regarding the 12 proposed windmills is signed. Chiao said during the first phase, it took an extended amount of time and legal wrangling to come to an equitable agreement regarding the windmills. Chiao said after the meeting that during Phase 1, the township agreed to a stipend of $18,000 a year for the 12 windmills. This time they are seeking $23,000 a year for the 12 new windmills as costs continue to rise.

The owner of a 100-acre wind farm in Juniata Township, Blair County, and three townships in Cambria County has asked a judge to dismiss a civil lawsuit filed by property owners complaining of noise and vibrations from the giant turbines. Allegheny Ridge Wind Farm LLC of Philadelphia said a court ruling in favor of a husband and wife complaining about the noise could "open the judicial floodgates to any neighbor to sue a wind farm after construction based on the wind farm's mere existence."

A decision by the Fayette County commissioners to intervene in a lawsuit about a proposed wind turbine project and how the proceeds of the impending hotel tax will be distributed dominated public comment during Thursday's monthly meeting. Numerous people wearing "Fayette TNT, Trees Not Turbines" shirts spoke to the commissioners to express concern about a decision by Commissioners Vincent Zapotosky and Angela M. Zimmerlink to intervene in the case that involves appeal of denial that would have allowed construction of 18 wind-powered turbines in Georges and Springhill townships.

A Blue Knob couple is seeking unspecified monetary compensation and is asking a court to intervene to reduce noise and vibration from energy generating turbines in the Allegheny Ridge Wind Farm. A Pittsburgh attorney representing Todd and Jill Stull of Pine Springs Lane, Portage, filed a 14-page civil lawsuit in Blair County court naming Gamesa Energy USA, developers of the wind farm in Portage Township, Cambria County, and Juniata and Greenfield townships, Blair County. ...At the urging of residents, the Portage Township supervisors say they will hire a sound expert to determine whether the turbines are being operated in violation of the ordinance. Similar action already has been taken by Juniata Township officials.

The Juniata Township couple seeking relief from noisy wind turbines has taken their complaint to Blair County Court. Todd and Jill Stull, in a lawsuit filed at the courthouse, accuse Gamesa Energy USA LLC and the Allegheny Ridge Wind Farm LLC of destroying their quality of life and damaging their health. They're seeking an injunction ordering the noise to be reduced. ...The lawsuit also accuses Gamesa and the wind farm of securing permits and approvals to build on the basis that the turbines would cause no noise.

Unable to agree on an expert to gauge noise from Allegheny Ridge Wind Farm turbines, Portage Township and Juniata Township in Blair County will conduct separate studies. Portage officials said they likely will hire a company next week to conduct the sound study from their side of Blue Knob Mountain. "At this next meeting, we should have all of the information and I would hope we can come to some resolution," Supervisor Ken Trimbath said. ...Trimbath said the company doing the study must be acceptable to Babcock & Brown, owners of Allegheny Ridge. "My concern is the other way also: The results must be accepted if there is not a noise problem," Trimbath said.

Wind energy is part of the state government's initiative to promote renewable resources. ...However, not everyone sees wind energy as the solution. ...The construction of wind farms, however, can be expensive, and they must be refurbished or decommissioned after 15 to 25 years, according to wind experts. Companies that build them rely heavily on substantial federal tax credits. In addition, area power companies are offering customers the option to voluntarily pay higher energy bills to promote wind energy. Because of all the complications, not all plans come to fruition, including a proposal to build 25 turbines in Cross Creek Township that developers recently scrapped.

Eric Glitzenstein, a Washington, D.C., attorney who is preparing the lawsuit, referred to the Endangered Species Act. "The courts view the unauthorized loss of even a single member of such a species to be an irreparable harm that should be prevented," he wrote in an e-mail. The letter of intent is required by the Endangered Species Act, he said. The groups have yet to decide where the suit would be filed, Glitzenstein added. "Our hope is that Gamesa - which touts itself as an environmentally responsible company - will agree either to do the right thing and abandon this ill-considered project site or, at least, do what is required by federal law and not proceed without applying for an ‘incidental take permit' from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service." The Indiana bat has been a protected species since 1967.

Complaints about wind turbine noise from the Allegheny Ridge Wind Farm could find their way into the court system this year, depending on what happens in the coming weeks. A Jan. 31 deadline for repairs to be made has passed, and Juniata Township residents still are asking for relief. Engineer Paul Heishman of Mechanicsburg, an expert in measuring noise levels, has started a study to determine if the noise is louder than permitted by township ordinance. Portage Township in Cambria County plans to have Heishman conduct a separate study, Supervisor Ed Decort said. If Heishman determines the noise is excessive, Juniata officials say they will move forward with steps to enforce their ordinance. ...Jill Stull, whose property is closer to turbines, said she shuts her windows and stills hears the noise. ‘‘They're loud enough to make me wake up,'' Todd Stull said. ‘‘This is noise pollution.''

Some area residents are upset over the noise pollution from green energy. The Allegheny Ridge Wind Farm stretches through two counties in our region. Its turbines can be seen in Juniata Township, Blair County and Portage Township in Aambria County. Those turbines to generate electricity, but some residents say they generate too much noise. Residents that live in the area agree that the noise isn't a problem for everyone. They say the shapes of the mountains and valleys funnel all the noise right into certain homes

Despite efforts to repair wind turbines in Juniata Township, Blair County, they still are generating unbearable noise to some residents. Tempers flared at a Juniata Township supervisors meeting Monday night as residents voiced their frustrations. Supervisors agreed to contract Paul Heishman, a professional engineer, to conduct an independent noise study by Jan. 30, when all repairs are expected to be complete. Babcock and Brown, owners and operators of the turbines in the township and neighboring municipalities, have repaired half of the turbines and will repair the rest by Jan. 30.

As the debate goes on, the turbines are going up in record numbers -- a trend that's expected to continue as the clean energy industry moves to take advantage of concerns about global warming and rising fossil fuel costs. ...Rick Webb, a senior scientist in the University of Virginia's Department of Environmental Sciences, isn't so sure wind power, particularly on the mountains of the mid-Atlantic, will help much. Webb participated in a National Academy of Sciences committee that studied wind power and released a report this year that found wind power is growing, but in many places, guidelines for development are lacking. ''I think the potential electrical supply and the potential reduction to other sources of power won't be great enough to compensate for environmental damages on the ridges,'' Webb said, adding he believes offshore development of wind farms would be more useful because there is a more-abundant supply of wind there.

...environmentalists already have voiced concerns about what they say are the negative effects of fragmenting the forestland. Stan Kotala, president of the Juniata Valley Audubon Society, said Ice Mountain in Blair County, where part of the project would be built, is unique because it has a large expanse of unbroken forest. That interior forest is favored by some species including the bobcat, fisher and scarlet tanager, Kotala said. The county Planning Commission's Natural Heritage Inventory designated the area a natural heritage area, he said. "We just feel that it should be protected," he said. Gary Thornbloom, chairman of the Sierra Club Moshannon Group, said the biggest concern is where the wind industry is putting its projects.

A Tioga County resident took advantage of Tuesday's commissioners meeting to urge officials to create a strong ordinance on the use of wind energy. "It's the commissioners' responsibility to protect the interests of the county residents," Leon Kocher of Covington Township said. Kocher referred to a building permit application from wind energy company AES for plans to construct 124 wind turbines on 10,000 acres of leased property in Tioga and Bradford counties, as early as next spring. "I'm not against the windmills," Kocher said, "I just don't want them near the homes of people who have not leased property to them."

The Altoona City Authority is asking Logan Township to enlarge its wind turbine zone by 775 acres, more than double the acreage expansion request the township turned down in May. Authority General Manager Mark Perry presented supervisors last week with aerial maps showing the township's wind zone and the authority's land. Perry asked for an expansion beyond the zone's Route 36 northern border to include a portion of the authority's land. Supervisors made no immediate decision, but Chairman Frank Meloy asked if arrangements could be made to visit the site...

Do you think wind mill development can effect property values? For anyone to say that property values aren’t hurt by this is wrong. I went to a house where six of these wind mills were facing down on me. The house is 2,000 feet away and you can plainly see them in front of you as if it’s right there, that’s how close they feel. They are gigantic devices and I have to say I am amazed by them, but would I want to look at them that close to me? No I wouldn’t. The people in Tyrone that will be affected by our proposed wind farm are the people who live on top of Decker Hollow Road, by the old apple orchard. Those people will see and hear the wind mills. I’m going Saturday on top of Decker Hollow Road and look to see the mountain they will be on and try to imagine what it will be like.

What is your main concern right now with a wind farm on Ice Mountain? My main concern would be the noise levels of the wind mills, based on the noise problem at the Allegheny Ridge project right now. Gamesa doesn't say there's not a problem, they admit there is a problem and they're working on it, but until they get that problem fixed, I'm pretty much a "no" until I hear that. If Gamesa fixes that problem, and the opponents up there that told me they don't like the noise are happy, and the noise is not there anymore, I can't think of anything standing in my way of a wind farm, in just my vote, coming here.

On Capitol Hill, the Audubon Society is leading the fight to increase production of climate-friendly power. So why are Audubon enthusiasts battling a wind farm that could help meet that goal? For one thing, there are trout in nearby streams, which activists say are at risk from chemical and sediment runoff from construction of 30 turbines, each soaring about 400 feet -- taller than the Statue of Liberty. Then there are the bats and hawks, which might be puréed by the giant blades that would catch the wind gusting along the Allegheny Mountains of Western Pennsylvania. "They're enormous," says Tom Dick, a retired veterinarian who founded the local Audubon chapter. "When you start looking at this, it's like, 'hell, this is not right.'"

Some turbines in the Allegheny Ridge Wind Farm are operating at noise levels above the limit spelled out in a local ordinance, a group of Portage Township residents maintains. Resident and former township Supervisor Bruce Brunett said the noise level measured at his home near Blue Knob is at least 10 decibels higher than the 45-decibel limit spelled out in the township ordinance. "We want to let them know we've got a problem there and they need to do something about it," said Brunett, who lives 1.3 miles from the closest turbine. ...Turbine noise has been around for some time for residents of Portage and Juniata townships. Jill Stull - who lives at the Juniata-Portage township line - reiterated her concern Monday, maintaining that the problem has been around since the start-up of the turbines.

An open house Wednesday by Spanish energy producer Gamesa USA is not exactly the kind of forum Tyrone's mayor had in mind when he asked the company to hold a public meeting on its proposed Ice Mountain wind farm. ... As it is set up now, with Gamesa representatives talking to people one-on-one, there's a missed opportunity for more people to hear how the company is addressing its critics.