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.

As Tyrone Borough and Spanish-based wind energy generator Gamesa work out the fine print on a lease agreement for watershed acreage, those outside the process question the merits of placing turbines on Ice Mountain. ...Resident Jeff Morrisey said he has done as much as he could to educate himself about the issue of wind turbines since he became aware of Gamesa's intentions. ‘‘The more I found out, the less I liked them,'' he said of the 380-foot-tall windmills. ‘‘I don't want them anywhere. I really don't see where they're making a difference.'' The difference Morrisey brings up is the debate over whether wind is a ‘‘green'' enough alternative to electricity generation methods, particularly coal-powered generation.

Tyrone Mayor James Kilmartin is asking the community to provide its input on the potential wind farm. Gamesa will be hoping to receive the borough's decision at the next council meeting November 13. "I want the community's response," said Mayor Kilmartin. "These wind mills will be up there for almost 30 years. These are 300 foot structures, then another 150 feet with the blades, so it's a 450 foot structure that's going to be on top of our ridge tops." ...He continued, "Years ago somebody made the decision to bring in low income housing and we went overboard on that, so now we're reaping some of the negative fruits of that decision. We want to look at this wind mill decision very systematically."

COUDERSPORT — Potter County Planning Commission members took steps to regulate the construction of wind turbines in the county Tuesday night during a lengthy meeting. After hearing arguments from supporters and critics of the wind energy industry, planning commission members passed an ordinance that would require that turbines be located a distance of at least seven times their height from adjacent properties.

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.

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.

State officials got an earful and more on opposition to Gamesa Energy USA's proposal to site 30 turbines on Somerset County's Shaffer Mountain at a public hearing Tuesday night. A crowd of more than 450 heckled, cheered and jeered as speakers took the stand at a packed Shade High School gymnasium....A busload of about 40 employees from Gamesa's Ebensburg plant arrived in Gamesa ballcaps to sit together and provide most of the company's backing in the tough crowd.

The next meeting of the citizens’ group that has formed to combat the location of 79 massive turbines in northern Potter County will make its strongest case yet against the proposed industrial wind plant. That’s the word from Herb Miller, spokesman for Save God’s Country who calls the debate a “quality of life” issue. His organization will share its findings during a public meeting.

In many ways, the atmosphere is like a gold rush. With the backing of an enthusiastic Rendell administration, wind-energy companies have quietly but aggressively been negotiating leases for land on mountaintops, especially in Bedford and Somerset counties. Several developers hope to build hundreds, if not thousands, of windmills on the ridge lines of west-central Pennsylvania. Typical wind turbines stand nearly 375 feet tall -- about 70 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty -- and can be seen from 15 to 20 miles away. Some people question whether development of wind energy on this scale is appropriate for Pennsylvania, even though wind often is touted as a renewable, nonpolluting way to generate electricity. Longtime residents of Somerset County, where the building is more advanced, say the construction and operation of turbines have damaged the environment. They say the development offers little in return from jobs or taxes. "It's not quite what they tell you in the brochure," Todd Hutzell of Rockwood said.