The U.S. military is growing increasingly concerned that proposed wind farms can disrupt or block radar designed to detect threats and protect America's skies, a problem that is stalling the alternative energy projects around the country. A top U.S. general told Congress on Thursday that federal agencies need to work better together on a formal vetting process for the wind projects.

Although they're not churning out electricity, the windmills of Fenner remain the central focus of neighbors, local officials and energy advocates. ...The barriers are intended to protect the public, workers and landowners as teams of engineers take samples of the concrete foundation, reinforced steel and soil from each of the remaining 19 windmills.

The U.S. military is growing increasingly concerned that proposed wind farms can disrupt or block radar designed to detect threats and protect America's skies, a problem that is stalling the alternative energy projects around the country. A top U.S. general told Congress on Thursday that federal agencies need to work better together on a formal vetting process for the wind projects to prevent them from being built where they will interfere with radar defenses.

Public testimony on the draft habitat conservation plan for the Kaheawa Wind Power II Wind Generation Facility will be taken at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the meeting room at the Pacific Whale Foundation at the Shops at Ma'alaea. The Department of Land and Natural Resources Division of Forestry and Wildlife will conduct the hearing.

When the 100-foot-tall wind turbine at Bartlett's Ocean View Farm hurled one of its broken blades nearly 200 feet Jan. 18, it was a statistical anomaly. Wind energy experts claim, and statistics seem to show, failure rates are low. But when a second 100-foot-tall turbine, this time in Marstons Mills, shed its blades in a northeaster this Sunday, it seemed to some the start of a troubling trend.

One of the windmill's 40-foot-­long blades broke in half in moder­ate winds some time after dark Jan. 18, the broken piece plummet­ing to the ground where it landed nearly 175 feet away from the tur­bine. No one was hurt, but Bartlett's Farm now alleges in Nantucket Superior Court that the manufacturer of the windmill, Wind Energy Solu­tions (WES), of the Netherlands, knew of a design defect.

A brush fire, apparently started from a short in a power line from wind turbines in the area, burned 1,100 acres before firefighters were able to stop the wind-blown flames. The fire was reported about 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, near the intersection of Weld County roads 111 and 128.

local news stations say that a violent and unexpected gust of wind caused the rotor to take- off pulling the crane's boom and Jib with it, causing it to collapse. The boom, jib and rotor with its blades came crashing to the ground. The crane remained stable but the turbine components are totally destroyed along with the crane's boom and jib.

The U.S. Department of Energy has committed to guaranteeing a $117 million loan for a wind farm that hopes to break ground this year in the hills across from the shrimp farms near Kahuku. At 30 megawatts, the project would be the largest wind energy endeavor undertaken on O'ahu and would include an innovative battery system to help with electricity load stability.

Conklin said the damaged part would be shipped off to an independent source for study. He said the possible causes for the failure included: mechanical defect, design flaw, or damage in transportation. He said as the turbine was being brought in to town on State Route 227, the long semi-trailer "bottomed out," leaving gouges in the road. Stephen said the damaged part would be subjected to actual forensic study. She and Conklin said Performance Services Inc. (PSI), which owns the two wind turbines, and Nordic WindPower, which provided the turbines, sent their "A Team" to Tuesday's meeting.

Opponents of a proposed wind farm in southern Brown County are urging county officials to consider whether the project might interfere with emergency radio communications. A committee of the Brown County Board is scheduled Tuesday to discuss a Chicago-based developer's plan to erect 100 wind turbines in the towns of Morrison, Holland, Wrightstown and Glenmore.

The Federal Aviation Administration is giving its OK to the proposed Shaffer Mountain Wind Farm, two months after voicing concerns that some turbines could potentially create problems for local airports. The FAA has issued a "determination of no hazard to air navigation" for the wind farm Gamesa USA wants to build on ridges along the Somerset-Bedford county line.

The Federal Aviation Administration says 15 of 30 wind turbines at a planned wind farm in southwestern Pennsylvania would not pose an aviation hazard as initially feared.

Joint state Senate committees passed a bill that would set a minimum distance between residences and wind turbines in an agricultural district. A couple of Kahuku residents said they were encouraged that lawmakers were listening to their testimony, but continued to be worried about a proposed buffer of 1,000 feet, which in their view is too short.

At a January 28 public scoping meeting, Boulevard Planning Group Chair Donna Tisdale asked the California Public Utilities Commission and the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs to conduct a formal public health and safety investigation. All 75 blades from all 25 turbines were removed and only some of the FAA required lights are working," Tisdale wrote. "There is speculation that the high winds flowing across the composite blades created an electrostatic discharge that then arced between turbines damaging the blades and the electrical system."

The Ministry of Defence has put a blanket ban on turbines being built within 31 miles of a nuclear test monitoring station, The Scotsman has learned. The decision by the MoD could scupper plans for major wind farms in the Borders, as well as making it impossible for individuals to put turbines up at their homes and farms.

As wind farms sprout up around the world, but aviation specialists are raising concerns that the giant turbines create blackout zones for air traffic control radars. The spinning blades are being detected by the radars, presenting false images or generating so much clutter on radar screens that controllers are losing track of aircraft as they fly near the wind farms.

Members of the Tazewell County Board of Supervisors are considering a ridge line ordinance that would restrict the development of tall structures along certain protected ridge lines, including Burkes Garden and East River Mountain. Local aviators who use airplanes for business travel say they are concerned that the proposed wind farm could inhibit plans to create a second flight path for landing at the Mercer County Airport.

A massive wind farm proposed for Lanai has been anticipated as a major potential source of green power for Honolulu, but it remains a controversial project on the Pineapple Isle. Castle & Cooke Resorts has proposed to erect as many as 200 wind turbines on 12,800 acres on the remote northwestern end of the island and lay an undersea cable that would send the power to Oahu. While some support a project that could be a revenue-generator for the island's biggest employer, many express deep concerns.

Early Monday morning, a 20-foot-plus piece of one of the blades on Bartlett's Ocean View Farm's wind turbine snapped off and fell to the ground nearby. The wind turbine immediately shut down. There were no reported injuries when the blade struck the surrounding farmland, said John Bartlett.