A call has been made for the Conisholme wind farm to be closed - before someone is injured. Coun Robert Palmer, Chairman of East Lindsey District Council, says the site should be closed off to the public while an independent health and safety investigation is carried out. On Sunday morning local people woke to find a blade on one of the 89 metre high wind turbines in Fen Lane had broken off.

A local council has refused a request to postpone a meeting to debate a controversial application for 19 wind turbines in Fenland but their decision will not be binding. ...Anti wind turbine group FLAT today urged opponents of the scheme to step up their opposition and hope that as many as possible will attend the meeting "to show their opposition to the scheme."

The potential impacts of placing such tall wind turbines near communities was among topics at a meeting Tuesday in Santa Fe hosted by two community groups concerned about large-scale, wind-energy farms proposed in New Mexico. More than 50 people - among them rural residents, clean energy advocates and state officials - packed a room at the State Library.

"All of these contracts are ba­sically being done on the back of Nova Scotia Power's balance sheet," Chris Huskilson, presi­dent of Emera Inc., told The Chronicle Herald's editorial board Tuesday in Halifax. "Any­body telling me they can't raise money on Nova Scotia Power's balance sheet . . . I have a little trouble with that."

Has the tenacle UFO got something to do with the broken blades at Conisholme? Engineers from Ecotricity are working to establish how a 20m blade mysteriously fell off a turbine at Conisholme wind farm - but residents have their own conclusions. It is believed the a blade fell off the 89m turbine and another was left badly bent on Sunday January 4.

A report written by the council's principal planning officer detailed eight reasons for refusing planning permission for four 328ft high turbines on a four hectare site on Mynydd James mountain between Cwmtillery and Blaina. ...These included worries over the stability of the ground on which the turbines would be built, the visual impact on the area and the negative effect on tourism.

Selectmen voted Monday to ask the state Legislature pass legislation allowing Carrabassett Valley to annex the upper portion of Redington Township, subject to local voters' approval. The move allows the process and debate to continue so that if the Legislature passes a private and special law, a townwide vote can occur. It will be up to Carrabassett Valley registered voters to make the final decision on annexation. If they approve, then it opens the process for a community-based wind farm to be built.

After more than a year's worth of meetings, research, wrangling and debates, the project hit a brick wall of sorts last month as a report by AWS Truewind showed lower-than-expected wind speeds at the Legion Way site. Without strong enough winds, the project does not make financial sense. On Monday night, the Committee for Renewable Energy for Barrington, rescinded its recommendation to the town council to accept a bid for the construction of the turbine.

A slowing provincial economy is getting the blame for BC Hydro's decision to slash by 40 per cent the amount of power it sought in its recent call for green energy. Tumbling demand for electricity in the forestry sector, an expected decline in sales of consumer goods, and a presumed drop in housing starts over the next two years are all cited by Hydro in a recent filing to the British Columbia Utilities Commission.

Over the weekend, reports of a blade missing from one of the mammoth turbines and another blade being badly bent out of shape came to light. The cause of the damage has yet to be established, however some say it could be down to icy weather.

The Campaign to Protect Rural England's Cornwall branch (CPRE Cornwall) says local people will soon lose the chance to have their say on planning applications affecting their community. As a result the group offers to help residents fight planning applications which are against local plan policies, threaten protected landscape areas, or are generally inappropriate.

Residents will head to a special town meeting Tuesday, Jan. 6, to consider approving a six-month moratorium on wind turbines. The vote comes as a third company has expressed interest in erecting wind turbines on town-owned property. ...The warrant for the Jan. 6 meeting states there will be "discussion on the status and findings regarding proposals received," although there is not a specific article calling for a vote on the proposals. There is, however, an article asking voters if they will approve a moratorium "on the issuing of permits allowing for wind turbine construction and development."

Oregon taxpayers are shelling out tens of millions of dollars to subsidize green energy projects, making the state a magnet for solar and wind companies. But an investigation by The Oregonian shows that the money also is going to risky ventures with questionable environmental benefits and to prosperous companies that need no incentives but are cashing in anyway. ..."It's gotten out of hand," says Chuck Sheketoff, director of the Oregon Center for Public Policy, which studies the impact of state tax policies on low-income residents. "It's being scammed. It's not serving its purpose."

Campaigners from both sides of the England-Wales border are joining forces to save a massive landmark built more than 1,000 years ago to divide them. Villagers living in the remote areas either side of Offa's Dyke are putting aside age-old hostilities to fight plans to bring 21st century alternative technology close to the ancient monument. Welsh planning officials are pleading with their opposite numbers on the English side of the dyke to help them protect the eighth century earthworks.

Villagers battling plans for a wind farm in Worcestershire are to stage a walk through the countryside they fear will be destroyed by the proposals. Families living in the Vale of Evesham will gather tomorrow for the walk along the Wychavon Way and Blossom Trail, close to where Scottish Power Renewables is planning to build 10 turbines measuring 125m (410ft) on land owned by farmers.

Plans for a huge wind monitoring mast near Tewkesbury have sparked mass opposition. ...Wind Prospect Developments Ltd wants to install it for two years to measure wind speed and direction. It would use the information as part of its plan to have three massive wind turbines at nearby Upper Strensham. An application for the turbines has yet to be submitted, but is expected shortly.

He says that by 2020, the US, Europe, China and India will want to have 20% of their power supply from renewables. The issue is about making wind power "cost competitive" with carbon sources, especially coal, which fuels 65% of India's electricity and costs at least a quarter less. "Today wind power is just 1% of supply. It can grow to 7% by 2020. That is the maximum because industry has to find resources, material and execute projects. With greater volumes the price [of wind power] will drop ... and [governments] will ask what is the cost for pollution from carbon fuels. You will need a carbon tax. "

The industrialization of the ocean, coastal overdevelopment, contaminated sites and global warming will be among the top environmental issues in the Garden State next year, observers said. "What we're seeing is a gold rush toward energy development in the ocean," said Tim Dillingham, executive director of the American Littoral Society, a Sandy Hook-based coastal conservation coalition. "We gotta take better care of the coast," he said.

The largest number of proposals for alternative energy in Ohio represent wind power followed by hydro and biomass, said Art Meyer, a DP&L senior vice president. Many are from out of state. "Most of the proposals are still in the design or developmental phase," he said. DP&L does not expect to forge an agreement for renewable power before 2011, but that won't stop new energy conservation initiatives starting in 2009. Here's what the future looks like.