A Savage Mountain wind power project that never got off the ground will officially die on Saturday, when the facility's construction deadline passes. Despite a two-year extension granted in 2007, construction work never began on the proposed US Wind Force facility. After three years of construction delays, Vice President David Friend said that ultimately, the company couldn't secure an adequate power purchase agreement in a timely fashion.

A Frederick County delegate is proposing a state law to provide more oversight of overhead power lines. Delegate Sue Hecht recently introduced a bill to address concerns about liability and ownership of high-voltage transmission lines. Such a line is proposed to run through southern Frederick County and faces opposition from several community groups.

Wind power is gneerating an increasing amount of energy here in America--not all of it from those huge windmills seen dotting western states. Wind power is generating an increasing amount of energy here in America--not all of it from those huge windmills seen dotting western states. Now, as Mike Schuh reports, a Howard County official wants to bring smaller wind turbines here.

Opponents of a planned Mineral County wind farm have appealed to the West Virginia Public Service Commission to reconsider its decision to allow the project to go forward. On Jan. 11 the PSC approved a permit allowing developer US Wind Force to move forward with its plans to build up to 23 wind turbines atop Green Mountain in Mineral County.

Regulations for small wind energy systems in Somerset County could get a bit of tweaking before adoption by Somerset County Commissioners, who questioned setbacks and other provisions during a public hearing. In particular, commissioners asked why there was a 20-foot setback requirement for wind turbines from a driveway on the same property.

The Allegheny Front Alliance has appealed the West Virginia Public Service Commission's approval of the Pinnacle Wind Farm, delaying construction of the 23-turbine project atop Green Mountain. The Alliance, which represents opponents to the Pinnacle project, filed its "petition for reconsideration" late last month, submitting a 13-page appeal that raises a number of issues with the approval.

Delegate Wendell Beitzel has submitted a bill that would require the development of general performance standards for commercial wind turbines across the state. Last year's solo effort failed to get out of the House Economic Matters Committee. This year, the bill already has 22 co-sponsors, including the influential Montgomery County Democrat.

Tazewell County Board of Supervisors approved an ordinance that prevents wind farm construction on specified locations. Wind industry supporters say it's an example of how the "anti-wind agenda" is gaining steam. It's one of the latest ordinances in the country adopted by local government that prevents wind farm construction as the federal government is pushing for cleaner greener technologies.

A recent federal court decision has some Western Maryland wind farm critics pushing state and local officials for increased regulation. On Friday, a letter signed by the four members of the District 1 legislative delegation was sent to Maryland Attorney General Douglas Gansler, seeking a formal opinion on the responsibility of state agencies "as it relates to the protection of the state's endangered species."

As the Baltimore County Council prepares to consider new regulations for wind turbines in residential neighborhoods, at least one member is strongly opposed to the idea. The Planning Board voted unanimously recently to recommend allowing one wind turbine no taller than 60 feet per one-acre property. ...Council member T. Bryan McIntire said he had not reviewed the proposal, but he stood "adamantly opposed to the use of windmills in the north county."

Construction of the Beech Ridge wind farm will proceed immediately, following the approval Tuesday by a federal judge of a settlement between the project's developer and environmentalists who sought to derail the Greenbrier County venture. U.S. District Judge Roger Titus approved an agreement between Chicago-based Invenergy Wind LLC and wildlife groups to protect endangered Indiana bats.

A Maryland developer has agreed not to build 24 turbines and will abandon 31 proposed sites at a West Virginia wind farm, settling a lawsuit by environmental groups worried about potential harm to the endangered Indiana bat. Under the deal announced Wednesday, Beech Ridge Energy of Rockville will seek incidental take permits from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Tazewell County officials say they will attempt to make a decision Feb. 2 on a controversial wind turbine farm for East River Mountain. However, they aren't guaranteeing at this point that the board will be able to reach a consensus decision on the proposed ridgeline construction ordinance at the Feb. 2 meeting.

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.

The proposal gives permission by right -- that is, without special permission from the county -- to install one wind turbine up to 60-feet tall per property, provided the property is at least one acre and in a residential area only. The energy generated would be only for the homeowner's use and could not be sold into an electricity grid.

Construction on the Pinnacle Wind Project in Mineral County could begin, at the earliest, in fall 2010, but the first turbines probably won't be installed until summer 2011, according to David Friend, vice president of project developer US Wind Force. On Jan. 11, the West Virginia Public Service Commission approved a permit to allow the project.

A former state senator believes the current District 1 legislative delegation is abdicating its constitutional responsibility by failing to "understand the notion of separation of powers and the role of a legislative body as an independent branch of government." At issue is the delegation's decision last week to put on hold a request by John Bambacus of Frostburg for legislation that would have codified Gov. Martin O'Malley's prohibition of commercial wind turbines in Maryland's state forests and parks.

The West Virginia Public Service Commission on Monday approved a permit to allow up to 23 wind turbines to be built atop a 3.5-mile stretch of Green Mountain in Mineral County, a few miles west of Keyser. Pinnacle Wind Force, a subsidiary of Greensburg, Pa.-based US Wind Force, filed the permit application on March 17, but the project has been in development since 2002.

The controversy surrounds the proposal from two energy companies. The proposal is to build nearly 60 windmills to along the ridgeline of East River Mountain. Some residents support the project, while others say it is not a construction it is a destruction of the ridgeline and its natural beauty.

The Public Service Commission approved plans today for a 23-turbine wind farm in West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle, citing the hundreds of jobs and more than $1 million in state and county tax revenue it could generate. The decision on the Pinnacle Wind Farm at NewPage in Mineral County came on the last day of the agency's 300-day review period.