Eyesores or clean machines? Environmentalists are split over the giant energy-producing towers popping up in Maryland and other states.

More than 200 people turned out last night to debate the merits of allowing wind turbines in state forests. The vast majority of those who signed up to speak at a public hearing in Annapolis opposed using public lands for private energy projects. Pennsylvania-based U.S. Wind Force has proposed erecting about 100 turbines in the Savage River and Potomac state forests in Garrett County. ...A hearing Wednesday night in McHenry drew 500 Western Marylanders, most of them strongly opposed. Critics said allowing what amounts to an industrial project in state forests would set a bad precedent for exploitation of other public lands.

A deal made in 2003 between the Garrett County Sanitary District and Clipper Windpower could result in wind turbines on property now owned by the county. "The county had nothing to do with that," Denny Glotfelty, county commission chairman, said. "The sanitary district at that time was a private entity. ... The county took over the sanitary district and the county tried to see if they could get out of the contract." Glotfelty, who had been on the Garrett County Sanitary District before it became a county-operated entity, said that the proposal was made to the sanitary district in 2002, and the sanitary district presented it to the towns of Loch Lynn and Mountain Lake Park, both of which had water sources in the area in question on Backbone Mountain. When both towns agreed to allow the wind turbines to come in, the sanitary district moved ahead with a lease with Clipper.

An eco-friendly governor, an activist attorney general and a willing legislature arrived at the State House this year with plans to make Maryland a testing ground for some of the nation's most ambitious environmental policies. Then the economy tanked, and they found that it's not easy being green. Much of Gov. Martin O'Malley's environmental agenda is headed toward passage in the General Assembly - at least in some form. He has backed new goals for reducing energy consumption, boosting renewable energy and protecting the Chesapeake Bay. ...Some lawmakers and lobbyists have said the environmental and energy proposals would have dire consequences. They have drawn comparisons to the state's effort to deregulate the energy industry, an idea championed by the legislature a decade ago and now lampooned by many of those same lawmakers, who say it only led to higher electrical rates. "No one should think that these bills have been diluted to no effect. They are still big policy shifts," said Del. Anthony J. O'Donnell, the House minority leader from Southern Maryland. "This has huge ramifications for our lifestyle and our economy."

Maryland may be lagging behind some Appalachian neighbors in terms of wind energy development, but officials, regulators and developers in the state are determined to improve the climate. There are no commercial wind projects in the ground here yet, though developers have proposed three projects that would produce 180 megawatts of power.

Allegany County's current zoning codes define key terms in regards to wind turbines - but not where, or under what circumstances, they could be allowed. During a work session Monday, the Planning and Zoning Commission heard reasons why county staff should pursue defining what is and is not permitted in the county for both industrial and residential uses. The commission is expected to approve a study at its June 18 meeting. Phil Hager, county planning coordinator, said a review should include economic impact, including job creation, the potential for lower energy costs, and the effect of wind farms on the natural habitat and wildlife.

Allegany County government planning staff were directed Wednesday to review ordinances currently in place that might allow or restrict the development of wind turbine farms. Phil Hager, county planner, said "it might be prudent" for staff to review what current regulations do and do not allow. County officials have remained out of the public spotlight in recent years as the potential for wind energy conversion turbines have focused on land in Garrett County. Allegany County last addressed the issue in 2002, Hager said. ...Hager said Wednesday the review would be an effort to "stay ahead of the curve" of the inevitable dialogue bound to take place.

Sen. George Edwards, who sent a letter Friday to Gov. Martin O'Malley opposing energy-producing wind turbines on state lands in Western Maryland, said the issue must be resolved. Edwards said he's spent considerable time meeting with a number of constituents and groups to learn more about the issue. "The way the majority of these people (think), even those who support windmills, oppose putting them on state land," Edwards said. "I think there's other things better we can do on state land, than put windmills, that would provide a lot more benefit for local people. The best thing the state can do is not allow windmills on state land in Allegany and Garrett counties." Edwards said wind turbines on private land "is a little different than (placing them on) state-owned property" and questioned whether it is a good idea to rely on wind as an energy source for the masses.

Amendments to Frostburg's wind energy systems ordinance will reduce the maximum height of a residential wind turbine from 165 to 75 feet and limit the number of wind energy systems to one per each lot of record. The mayor and council approved the amendments Thursday night. A public hearing on the amended ordinance is scheduled during the regular City Council meeting Oct. 15 at 7 p.m. in the Frostburg Community Center.

Clipper Windpower Inc.'s quest to put a wind turbine project in Western Maryland was deflated again - this time by the Court of Special Appeals, which revived a claim that the company reneged on its earlier settlement agreement. Objector D. Daniel Boone claims that California-based Clipper reconfigured the project it agreed to in 2003, in an agreement that allowed the project to move forward. "They unilaterally changed the plans," said Boone, a former employee of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. He is challenging the Public Service Commission's 2005 approval of Clipper's request to build larger, but fewer, turbines at the Criterion project in Garrett County.

The state’s attempt to balance wind power generation with wildlife protection on a western Maryland mountaintop is under attack from both sides. Annapolis-based developer Synergics Inc. is appealing a Public Service Commission hearing examiner’s Oct. 30 recommendation for approval of the company’s 17-turbine project atop Backbone Mountain in Garrett County. Synergics’ appeal will focus on conditions proposed by the Department of Natural Resources to protect habitat for rare and endangered species, the company’s spokesman said Friday. Five opponents of the project, including Baltimore-based environmental activist Ajax Eastman and the Maryland Alliance for Greenway Improvement and Conservation, also have appealed the recommended order. Most of them believe the environmental restrictions don’t go far enough.

"We don't want to see them. Standing on the beach, we don't want to see them," he said during the council's work session Tuesday afternoon. Councilman Jim Hall echoed the mayor's sentiment, saying the project could prove far more popular if the turbines were invisible from land. "If you can't see it," Hall said, "then you can add acres and acres of wind farms. I think people are going to eat it up." For Bluewater, it's an expensive courtesy. Lanard said pushing the turbines farther out to sea makes it more expensive. It costs $1,000 for every foot of cable connecting the wind farm to the shore.

A bill to reduce environmental reviews required of wind turbine proposals in Maryland has breezed through the General Assembly, a move lauded by industry leaders pushing for renewable forms of energy in the state. The House of Delegates and Senate passed identical versions of the bill by overwhelming margins Friday. Gov. Martin O'Malley is reviewing the proposed legislation and is inclined to sign it into law, his spokesman, Rick Abbruzzese, said yesterday.

The ruling released Friday grants the Antonelli family approval to build a 120-foot windmill in its yard, a special exception to a county law that caps poles on residential property at 15 feet. In his opinion, Deputy Zoning Commissioner Tom Bostwick said the windmill will keep seven tons of carbon from the atmosphere each year and provide a "working example of utilizing alternative energy sources." ..."We were surprised he approved it without any independent study on how it's going to impact the surrounding community," said Lisa Viscuso. "We're disappointed."

Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller and other leading Democrats are sponsoring a bill that would cut back the state's environmental review of proposals to build large wind turbines. Supporters of the bill include wind energy developer Wayne Rogers, former chairman of the Maryland Democratic Party, whose proposal to build up to 20 turbines in Garrett County has drawn objections from the state Department of Natural Resources. Opponents of a streamlined permit process worry that it would eliminate the public hearings now required before developers can clear forested mountaintops to build 40-story turbines that mar scenic views.

Legislation aiming to put Maryland back toward regulating electricity supply in Maryland is facing turbulence and hurdles in the House of Delegates. The bill, which has the backing of Gov. Martin O'Malley, seeks to return authority over supply that was lost by the state's Public Service Commission after Maryland lawmakers deregulated electricity markets in 1999.

Bluewater Wind, the company that has plans to build a wind farm off Rehoboth Beach, says it also wants to build one off Ocean City, Md. Jim Lanard, spokesman for Bluewater Wind, said the company has recently been floating the idea to state officials and citizens. He said Maryland is expected to need an additional 1,890 megawatts of electricity by 2015, and a wind farm would help provide that electricity without the pollutants of a fossil fuel plant.

While representatives of U.S. Wind Force were asking the Mineral County Board of Education Tuesday for their endorsement of the proposed Pinnacle Wind Farm, a member of the Allegheny Front Alliance asked them to think very, very carefully before they make any decision.

A Federal Hill woman seeking to become the first Baltimore resident with a wind turbine on her roof failed to win approval from city officials yesterday. The effort by Marsha Vitow brought opposition from neighbors concerned about safety and aesthetics and confounded city officials ... David Tanner, executive director of the board, said the members had a long debate but decided wind turbines were not a legal exception.