Planted off County Road 114 in Mount Vernon Township, Larry Greden's got a wind turbine for sale. It's for sale because it, for the most part, doesn't work. There isn't enough wind at its position to make it profitable, and while Greden says he won't lose money in his four-year wind project because of tax incentives, he isn't making any.

A 306-megawatt wind farm proposed for 77 acres in Brookings and Deuel counties would nearly triple the state's total production of wind energy - adding enough capacity to power 148,000 Midwestern homes. Oregon-based Iberdrola Renewables Inc. wants to build Buffalo Ridge II close to its two existing farms near White. Buffalo Ridge II would join the 54-megawatt Minn-Dakota farm that came online in April and the 55-megawatt Buffalo Ridge I, which should be completed in early 2009.

Winona County's proposal to build a commercial wind turbine is on hold at least another week after commissioners on Tuesday postponed a vote on a revamped version of the project. The county has worked on the project for three years. ...Ward has acknowledged the revenue projections for the new turbine proposal appear promising but has questioned some of its financial assumptions and said the project doesn't fulfill a "core function" of county government. "We're delving into an area that the county is not familiar with," Ward said.

Despite opposition from numerous residents, Medina City Council members have unanimously agreed to welcome a 407-foot wind turbine to the town's rural landscape. Facing a crowd of 75 to 100 residents, about two-thirds of whom opposed the turbine, the council Wednesday night took "a fairly courageous'' stand in favor of the wind generator proposed by Hennepin County, said City Council Member Elizabeth Weir. ...The county will not build the turbine unless it can make enough from the sale of the electricity to pay for the turbine and operating costs and have some money left over to lower the county's electric costs, he said.

The proposed county partnership aimed at building two wind turbines in Mount Vernon Township was discussed Tuesday, when questions from County Board member Marcia Ward generated gavel banging and a bit of controversy. ...Ward questioned the location of the proposed turbines, suggesting that other locations in the county might be better. She said that she hasn't had enough site-specific information or questions answered to make a good decision. She said that a number of constituents had contacted her with doubts about the plans and location, and questioned whether bids ought to be let on the contract.

The county would enter a $3.6 million venture to build and operate two new wind turbines in Mount Vernon Township under a proposal commissioners will consider Tuesday morning. The proposal, which the county Economic Development Authority board has endorsed unanimously, marks the EDA's second try in three years at entering the wind-energy business: A move supporters say could be both environmentally sound and financially savvy.

Farmers and motorists should be watching wind turbines turn in southeastern Goodhue County late next year or early in 2010. National Wind L.L.C., which already is working on four wind farms in Minnesota, now plans to place a fifth in rural areas near the city of Goodhue, a spokeswoman said. ...Goodhue Wind currently plans to erect about 40 turbine towers rated to produce a maximum 78 megawatts of power per hour.

An 80-meter meteorological tower in Beaver Township is one of the first signs that Root River Energy LLC's proposed 300-megawatt wind farm is on Fillmore County's horizon. While most meteorological towers installed today typically are 50 to 60 meters high, National Wind LLC developer Bill Smeaton said the 80-meter tower will be more accurate because most wind turbines are being erected on towers that are 80 meters or higher.

When it came time to start repairing a wind turbine at the ethanol plant on Oct. 15, the project had to be put on hold. ..."The blade has been cracked all summer. It's been frustrating," says Dan Moore, director of project development for Renewable Energy Solutions. When the broken blade was discovered, the turbine furthest from the ethanol plant had to be shut down. All three blades needed to be replaced, says Moore, because we couldn't find one to match the other two.

Up to 39 wind turbines could be spinning across Goodhue and Belle Creek townships as early as next December. Goodhue Wind, LLC. will file a permit application with the Minnesota Public Utility Commission in coming days, said Tiff Thompson, wind energy developer with Goodhue Wind. The proposed project is a large one capable of producing 78 megawatts of wind power on approximately 22 square miles of Goodhue County land. ...Thompson said officials expect 60 percent of the Goodhue Wind project to be locally owned.

It's not just a lack of wind as the reason why some of those wind turbines in the Taconite Ridge wind farm aren't turning. Half of the 10 machines had to be turned off. After a recent routine maintenance check, it was found that five of them had non-structural defects in some of the blades. The affected turbines were shut down and are awaiting repairs, which are expected to go through the end of the year, Amy Rutledge, Minnesota Power communications manager, said Friday.

Noble Flat Hill Windpark aims to construct 134 wind turbines north of Glyndon by 2010, said Project Manager Mike Beckner. The 201 megawatt-powered wind park would cover a 36-square-mile area, with an estimated price tag of $450 million, Beckner said. ...Clay County Planning Director Tim Magnusson said Beckner's proposal came before the Planning Commission earlier this year for conditional use permits for temporary towers to determine the feasibility of a large wind energy project in the area.

If wind power works for St. Peter schools, Gustavus Adolphus College and the city of Mountain Lake, can it work for the city of Mankato? ...[Mankato Councilman Mark Frost] cautions that profitability is a must: "This isn't one of those, ‘Boy, we're gonna do it no matter what' programs," he said. "I'm just askin' questions." But the success - though it has been decidedly mixed - of other public entities has piqued his interest. During the past few months, he's learned wind energy is more like a puzzle than a straightforward path.

Denouncing a proposed $45 million Minnesota Power rate hike as "exorbitant," Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson on Friday encouraged the Duluth utility's customers to attend public hearings and make their opposition known. "Families and small business are struggling to make ends meet in the face of rising prices for energy, health care, gas, food and a troubled economy," Swanson said in a news release, which characterized the utility's proposal as unnecessary.

A broadside accident occurred Wednesday in St. Cloud between an oversized-load truck carrying wind turbine parts and a minivan, resulting in one death. Millard and Shirlee Nelson of South Haven were heading north at the intersection of Highway 15 and Second Street about to turn left. ...The number-one thing MnDOT can do in wind turbine transportation is ensure the public's safety on the roads, Coulianos said. Coulianos also said for the three and a half years he's worked for MnDOT, this is the first fatality he's known involving transportation of wind turbines. "This is what we plan not to happen," Coulianos said. "This is very serious to us."

What's "green," 18 stories tall and trashes property values? A wind turbine next to the new East Ridge High School in Woodbury - according to developers. Plans for a wind turbine roughly 200 feet tall hit a snag last week when developers balked at the idea of building houses nearby. They said buyers of high-end homes would be spooked by the noise and visual distraction of huge whirling fan blades. City officials are taking the threat seriously.

By a 3-0 vote Tuesday, Nicollet County commissioners approved a request from New Ulm Public Utilities (NUPU) to erect a 198-foot meteorological tower in Lafayette Township. ...Earlier in the meeting, commissioners unanimously approved a one-year moratorium, effective immediately, on Nicollet County wind turbine projects. Beatty told The Journal the moratorium was created so commissioners could gather more data on the issue for the health, safety and welfare of county residents and ensure "we're doing the right thing." Speaking on behalf of concerned citizens, Jeff Franta read a petition against the project signed by 77 rural residents he said was sent to the NUPU Commission more than two months ago.

After more than two hours of discussion Monday night, the Nicollet County Planning and Zoning Advisory Commission approved a Conditional Use Permit for the New Ulm Public Utilities to erect a 198-foot meteorological (met) tower several miles southwest of Lafayette. The resolution came on a 49-11 criteria vote with 13 conditions. ..."I seriously believe you're seriously impacting the lives of many people here," he told NUPU. In their Findings of Fact criteria votes on 10 questions, Commissioners voted 4-2 that given the nature of the land, the requested use was not compatible with the general welfare, public health and safety, the surrounding area and will depreciate nearby properties.

A major high-voltage power line proposal is generating organized opposition. The CapX 2020 project would bring more electricity -- including wind-generated power -- from remote parts of Minnesota closer to the Twin Cities. It calls for three 345-kilovolt lines that could cost between $1.4 billion and $1.7 billion and a fourth, smaller line farther north to be added later.

Dozens of Lafayette and West Newton Township property owners surrounding the New Ulm Public Utility Commission's planned wind farm have signed a petition opposing the project. Petition signers said they sent a copy of it to the Nicollet County Planning and Zoning Board scheduled to meet at 7 p.m., Monday, Sept. 15 in the Nicollet County Government Center. In Letters to the Editor of The Journal, "concerned area land owners and residents" stated they were not opposed to wind energy but think there are places better suited than their property.