Winds in southwest Fillmore County may soon do more than blow hats off of farmers. EcoEnergy LLC plans to build a 400-megawatt, $850 million wind farm in Bristol Township, a 36-square-mile farming town near Preston, Minn., with a population of about 500. The Elgin, Ill., alternative energy company is the latest trying to cash in on Mother Nature in Fillmore County. Bristol Township's prevailing winds have attracted two other wind developers in the past year, according to zoning records.

Two wind power projects are blowing through Fillmore County. EcoEnergy of Elgin, Ill., has released plans for an $850 million wind farm in Bristol Township, a rural farming community near the Iowa border in southern Fillmore County. The company has scheduled construction for 2009, assuming the project moves forward as planned ...Others are also following suit. Fillmore Wind owner Larry Tammel has filed for a test turbine on his land.

Greg Jaunich, a longtime Minnesota wind-power entrepreneur, pleaded guilty Tuesday to mail fraud in connection with federal charges that he bilked Xcel Energy of up to $400,000 with false meter readings from a couple of mostly inactive turbines. Jaunich's plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson. Jaunich, 47, who will be sentenced by Magnuson at a later date, faces a maximum penalty of up to 20 years in prison.

A proposal to build new high-voltage transmission lines across Minnesota has the backing of some unlikely supporters. Several environmental groups say they are in favor of the project if it helps provide a means of transporting wind power and other renewable energy. "We do have very aggressive renewable energy goals in Minnesota," said Beth Soholt, director of Wind on the Wires. "And we do believe that without additional transmission investment, we're not going to be able to achieve those goals." However, not all environmental groups agree, and some will demand an alternative at public hearings scheduled this week on the project.

During the last night of the 2008 Minnesota Legislative session, Gov. Tim Pawlenty vetoed the wind energy production tax revenue proposal for Minnesota's rural school districts. Pawlenty held a gun to the head - figuratively speaking - of legislators, threatening to veto the property tax relief bill if the wind energy production tax revenue provision was in the bill. "I was in Southland that day visiting with Gary Kuphal for our regular superintendents' meeting," Brown recalled. "Here I was driving up and down Mower County roads and everywhere I went there were wind turbines, generating electricity from the wind. "When I heard the news, I literally got sick to my stomach," Brown said. "Districts like Grand Meadow and Southland were about to lose again."

According to fire chief John Garmer, the wind turbine had a "ball of flame" on top when firefighters arrived at the scene. ...The fire was located at the six-turbine Ewington Wind Farm, the same site where a wind generator burned two months ago.

Opponents of the proposed Big Stone II power plant likely cheered a Minnesota administrative ruling that jeopardizes the construction of transmission lines across the state. But that element of the power plant's construction also benefits something opponents probably support: wind power. The same lines that Big Stone II would use to transmit power also would carry South Dakota wind power. ...The search for feasible replacements for fossil fuels will not always be painless. Wind power requires more than turbines, which are eyesores in their own right, to harness energy. That energy must then be moved and stored, and that potentially means heavy-duty lines crisscrossing the country.

The proposed Bent Tree Wind Farm in northwest Freeborn County could come under new ownership. Wisconsin Power & Light Co., a subsidiary of Alliant Energy Corp., created a letter of intent to purchase the 400-megawatt wind farm site from Wind Capital Group, according to a press release. ...The wind farm's total cost is estimated at $760 million, at $1.8 million per megawatt to build. The farm would have 150 to 270 turbines ranging in size from 1.5 to 2.5 megawatts. Each turbine must be located 1,000 feet from every residence.

Nearly two dozen school districts in southern Minnesota would have hundreds of thousands of dollars restored to their budgets next year under a tax provision passed in the state Senate on Wednesday. An amendment, introduced by Sen. Dan Sparks of Austin, would restore to school districts the revenue generated by an energy production tax on wind farms. Triton, Grand Meadow and Southland are among the 22 districts that would benefit from this revenue stream at a time when schools are struggling financially, legislators say. ...Those odds are still considered long. Spark's amendment passed by only a single vote, while exposing a deep regional rift between rural and metro legislators.

Suzlon Rotor Corp., a manufacturer of wind turbine blades in Pipestone, has paid a $19,000 penalty to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) for alleged violations of air quality regulations. According to the MPCA, the company failed to obtain an air quality permit prior to construction and operation of the facility. With the potential to emit 27 tons per year of hazardous air pollutants, 17 tons of which could be xylene, the company is subject to federal standards for hazardous air pollutants. Xylene includes types of benzene used as solvents. Construction of the plant began without an air quality permit in November 2005, and the facility began operation one year later.

On the heels of hefty budget cuts, Grand Meadow Public Schools is now faced with losing thousands of dollars in revenue from wind turbines. Superintendent Joe Brown said his district expected to get $50,000 in extra revenue next year thanks to a tax on area wind farms. But a change to state law last year means schools would no longer benefit from the wind energy production tax. Meanwhile, efforts by area lawmakers this session to restore the tax benefits have met stiff opposition. Brown said his district, which is currently in statutory operating debt, had been counting on the wind tax dollars.

The City of Fergus Falls is well on its way to adopting a policy regarding the installation of commercial and private wind turbines. Wind Energy Conservation Systems (WECS) were the order of business at Monday's Planning Commission meeting, where members approved an ordinance that may see a first reading by the city council as early as Monday. Fergus Falls currently has a temporary moratorium on wind turbines. The six-month ordinance was passed by the council in late February following requests for turbines by both residential and industrial users.

Officials from Clear Wind met with Kenyon area residents in March to discuss the possibility of putting up windmills in part of Kenyon Township. The Minneapolis company is looking at a number of wind energy projects in Minnesota, South Dakota and Nebraska but "nothing is definitive" in this area, said Heather Wayne, Clear Wind project coordinator. ... Not all residents are pleased that Goodhue County may become a wind farm hot spot. A grassroots group called Citizens for Environmental Rights and Safety has fought Kenyon Wind's nine-turbine farm from the beginning and, despite state approval of the project, still continues to battle construction of the wind farm.

Grand Rapids Township Road Commissioner Steve Lehr talked about wind towers and trucks at the township's meeting Tuesday. He told board members Invenergy, the company building a wind farm in La Salle County, has changed its plans. "I'm told that there will be 34 wind towers in their second phase and that they will all be in Grand Rapids Township," Lehr reported. ...At last month's meeting, Invenergy reported nine turbines were completely constructed in the township and 31 partial turbines were in progress. The company reported all towers should be built by Thursday, May 15, and phase one could be finished in mid-July.

Emergency calls flooded the Jackson County Law Enforcement Center last Wednesday morning as passers-by on Interstate 90 in western Jackson County witnessed huge plumes of smoke ascending to the clouds. The fire originated from one of the six power-generating windmills on the Ewington Township Wind Farm, located south of Okabena just north of I-90. ...After the fire was controlled, the scene was turned over to Suzlon officials, who are conducting an investigation. "We are still investigating a cause," said Suzlon Vice President Ken Glazier. "The fire was controlled quickly and brought to a safe stop. There were no injuries and the damage was limited to the one cell."

High Country Energy LLC, a community-based wind energy development located in Olmsted and Dodge counties, announced on Friday that it has sold a 150 megawatt portion of its wind farm to Wisconsin Public Service Corporation, based in Green Bay, Wis. The High County Energy project, which is managed by National Wind LLC and will be located in both Dodge and Olmsted counties, allows landowners to invest in the project. Since National Wind is a minority owner, most of the proceeds from the sale will go to High Country Energy landowners, National Wind co-chairman Patrick Pelstring said.

If Michigan is to join 25 states requiring that more electricity come from renewable sources, the Legislature must sort out all kinds of issues -including the price tag. Compared with existing power from old, already-paid-for coal plants, renewable energy is more expensive. The House is considering capping residents' extra costs at no more than $3 a month, or $36 a year over 20 years, which could let power companies off the hook for meeting the renewable energy requirement, known as an RPS. Under legislation pending in the House, commercial customers would pay no more than $190 a year more, while the cap for industrial customers would be $2,250.

Kruger joined about 100 residents Thursday at a public forum to learn more about wind power. Dodge County's Economic Development Authority sponsored the event. The wind farms can be a boon for farmers, with hundreds of thousands of dollars in lease payments. But experts urge residents to speak with an attorney before signing leases. ...there are other issues to consider too, said Annette Bair, a Clean Energy Resource Team coordinator in southwest Minnesota. Those issues include noise, appearance, shadow flicker (from sunlight hitting the blades) and construction work needed to install the turbines.

The problem with electricity generated from wind turbines is, the power can fluctuate. Xcel Energy says it's got a way to even out the flow - an 80-ton battery the size of two semi-trailers. The Minneapolis-based utility said Thursday that it will begin testing a sodium-sulfur battery being used in Japan to even out the flow of electricity between windy days and nonwindy days. Xcel plans to put 20 50-kilowatt batteries in Luverne, Minn., about 30 miles east of Sioux Falls, S.D., this spring and connect them to an 11-megawatt wind farm owned by Minwind Energy. The batteries are expected to go online in October.

National Wind will typically own 30 percent of the project; the rest belongs to local farmers and landowners. "If the local community is invested in it, then we know that this project has a higher likelihood of happening," National Wind Chief Executive Leon Steinberg said. "Investors like that because they know there will be less resistance. Utilities like it because they are likely to be built and built on time." ...The company charges the community a one-time development fee, a percentage of the total cost of the project. In addition, National Wind earns a portion of the money generated by the project once it starts selling electricity to utilities.