The Athens Town Board took their own steps to allow wind turbines on Monday night, but with dissent by one of their council regarding the details. Instead of passing a law, the Town Board along with Code Enforcement Officer George Holsopple determined they would implement a resolution instead to add a $150 fee to all specific 50-foot non-commercial wind turbines to the existing list of permit fees.

Members of the Planning Board are weighing in on the recommendations for a zoning law amendment by the town's Wind Committee. All but one member wrote up comments, which were not available to the public at Thursday night's Planning Board meeting.

The Town Board is getting widely differing advice on how to regulate wind turbines. The Orange County Planning Department, which reviewed the town's proposed law governing wind energy conversion systems, advised the town to strictly adhere to the terms in that document.

A public hearing on a proposed permit law regulating wind energy in the town will be held by mid- July, the Prattsburgh Town Board said Monday night. Board members took more than an hour during a special board session Monday night to scrutinize the proposed law, designed to set permit fees for wind turbines erected in the town.

The Town Board will use comments from a Tuesday night public hearing to make some changes before it passes a proposed local law regulating wind energy facilities. Town Supervisor Chris Gerwitz told about 80 people at the hearing in the Ashford Community Center that he hopes for passage of the law but that the Town Board must first hold more discussions with the Planning Board and the town attorney.

The Town of Coxsackie took steps to promote alternative energy Monday night at a public hearing, approving the Small Wind Energy Facility Law after a lightly attended public comment session with no dissent. Town Board members with community input had been working on the ordinance since last October, finally hammering out the finished draft on June 8.

Wind energy was the main topic of discussion at the June 10 Ashford Town Board meeting. Gary Davidson from Horizon Wind Energy was on hand to clarify concerns from the council members. Davidson noted that Horizon's proposed project would be a 20 megawatt development consisting of between nine and 13 turbines located in the Dutch Hill ridge area, which would tie in to the transmission line on Ashford Hollow Road.

Tensions are rising between those who support wind turbines in the town and those who do not, with at least one threatening phone call made and several signs vandalized. "It just seems we're all caught up in this whirlwind," said Del C. Hamilton, a member of Concerned Residents of Hammond, a grass-roots organization opposed to wind turbines.

Bath town board members last week took the first step towards a moratorium on commercial wind farm developments, directing town attorney Jeffrey Squires to draw up a local law establishing a six-month ban on commercial wind turbines. The unanimous vote came one month after town Supervisor Fred Muller asked board members to consider a moratorium.

The Wind Energy Committee proposed on Wednesday increasing setbacks for existing structures, but allowing residents to build within 600 feet of a turbine. "If the tower is 600 feet from the property line and you have to be 1,200 feet away from an off-site residence, you just stopped me from being able to do anything on that part of my land," wind committee member L. Kay Davis said. "It gives people a chance to use their land more."

Iberdrola Renewables told town officials the recommendations from the town's wind committee would effectively eliminate Horse Creek Wind Farm. At the Town Council's meeting Wednesday night, the council, Planning Board and committee discussed the committee's recommendations. ...Iberdrola has proposed 54 turbines for Clayton and an additional eight for Orleans.

The Orleans Wind Committee will give the Town Council a rundown on its thoughts on flicker, setbacks and noise at a meeting Monday night. The committee, meeting Tuesday night, discussed how technical to be and what form to present its possible recommendations in. "I think they understand the issues but don't understand the technical lingo involved," member William DiTrinco said.

The conditional-use permit allowing a 13-turbine wind development here surpassed its latest obstacle Wednesday night. The permit, granted by Beekmantown Zoning Board of Appeals to Windhorse Power, LLC, has been an object of controversy and litigation since it was first issued on Jan. 31, 2007.

A three-member subcommittee of the Bath town board will begin a review of other municipalities' laws regarding the siting of wind turbines in preparation for the drafting of a local law regulating wind farm developments.

The town will create an ad hoc committee to gather community input for a new law on non-commercial renewable energy development. Town Supervisor Justin A. Taylor said the new law would separate "big wind," or commercial wind development, from residential alternative energy projects including non-commercial wind, solar, hydro and geothermal power.

Members of the Orleans Wind Committee discussed possible enforcement mechanisms at their meeting Tuesday night. One aspect is noise level enforcement. The committee agreed April 28 that audible and low-frequency noise should not exceed five decibels above ambient noise at nonparticipating property lines. The members asked if there could be an automatic monitoring system.

New Windsor's proposed local law regulating residential and commercial wind energy conversion systems will get a public hearing in July. ...Although George Chaleff found a lot of points to agree with as he got his first look at the law Monday, several sticking points led him to suggest the law could severely limit the number of people who could tap the alternative energy source.

A Bath Town Board committee will study other municipalities' wind turbine laws in preparation of drafting a local law regarding wind farm developments. ...Last month, Lattimer said wind turbine technology is improving, thereby increasing the odds a wind farm developer may someday be attracted to the Bath area. To date, wind patterns in the town have not distinguished it as a candidate for wind turbine developments.

The Town of Lyme wants the state Department of Environmental Conservation to consider the possibility that noise from Galloo Island Wind Farm could annoy town residents on Point Peninsula. "Whereas the Impact Statement declares the noise generated by this project poses no significant noise impact, the Town of Lyme respectfully submits this letter expressing its concern to the contrary," states an April 29 letter from the town to DEC and the town of Hounsfield.

The Town Board most recently heard from Cohocton Town Justice Hal Graham, who signed a lease with First Wind for a turbine that began operating in January on his Lent Hill Road property, about 2,000 feet from his house. He now calls it a mistake. Since First Wind's Cohocton wind development went live - and even prior to that, during the construction phase - nearby homeowners have complained about turbine noise. Graham likened the noise from the tower on his property and another on a neighbor's property that's only 1,050 feet away to jet engines.