What Hallquist did acknowledge to questioner Pat O'Neill (an active opponent of the wind project) is that if Co-op members vote down the proposal, Green Mountain Power's alternative route would not just cost more; Green Mountain Power would also need a new or amended certificate of public good from the Public Service Board.

Buffalo Niagara Enterprise president Tom Kucharski said the three agencies recognized the potential for jointly marketing "compelling regional assets" like a diverse transportation network, binational location and strong Great Lakes wind pattern several months ago. The result is a new bi-national wind partnership dubbed CanAm Wind Energy.

The wind turbine is a symbol of an alternative to an oil-based economy. But on radar, it looks like a storm. That has raised concerns that a proliferation of wind farms could result in the appearance of severe weather where there is none, and even false weather alerts. That collision of weather and wind technology adds some new dimensions to this year's tornado season, which officially kicks off this week with Severe Weather Awareness Week.

"Our government is not good at picking winners and losers in the marketplace but has certainly proved it is good at wasting taxpayer dollars," Jim Jordan, Republican of Ohio and chairman of the House Government Reform and Oversight Committee's subcommittee on regulatory affairs, stimulus oversight and government spending, said on Thursday.

In a 4-1 vote, with member Bruce Forester dissenting, the board found that Mainstream's petition didn't sufficiently protect neighbors from shadow flicker. And members unanimously ruled that the proposed setbacks weren't enough to mitigate the problem. ...The board also decided to back recommendations from the state Department of Natural Resources to create a 1-mile buffer around the state's Foley Sand Prairie Natural Preserve and a half-mile buffer around other natural areas.

(CNSNews.com) - People sweltering from a heat wave in the Mid- Atlantic region of the U.S. might find cold comfort in the fact that the temperatures of the past few days are not the hottest on record. That "honor" belongs to a summer 76 years ago -- decades before the controversy over "man-made global warming" began.

For decades dairy farmers have wrested a living from the Tug -- accepting lives of wind-swept hardship with little prospect of much change. Then, a few years ago, change roared onto Tug Hill. Overnight it seemed, caravans of trucks trundled onto the plateau and for a couple of years the village was ablaze with activity. Today, 195 turbines soar above Tug Hill, 122 metres high, their 40-metre-long blades spinning at 14 revolutions per minute. The $400-million Maple Ridge wind project, the largest in New York state, brought money and jobs and a wondrous sense of prosperity. But the windmills also came with a price -- and not just the visual impact.

The 280ft towers will stand in up to 150ft of water and will generate enough electricity to meet up to 75% of the needs of the oilfield which pumps 3500 barrels of oil ashore a day. This £35m, five-year pilot could be the first step towards establishing a 200-turbine farm on the site which could meet 20% of Scotland's energy needs.

In a surprise straw vote on Monday, six out of seven members of the state Siting Council indicated they will vote against a wind turbine project in Prospect. Council members expressing concern of the size of the turbines and the fact that they will be located close to homes.

For the third time, Wind Capital Group, John Deere and Missouri cooperatives have announced plans to build another utility-scale wind farm. The $75 million wind farm is slated to operate in northwest Missouri by the end of 2007.

"By itself, it cannot be the solution because wind by its nature is an intermittent source of power," said Bill Haman, industrial program manager and alternate energy revolving loan program manager for the Iowa Energy Center. "Therefore we as a society cannot rely on wind as our primary energy source, but it certainly can play a part as a piece of the solution when combined with both fossil and renewable sources."

The most sweeping reform of Scotland’s planning laws for three generations will see people given more say, and sooner, about new developments in their neighbourhoods. But the downside is they will be denied all rights to object to the biggest national projects and, on other major applications, will be denied the final appeal permitted to developers. The environmental lobby lost every vote yesterday, the day after a failed attempt to ensure at least the Scottish Executive’s National Planning Framework would be subject to an inquiry process.

“You’ll have to devote the rest of your days to fighting these, if you allow them to get here in there first place.” That was the message retired schoolteacher and Green Party candidate Stephana Johnston had for West Lincoln residents last Wednesday, at a public information meeting on the alleged negative effects of industrial wind turbines.

"I want to create discussion and encourage people to look at this industrial development for what it is - industrial development," she says. "I want them to discuss it in a more balanced way." Don Quixote, she's not. And she's certainly produced an eye-opener of a film.

A public hearing scheduled for tonight to discuss Consumers Energy's requested amendments to the Mason County Zoning Ordinance is canceled. Consumers Energy was requesting changes to wind ordinances. Dennis Marvin and Dan Bishop of Consumers Energy said the hearing was canceled after the company withdrew one of two requested amendments.

It will soon be easier for rural property buyers to find out if a wind farm is planned for next door. The Victorian Government this week agreed to let buyers know where they can get information on current wind farm proposals. Until now, prospective buyers were in the dark over how to get the information. ...The move followed calls by Nationals MP Peter Hall for more transparency on wind-farm proposals. Mr. Hall said property buyers had little hope of finding information about new wind farms, dozens of which are proposed for Victoria.

Heated debate surrounds Greenbrier County plan

The green energy sector has a lot riding on 2009. Policymakers from Washington to Beijing have pledged billions of dollars in "cleantech" investment to jump-start the depressed global economy and create millions of new low-carbon jobs. ...As with the solar industry, wind power has been hit by a sudden slowdown in private sector investment as credit has dried up and the price of oil has fallen from its mid-2008 high. The industry hopes public spending will help fill the gap until the global economy gets back on its feet.

The three New Jersey wind developers thought they had the whole deal locked up. After years of study, the Board of Public Utilities had granted each of them not only its blessing, but $4 million apiece for more research. But then, along came a Seattle businessman, and suddenly the ocean wasn't nearly big enough to hold them all.