There is no doubt in my mind that the Brolga, and many other birds, are at a great risk and would be killed by the Macarthur wind farm if it were to go ahead. Its time to give our native companions a fair go.

Editor's Note: This letter has appeared in several Australian papers.

Meridian Energy, which claims to support the communities where it generates electricity, is facing attack from the Makara community on the subject of noise from its West Wind windfarm. It's a subject which refuses to go away. Makara residents have been stating their concerns about the windfarm for years, because it's close to their houses. And now that 40 of the 62 turbines have been completed and brought into use, their fears are becoming their reality.

THE great wind-scam keeps soaking up taxpayer and consumer dollars and blowing smoke. All much more reliably than the electricity flowing from those lazily turning windmills.

Yet another wind energy mirage evaporates as Vestas Wind Energy announced today the closure of their Portland (Victoria) blade manufacturing plant with an estimated 140 job losses........"Premier Brumby has an opportunity to wipe the slate clean on wind energy as well as save some of Victorias' most treasured landscapes. Former planning minister, Mary Delahunty, approved wind turbines at Cape Bridgewater in 2002 but with the caveat "I also stated that planning approvals will not be granted for the four sites until satisfactory evidence is provided that the wind turbine manufacturing facility associated with the proposal will proceed in Victoria.""

An energy company's greedy quest for politically correct power is putting a world celebrity heritage site at risk of being lost forever. A subsidiary of Conergy (XE:604002: news, chart, profile) , a German renewable energy firm, has announced plans to construct an enormous wind farm in the Australian outback.

For very good reason, we feel that we cannot trust Meridian Energy; unfortunately they have not shown themselves to be trustworthy. We are very concerned that Meridian Energy be made to comply with conditions that the Court's decision requires; these conditions are likely to require a considerable number of turbines being de-rated and turned off at times. The Court warned Meridian of this. We question how a wind farm where turbines must be de-rated or turned off to protect residents can be "the best internationally".

As I said, until yesterday, my thoughts and feelings were of two minds. Yesterday, that changed. Yesterday we came up onto the Lammermoors, and turned off onto a flat area beside a huge rock outcrop. We got out and looked around, standing in silence for a time, listening to the whispering grasses and the southerly wind plucking fitfully at our hair and clothes. What do you think? I asked Alex. He stood there for a time, absorbed, considering his answer (as he does) and then he replied: It’s beautiful. It’s really beautiful. As we looked across the vast moor, across the Great Moss Swamp, I told him about the wind farm, about what was proposed. Again there was silence, while he thought about it. I don’t get it, he said. How can they do that to a landscape like this? It’s just awful. We stayed there, attempting to absorb the vastness before us.

Revelations in today's Manawatu Standard about how Dr Smith came to his decision to "call-in'' Mighty River Power's consent application for its Turitea Wind Farm make for startling reading. Dr Smith's decision last year to take the consent process away from the Palmerston North City Council because it was of "national significance'' angered many Palmerston North residents, not least the council.

On Friday, last week, the Manawatu Standard said Environment Minister Nick Smith had some explaining to do. Official documents obtained by the newspaper revealed Dr Smith's justification for calling-in the Turitea wind farm application was less than compelling, and at odds with the public explanation he gave in support of his decision. Dr Smith was out of the country last week, but responds to the Standard's coverage in today's edition.

But when quizzed by a shareholder about why they were selling off such good assets - selling the things investors had bought into BBW to own - BBW came up with entirely new reasons. Now BBW says the Spanish wind farm operation is a dog - a low-yielding asset that didn't produce and economic return. That's a little at odds with the glowing picture painted in previous reports. I'm not sure it was the smartest thing to say when the sale hasn't settled yet.

Where does wind come in? In a sense it doesn't, because NEMMCO does not count it as power generation, because it can't be called up like other forms. Rather, it is classified as a drop in demand. As well, wind does not normally displace coal power, it displaces the more environmentally sound but expensive generators such as hydro-electricity and gas. In addition, because of its unreliability wind has to be backed up to 90 per cent of its claimed capacity by other forms of generators. Also, the output is relatively low per dollar spent. The State Government has a report it won't release that sources have said confirms this.