The sPower plant would consume 10 square miles of designated forest lands. That is half the size of Manhattan, and larger than the entire city of Fredericksburg. The four larger solar power plants are located in the desert of the U.S. Southwest, far from any residential areas. The project is just plain wrong for Spotsylvania on several levels.

Impact on Landscape Impact on People Virginia

“They tried to sneak a change into their zoning law without anyone noticing what was going on, because their zoning law doesn’t permit windmills,” Henderson Supervisor John J. Culkin said. ...According to the lawsuit, Hounsfield was required under state Town Law to notify Henderson’s town clerk in writing at least 10 days in advance about a Nov. 7 public hearing, but failed to do so.

Legal New York

The developers of three proposed wind farms in Ford County warned the county board Tuesday that they may not be able to proceed with construction under even the least restrictive of proposed regulations being considered by the board.

General Illinois

“It’s my impression, that something was done wrong, incorrectly, illegally, inappropriately, that’s what this is saying. We had a beautiful place to live, now we’re looking at 12, 500-foot tall industrial wind turbine towers on one side of our house and on the other side there’s 100-foot tall transmission line towers — we were never notified of any of this. When the surveyors came onto our property they wouldn’t tell me who they were or what they were doing there. I found out from one town employee, they were from the wind project, we never received a thing about this. What the project was, the scope, implications, impacts. That’s what I’m saying, this is my impression.”

General Texas

Opponents argue that the 600-foot-tall, 2,400-ton turbines would diminish the area’s natural beauty and harm sensitive geologic features that provide habitat to 16 endangered species, including bats and crustaceans that live in caves and underground streams. ...Opponents got a boost in October, when the Illinois Department of Natural Resources published a report, known as an Ecological Compliance Assessment Tool (EcoCAT), examining how natural areas and endangered species could be affected by the proposed wind farm. The agency made 19 recommendations. The first was for the developer to consider an alternate location.

Impact on Wildlife Impact on Landscape Illinois

“We should always prioritize the needs of North Dakota citizens over arbitrary political preferences of regulators from outside jurisdictions. Like an out-of-control Black Friday shopper, the only justification for this massive additional spending spree is that the price is right" -- Randy Christmann, Public Service Commission Chairman 

General North Dakota

The Laborers’ union, representing several construction unions, asserted that the socio-economic benefits of Bitter Root would be “substantially diminished” by a lack of Minnesota workers. RES has used nonunion trades workers on other wind farms in Minnesota, and the Laborers’ union says those workers were mostly from out of state. The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) decided the unions’ claims need a closer look.

General Minnesota

Resident Kristy Horsch presented a petition to the commission calling for a moratorium she said was gathered over the weekend – and contained more than 700 signatures. Of those signing, 534, or about three-fourths, reside within Reno County. The rest were near the county lines in Sedgwick and Kingman counties, who would also be impacted by wind turbines. She also handed the commission a separate 3-inch wide binder she said was an economic impact study by residents “that demonstrates a negative impact to the county with this project.”

Zoning/Planning Kansas

The ordinance amendment affecting turbine use in the county was brought about by changes proposed by a group of local individuals including Jasper County Plan Commission President Gerrett Dobson, Scott Green and Steve Molenaar. The group’s goal was to provide what it has referred to as “adequate protection to those who choose not to participate in the White Post Wind Project.”

Zoning/Planning Indiana

The Burleigh County Planning and Zoning Commission voted 5-3 late Wednesday to deny a permit for the proposed Burleigh-Emmons Wind Farm, following a four-hour meeting with passionate testimony from both sides. More than 500 citizens attended the rescheduled public hearing, with more than half wearing a shade of red, representing opposition to the project.

General North Dakota

“We all have one enemy in common, and it’s wind,” said Chris Zeman, one of the founders of the anti-wind group, to a packed room. Zeman claimed people are left with land they can’t use after neighbors agreed to have a turbine placed on the edge of their property, away from their home. “Now they are reaping all the money while you’re stuck with land you can’t do anything with,” Zeman said. “I’m all for property rights, but if it takes away my right for what I want to do with my land, then that becomes a property rights issue.”

General Ohio

During a hearing Tuesday in Douglas County Circuit Court, Judge John Kennedy denied a motion by EDP for injunctive relief against Murdock Township's efforts to enforce wind-energy zoning in the township. Kennedy said EDP did not meet the burden of showing the requirements for a preliminary injunction.

Legal Zoning/Planning Illinois

A company called S-Power wants to build a massive solar energy center on 6,000 acres ...More than half of the land would be covered with solar panels. "This would be the fifth largest solar plant in the United States. ...All 10 of (the largest of) these are nowhere near a residential area." 

Impact on Landscape Impact on People Virginia

Brady said the Block Island Wind Farm, owned by Deepwater, is only five turbines, tiny by comparison to Vineyard. Yet charter fishermen, who traditionally operate south of the wind farm from January through April, reported a dismal fishing season: the once bountiful cod had disappeared. Ørsted Energy, the parent company of Deepwater, like the owners of the Vineyard, have a practice of paying off fishermen whose livelihoods are damaged by the wind farms.

Impact on Wildlife Impact on Economy Massachusetts

Do rural Americans have a say in what they see outside their dining-room windows, even if that view extends miles beyond their property lines? It’s a more profound debate than it might seem, having as much to do with the future of farming communities and land values as it does with aesthetics. And for the wind industry, it poses a sharp challenge. As turbines get ever bigger and more visible as they spread across rural areas, they become more controversial, threatening the industry’s growth.

Impact on Landscape Impact on Views North Dakota

According to court documents, the township's new zoning ordinance would make the development of the Harvest Ridge Wind Farm impossible. As a result, EDP is asking the court for injunctive relief against the township's efforts.

Legal Zoning/Planning Illinois

NRG and Calpine are asking Texas regulators to end the equal sharing of lost electricity costs and assign them to companies according to the distance the electricity moves along transmission lines, giving their coal and natural gas power plants, which are closer to Houston and other population centers, an advantage.

Energy Policy Texas

Van Wert resident Jeremy Kitson lives in the Blue Creek Project area ...Van Wert is home to the largest industrial wind project in the entire state, Avangrid's Blue Creek Wind Farm. Anyone (who) is saying that our community is positive when it comes to wind development is being blatantly dishonest,” he said, referring to claims made by the supporting side of the matter, who have said school stand to benefit the most from the project, especially monetarily. 

General Ohio

The Dekalb County Board adopted a new wind energy ordinance in accordance with the recommendations of the county's Planning and Zoning Committee. The ordinance includes the following key standards: All turbines are to be situated at a distance not less than six (6) times the height of the WECS tower from all property lines, turbine towers are limited to 500-feet, no shadow flicker can extend onto neighboring non-participating properties, and turbines cannot produce sound that causes an exceedance of the preconstruction/operation background sound levels by more than 5 dBa. The resolution adopting the ordinance is provided below. The full ordinance can be accessed by clicking the link(s) on this page.

Ordinances Illinois

Supervisor Robert Karcher said Friday ... the town plans to complete and resubmit an environmental assessment form for the proposed town wind turbine law to the Cattaraugus County Planning Board for its review when considering whether to address the wind law.

Impact on People New York