WindAction EDITORIAL (31 Jul) - RGGI proponents want us to believe that the program is delivering on a global environmental promise, but the reality is the nine-state cap and trade system is a colossal failure of resource allocation that should be repealed to leave more efficient market forces. → MORE Recent Articles (31 Jul) New Brunswick | Nova Scotia | Massachusetts - Canadian utility Emera has proposed exporting power from 1.2GW of future onshore wind farms in eastern Canada via a subsea cable to Massachusetts, to help the New England state meet its mandated renewables target. → MORE (31 Jul) Massachusetts - Proposed wind-power turbines on a Savoy ridge could get three stories taller. The town's Zoning Board of Appeals will hold a public hearing at 5 p.m. Thursday to consider amending its decade-old bylaw regulating wind energy. → MORE (31 Jul) Australia - Tablelands residents have accused the developer of a wind farm of destroying part of a mountain for the $380 million project and turning it into an “eyesore”. → MORE (30 Jul) Ohio - The recent cancelation of the proposed Camp Perry demonstration windmill was celebrated by the American Bird Conservancy of Virginia, and the Black Swamp Bird Observatory — a local bird research, conservation and education organization headquartered in Oak Harbor. → MORE (30 Jul) USA - The U.S. House on Thursday passed a bill to authorize spending for four federal agencies, targeting a 3% overall cut in the Department of Energy and a 17% cut in energy programs at the agency. → MORE (29 Jul) Oklahoma - The turbine appears to be part of EDP Renewables' Blue Canyon Wind facility. There were four phases to the project totalling 424 megawatts and located in Caddo, Comanche, and Kiowa Counties. The project uses a combination of Vestas and GE model wind turbines. The news report did not cite the make... → MORE (28 Jul) Ohio - CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Renewable energy's struggle to grow in Ohio is expected to resume this fall following years of political battles over state energy mandates. → MORE (28 Jul) North Carolina - Gov. Roy Cooper on Thursday signed into law a measure that overhauls the state's solar energy policy, despite an 18-month moratorium on new wind farm projects that lawmakers tacked onto the plan. → MORE (28 Jul) Oklahoma - [T]he initial assessment for their property was valued at around $187 million which the company is required to pay taxes on to the county. Following an informal protest a second assessment to about $177 million. Now the company is asking for the value to be lowered to around $60 million. ...The... → MORE (27 Jul) UK - The Secretary of State said he agreed with the conclusion of the Planning Inspector that “there would be harm caused to the significance of a number of designated heritage assets” and that the size and layout of the 11 wind turbines would be “an incongruous presence of significant scale” which... → MORE (27 Jul) Europe - SGRE said the fall in sales was due to a "market shut down" in India as the country moves to an auction-based system and "normal business volatility in the offshore market". → MORE (27 Jul) Maine - The project cost is confidential, but CMP has confirmed that it’s in the $1 billion range. The total cost would be paid by Massachusetts electric customers. ...It’s also possible that a similar line being proposed by CMP and a partner could carry power from new solar and energy-storage projects in... → MORE (27 Jul) South Dakota - There's no denying it's windy in South Dakota, but South Dakotans are denying wind turbines. → MORE (26 Jul) Vermont - The town of Charlotte and the Agency of Natural Resources opposed the project in proceedings before the Public Utility Commission (formerly the Public Service Board). The regulatory body agreed the array would detract from the view from Mount Philo. The aesthetics of energy projects are one of the criteria that can... → MORE (26 Jul) Nebraska - Monday’s nearly 3½ hour public hearing on zoning regulations nearly wrapped up without much comment on the wind turbines. → MORE (25 Jul) Virginia - DALEVILLE — A clean energy developer hopes to start construction of a wind farm in Botetourt County by year’s end, even as it continues to search for a power company to purchase electricity generated by the giant turbines. → MORE (25 Jul) Ireland - A number of local residents have secured High Court orders on consent quashing An Bord Pleanála’s approval of permission for a windfarm in Co Wexford. The residents legal costs will also be paid by the Board under the settlement of their case. → MORE (25 Jul) Vermont - State regulators have dealt a blow to a proposed wind energy project on Kidder Hill in Irasburg and Lowell. → MORE (25 Jul) South Dakota - After about 40 minutes of a sometimes-heated discussion involving about 20 people, the Hughes County Planning and Zoning Commission decided on Monday to go ahead with a revision of its ordinances, increasing the minimum setbacks on large wind turbines from neighboring homes. ...the county’s zoning commission’s proposed amendment that would increase... → MORE (25 Jul) Germany - Germany's dirty secret underscores the inevitable conclusion that renewables are alone not enough to beat global warming. → MORE (24 Jul) New York - SGRE said the fall in sales was due to a "market shut down" in India as the country moves to an auction-based system and "normal business volatility in the offshore market". → MORE (24 Jul) Ireland - Planning documents filed in Northern Ireland reveal that remedial work needs to be carried out at an SSE wind farm in Tyrone to improve safety and stop further deterioration. → MORE (24 Jul) UK - RBC is already facing a £20 million black hole after the scheme was blocked → MORE (24 Jul) USA | Maryland - At least one of two offshore wind projects approved by Maryland utility regulators in May could be in jeopardy after an amendment sponsored by Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) that seeks to push the turbines farther from the coast was approved by the U.S. House Appropriations Committee in the past week. → MORE (23 Jul) Indiana - The Henry County Area Plan Commission, during its meeting Thursday night, effectively denied a year extension which had been requested by NextEra Energy Resources in regard to the West Fork Wind Project, along with denying a year extension for Apex Clean Energy concerning its Flat Rock Wind Project. → MORE (22 Jul) Oklahoma - We would encourage NextEra to release its finding when they determine what happened that caused the turbine blade to break. We realize they are a private company, but this is a big project that people see every day. We think the public deserves to know what the problems are. → MORE (22 Jul) Massachusetts - Selectmen addressed the financial circumstances while announcing the decision not to appeal, saying “we know there would be substantial costs associated with taking down the turbines in addition to the lost electricity generated by both Wind 1 and Wind 2 as well as the looming debt associated with not running... → MORE (21 Jul) Ohio - The wind farm's impact of greatest concern to birders and environmentalists involves the potential for high mortality rates due to collisions by birds and bats into the spinning fan blades. LEEDCo acknowledges this fear in its document, but warns that monitoring and documenting casualties from collisions are difficult and pose unique... → MORE (21 Jul) New York - The official explained that LIPA had ample green-power sources to meet its short-term state mandates without the second Deepwater Wind project’s proposed 210 megawatts of energy. He noted LIPA will have other opportunities to purchase wind energy through a recently signed memorandum of understanding with the New York State Energy... → MORE (21 Jul) Montana - A preconstruction acoustic survey for bats predicted that the wind farm’s impact would be low, but the preliminary results of the study show it’s been higher than anticipated. Over the first six months of the post-construction study, FWP is estimating with 95 percent confidence that the turbines killed between 120 to... → MORE (21 Jul) New York - “In general, we have concerns about siting a project in a unique habitat such as an island and in an area adjacent to Little Galloo,” said Tim R. Sullivan, a service biologist who was in charge of submitting the final draft of the letter. “It’s important for the life cycle... → MORE (21 Jul) Virginia - Sapsuckers are unfortunately one of the causalities from wind turbines. As a bird that migrates at night, it cannot easily see the spinning turbine, and tens of thousands of these birds collide with them and die during the fall and spring migrations. Reducing the number of sapsuckers puts pressure on... → MORE (20 Jul) Oklahoma - Here’s another problem with wind farms. They are too tall. They are so tall, in fact, that they interfere with military aviation training with bases in Oklahoma. → MORE (20 Jul) USA | Maryland - Harris cited Ocean City’s concerns about impacts on views from the shoreline as the catalyst for the amendment. It’s important to note while Ocean City officials are not opposed to the offshore wind farm projects conceptually, they continue to express concern about the potential impact on the views from the... → MORE (20 Jul) Iowa - Opposition to those projects is also growing. Lucas Nelsen, a policy program associate with the Center for Rural Affairs, says there are reasons for those objections. → MORE (20 Jul) Ontario - McCarter found 30,000 of those jobs were in construction, lasting only one to three years, and the government had failed to take into account studies in other jurisdictions showing that for each job created through renewable energy, two to four were lost in other sectors of the economy, because of... → MORE (19 Jul) USA - The backlash against Big Wind continues. Indeed, entire states are now restricting or rejecting wind projects. → MORE (19 Jul) Kansas - With the wind turbine standing over 400 feet tall, crews said the fire was impossible to reach. Sylvan Grove Fire Chief Marc Lovin says there isn't anything his firefighters can do but let the turbine burn. → MORE (19 Jul) Oklahoma - "The turbine sits in the cornfield, but the blade broke off and flew about 100 yards north of the turbine ," recalls Carpenter. "It flattened the corn, destroyed it." Since the May 31 incident, the turbine's blade has been replaced by General Electric and it has resumed to normal operations. → MORE (19 Jul) South Dakota - The vote was 57-42 percent in favor of a requirement that all turbines be placed at least a half mile from all habitable dwellings in the county. Heavy turnout from southern Lincoln County was the deciding factor, with universal support for the stricter setbacks in every city south of Tea,... → MORE (18 Jul) Oregon - Regulators have cleared Apple’s Oregon wind power project to use the biggest turbines ever deployed in the Pacific Northwest. → MORE (18 Jul) South Dakota - David Janes of rural Toronto, South Dakota, said he and his late wife had built a retirement home on their South Dakota farm site 17 years ago. ...“But when the turbines are running, I can’t hear the birds. All I hear is swoosh, swoosh swoosh, like a jet plane engine.” → MORE (15 Jul) Ireland - It is understood that since the company's previous attempt to secure permission, the application has been amended to reduced the number of turbines from 12 to 11 with the removal of one in the Aughrim/Annacurra area in an effort to reduce the visual impact on the local community. Since the planning... → MORE (26 Jun) Ireland - Windfarms louder than birdsong will be forced to shut down under new regulations due to take effect early next year. ...But Mr Naughten said the regulations included a "zero-tolerance" approach to shadow flicker and nuisance sound. → MORE (25 Jan) Indiana - With debates raging throughout Fayette, Rush and Henry counties regarding slated wind farm projects in the area, a state representative is pushing for legislation which would give residents more of a voice concerning such issues. → MORE Recent Documents (30 Jul) Canada - In November 2014, Health Canada released the results of its $2.1 million “Wind Turbine Noise and Health Study.” Despite public anouncements from Health Canada that the raw data originating from the Study would be made available, the data continues to be inaccessible making it impossible to validate the conclusions drawn by Health... → MORE (12 Jul) New York - This letter by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, was submitted to the State of New York in reference to a pending proposal to build a wind turbine project in the very sensitive land area on and around Galloo Island. The letter can be accessed by clicking on the links... → MORE (18 Jun) Australia - This important study has identified flaws in the current compliance testing for wind turbine noise and further outlined the methods necessary for identifying and measuring the low-frequency, pulsation that isoften times reported by those impacted by the turbines. Specifically, the "presence of amplitude modulation in the low frequency region, that... → MORE
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