Turbines in North Carolina

A state Senate committee on Tuesday sidestepped proposed mountain ridge protection rules that wind power advocates said would have crippled a promising new industry.



Senators from Western North Carolina had recently inserted language in a bill regulating the placement of wind-power generating equipment that would have forbid turbines more than 35 feet tall on high ridges.

But wind power advocates said the rules intended to protect mountain views would kill the industry because the best wind is on the ridges and turbines would have to taller to be worth building.

At a Tuesday hearing on the bill, the Agriculture Environment and Natural Resources Committee decided to put off the ridge top portion and change the language to make sure residential wind turbines would be allowed, Sen. Joe Sam Queen said.

“One of the reasons we didn't run the mountain segment of the bill today is we didn't have the language exactly the way we needed for residential wind,” said Queen, D-Haywood. “We want it so you can have one big enough to power a two-story house, not a subdivision.”

The mountain segment of the bill could be taken up as soon as today by a finance committee. A positive recommendation could put the bill for a vote before the Senate and House in a couple of weeks.

The committee did approve coastal wind farm regulations. They allow for wind farm permits to be blocked if they have a negative effect on navigation, wildlife or the views from any state or national park.

Viable residential turbines would probably need to be 60-120 feet tall, said Dennis Scanlin, a professor of technology at Appalachian State University in Boone.

Scanlin had criticized the language inserted by the mountain senators, saying it would cripple the industry and take away the power to decide on wind turbine placement by local governments, such as counties.

“All the experts I'm aware of recommend taller towers,” he said.

The American Wind Energy Association reported in January that the amount of electricity generated by wind turbines grew by 50 percent last year and 55 new manufacturing facilities were built to make turbine components.

wind turbines news

wind turbines

GE Energy to Supply 57 Wind Turbines to Sweden's Arise Windpower
Industrialinfo.com (subscription) - Houston,TX,USA
... Connecticut), will supply 57 wind turbines to Arise Windpower AB (Laholm, Sweden), an independent wind power producer in the Swedish market, ...

Turbine compromise at hand
Asheville Citizen-Times - NC,USA
The American Wind Energy Association reported in January that the amount of electricity generated by wind turbines grew by 50 percent last year and 55 new ...

Pickens Scales Back Ambitious Wind Farm
New York Times - United States
For the huge wind farm he had planned in Texas, Mr. Pickens had already ordered 687 large wind turbines from General Electric, to be delivered starting in ...
See all stories on this topic
Pickens Temporarily Shelves Plans for Wind Farm
Washington Post - United States
In May 2008, Pickens ordered 667 wind turbines from General Electric for the first of four project phases. Mesa is scheduled to begin taking delivery in ...

Bath firm installs turbine
Akron Beacon Journal - Akron,OH,USA
The turbine captures and amplifies the wind while fitting in a much smaller ''footprint'' than traditional wind turbines. ''This is the first of several ...

Missouri Man Sues Over Wind Turbine Noise
KMBC.com - Kansas City,MO,USA
His 20-acre farm north of King City is surrounded by the giant wind turbines. "On a bad day, what does it sound like?" KMBC's Kris Ketz asked Porter. ...

Business Highlights
The Associated Press
... farm in the Texas Panhandle have been scrapped, energy baron T. Boone Pickens said Tuesday, and he's looking for a home for 687 giant wind turbines. ...
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The Associated Press
Pickens calls off massive wind farm in Texas
The Associated Press
Like most industries around the world, the recession has hurt wind turbine manufacturers and wind farm developers. Companies have shelved development plans ...

Pickens calls off massive wind farm in Texas
KTIV - Sioux City,IA,USA
... largest wind farm in the Texas Panhandle have been scrapped, and energy baron T. Boone Pickens says he's looking for a home for 687 giant wind turbines. ...
See all stories on this topic

WISH
Counties drape farmland with turbines
WISH - Indianapolis,IN,USA
"You see the economics coming in from the construction of the wind turbines, from the people working. Lots of times, these groups travel all across the ...

The Clinton Herald, Clinton, Iowa - Wind turbine ordinance altered
This amendment changes the setback for wind turbines and meteorological towers from the nearest residence, school, hospital, church or public library to 1200 feet, an increase from the originally-stated 1000 feet. ...
The Clinton Herald, Clinton,... - http://www.clintonherald.com/
ShortFormBlog » T. Boone Pickens has a lot of wind turbines to ...
By Ernie Smith

T. Boone Pickens has a lot of wind turbines to give away, guys · The sad fate of The Printed Blog, an idea loaded with optimism · Heartwrenching Urumqi riots quote of the day. A gut-punch. Great news! Pandora (and other 'net radio) gets ...
ShortFormBlog - http://shortformblog.com/

Spain's Gamesa to supply five wind turbines to Mexico ...
Spains Gamesa Corporacion Tecnologica said on Monday it signed a contract with Turbo Power Baja Energy to supply five wind turbines for the Rumorosa wind farm in Mexicos Baja California state.
Surinenglish.com, the site for... - http://www.surinenglish.com/

N.C. lawmakers debate ban on mountaintop wind turbines | McClatchy
North Carolina state lawmakers are debating a proposed ban on wind turbines atop the Appalachian Mountains. extra description.
mcclatchydc.com: Environment - http://www.mcclatchydc.com/260/story/63486.html?mi_pluck_action=comment_submitted&qwxq=4430187

Wind turbines increasing in popularity in Bannock County | KIDK ...
In the last few months, County Commissioners have seen a big jump in the number of people wanting to put up residential wind turbines, and the county may soon make the process easier. Randy Chandler, Bannock County resident said, ...
KIDK RSS Feed - http://www.kidk.com/news



N.C. lawmakers debate ban on mountaintop wind turbines | McClatchy
Jul 7, 2009 ... North Carolina state lawmakers are debating a proposed ban on wind turbines atop the Appalachian Mountains. extra description.

Turbine News Clips

wind turbines

Ridge protections could endanger wind power
Asheville Citizen-Times - NC,USA
By Joel Burgess • July 7, 2009 12:15 AM Legislation to get consideration today would restrict wind turbines on ridge tops from being more than 35 feet tall, ...


Ocean plan curbs uses for Buzzards Bay
SouthCoastToday.com - New Bedford,MA,USA
To date, none of those communities has proposed a plan to build wind turbines offshore, he said. Smith said he plans to meet with other coastal planning ...

University should follow local lead on wind turbines
Daily Illini - Champaign,IL,USA
Invenergy, a Chicago-based company, has leased 25000 acres north of Route 74 with plans to build over 130 wind turbines next year. Local farmers have leased ...

Winds of change: Three-county wind farm project moves forward
Freeport Journal-Standard - Freeport,IL,USA
As of now, Navitas plans to build a 200 megawatt farm east of German Valley that includes approximately 100 wind turbines stretched across the three ...

More wind turbine talk at planning commission Monday night
Woodbury Bulletin - Woodbury,MN,USA
One of the items likely to get some attention is a chapter in the draft ordinance on wind turbines. The South Washington County School District has ...

Grants available for rural wind turbines
Northern Colorado Business Report - Fort Collins,CO,USA
The grants can be used to purchase and install small wind turbines or other renewable energy systems, covering up to 25 percent of the installed cost. ...

Pickens paring down wind farm project
Dallas Morning News - Dallas,TX,USA
In May 2008, Pickens announced that his company, Mesa Power LP, would order 687 wind turbines, or 1000 megawatts of capacity, from GE for about $2 billion. ...

Green Energy Technologies' First WindCube(R) Rooftop Wind Turbine ...
PR Newswire (press release) - New York,NY,USA
The installation will be the first commercial rooftop wind turbine in Ohio to provide on-site supplemental power generation using net metering. ...

Duke plans Colorado wind farm
Bizjournals.com - Charlotte,NC,USA
It will feature 34 wind turbines. Duke doesn't have any wind-power projects in Ohio, Kentucky or Indiana. In May, the company acquired the 70-megawatt North ...
See all stories on this topic


Wind Watch: Wind turbines
Sedgefield MP Phil Wilson's concerns over the “excessive development” of wind farms in his constituency (Echo, June 26) presumably reflect the broad views of constituents likely to be adversely affected? South Durham, basically rural in ...
National Wind Watch: News - http://www.wind-watch.org/news/

DARTMOUTH HITCHING POST: Wind turbine ballons fly tomorrow July 7
By Bill Trimble
I just this minute learned that Atlantic Design will be hoisting two balloons tomorrow (Tuesday, July 7) at the proposed sites for the wind turbines. The balloons will mark the tip of the blades for 100-meter towers and they should be ...
DARTMOUTH HITCHING POST - http://dartmouthhitcingpost.blogspot.com/

Power supplier to electric co-ops in 4 Western states signs wind ...
By Colleen Slevin
Tri-State to buy power from new Colo wind farmDENVER — A company that supplies power to rural electric cooperatives in four Western states announced Monday that it will buy electricity from a new wind farm on Colorado's Eastern Plains.
Breaking News - http://blog.taragana.com/n/

NW U.S wind power

July 5, 2009 • Opinions, Oregon, Washington
Northwest wind power a threat to raptors
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» Original source is provided at end of article «

The Columbia Gorge Audubon Society has monitored Northwest wind power for almost 20 years. We were not surprised by the recent eagle kill The Columbian reported May 18: “Washington wind turbines claim first known eagle victim.”

The Goodnoe Hills Wind Project that is responsible for the death of the golden eagle is sited in National Audubon Society’s designated Columbia Hills Important Bird Area in Klickitat County overlooking the Columbia River Gorge. The IBA program is Audubon’s attempt to identify and protect significant bird habitat. Gorge Audubon conducted bird counts in the Hills, and our nomination led to its IBA designation.

The main factor in securing the IBA designation was the intensive use of the area by raptors. It is well known that raptors commonly fly at an altitude that puts them at particular risk for collision with wind power blades.

Proper siting was touted as the key to green wind power. So why is wind power being sited in an Audubon Important Bird Area, and why is that Important Bird Area slated for border to border wind power development? The answer is simple. Instead of proper planning, Northwest wind power is being allowed to develop wherever infrastructure is available and politicians are agreeable.

Gorge Audubon believes wind power is already a disaster for Northwest birds. Who is responsible for this mess?

During years of reviewing wind power permits, we found that many significant omissions and deceptions were used to secure permits. For instance, The Columbian story reported that the proponent for the Big Horn Wind Energy Project in eastern Klickitat County had predicted the annual raptor mortality would be three to four birds, whereas follow-up monitoring suggests the actual raptor kill to be 31 to 49 birds per year. Drastically underestimating project bird kills is likely a common method for securing wind power permits.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service tried to force the wind power industry to solve the bird kill problem on the Columbia Hills site years ago with a warning of criminal arrest. That problem was never solved.

Politics changed, and state and federal wildlife agencies have since stood by and watched the Northwest wind power disaster unfold. They protested but took no action. Now they are scrambling to “fix” the problem. If development is allowed to continue in the Columbia Hills IBA and other areas intensively used by birds, you will know that they have failed.

Lack of attention

Where are National Audubon Society and the environmental groups that authored voluntary siting standards for wind power back when the industry first arrived in the Northwest? The answer is that most of them have received Bullitt Foundation grants and hope to receive them again. The Bullitt Foundation of Seattle is a strong advocate of wind power. In fact, Denis Hayes, Bullitt Foundation Director, once wrote Audubon Washington not to “monkey wrench” wind power in the Gorge. Since then, National Audubon Society has written a few letters protesting wind power in their Important Bird Area, but they have ignored our pleas for the one thing that would save the Columbia Hills IBA: a publicity campaign exposing this siting disaster.

It’s time for a wind power reality check. Voluntary siting standards and wildlife guidelines may make the authors feel good, but they do not work. “Proper siting” has nothing to do with how wind power is actually sited. Phony mitigation measures offered by the wind power industry are unlikely to save even one bird. And the wildlife agencies need to find their spines.

The great hope of wind power is being squandered and turned into just another corporate money maker for the developers and equipment suppliers. Wind power will be joining the ranks of the other environmentally hazardous energy producers if our political leadership fails to make changes.

Governors Gregoire and Kulongoski, and President Obama, are you listening?

BY DAVE THIES

Dave Thies of White Salmon is president of the Columbia Gorge Audubon Society.

columbian.com

Massachusetts and wind farms

July 5, 2009 • Massachusetts
Cohasset keeps wind turbine bylaw
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» Original source is provided at end of article «

Cohasset’s bylaw governing industrial wind turbines will remain on the books despite an effort by a citizens group to have the ordinance “sundowned’’ to review and overhaul it.

Voters who turned out for the June 27 Special Town Meeting were told the Planning Board had not voted a recommendation on the proposed petition article. Under state law, the board must hold a public hearing, which it did the night before the meeting, and vote a recommendation. Instead, planners postponed action on a recommendation until mid-July.

Petition proponents tried to keep their effort alive by asking voters to continue the Special Town Meeting to September after the Planning Board took its vote. But a majority “did not have the appetite’’ to continue it, according to Conrad Langenhagen, one of those who had petitioned to have the bylaw sundowned.

“It’s unfortunate that the Town Meeting voters weren’t given a chance to vote on the article,’’ he said.

Selectmen chairman Paul Carlson motioned to “continue action on the petition article indefinitely,’’ and that was approved.

According to Town Clerk Marion Douglas, that killed any consideration of the article beyond the Special Town Meeting.

The citizens’ petition drive had been launched in May, shortly after the Planning Board defeated a request from CCI Energy in Plymouth to build two, 400-foot industrial turbines on top of the Graham Waste landfill property.

Neighbors of the site had attended the hearings and strongly urged planners to deny the request. When the May vote was taken, one of the four Planning Board members voted against CCI’s request, which needed approval by all four members considering the proposal.

By Christine Legere
Globe Correspondent

The Boston Globe

5 July 2009



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Ontario and wind farms

July 5, 2009 • Ontario, Press releases
Group fed up with Gerretsen’s lack of concern over wind-turbine health issues – Calls for resignation
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» Original source is provided at end of article «

The Coalition for the Protection of Amherst Island is so fed up with John Gerretsen’s lack of concern over the serious health problems being suffered by Ontarians living too close to wind turbines, that they have decided take out the advertisement set out below in the Whig Standard charging that Mr. Gerretsen, as Minister of the Environment, is ignoring the right of Ontarians to a ‘healthful environment’ as provided for under the Environmental Bill of Rights.

The advertisement also accuses the Ministry of the Environment of ruining people’s lives by allowing his Ministry to approve siting wind turbines too close to homes. Further, the ad. states that his Ministry has shown a chilling indifference to the harm caused by the 86 turbines now turning on Wolfe Island knowing that 266 dwellings would be located at or within 1 km of these turbines. The Coalition is calling for a moratorium on further construction of wind turbine farms while full independent medical and noise studies are conducted, and is asking Mr. Gerretsen how many more Ontarians may be put in harm’s way. The media are urged to seek answers to these questions.

The advertisement appeared in the Whig Standard on Saturday, July 4th.

About the Coalition to Protect Amherst Island. The Coalition to Protect Amherst Island was formed in 2006 in response to a proposal to build a 100-turbine wind power plant on Amherst Island. Amherst Island is one of the Thousand Islands in Lake Ontario


- 30 -

Contact: Coalition for the Protection of Amherst Island, General Delivery, Stella, Ont. KOH 2S0 — ProtectAi@kos.net.
Media Contact: Janet Grace – 613 389 8166
Further information and documents can be provided upon request


JOHN GERRETSEN
M.P.P., MINISTER OF THE ENVIRONMENT
HAS QUESTIONS TO ANSWER

Danny's Letter to the Editor

Dear Editor:

The experts in the field of medicine recommend a minimum set-back distance of one and one half miles (2400 m) of a Wind Turbine from a human habitation.That can be understood as a truth of medicine.

The proponents of a Wind Project on Digby Neck are proposing a 600 m.distance from homes in some instances. People, of which I am one, are upset about that. Well-meaning leaders tell us there must be compromise.I agree with that.However, it is at best unethical to compromise the truth.

Case in point: one partner in a committed relationship has been found to be unfaithful by the other.When the former is confronted by the other,the offer of a compromise is made. The paramour of the former wants the compromise,i.e.let him/her "be with me three nights a week and all day Sunday!" Dr.Phil would ask:"How's that gonna work for ya?" The truth about committed relationship is that is inclusive of two exclusively and permanent. There is no middle road. Compromise for less than that is a lie.

To compromise the truth of medical science is equally ludicrous and odious.

For this reason alone, aside from the detriment to tourism and small business in Gullivers Cove, the best compromise is that there be no turbines there. Place them a minimum of 2400 m from residences along highway 217 and strategically out of sight so as not to diminish the enjoyment of those who come here from the world over to enjoy the peace,beauty, and serenity for which this place is recognized.There aren't many left like it!

Daniel Mills