Windaction News Issue: October 9, 2013

(8 Oct) Vermont – Minimum Generation Emergencies generally occur during temperate nights, when power demand is at an annual low. Blomberg said that when this happens, the first generators to be called off are those outside the region. The next generators ISO calls off are the “self-schedulers.” These are the generators that bid into…

(8 Oct) Alabama – The council unanimously voted in favor the resolution, which supports a bill pre-filed by State Sen. Phil Williams (R-Rainbow City). Williams’ draft bill would require wind farm developers to get a permit from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management. It would also establish height requirements, setbacks, and mandate that noise…

(8 Oct) Maine – “As a general principle, the more information that’s in the public view, the better, because people may have interesting, important things to say to us,” said PUC Chairman Thomas Welch in an interview after PUC deliberations took place in Hallowell.

(8 Oct) New Jersey – Ratepayers already have coughed up $388 million in rebates and other financial incentives for the clean energy program to promote solar panels, wind projects, and other renewable energy initiatives during the first years of the program, …but that amount does not include what customers have shelled out since the state…

(7 Oct) Ontario – After three years of protest, a group of Smithville neighbours are calling on Premier Kathleen Wynne in a last-ditch effort to stop wind turbines from taking over their rural community.

(7 Oct) Illinois – He said the 1,500-foot setback from the property lines “is a good compromise.” However, the current ordinance doesn’t look at the height of the wind turbines, which he said have grown over the years. Some can reach up to 500 feet. “We want to ensure the health, safety and welfare…

(7 Oct) Massachusetts | New Hampshire – Though Iberdrola Renewables hasn’t filed an application for the project yet with the state’s Site Evaluation Committee, the company has signed a 15-year agreement to sell power to a group of Massachusetts utilities. The agreement will benefit Massachusetts’ Renewable Energy Portfolio and its electricity customers, though there are questions about…

(6 Oct) Rhode Island – When the Rhode Island Supreme Court ruled that our legislature had required consideration of only the “benefits” and not the costs of the Block Island project, it wrote: “this Court recognizes the parade of irrational possibilities that could incur from this legislative direction.” We are now facing those irrational possibilities…

(6 Oct) UK – The coalition is heading for a fresh dispute over green energy after a call by Downing Street to water down climate commitments as part of efforts to keep power bills down. …But any attempt to water down or end the Eco, which is set to run until 2015, will meet…

(6 Oct) Ohio – Much of the opposition to the legislation is from developers who are essentially receiving a subsidy because of the requirement to produce much of that energy in Ohio, Seitz said. He argued his proposal would help the environment but create more competition to produce that energy. “Cry me a river,”…

Industrial wind not just an eyesore, it’s an issue on many fronts

(5 Oct) New Hampshire – Residents of the Newfound Region living around the Groton Wind Project now live with red flashing lights at night, loud roaring of industrial engines whenever the blades are spinning (day or night), shadow flicker from the blades for hours at a time during various parts of the day, the whooshing…

(4 Oct) Michigan – “The cause for the blade breaking was a carbon failure at the 19-meter mark that was not formed properly,” Buda said. “Failure in the heating oven at the plant caused the blade to break later on.” …properly made wind turbines can handle wind speeds up to 125 mph.

(4 Oct) Michigan – The commission did not take action on the updates proposed for the wind energy systems ordinance, which originally was adopted in 2009. Commission chairman John Eby said members will again consider the matter at their regular meeting on Nov. 7, and will conduct an additional public hearing on the matter…

(3 Oct) USA – Pagel, who spoke with ReWire Friday about the paper he co-authored with five other USFWS biologists, said that additional confirmed mortalities have been coming in since the paper’s completion. Mortalities have been reported since publication for bald eagles in Idaho and North Dakota and golden eagles in Montana and Nevada….

(3 Oct) UK – But Conservative MP David Davies is heavily criticised by environmental campaigners over claims public bodies are wasting millions on subsidising turbines. Millions of pounds are being wasted by public sector bodies on subsidising the building of “inefficient” wind turbines, an outspoken Conservative MP has warned.

(3 Oct) USA – Republican lawmakers signaled opposition Wednesday to renewing a tax credit for wind farms, arguing it’s time for the industry to stand on its own two feet. Democrats and the wind industry say the renewable electricity production tax credit (PTC) is critical to developing diverse sources of energy, but Republicans expressed…

(2 Oct) Europe – A windfarm has been ordered to demolish ten turbines and pay compensation and fines after it was successfully sued by a couple. “This decision is very important because it demonstrates to all those who put up with windfarms with a feeling of powerlessness that the battle is not in vain,…

(2 Oct) West Virginia  – A West Virginia woman who says she’s suffered physically and mentally from turbine vibration at a wind farm near Keyser is suing to have the operations shut down. Anna Bell Saville lives about 1½ miles from the site and contends she’s lost the ability to enjoy her home and property….

(1 Oct) Ohio – Union Neighbors United, a group of residents opposed to the project, will have to evaluate the case further and decide on the best option, said Chris Walker, an attorney for the group. Robert McConnell, a member of UNU, said he wants to take the fight as far as it can…

(1 Oct) Germany – Siemens has refused to rule out axing jobs in its wind division as the company prepares to make 15,000 redundancies. The company-wide cuts will be implemented over the next 12 months as part of a previously announced Siemens 2014 cost-cutting programme aimed at saving EUR 6 billion.

(30 Sep) UK – The UK’s only “dark sky” park which gives astronomers a crystal clear view of space is being threatend by wind turbines with lights on, scientists are warning. Alex Salmond has been urged to protect the UK’s only ‘dark sky’ park from wind turbines.

(30 Sep) Connecticut – Lawmakers on the Regulations Review Committee on Tuesday rejected the most recent proposal from the Connecticut Siting Council, saying the regulations fail to address town officials’ concerns and would make it too easy for developers to get around the regulations with waivers. Without regulations to govern wind projects, the 2011…

(30 Sep) USA | New Jersey – The clock is quietly winding down on Fishermen’s Energy offshore wind project, a proposal its backers say could propel New Jersey into becoming a hub for offshore wind farms, and potentially create hundreds, if not thousands of new manufacturing jobs in the state. The 25-megawatt pilot, located 2.8 miles off…

(30 Sep) USA – Efforts to pass a separate bill extending the energy tax credits could be interpreted as a sign that the code revision push by Baucus and Camp was waning, analysts say. “The committees are both wholly focused on accomplishing tax reform this year, and that conversation is certainly crowding out consideration…

(29 Sep) West Virginia – Among them are bald and golden eagles. Rest assured, if the mining industry was responsible for killing a significant number of the birds, the fines and penalties would be harsh. But President Barack Obama’s favored “alternative energy” industry gets a pass.

(29 Sep) UK – It has emerged that RWE estimates in a planning submission that 860 harbour porpoises may be disturbed by noise from pile drivers. Denise Parker, of the Porthcawl Environment Trust, said: “This is a breeding site and a resting place for the harbour porpoise, so we are very concerned.”

(28 Sep) Germany – Michael Limburg, vice-president of the European Institute for Climate and Energy, told CNN that the government’s energy targets are “completely unfeasible.” The rapid transition to renewables is economically “insane,” arguing that wind farms will cost at least 13 times more than traditional coal plants.

(27 Sep) Australia – Residents are desperately trying to convince council and others that wind turbine sickness isn’t a psychological oddity as suggested by academics. Neither the health community or the government say there is any evidence supporting their claims. But at least a dozen people described waking up in the early hours suffering…

(27 Sep) Wisconsin – If the project moves forward to construction, the Highland Wind Farm would consist of up to 44 wind turbines, generating 102.5 megawatts of electricity. It would be built in the towns of Forest and Cylon, nearly 60 miles northwest of Eau Claire. Peter McKeever, a lawyer for Forest Voice, a…

(27 Sep) USA | California – The report, which will now go through a 45-day public comment period, analyzed four alternatives, including the possibility of denying the permit application. In addition to retrofitting the Pacific Gas and Electric Co. power poles, Shiloh, which is an affiliate of EDF Renewable Development, has agreed to use audio or…

(26 Sep) California – Those who opposed the work plan were residents of East County who say that renewable energy projects in the mountains and desert will harm their health and be eyesores to the residents of those communities. …”What you’re doing here is wrong; you’re endangering our lives, not to mention our property…

(26 Sep) Massachusetts – State Rep. Sarah Peake has introduced a bill (H. 2048) that calls for the commonwealth to convene a health commission to study the health impacts from land-based wind turbines. This legislation is about conducting honest scientific and medical research, developing educational materials and developing training for health care professionals. Massachusetts…

(24 Sep) Michigan – A state audit released today says the Michigan Strategic Fund gave the Legislature inflated job-creation data in April about companies that received millions of dollars in grants through a state program.

(17 Oct 2012) USA – Attorney Steven Ferrey examines the constitutional barriers to State renewable energy policies, specifically the Constitution‘s Supremacy Clause (Article VI) and Commerce Clause (Article I). These constitutional articles establish hard legal limits on what states can and cannot do by regulation. In addition, as states collaborate on renewable energy policy, the…

(1 Sep 2010) USA – This important paper explains the legal challenges to implementing State-level renewable energy policies that are in compliance with the U.S. Constitution.