Environmentalists fight for $100M Maine wind farm

Professional guides and sporting camp owners are opposing a proposed $100 million wind farm in eastern Maine they say will forever spoil the region's wilderness character. Environmental groups say the project will cut pollution, create jobs and bring clean energy to the state.

The sides will square off when the Department of Environmental Protection holds two days of hearings this week on First Wind's application to build a 16-turbine, 48-megawatt wind farm, known as the Bowers Wind project, in a backcountry area straddling Washington and Penobscot counties.
A year ago, regulators rejected First Wind's application for 27 turbines in Carroll Plantation and Kossuth Township. The company says its revised plan with fewer turbines minimizes the scenic and cultural impacts. 

Project supporters include the Conservation Law Foundation, the Sierra Club, Maine Audubon, Environment Maine and the American Lung Association. Opponents include the Maine Sporting Camp Association, the Maine Professional Guides Association, the Grand Lake Stream Guides Association, the Maine Wilderness Guides Association and the Partnership for the Preservation of the Downeast Lakes Watershed.

Allies and critics will make their arguments Tuesday and Wednesday at hearings being held in Lee, about 10 miles from the project site. There's no timeline on when a decision will be made on the application.

First Wind spokesman John Lamontagne said the revised project has fewer turbines that are placed in less visible locations than the first proposal. The turbines will have radar-controlled lighting that will stay off at night unless a plane is flying over, he said.

"We think this is a better project that people can get behind," he said.

But guides, sporting camp owners and property owners on nearby lakes say the presence of 459-foot wind turbines detracts from the backwoods experience that draws people to the area for fishing, hunting, snowmobiling and other outdoor activities. The wind turbines will have an adverse economic impact on businesses that serve those people, they say.

"The windmills just don't fit the outdoor experience. They'll change the wilderness feel of the area," said Louis Cataldo, a guide from Grand Lake Stream and vice president of the Grand Lake Stream Guides Association.

First Wind, which has four other wind farms operating in Maine, says the project will create jobs, boost tax revenues and cut pollution while generating power for up to 25,000 homes. If the project is approved, First Wind plans to create a $300,000 fund for promotion of sporting camps and guides in the area, conservation efforts and restoration of the area deer population.

Carroll Plantation residents overwhelmingly support the project, the town clerk wrote in a letter to the DEP commissioner. The town was once a thriving community with farms and seven schools, but it doesn't have a single business today, Anita Duerr wrote. Two other wind farms are visible from town, she said, but nobody's bothered by them.

People support the project because "we are getting economic benefits that are sorely needed and we have no problems with the view," her letter reads.

The Conservation Law Foundation and the Marine Renewable Energy Association have filed as interveners in support of the project.

Jeremy Payne, executive director of the MREA, said wind power is good for Maine and that people aren't going to stop coming to the area because of some wind turbines, he said. The Stetson wind farm has 55 turbines and is located about 10 miles away.

"I find it hard to believe that people who are taking guide trips up to Maine from Boston, Hartford, New York or wherever are suddenly going to stop coming because there are wind turbines spinning on a mountaintop," he said. "I just don't believe it."

The Partnership for the Preservation of the Downeast Lakes Watershed and registered Maine guide David Corrigan have intervened in opposition to the project.

If the project's built, there'll be clear views of the towers from nine nearby lakes that have been designated as scenic resources of state or national significance, said Gary Campbell, president of the Downeast Lakes group. Campbell, who's from Massachusetts, has a seasonal log cabin not far from the project site.

A wind farm will bring down the inherent and market value of properties, he said, while forever diminishing the wilderness character of the region.

Clients of the area's guides and sporting camps have written letters to the DEP expressing opposition, he said.

"The region is unusual because it's almost 100 percent 'escape tourism,'" he said. "People have written the DEP saying, 'If I want to go to fishing at the foot of some turbines, I can do that in Massachusetts, New Jersey or New York. I don't need to go all the way to Maine to do that.' So they'd probably find another place to go."

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Lobbyist for wind power apologizes to Vt. panel

First Wind - Wind Lobbyist's Acoustics Expert Witness Tells Panel Health Concerns are "All Made-up and Make Believe"

A lobbyist for an industry group supporting wind power apologized to a Vermont Senate committee on Wednesday after a witness she brought in called health concerns connected with wind power ‘‘hoo-hah,’’ nonsense and propaganda.

Gabrielle Stebbins, executive director of Renewable Energy Vermont, called the remarks of acoustics expert Geoff Levanthall unhelpful and offered an apology to the Senate Health and Welfare Committee after Leventhall testified at the hearing by phone from England.

 

‘‘There’s no scientific evidence behind what they (critics of wind power) say,’’ Leventhall said. ‘‘It’s all made-up, make-believe, trying to find something to object to, and trying to find something that will be difficult to disprove. It’s a technique, a propaganda technique, and they've been very, very effective.’’

 

Afterward, Stebbins said she regretted Leventhall’s comments. ‘‘I don’t think that’s helpful for the debate and, for the record, I do apologize for that.’’

 

Stebbins’ comments came at the end of the hearing in which two Vermont doctors — one of them critical of a wind power project near his home in Ira and of the industry generally — testified about what they said were ill health effects connected with wind power among people living near the turbines.

 

Leventhall did describe for the committee low-frequency, inaudible ‘‘infrasound,’’ that some blame on problems connected with wind turbines but that he said have less of an impact on people than sounds generated within the body, like the heartbeat.

 

The committee also heard from Luann Therrien, a Sheffield resident who said she and her husband have suffered severe sleep loss leading to depression since 16 turbines operated by First Wind began operating within about two miles of their home, with the closest being about a half mile away.

 

‘‘We did not oppose the project, not until it was up and running and creating noise,’’ Therrien said. ‘‘I have constant ringing in my ears that can be very distracting. My husband has been feeling so bad that he is currently unable to work. His doctor has pulled him from his job.’’

 

Discussion centered on sleep loss due to audible sounds from the turbines and on infrasound, the low-frequency noise inaudible to human ears but which some doctors have linked to ill health effects — sometimes called wind turbine syndrome.

 

Dr. Sandy Reider, a primary care provider practicing in Lyndonville, told the committee he had seen ‘‘a half dozen or so patients who are suffering from living in proximity to these turbines.’’ He told of one particularly tough case of a 33-year-old, healthy man who developed problems after a wind turbine began operation on Burke Mountain near his home.

 

The man ‘‘began to experience increasingly severe insomnia, waking multiple times at night with severe anxiety and heart palpitations, and experiencing during the daytime pressure headaches, nausea, ringing in his ears and difficulty concentrating,’’ Reider said.

 

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Italian police seize $1.7 billion from alleged green energy Mafioso

Italian authorities have seized a record $1.7 billion in assets from a Sicilian green energy entrepreneur with alleged ties to the Mafia.

 

Vito Nicastri, called the “king of alternative energy” for his extensive holdings in green-energy companies, stands accused of evading taxes by only declaring a fraction of the value of his businesses. He has been placed under surveillance by police and must remain in Alcamo, Italy for three years.

 

Police seizures included “43 companies, 98 pieces of real-estate including buildings, homes, stores and land; 66 bank accounts, credit cards and investment funds,” according to the Associated Press.

The Washington Post reported that the Mafia has been getting involved in the green energy businesses for the past decade as governments began to pour vast sums of money into renewable energy development.

 

The mob has been shaking down local land permit holders in order to lease their permits to green-energy developers and get a generous subsidy for doing so. The Italian government has been investigating the “eco-corruption” and has seized about 30 wind farms and several solar power plants on the island of Sicily. Italian officials have also frozen more than $2 billion in assets and arrested alleged Mafia crime bosses, along with corrupt local officials and businessmen.

 

However, this phenomenon is not isolated to Italy. Spain has also suffered from “eco-corruption,” with some companies illegally receiving government subsidies.

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BP puts U.S. wind farm arm up for sale

BP (BP.L) has put its U.S. wind farm operation, one of the largest in the country, up for sale, marking the continued retreat of big oil companies from renewable energy investments while oil and gas projects offer them better returns.

The British oil company has already sold or earmarked for sale some $38 billion worth of assets, partly to raise funds to pay for its 2010 U.S. oil spill liabilities, but also to reposition itself as a smaller, leaner company with an emphasis on high-margin oil production and exploration. Reports said the sale could raise a further $1.5 billion.

 

BP would not put a value on any sale, but said in a statement it expected "attractive offers" for the assets. They include interests in 16 operating wind farms in nine states with a combined generating capacity of around 2,600 megawatts of renewable power, as well as a portfolio of projects in various stages of development.

Over a decade ago, big oil companies including BP and Shell began to ramp up investment in renewable energy. But the uncertain outlook for government subsidies and prices in solar, wind and other clean energy areas, along with the re-emergence of strong prices for oil and opportunities to develop large gas fields, have since distracted their attention.

BP, which under former chief executive John Browne once named itself "Beyond Petroleum", still has a substantial interest in Brazilian biofuels, but has invested only about $1 billion a year in renewables since 2005 from a total capital spending budget of well over $20 billion annually. It has no specific investment plans for the sector in the years ahead.

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Eagle death at Nevada wind farm brings federal scrutiny

A single dead eagle could spell trouble for a White Pine County wind farm that sells power to NV Energy.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is conducting an investigation after a golden eagle was killed in late February at the Spring Valley Wind Farm, about 300 miles north of Las Vegas.

San Francisco-based Pattern Energy, which owns the 152-megawatt wind energy project, reported the dead bird and turned it over to federal authorities within 36 hours of its discovery.

“They did all the things they were supposed to because of an eagle death,” said Jeannie Stafford, spokeswoman for the Fish and Wildlife Service in Nevada.

Even so, the wind farm could face a fine of up to $200,000 because it does not hold a federal “take” permit that would allow the incidental death of a golden or bald eagle.

Stafford said the matter is under investigation by the service’s Office of Law Enforcement.

The $225 million facility went online in August as the first utility-scale wind farm in Nevada and the first to be built on federal land anywhere in the United States.

It features 66 turbines, each roughly 400 feet tall, scattered over 7,500 acres at the heart of the vast Spring Valley, which runs north-south for about 110 miles between the Schell Creek and Snake mountain ranges in eastern Nevada.

Stafford said Spring Valley is not a breeding ground for golden eagles, but the large birds of prey do migrate through the area and forage for food there.

Few bald eagles, if any, are known to pass through Spring Valley during migration, she said.

Those two species receive special protection under federal law dating to 1940.

Scott Flaherty, spokesman for the Fish and Wildlife Service’s southwestern regional office in Sacramento, Calif., said wind energy projects are not required to get take permits, but those that don’t open themselves up to investigation and possible prosecution under federal law.

Applying for a permit and engaging with the service before any eagles are killed “provides the best possible outcomes for the companies and the wildlife,” Flaherty said.

“We really prefer that wind developers work with the service early on in the process” to identify the best site for a farm and its individual turbines to reduce bird strikes, he said.

The incident in Spring Valley comes as the service considers extending the length of its take permits to up to 30 years, a move that could cut down on some of the red tape facing wind energy projects.

Flaherty said the current take permits are good for up to five years.

“It is not like a license to just go out and kill eagles,” he said. “The goal is no net loss. The service looks at populations, regional and national populations over time.”

NV Energy has agreed to buy wind energy from Spring Valley for the next 20 years.

The state’s largest electric utility is already delivering power from the wind farm to customers in Northern Nevada. The wind farm will start lighting lights and running air conditioners in the Las Vegas Valley with the completion of a new transmission line being built from Ely to Apex.

In a statement late Monday, Pattern CEO Mike Garland called the bird’s death “unfortunate” but noted that it is “the one eagle incident” since the start of operations on Aug. 8.

“We reported the incident to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and other local agencies and continue to work with these organizations on this matter,” he said.

In December, when the Spring Valley facility won Wind Project of the Year at an international power-sector conference, Garland touted the company’s “environmental leadership.”

That included such “groundbreaking mitigation measures” as “modified electrical lines to reduce risks to birds and an advanced radar system designed to protect birds and bats,” he said.

Environmental groups initially tried to block construction of the wind farm over concerns about birds and bats dying in collisions with the turbines, among other issues.

The Western Watersheds Project and the Center for Biological Diversity filed a lawsuit in January 2011 accusing the U.S. Bureau of Land Management of skirting environmental regulations to fast-track the project.

The two sides settled their differences last year, after a federal judge refused to stop ork at the wind farm to allow more study of how it might affect bats and sage grouse in the area.

Under the settlement, Pattern agreed to expand its program for tracking bird and bat deaths associated with the project. The company also agreed to pay $50,000 for a study of nearby Rose Cave, where more than 1 million Mexican free-tailed bats roost during their fall migration.

In 2010, the developers of the wind farm said they expected fewer than 203 birds and 193 bats to die each year from turbine encounters.

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BP Announces their intent to file a Preliminary Scoping Statement For Their Cape Vincent Wind Complex

Today in Section B6 of the Watertown Times British Petroleum has posted the following  full page announcement 

Cape Vincent Wind Farm – Preliminary Scoping Statement Public Notice

on March 29, 2013 Cape Vincent Wind Power, LLC (“ CVWP") will file a preliminary scoping statement(" PSS") for the proposed Cape Vincent wind farm pursuant to article 10 of the New York public service law(16 and why CRR – 1000.5 ). APS S is a written document intended to inform the New York State board on electric generation and siting(the “siting board”), other public agencies, and the public that CVWP is contemplating making an article 10 application parentheses the" application") to the siting board.

CVWP is proposing to build a 200 – 285 MW wind energy facility with up to 124 turbines to be cited in the town of Cape Vincent and the associated overhead generation interconnection line and related equipment to be cited in the towns of Cape Vincent and line and potentially the village of Chaumont (" Project").

The PSS will contain:

I. a brief description of the proposed Cape Vincent wind farm and its environmental setting;

II. potentially significant adverse environmental and health impacts related to the construction and operation of the project including impacts related to:

• Statewide electrical system
• Ecology, air, ground and surface water, wildlife, and habitat
• Public health and safety
• Cultural, historical and recreational resources
• Transportation, communication, utilities
• Noise and vibration
• Socioeconomic effects
• Visual impacts
• Electric magnetic fields
• Wetlands
• Cumulative Impact of Emissions on the Local Community
• Environmental Justice Communities 

the PSS will contain measures proposed to minimize environmental impacts in the identification of all other state and federal permits, certifications, or other authorization is needed for construction, operation or maintenance of the project. PSS will contain a list of local laws, rules, or regulations that the project will be seeking the siding board to supplant or override.

The PSS will also contain a description of the proposed studies or program of studies designed to evaluate potential environmental and health impacts that the CVWP intends to include in its application for an article 10 certificate. The description of the studies will include the extent and quality of information needed for the application to adequately address and evaluate each potentially significant adverse environmental and health impact, including existing and new information where required, and the methodologies and procedures for obtaining the new information. The PSS will also include an identification of any other material issues raised by the public and affected agencies to date and the response to the CVWP in those issues.

Within 21 days after the filing of the PSS, any person, agency or municipality may submit comments to the PSS by serving such comments on CVWP and filing a copy with the secretary to the Department of Public Service. Within 21 days after the closing of the comment period, CVWP shall prepare a summary of the material comments and its responses to those comments.

CVWP will provide $99,750 of Intervenor funds available for municipal and local parties that may be used to defray certain expenses associated with participating in the article 10 proceeding during the pre-application phase. Fifty percent (50%) of these Intervenor funds are reserved for municipalities. An application for Intervenor funds and more information on eligibility and how to apply for Intervenor funds is available at the DPS website at http://www.dps.ny.gov.

An application for a certificate of environmental compatibility and public need for the project may be filed by CVWP 90 days after the filing of the PSS. The application will be accompanied by additional funding for intervenors. The application will build upon the school agreed upon in the ecological, seismic, biological, water supply, population and load sensor data as well as an evaluation of the expected environmental and health impacts and safety implications of the project, both during its construction and operation, including any studies, identifying the author and date thereof.

Once application is filed and determined to beat complete, the siting board will set a date for a public hearing. The presiding examiner will conduct a prehearing conference to identify intervenors, award Intervenor funds, identify issues for hearing and establish a case schedule for discovery to be followed by hearings. After hearings, stakeholders may brief their positions and the presiding examiner will issue a recommended decision upon which the siding board will base its decision. Stakeholders will also have an opportunity to submit briefs on the completed within 12 months from the date that the application is determined to comply with all filing requirements.

Information about the project is available from the applicant, the DPS public information coordinator, the project website (www.CapeVincentwindfarm.com) and the siting board's webpage at (http://ww.dps.ny.gov.SitingBoard).

Any member of the public wishing to receive all it formal notices, including but not limited to notices regarding a pre-application stipulations, concerning the proposed facility can file a request with the secretary. A written request may be e-mailed to the secretary at secretary@dps.ny.gov  or sent by mail to the following address: Hon Jeffrey Cohen, acting secretary,NYS  Department of Public Service, Three Empire state Plaza, Albany, NY 12223 – 1350.

Electronic documents concerning the proposed Cape Vincent wind farm can be accessed on the DPS website http://ww.dps.ny.gov, see the link on the left side of the webpage  under" Most Popular Page" to access the " Commission Documents" page, search for the Cape Vincent wind farm documents using the case number 12 – F – 0410. Alternatively, go directly to the siting board's webpage at http://www.dps.ny.gov/siting board to access documents and notices.

 

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Residents' interests have been neglected in Orangeville

Dear Editor:
I was struck by the extent of social havoc caused to the Town of Orangeville, by an uncontested proposal from a big company located outside of our area.  Additionally, it is unsettling that this social unrest is fueled, in large part, by our tax money acting in the form of federal and state subsidies that increase the profitability of large companies like Invenergy and General Electric and their investors, like Goldman-Sachs.

In the face of the Big Wind juggernaut, one simply must ask who the Town Board is representing: the tax-paying residents or big business?

It is hard to imagine how the interests of residents could have been so completely trampled by their elected representatives. How was this situation allowed to happen? What role might the Wyoming County Board of Supervisors played in sticking up for citizen’s rights?

What does the situation say about the future? What comfort can taxpayers take from the realization that state and local organizations do not seem to represent them – organizations that exist solely because of the tax revenue they collect?

LINDA AND PAUL MAKSON
ORANGEVILLE

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Orangeville residents issue intent to sue

Approximately 80 Orangeville residents are preparing for possible legal action against wind-turbine leaseholders, if the coming windmills adversely affect the landowners.
Buffalo attorney Richard Lippes, who represented homeowners during the 1970s Love Canal disaster, recently sent a notice of intent to sue to approximately 40 lease holders, if the turbines damage his clients’ health, quality of life or property.

David Bassett, one of the landowners represented by Lippes, said the lease holders notified should not be concerned because Invenergy and Orangeville have stated the Stony Creek Wind Farm will not cause problems.

“The (Orangeville) Town Board and Invenergy have assured everyone that there’s going to be no problems – no problems whatsoever – in which case, you’ll have no trouble from us,” he said. “The problem is we don’t believe any of that stuff. We just want to hedge our bets just in case we’re right and they’re wrong (and) give you guys a heads up that we’re not going to go down quietly.”

The group said low-frequency noise called infrasound produced by wind turbines near houses can cause negative health effects, and they have also raised concerns over the proximity of the turbines to houses and other buildings.

That distance between the turbines and buildings, or setback, ties into additional measures being taken. Last month, Bassett, along with fellow Orangeville residents Steven Moultrup and Lynn Lomanto, filed a joint petition to the New York State Public Service Commission (PSC) to amend its December 2011 decision that gave Invenergy a conditional go-ahead for the Stony Creek project.

The trio is hoping that new public health information, including two separate 2012 studies commissioned by Health Canada and the Wisconsin PSC investigating human health effects of infrasound, will force the PSC to reconsider their ruling.

In addition, the petition to amend seeks a status report on and an extension of three compliance requirements included in the original PSC ruling. If the extension is granted, all turbines would be subject to a third-party review and Type Certification, and the PSC would ensure insurance levels could cover dismantling and relocation costs should health problems arise.

Lomanto stressed neither the petition to amend nor the potential lawsuit are related to Clear Skies Over Orangeville, a formal group of Orangeville landowners opposed to Stony Creek Wind Farm.

The petition to amend was not on the March 14 agenda, and it is not clear when the PSC will consider the petition.

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AWED Energy & Environmental Newsletter: 3/11/13

The Alliance for Wise Energy Decisions (AWED) is an informal coalition of individuals and organizations interested in improving national, state, and local energy & environmental policies. Our basic position is that technical matters like these should be addressed by using Real Science.

Instead of a science-based approach, our energy and environmental policies are typically written by those who stand to economically or politically profit from them. As a result, anything genuinely science-based in these policies is usually inadvertent and accidental.

A key element of AWED’s efforts is public education. To this end, every three weeks or so a newsletter is put together to balance what is found in the mainstream media about energy and environmental matters. We very much appreciate MasterResource for its assistance in publishing this information (for the two most recent reports, see here and here).

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A sordid story of wind energy in Rhode Island. This is very representative of what is going on everywhere. Watch this video carefully!

Reports about greed energy economics:

Very significant: How AWEA’s Job Claims are Bogus.

More evidence of extra costs required by wind energy.

Phony wind prices harming nuclear industry.

NREL — secret “lab” wasting your money.

Germany’s Unaffordable Wind Energy.

Germany’s “Green revolution” may cost Taxpayers well over $1 Trillion.

Sequester is a Manufactured Crisis.

Sequestration might hamper development of unreliables.

Sequestration results in 8.7% cut in wind 1603 grants.

More good commentary re sequestration and energy impacts.

Wind project’s $30 million in subsidies to be reviewed.

Despite high wind development, Texas has had a net loss in green jobs since 2010!

Ontario may “solve” wind’s intermittency with a Battery Five Times the Size of Niagara Falls. The cost — who cares?

MPs on the Pay of Subsidized Eco-firms…

BC Hydro’s Billion Dollar Climate Bill.

Investors may sue when handouts stop.

Maryland’s Offshore Wind Fiasco.

The latest in the removal of the Falmouth Turbines.

Reports about turbine health matters:

An excellent list where health professionals have expressed turbine concerns.

Health Effects of Infrasound can Cause Death.

Sleep duration predicts cardiovascular outcomes. (Peer reviewed.)

Deaths from various Energy Forms Compared.

Turbine Noise at Fairhaven Massachusetts.

More evidence of Green Energy Pollution.

Health Effects part of WindRush movie.

Reports about turbine wildlife matters:

USF&WS and 30 year Eagle killing permits.

Sierra Club Promotes Industry Over Wildlife.

John Muir and Wind Turbines.

Miscellaneous energy reports:

A superb summary of wind’s deficiencies by an economics PhD.

Wind Running from Demand.

Winds of Change — how communities are destroyed.

Wind Power’s Role Overestimated.

Wind Industry Should be Prosecuted for Fraud

Ten Ways to Kill Big Wind

Power Density Separates Wheat from the Chaff.

Offshore Wind Turbines Can Break Like Matches.

Wind Facts from a Different Angle.

No Wind, No Sun, No Power.

Wind Permits revoked in NYS.

NY State Judge dismisses lawsuit by wind developer.

Renewable Energy’s Big Secret.

Wind farms will create more carbon dioxide, say scientists.

Grass Roots Revolt on Green Energy.

Is Your Church Bowing to the Green Dragon?

An Ill Wind Blows in New Hampshire.

Germany “Reaches the Pain Threshold”.

Peak Oil vs Peak Government —> please follow.

Keystone Pipeline — Pyrrhic Victory Ahead?

Solar energy can be a large consumer of water: see here and here.

An article about the new head of DOE.

Manmade global warming articles of interest:

A new solution to global warming, that might actually make sense!

Climate Change Poised to Enter Classrooms.

Survey says: Decades of climate alarmism have had little effect on attitudes.

Normative Science (really good) by Dr. Judith Curry.

Some scientists conclude that CO2 follows global warming.

IPCC head acknowledges 17-year pause in global warming.

Latest Research: EU & Russian Scientists Confirm Medieval Period Warmer Than Modern Global Warming

Time To Jail The Climate Scamsters?

It’s the Sun, Stupid.

Keystone Pipeline Will Not Affect Climate.

Sierra Club resorts to civil disobedience to promote their religion.

Our Real Manmade Climate Crisis.

Can Global Warmists Get Their Story Straight?

You’ve probably heard that environmentalists (and their media associates) were making dire warnings about global cooling in the 1970’s. This is a fascinating list of dozens of such claims.

Other articles of general interest —

An excellent article on the situation with flood insurance.

A superior short video about Obamacare and morality.

Our proposed national energy slogan is “All of the Sensible” (in contrast to the absurd “All of the Above”). Please pass it on. US citizens should make sure to get up-to-speed with what is on our PTCFacts.Info pages, as this is still a political issue.

Please pass this information on to other open-minded, science-oriented people.

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State justice dismisses suit by wind power developer

A State Supreme Court justice has dismissed a lawsuit brought against the Town of Allegany Planning Board by a wind power development company.

The decision by Justice Michael Nenno against Everpower Wind Holdings was brought to the attention of Concerned Citizens of Cattaraugus County by the group’s lawyer, Gary Abraham.

In December, Everpower sued both the Town of Allegany and the Allegany Planning Board, claiming the board’s request for a supplemental review of noise impacts, in light of the wind power company’s request to use larger turbine blades, was arbitrary.

Nenno threw out the lawsuit against the Planning Board, citing Everpower’s conduct as willfully obstinate.  

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No cause, no answers 7 months after Kahuku wind farm fire

It was a first of it's kind technology - that went up in smoke.

Seven months after they started spinning, the Kahuku wind mills stopped because of a fire.

The fact that they're sitting idle is having an ripple effect that reaches your electric bill.

For seven months they were spinning in the wind.

"First seven months of operation it put about 52k megawatts of energy into the system," said Hawaiian Electric Company spokesperson Darren Pai.

A productive project - capable of powering 7,800 homes.

But these last seven months have been a different story.

Since August, the 12 turbines at Kahuku are at a standstill after a fire inside the facility's battery storage system shut the wind farm down.

Turns out it was the third blaze to break-out inside the building.

"And those we did an extensive investigation and determined the cause of those that was related to the capacitors in the converters," said Wren Wescoatt of First Wind. "We took several steps to remedy that and the new investigation looked into that as one of the possibilities but hasn't yet determined what the cause of the final fire was."

Sen. Gabbard who chairs the Committee on Energy says - no cause is no good.

"I'm a little surprised they haven't found out the cause of the fire, we're still waiting to get results of the investigation, because I think that's a key part of it," said Senator Mike Gabbard (D).

The battery-storage technology was the first of its kind to regulate the flow of power when trade winds aren't blowing.

A system First Wind may decide to ditch.

"We've been working with HECO to remove the battery building, to re-build the control equipment and to get back online and producing as soon as possible," said Wescoatt.

In operation the wind farm was a win-win. HECO saw oil savings to the tune of $11 million and First Wind was working its way to meeting annual mega-watt goals.

Now HECO is back to buying up barrels of oil, and passing that cost onto customers, while First Wind is facing financial setbacks.

"They only get paid for the energy that's actually produced and fed into the grid, so when the wind farm is not in operation first wind does not get paid," said Pai.

And there's a potential for much worse under a 20-year contract First Wind could face sanctions if the project doesn't get going again.

"There is a possibility that the contract could be terminated somewhere down the road , but our focus in on first wind to get it back in operation," shared Pai.

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Judge Deals Blow To Galloo Island Wind Farm Project

It's another setback for a proposed wind farm on Galloo Island.

Administrative Law Judge Kevin Casutto says there's no public need for a transmission line between the wind farm project and the mainland.

The judge recommends the State Public Service Commission dismiss the application by Upstate NY Power, citing long delays in the project and the effect on potentially affected landowners.

As originally envisioned in 2009, the electricity from Galloo Island would be sold to the state Power Authority, which abandoned the idea in late 2011.

Since then, Upstate talked about selling electricity to Fort Drum, but that idea was apparently pre-empted by a plant on post that will burn wood waste to generate power.

See the ruling

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Cape Cod community considers taking down wind turbines after illness, noise

Two wind turbines towering above the Cape Cod community of Falmouth, Mass., were intended to produce green energy and savings -- but they've created angst and division, and may now be removed at a high cost as neighbors complain of noise and illness.

 

"It gets to be jet-engine loud," said Falmouth resident Neil Andersen. He and his wife Betsy live just a quarter mile from one of the turbines. They say the impact on their health has been devastating. They're suffering headaches, dizziness and sleep deprivation and often seek to escape the property where they've lived for more than 20 years.

 

"Every time the blade has a downward motion it gives off a tremendous energy, gives off a pulse," said Andersen. "And that pulse, it gets into your tubular organs, chest cavity, mimics a heartbeat, gives you headaches. It's extremely disturbing and it gets to the point where you have to leave."

 

The first turbine went up in 2010 and by the time both were in place on the industrial site of the town's water treatment facility, the price was $10 million. Town officials say taking them down will cost an estimated $5 million to $15 million, but that is just what Falmouth's five selectmen have decided to move toward doing.

 

"The selectmen unanimously voted to remove them. We think it's the right thing to do, absolutely," Selectman David Braga said. "You can't put a monetary value on people's health and that's what's happened here. A lot of people are sick because of these."

 

Now the matter will go to a town meeting vote in April and could ultimately end up on the ballot during the municipal elections in May.

 

"It's highly likely that what the voters will be determining is are they willing to tax themselves at an appropriate amount to cover the cost and dismantle and shut down the turbines?" Falmouth Town Manager Julian Suso said.
 

In the meantime, the turbines are being run on a limited schedule as the selectmen respond to the concerns of nearby neighbors. The turbines only run during the day -- from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. -- which means they're operating at a loss.
 

The dispute has been a bitter three-year battle in the seaside town where officials argue the project was thoroughly vetted, researched and put to public vote multiple times.

 

"To say 'let's let the voters decide' -- it sort of flies in the face of what we went through all these years," said Megan Amsler of the Falmouth Energy Committee.

 

"We never tell somebody 'hey, you're going to have to take that coal plant down or you're going to have to stop mining the mountain tops.' These are very visible and a lot of other ways that we get our energy are invisible to the average American," Amsler argued. "People don't even know how much energy they consume on a yearly basis so I think it's good for people to be able to see where their energy comes from and know that it's coming from a clean source."
 

"I think if we end up taking these turbines down it will be a shame. It will be an embarrassment for the Town of Falmouth," said Amsler.

 

Town leaders say the state bears some monetary responsibility for the situation because Falmouth was granted renewable energy credits and received advice from state level energy officials through an ongoing partnership.
 

"They certainly have been involved and have a tremendous stake in this process," said Assistant Town Manager Heather Harper. Harper said the Mass Clean Energy Center "provided the technical assistance to conduct all of the feasibility studies."

 

"I feel the state is responsible because they were really pushing for more wind power which, believe me, the whole board of selectmen are supportive of renewable energy. I am. Maybe wind, but not in this location," said Braga.
 

Ultimately, town leaders are hoping the controversy will be resolved and the community will find a way to move forward together.

 

"It's imperative to the community that we do have a coming together and a healing and find a resolution one way or the other," said Suso. His advice to communities considering a similar project to the one causing strife in Falmouth is "move cautiously, communicate well, have extreme public dialogue and listen well."

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Yet Another Storm Brewing Over Wind Production Tax Credit

Wow, talk about taking the wind out of a guy’s sails. Just minutes after President Obama urged the nation to support more wind power in his State of the Union address, Rep. James Lankford (R-OK) sure put a damper on things. He announced that his House subcommittee intends to challenge the new one-year extension for the production tax credit for wind power. That comes on the heels of a similar announcement last month by Rep. Darryl Issa (R-CA), who complained that the new wind tax credit extension is a “dramatic” change from previous versions.

The investigation threatens to throw yet another monkey wrench in the path of the wind industry, which is just coming off a banner year for wind production in 2012.

Trouble Ahead for the Wind Production Tax Credit

As Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee’s Energy Policy, Health Care and Entitlements Subcommittee, Lankford isn’t just blowing smoke. According to our friends over at The Hill, Lankford said that the wind production tax credit will be “the subject of increased oversight.”

That sounds pretty tame until you consider the way Issa, who chairs the Since Issa chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, framed his views on the new extension:

“In 24 hours the heavily subsidized wind industry has gone from the verge of collapse to a modern-day Gold Rush. H.R. 8 seems to create a perverse incentive to rush production of additional facilities…”

Why is This Even an Issue?

At issue, for those of you new to the subject, is a 1990′s-era temporary tax credit for wind power, which normally gets a routine extension every few years. It is intended to level the playing field between wind power and conventional energy, which has long benefited from enormous taxpayer subsidies.

Nothing being normal under Republican leadership in the House, this year the Obama Administration had to fight tooth and nail to win a one-year extension.

That would appear to be a hollow victory. Modern wind farms take at least 18 months to finish construction, and previous versions of the tax credit only applied to projects that were completed within the designated time frame.

So, why was the wind industry so happy with the new extension?

As it turns out, the new extension contains new language, making the tax credit apply to any project begun within the designated time frame, whether it’s completed or not.

That’s the sore point for Issa and Lankford, and now the game is to see how many projects they can exclude from the tax credit, by restricting the way the federal government considers that a project has actually begun.

Return of the Department of Energy

The Obama Administration hasn’t exactly been sitting on its hands while all this has been going on.

On Monday, the day before the State of the Union Address, the Energy Department released a glowing report on a wind project in Wisconsin, consisting of a single wind turbine at the Port of Milwaukee.

To highlight the interest of U.S. businesses in wind power, the Energy Department points out that ten different companies contributed to the project, which generates enough electricity to power the Port’s administrative headquarters with plenty left over to sell to the local utility.

That sounds like small potatoes, and it is. In the second phase of the one-two punch, on Tuesday morning the Energy Department released a report on Oregon’s Caithness Shepherds Flat wind farm. The massive, 845 megawatt wind farm (the equivalent of power for 260,000 homes) started up last fall and is credited with creating 400 construction jobs and 45 direct, permanent operating jobs without disrupting the ranch economy in its rural host community.

The choice of Shepherds flat was no accident, since it highlights the interest of major U.S. companies in alternative energy. In addition to federal support it was partly funded by a couple of U.S. wind power enthusiasts, namely Google and GE.

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Italy makes 'Mafia' arrests over Sicily wind farms

Police have arrested five people in eastern Sicily suspected of involvement in Mafia corruption over contracts to build wind farms, Italian media report.

The mayor and a councillor in the small town of Fondachelli Fantina, in Messina province, were among those detained.

The five face charges including extortion, fraud and Mafia association.

The investigation, which began in 2009, is linked to sub-contracts awarded to build energy farms near Agrigento, Palermo and Trapani.

A total of 11 people were under investigation, including two managers from a firm that won the main contract to build one of the wind farms, installing 63 turbines.

The contract was worth some 120bn euros (£103bn).

In December, police arrested six people and seized 10bn euros (£8.6bn) in assets in an investigation into suspected Mafia infiltration of other renewable energy facilities in western Sicily, Ansa reports.

The proceeds from contracts are believed to have been channelled to the fugitive head of the Sicilian Cosa Nostra, Matteo Messina Denaro.

The Cosa Nostra has been trying to get into the renewable energy sector for many years, Italian investigators say.

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