Ellin Beltz's Blog (62)

The UK government discovers wind farms kill home prices...

Wind farms can wipe tens of thousands of pounds off the value of homes, a government agency has…

Shell WindEnergy Inc. announced today that the company is opting to exit the Bear River wind project that has been in the works for years.

A press release from the company states it's withdrawing from the project due to “unfavorable market conditions and issues…

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-06-23/wind-farm-faces-closure-over-noise-breach/4087900

Victorian Ballarat Senator John Madigan "Better to put our energy instead of accusing people of being hysterical... we should get on and do the research..."

Waubra resident "All we want is our life back on the farm."

At several Australian projects, turbines are…

In bureaucracy language, to "take" is not only to kill but has implications for habitat use as well.



U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service extends comment period to revise eagle permit regulations

June 22, 2012 -- Docket Number FWS-R9-MB- 2011-0054

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has extended the comment period on the proposed rule, published on April 13, 2012, to revise the regulations governing permits for nonpurposeful take of…

This is a good read to remind us our problems may be local but they are shared by many across the world.

"How Not To Build A Windsite" but oh oops, they did.  Read all about it.

Meanwhile the folks who brought you the Condor Cuisinarts in Southern California are now suggesting…

Please do not sip coffee before clicking this link...

http://www.wowo.com/ArticleDisplay/tabid/74/ArticleId/6064/Pat-Miller-Discusses-Wind-Turbines.aspx

has a not to be missed 32 minute radio show from Indiana where a popular "drive time" host talks with three gents about proposed wind farms to be installed in that…

Wind industry news:

You may have heard that the 2011 annual report of the American Wind Energy Association is available on line. (To see it, do a Google search for the Coalition for Sensible Siting and then scroll down once you’re at the site.) The AWEA document states that AWEA received a leaked advance copy of the USFWS’s draft Eagle Conservation Plan Guidance (ECPG) before it was made available for public comment. So if you’ve ever wondered how the wind industry…

"Recent studies from Altamont proved that the new larger turbines being installed there are killing more of the indigenous species per MW in the habitats where they are installed. These studies conducted in the semi desert grasslands of the Buena Vista section of Altamont showed that 11 bird species and 2 bat species were being killed at a higher rate per MW. This included more dead eagles, more dead prairie falcons, and more dead horned larks. This was…

Humboldt Herald blog reports that a Smith’s longspur was spotted by an accomplished ornithologist during the annual Godwit Days field trip to Bear River Ridge which has been proposed as the site for…

Mad World of Wind Turbines, video 3:26

3 minutes 26 seconds totally worth it.

Thank you to Dan Tubbs for the share.

Petition presents a viable alternative to inadequate, unenforceable voluntary guidelines drafted by the government... (Washington, D.C., December 14, 2011) American Bird Conservancy (ABC), the nation’s leading bird conservation organization, today formally petitioned the U.S. Department of the Interior to protect millions of birds from the negative impacts of wind energy by developing regulations that will safeguard wildlife and reward responsible wind energy…

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2012/mar/30/nv-energy-windmill-program-generates-rebates-littl/

this time in small systems

March 14, 2012 (San Diego’s East County)--A recent study from Spain estimates bird mortality to be 6-18 million birds and bats annually from their 18,000 installed wind turbines with an installed capacity of 20,676 MW. This works out to a staggering total of 333-1000 birds and bats per turbine or 290-871 mortalities per MW for wind energy in Spain. In…

The Wind Production Tax Credit: Time to End Big Wind's Loophole



“We hear a lot of talk about federal subsidies for Big Oil. I would like to talk about federal subsidies for Big Wind – $14 billion between 2009 and 2013, according to the Joint Tax Committee. And what do we get for these billions in subsidies? A puny amount of unreliable electricity that arrives disproportionately at night when we don’t need it. Americans are finding out that these are not your…

In another effort to fund industrial wind, Rep. Paul Tonko [D-NY21] introduced

• H.R. 2782: Wind Energy Research and Development Act of 2011 (Aug 1, 2011)
• Read the full text of the bill here.
• Referred to House…

Keep tax dollars out of wind development–defeat the Production Tax Credit

http://windwisema.org/2012/02/26/keep-tax-dollars-out-of-wind-development-defeat-the-production-tax-credit/

"...The PTC is nothing more than an earmark that lines the pockets of project owners and…

http://www.windpowerinplymouth.info/Wind_Power_in_Plymouth/Google_Earth_Simulation.html

Click GET STARTED >>

new window opens

It says "ENTER your address"

• type address in box

• "go" button shows google map,

• THEN press "click here when address is correct"

A new window opens.

It next prompts you to…

"The toll makes the Pine Tree site in the Tehachapi Mountains among the deadliest in California's wind farm industry. Activists say birds' behavior should be studied before erecting more sites.…