Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Anything in our community you would like to discuss? Post it here.
sandstone
MVP Member
Posts: 461
Joined: Sat May 12, 2007 1:09 am
If Mike has 13 apples, and gives six to Jane, how many does he have left?: 13
Location: Sinking Valley

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by sandstone »

TOM111378 wrote:sandstone and icemen then tell how they could cut tree out befor the set back meeting i talk 2 all 3 town ship sup and ask them would game sell but win mills in under that ordinance they all said yes standstone u but NO industrial wind turbines could have been built that a lie i seen the ordinance it never said that. i am not fight with u two i mean come on all 3 said they could under that ordinance so come on.
Then why'd the supervisors have to vote to waive the IBA protection provision?
sandstone
MVP Member
Posts: 461
Joined: Sat May 12, 2007 1:09 am
If Mike has 13 apples, and gives six to Jane, how many does he have left?: 13
Location: Sinking Valley

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by sandstone »

Here'a an aricle from last July's Mirror describing the ordinance (this is the ordinance calling for 500' setbacks to Important Bird Areas):

Snyder Township adopts wind turbine ordinance

By Greg Bock, gbock@altoonamirror.com POSTED: July 8, 2008

TYRONE - After two years, an ordinance regulating commercial wind farms is in place in Snyder Township.

''I feel it's a pretty good ordinance,'' Charlie Diehl, chairman of the three-man board of supervisors, said Monday after the unanimous vote to approve the 21-page ordinance.

Diehl said he thought the regulations were fair, and he stressed that although they're not perfect, the rules are meant to look after the interests of the residents while allowing for the development of wind power in the township.

Gamesa USA has proposed a 25-turbine wind farm that would be situated predominately in Snyder Township.

Josh Framel, project developer for the Sandy Ridge Wind Farm, said after the vote that the ordinance was ''balanced.''

''I think it's right in the middle,'' Framel said.

Supervisor Jim Burket said his initial concerns about the ordinance's setbacks were addressed in the final draft, and he's more confident that neighboring properties - either in the short term or 30 years from now - won't be unfairly affected by wind farm development.

After a visit to the Gamesa-built Allegheny Ridge Wind Farm near Blue Knob, Burket said he feels better about the wind farm - something fellow supervisor Robert Nelson agreed with.

''I had hard feelings about it until I went up there and heard it and saw it,'' Nelson said.

Noise was one issue mentioned throughout the revision process during the last several months, with supervisors settling on a 45-decibel noise limit for the turbines.

Resident Helen Mengle told supervisors during the public comment period prior to the vote that she was concerned about the long-term consequences of wind turbines, particularly if something were to happen to disable or topple one of the 40-story structures.

Diehl said the ordinance addresses decommissioning by requiring wind farm developers to post a bond at the start of the permitting processes to cover the cost of tearing them down and restoring the site should owners neglect the job.

Public roads used by companies developing wind farms also will be covered by the ordinance, with bonding required by developers in case of damages.

Burket said wind farms also are subject to state and federal regulations concerning clean-up of hydraulic oil and other concerns raised by Mengle.

Township solicitor David Pertile said the ordinance ''isn't perfect'' but is ''adequate protection'' for the township.

''I can't see what else we could do about unforeseen events,'' he said.

Mirror Staff Writer Greg Bock is at 946-7446.
User avatar
Fightin' Irish
Member
Posts: 53
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 11:25 am

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by Fightin' Irish »

TOM111378 wrote:Fightin' Irish what i ment the other day was tyrone was buting 16 win mills in under the ORDINANCE and with out the set back that was passed all the set back did was give them 9 more but be for the vote game was all ready cuting down tree up there i was up there the sat be for the set back vote and there was like 50 tree gone and road was being but in u can ask game and tyrone they will tell u the same.
Do you mean to say that the Borough of Tyrone property on Ice Mountain will have 25 industrial-scale wind turbines on it? If so, you are incorrect. At the very most, the borough property could host 15 such turbines, with 10 a more likely number. The entire project (Sandy Ridge Wind Farm) would consist of 25 turbines, much of it on land owned by entities other than the Borough of Tyrone.

Regarding your comments about Gamesa clearing out the forest, clearcutting is not prohibited by any Snyder Township ordinance. Gamesa clearing the forest prior to Snyder Township granting them a waiver from the wind plant ordinance indicates that Gamesa already knew that Diehl and Nelson would vote for the waiver. Smells of corruption. Where there's smoke, there's fire. :mob:

Fightin' Irish
Image
User avatar
Fightin' Irish
Member
Posts: 53
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 11:25 am

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by Fightin' Irish »

sandstone wrote:Here'a an aricle from last July's Mirror describing the ordinance (this is the ordinance calling for 500' setbacks to Important Bird Areas):

Snyder Township adopts wind turbine ordinance

By Greg Bock, gbock@altoonamirror.com POSTED: July 8, 2008

TYRONE - After two years, an ordinance regulating commercial wind farms is in place in Snyder Township.

''I feel it's a pretty good ordinance,'' Charlie Diehl, chairman of the three-man board of supervisors, said Monday after the unanimous vote to approve the 21-page ordinance.

Diehl said he thought the regulations were fair, and he stressed that although they're not perfect, the rules are meant to look after the interests of the residents while allowing for the development of wind power in the township.
Sup Diehl changed his mind or else didn't understand the ordinance to begin with.

sandstone wrote:Here'a an aricle from last July's Mirror describing the ordinance (this is the ordinance calling for 500' setbacks to Important Bird Areas):

Snyder Township adopts wind turbine ordinance

By Greg Bock, gbock@altoonamirror.com POSTED: July 8, 2008

TYRONE - After two years, an ordinance regulating commercial wind farms is in place in Snyder Township.

Josh Framel, project developer for the Sandy Ridge Wind Farm, said after the vote that the ordinance was ''balanced.''

.
Gamesa's Josh Framel, clueless as always.
Image
User avatar
Fightin' Irish
Member
Posts: 53
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 11:25 am

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by Fightin' Irish »

TOM111378 wrote:sandstone and icemen then tell how they could cut tree out befor the set back meeting i talk 2 all 3 town ship sup and ask them would game sell but win mills in under that ordinance they all said yes standstone u but NO industrial wind turbines could have been built that a lie i seen the ordinance it never said that. i am not fight with u two i mean come on all 3 said they could under that ordinance so come on.
Sandstone and Ice Man have been in this fight since spring of 2006. They know their stuff. The first we've heard from you is a week ago.

Go to the Snyder Township office and ask Anne Dillon for the wind plant ordinance. You'll see that it calls for setbacks to IBAs. The IBA extends from the eastern slope of Ice Mt well into Clearfield and Cambria County. According to the ordinance, no industrial turbines can be built on Ice Mt, since Ice Mt is part of this IBA. That's why the sups had to vote on a waiver. If what you said is correct, then there would have been no need for a vote.

If you talked to the sups, and they said that turbines could be on Ice Mt according to the present ordinance without the waiver, then that indicates that the sups are clueless about their own ordinance. Talk to the township attorney, Mr. Pertile. He'll set you straight.
Image
Ice Man
MVP Member
Posts: 467
Joined: Tue Oct 23, 2007 7:56 am

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by Ice Man »

TOM111378 wrote:sandstone and icemen then tell how they could cut tree out befor the set back meeting .
Because cutting trees is not prohibited by the ordinance. Gamesa put in test towers in '06 and widened existing roads and put in new roads in '06 and '07. So they've been working on this project for 3 years. The ordinance does not prohibit road construction or widening. What is does prohibit is the construction of industrial wind turbines within 500 feet of an Important Bird Area.

ALL of Ice Mountain is an Important Bird Area. It was designated by the Ornithological Technical Committe of the Pennsylvania Biological Survey several years ago. It's also a Blair County Natural Heritage Area.

See BOLD RED below:

Rendell backs Gamesa; Governor urges Tyrone to approve wind farm

February 15, 2009 by Greg Bock in Altoona Mirror

TYRONE - A new voice has entered Tyrone Borough's long debate over a proposed wind farm.

Gov. Ed Rendell called Mayor Jim Kilmartin in early February to urge borough officials to approve a lease agreement with Sandy Ridge Wind Farm developer Gamesa.

The wind farm project calls for leasing space in the borough's watershed area of Ice Mountain to build 12 to 15 wind turbines, generating at least $91,000 a year for the borough. The 30-year lease could mean between $3 million and $5 million over the life of the lease.

Kilmartin said Rendell pointed out that it ''is a significant project for Gamesa.'' As the mayor understood it, he said Rendell made it clear that Tyrone's lack of participation would counteract the state's multimillion dollar efforts that brought the Spain-based wind developer to Pennsylvania.

The Department of Community and Economic Development put together a $5.31 million incentive package in 2005 to help Gamesa open its turbine manufacturing facility in Cambria County, and a total of $15 million has been provided to Gamesa by the state for wind energy development.

Kilmartin wouldn't go into detail but said the governor offered his help in bringing the wind farm deal to fruition, indicating there could be special consideration for the borough on a future issue that could use a boost from Harrisburg.

One thing the mayor is interested in is the possibility that Tyrone's soon-to-be decommissioned National Guard Armory becomes a community center.

''The governor has a say in those things,'' Kilmartin said, noting that was just one consideration, and the council would have to discuss other areas where the governor could possibly assist.

A call to Rendell's office to confirm the conversation was not returned.

Meanwhile, those opposed to the deal said they would keep fighting the planned wind farm despite knowing the council will likely approve it in the coming months.

''It's just a temporary reprieve,'' said Tyrone resident Skip Chamberlain, who likened building wind turbines to produce electricity to ''building a bridge out of gold or silver.''

Not only aren't wind turbines good for Ice Mountain, Chamberlain claimed, but they also aren't very good at making electricity once subsidies and other incentives are taken out of the picture.

Jeff Morrissey, a resident of Snyder Township who has actively worked against the wind farm, said Thursday the next step is fighting the development's approval in Snyder Township, where the borough's watershed is situated and much of the project is planned.

''We're going to fight to the end,'' Morrissey said. ''We're not going to give up.''

Because Ice Mountain is recognized as an Important Bird Area by the state and federal government, Gamesa will need a waiver from Snyder Township officials to build the wind farm. Morrissey said he already had reservations about some parts of the township's wind farm ordinance, but the provision excluding building within an IBA was something he wholeheartedly supported.

''I will be extremely upset if Snyder Township gives a waiver or changes the ordinance,'' Morrissey said.

Councilwoman Pat Stoner, who is still recuperating from heart surgery, missed the vote in January. She said this week that although she has personal misgivings about turbines on Ice Mountain at the headwaters of the borough's watershed, she'll vote for the plans when they come before the council again.

''I made a commitment to the voters when we did the survey that I would respect their wishes,'' Stoner said, referring to an informal survey of nearly 1,100 voters during last year's primary election. In that survey, 55 percent said they favored leasing portions of the borough's 3,800-acre watershed to Gamesa.

Councilman Jim Grazier, along with Jen Bryan and Virgie Werner, voted in favor of the proposal. Grazier said although it is a ''tough decision,'' he wants to move forward after two-and-a-half years of debate.

Grazier said the millions in revenue over the 30-year term of the lease will help the borough keep taxes in check.

''It's extra revenue, so you don't have to put it all on the taxpayers' shoulders,'' he said.

Following advice from the borough's forester and results of a watershed study completed last fall, Grazier said the benefits outweigh risks associated with developing the watershed.

He said the additional revenue from the lease should go to decrease the cost of government.

''This new revenue in no way can be used as a rubber stamp for new spending,'' Grazier said.

Bryan said the watershed study confirmed her belief that the development could take place safely on the watershed.

''I know it's not going to resolve all of our energy issues, but it's a start,'' she said of wind power.

http://www.altoonamirror.com/page/conte ... 16142.html

Bryan noted every council member has researched the issue diligently. She's hopeful that if Gamesa does build its turbines on the watershed, the money can go toward conservation efforts within the borough, such as the $150,000 Tyrone Borough plans to spend this year on gypsy moth and hemlock woolly adelgid pest control.

Werner said she voted for the project because she sees electric power as important for growth and because she has heard from more people for the wind farm than against it.

''I got angry calls after the meeting from people saying we didn't follow the will of the voters from last year's poll,'' she said.

Werner said she's tried to listen to both sides and pointed out Ice Mountain is far from the pristine wilderness that the project's opponents claim.

Even Kilmartin, who voted against the proposed lease, said he's not opposed to the wind farm. He just thinks if Tyrone's participation is so crucial to Gamesa, then perhaps the borough can get a better deal.

Frank Maisano, a spokesman for a coalition of wind industry companies including Gamesa, said the borough isn't likely to benefit from waiting. Given the time frame for getting a project like the Sandy Ridge Wind Farm up and running, delaying another two years will mean lost revenues and not more companies clamoring to bid, he said.

''They're going to have to start from scratch,'' said Maisano, who noted wind and environmental studies will have to be done. There's also the fact that Tyrone officials have repeatedly promised to make a decision on the issue only to say they need more time.

Josh Framel, Gamesa's project manager for the Sandy Ridge Wind Farm, said that even if a decision were made to go ahead with the project, it would be at least a year before construction and a year-and-a-half until the farm was operational.

Framel didn't close the door to going ahead with the project without the borough's involvement but said ''we want to definitely get a decision out of them before we consider a 12- to 15-wind turbine project.''

While Gamesa met with Tyrone officials this week, the proposed deal hasn't changed, Framel noted, and the borough is still exploring an additional community project the company could undertake with the borough. Kilmartin said a subcommittee was being formed to look at the latest deal sweetener but declined to offer examples of what it might entail.

''We're just looking to get some sort of conclusion to this,'' Framel said.
Ice Man
MVP Member
Posts: 467
Joined: Tue Oct 23, 2007 7:56 am

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by Ice Man »

Will a fire on Ice Mountain be good for the watershed?

Is there any way that future mayor (I hope) Bill Fink can overturn the Gamesa decision?


Locust Ridge wind turbine fire still under investigation

BY STEPHEN J. PYTAK
STAFF WRITER
spytak@republicanherald.com

Published: Friday, May 22, 2009 4:12 AM EDT
BOWMANS — The May 14 fire at the skyscraper-size Turbine 12 at the Locust Ridge I commercial wind farm in Mahanoy Township occurred during routine maintenance, according to a company official.

Jan Johnson, corporate communications director for Iberdrola Renewables in Portland, Ore., which owns the wind farm, said Thursday that Turbine 12 is still shut down. When asked how the fire started, she said, “We’re still investigating.”

“It damaged the top of the tower. The fire was in the nacelle, the housing up there, the tractor-trailer sized box at the top that holds the generator. We’re working with the turbine manufacturer to figure out what happened and then we’ll move forward,” Paul Copleman, spokesman for Iberdrola Renewables, Wayne, said Thursday.

Manufactured by Gamesa Corp. in Pamplona, Spain, the 2 megawatt, Gamesa G87 turbine has a tower measuring 256 feet and three blades, each 135 feet long. With blades fully extended, it stands 407 feet high. In service since March 2007, it’s one of the original 13 turbines that are part of Locust Ridge I, Joseph B. Green, Weston Place, the wind farm project manager, said previously.

The fire occurred at Turbine 12 between 1 and 1:41 p.m. May 14 while Gamesa Corp. workers were conducting a 24-month scheduled maintenance on the turbine, Johnson said.

“When they’re doing maintenance, they turn the machines off. The crews climb the towers and do their work. Then they restart them,” Johnson said.

The fire occurred in the gear box.

“It’s kind of the guts of the machine. The fire caused substantial damage to the nacelle and rotor assembly. No personnel were in the turbine,” Johnson said.

“No one was injured and no one was inside the turbine when it happened,” Copleman said.

The fire was reported to the Schuylkill County Communications Center at 1:41 p.m. May 14. Firefighters from Mahanoy City responded and were assisted by tankers from Rush, East Union and Butler townships. Firefighters left the scene at 3:46 p.m., according to a supervisor at the center.

Johnson said she’s not sure when Turbine 12 will be functioning again.

“A specialist team was being dispatched from Spain to assist with removal of the damaged components. We’re not sure when all the parts will be in to do the repairs,” she said.

Fires at commercial wind mills are “pretty rare,” according to Copleman.

“There are, I think, over 25,000 modern wind turbines in operation just in the U.S. and — to our knowledge in working in the industry on a whole host of safety measures and engineering standards — this is pretty rare,” Copleman said.

Lisa Linowes, executive director of New Hampshire-based Industrial Wind Action Group, disagreed. IWAG is a special-interest group formed to counteract what it says is misleading information promulgated by the wind energy industry, Linowes said.

“Fire is a much more common occurrence than the wind industry has indicated. A lot of it is due to poor maintenance on the units. The root cause of fire varies from lightning strikes to mechanical mishaps,” Linowes said.
:mob:
TOM111378
New Member
Posts: 13
Joined: Fri May 08, 2009 10:07 pm
If Mike has 13 apples, and gives six to Jane, how many does he have left?: 7

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by TOM111378 »

will ice man i dont think there is but who know tyrone would have 2 vote agian for 1 and u know if game give tyrone the 125000 yet then there is know way but who know but i dont think it will come up be for nov i am for winmills but u mite be right a bout ice mounting my be they should never but them there i give u that . but i think that tyrone all ready got that money i mite be wrong my be u should ask and see. if they did not then .why cant they get out of the 30 years deal. but itwill be up the Council 2 vote agian and i f the new ones runing wins then it could be vote out but i dont know how all that work u should ask the the council they would know.
My2Cents
MVP Member
Posts: 1132
Joined: Wed May 30, 2007 2:49 pm
If Mike has 13 apples, and gives six to Jane, how many does he have left?: 13
Location: Tyrone, PA

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by My2Cents »

I hope you're right and I hope they can turn it around....
Last edited by My2Cents on Fri May 22, 2009 8:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Ice Man
MVP Member
Posts: 467
Joined: Tue Oct 23, 2007 7:56 am

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by Ice Man »

Hi folks,

I’m including some links from National Wind Watch, which is spearheading a new effort called North American Platform Against Windpower, so named because it is an offshoot of the European Platform Against Windpower. EPAW has 330 groups from 18 countries. This new effort in North America is coupled with a petition for a 2-km setback from homes to protect the health and amenity of neighbors. SOAR has signed on.

Please check out the site, sign on if you support it, and contact other groups and businesses, so others can add their names to the list of signatories.

http://www.na-paw.org

Petition link:

http://www.gopetition.com/online/26694.html

Let me know if you have any questions.

Laura
Ice Man
MVP Member
Posts: 467
Joined: Tue Oct 23, 2007 7:56 am

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by Ice Man »

TOM111378 wrote:will ice man i dont think there is but who know tyrone would have 2 vote agian for 1 and u know if game give tyrone the 125000 yet then there is know way but who know but i dont think it will come up be for nov i am for winmills but u mite be right a bout ice mounting my be they should never but them there i give u that . but i think that tyrone all ready got that money i mite be wrong my be u should ask and see. if they did not then .why cant they get out of the 30 years deal. but itwill be up the Council 2 vote agian and i f the new ones runing wins then it could be vote out but i dont know how all that work u should ask the the council they would know.
I agree with you, Tom. We'll have to check the borough charter and see if the new mayor, hopefully Bill Fink ('cause Grazier's opposed to saving Ice Mt), can overturn the council vote. :thumb:
User avatar
Fightin' Irish
Member
Posts: 53
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 11:25 am

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by Fightin' Irish »

Great Wall Street Journal article:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1242861 ... inion_main

MAY 22, 2009

The Climate Industrial Complex
Some businesses see nothing but profits in the green movement.
By BJORN LOMBORG

Some business leaders are cozying up with politicians and scientists to demand swift, drastic action on global warming. This is a new twist on a very old practice: companies using public policy to line their own pockets.

The tight relationship between the groups echoes the relationship among weapons makers, researchers and the U.S. military during the Cold War. President Dwight Eisenhower famously warned about the might of the "military-industrial complex," cautioning that "the potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist." He worried that "there is a recurring temptation to feel that some spectacular and costly action could become the miraculous solution to all current difficulties."

This is certainly true of climate change. We are told that very expensive carbon regulations are the only way to respond to global warming, despite ample evidence that this approach does not pass a basic cost-benefit test. We must ask whether a "climate-industrial complex" is emerging, pressing taxpayers to fork over money to please those who stand to gain.

This phenomenon will be on display at the World Business Summit on Climate Change in Copenhagen this weekend. The organizers -- the Copenhagen Climate Council -- hope to push political leaders into more drastic promises when they negotiate the Kyoto Protocol's replacement in December.

The opening keynote address is to be delivered by Al Gore, who actually represents all three groups: He is a politician, a campaigner and the chair of a green private-equity firm invested in products that a climate-scared world would buy.

Naturally, many CEOs are genuinely concerned about global warming. But many of the most vocal stand to profit from carbon regulations. The term used by economists for their behavior is "rent-seeking."

The world's largest wind-turbine manufacturer, Copenhagen Climate Council member Vestas, urges governments to invest heavily in the wind market. It sponsors CNN's "Climate in Peril" segment, increasing support for policies that would increase Vestas's earnings. A fellow council member, Mr. Gore's green investment firm Generation Investment Management, warns of a significant risk to the U.S. economy unless a price is quickly placed on carbon.

Even companies that are not heavily engaged in green business stand to gain. European energy companies made tens of billions of euros in the first years of the European Trading System when they received free carbon emission allocations.

American electricity utility Duke Energy, a member of the Copenhagen Climate Council, has long promoted a U.S. cap-and-trade scheme. Yet the company bitterly opposed the Warner-Lieberman bill in the U.S. Senate that would have created such a scheme because it did not include European-style handouts to coal companies. The Waxman-Markey bill in the House of Representatives promises to bring back the free lunch.

U.S. companies and interest groups involved with climate change hired 2,430 lobbyists just last year, up 300% from five years ago. Fifty of the biggest U.S. electric utilities -- including Duke -- spent $51 million on lobbyists in just six months.

The massive transfer of wealth that many businesses seek is not necessarily good for the rest of the economy. Spain has been proclaimed a global example in providing financial aid to renewable energy companies to create green jobs. But research shows that each new job cost Spain 571,138 euros, with subsidies of more than one million euros required to create each new job in the uncompetitive wind industry. Moreover, the programs resulted in the destruction of nearly 110,000 jobs elsewhere in the economy, or 2.2 jobs for every job created.

The cozy corporate-climate relationship was pioneered by Enron, which bought up renewable energy companies and credit-trading outfits while boasting of its relationship with green interest groups. When the Kyoto Protocol was signed, an internal memo was sent within Enron that stated, "If implemented, [the Kyoto Protocol] will do more to promote Enron's business than almost any other regulatory business."

The World Business Summit will hear from "science and public policy leaders" seemingly selected for their scary views of global warming. They include James Lovelock, who believes that much of Europe will be Saharan and London will be underwater within 30 years; Sir Crispin Tickell, who believes that the United Kingdom's population needs to be cut by two-thirds so the country can cope with global warming; and Timothy Flannery, who warns of sea level rises as high as "an eight-story building."

Free speech is important. But these visions of catastrophe are a long way outside of mainstream scientific opinion, and they go much further than the careful findings of the United Nations panel of climate change scientists. When it comes to sea-level rise, for example, the United Nations expects a rise of between seven and 23 inches by 2100 -- considerably less than a one-story building.

There would be an outcry -- and rightfully so -- if big oil organized a climate change conference and invited only climate-change deniers.

The partnership among self-interested businesses, grandstanding politicians and alarmist campaigners truly is an unholy alliance. The climate-industrial complex does not promote discussion on how to overcome this challenge in a way that will be best for everybody. We should not be surprised or impressed that those who stand to make a profit are among the loudest calling for politicians to act. Spending a fortune on global carbon regulations will benefit a few, but dearly cost everybody else.

Mr. Lomborg is director of the Copenhagen Consensus, a think tank, and author of "Cool It: The Skeptical Environmentalist's Guide to Global Warming" (Knopf, 2007).
Image
sammie
Member
Posts: 94
Joined: Fri Nov 02, 2007 11:51 am

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by sammie »

Congratulations to Allegany County Md Commissioner's for showing true leadership! Note the expected juvenile remarks made by the developer and Frank Maisano.

http://www.windaction.org/news/21452

County approves restrictions on industrial wind projects

June 4, 2009 by Michael A. Sawyers in Cumberland Times-News

CUMBERLAND - Citing 14 months of review by the Allegany County Planning and Zoning Commission and four months of their own scrutiny, the county's commissioners voted quickly and unanimously Thursday to make more restrictive the rules for developing industrial wind turbines.

The emergency changes to Code Home Rule Bill No. 2-09 diminish the possibility that US WindForce will construct a wind farm atop the northeastern end of Dan's Mountain.

"Needless to say, we will pursue every legal, regulatory and policy option available to us for the reconsideration of this ill-fated decision," said Tom Matthews, president of US WindForce, on Thursday afternoon. "This is a huge disappointment in light of the six years of hard work and effort and millions of dollars worth of studies, research and analysis undertaken to get this $142 million project near construction."

Matthews contends that the decision sends a message to members of the skilled building trades that the commissioners don't care about jobs in Western Maryland and to property owners that their rights to use their land as they see fit are not important.

"We have heard everybody's comments for more than a year," said Commission President Jim Stakem during Thursday's public meeting. "We are damned if we do and damned if we don't," he added, following praise from Harwood resident Darlene Park, who has long expressed concern about the potential turbine development on the mountain ridge above her home. "We know we can't make everybody happy," Stakem said.

The amended bill requires that a turbine can be no closer than 2,000 feet to a residence and must be at least 1,000 feet from significant, unoccupied structures.

Environmental protections and bonds for tearing down unworkable wind turbines, both opposed by US WindForce, were kept in place.

"We had to deal with the matter," Stakem said, referring to the state's legislative decision in 2007 to hold wind energy projects lower than 70 megawatts to less scrutiny by Maryland government. "The state put the burden on the county's shoulders."

In thanking the commissioners for their action, Park said they created a benchmark for all other Maryland counties to protect citizens against the impacts of wind development.

US WindForce had suggested 25 wind turbines for the crest of Dan's Mountain.

Washington-based Frank Maisano, who represents a coalition of wind energy developers, said Thursday that the commissioners were swayed by a small group of wrong and loud activists. "The decision by the county commissioners also likely eliminates any possibility that manufacturing companies that make items for wind energy production will come to the Cumberland area," Maisano said. "This is a double economic loss of a half million dollars to the county and a similar amount that would have gone into the pockets of landowners and probably been spent right there in the community. The local decision runs counter to what is happening in the rest of the region and throughout the country."

Web link: http://www.times-news.com/local/local_story_155145...
Ice Man
MVP Member
Posts: 467
Joined: Tue Oct 23, 2007 7:56 am

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by Ice Man »

http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/wrcf/wildno ... ing09.html

Excellent article about Dr. Katzner's research on golden eagles. Sadly, the hope that such research will have an impact was dashed by Tyrone Borough Council members Virgie Werner, Jennifer Bryan, James Grazier, Pat Stoner, and Mark Kosoglow as well as Snyder Township supervisors Charles Diehl and Robert Nelson. Shame, shame, shame.
sammie
Member
Posts: 94
Joined: Fri Nov 02, 2007 11:51 am

Re: Windmills on Ice Mountain - Gamesa Wind Turbines

Post by sammie »

Unfortunately, the article doesn't say when Gamesa will be going before the Logan Township Planning Commission.

http://www.altoonamirror.com/page/conte ... ml?nav=742

Gamesa launching balloons this weekend
Project to show where turbines will be

From Mirror staff reports
June 13, 2009

Gamesa Energy will put up balloons this weekend in Logan Township to represent five proposed wind turbine locations in the Chestnut Flats area.

The company has a request pending with the township to build windmills inside the wind zone, but at taller heights than allowed by current ordinance.

The balloons, representing the proposed tallest versions, will be positioned at a height of about 450 feet, representing the tip of the highest blade, said Cassandra Schmick, township director of planning and zoning. They should be visible by noon Sunday, but will be pulled down overnight, then put back up on Monday and Tuesday.

One of the balloons will represent the wind turbine proposed closest to the Horseshoe Curve, although by ordinance, that turbine is not to be visible from the Curve.

The best place to see the balloons should be along Old Mill Run Road and when on Route 36, near the blinker at Skyline Drive.

Township supervisors have asked the planning commission to review the proposed project and offer a recommendation. Gamesa representatives came up with this proposal after the township turned down a previous version of a wind farm that required building turbines outside Logan Township's wind zone.
Post Reply