"Governor Paterson It would Establish a very Dangerous Precedent of Industrializing a water way"

"I may not see very well but I hear all"


I guess Industrializing of a water way is only a bad thing if it is in long Island.
Governor Paterson there are 1144 signatures on this petition asking for a wind moratorium and you have not addressed it, you only seem to be interested in the needs of long island and the long island smart energy corridor. Apparently you seem to think that northern New York is there to supply power and tax dollars to Long Island.

NY SEEKING DEVELOPER FOR GREAT LAKES WIND PROJECT

Great Lakes Offshore Wind Project

Moratorium on Wind Energy Development in Northern NY Petition

Background (Preamble):
Dear Governor Paterson,During a visit to Watertown, NY a few months ago you expressed concerns that we must be very careful when it involves the placement of industrial wind complexes near New York State’s environmental treasures.

Myself and the people included on this letter share your concerns and are asking you to take immediate action that will preserve these special places, and forever protect them from the rampant Klondike like wind rush that is overtaking our state, and is poisoned with unethical behavior.
It would be terribly unfortunate if the legacy that followed you was one of allowing the uncontrolled industrialization of our most treasure places. Consider this quote from a Draft Environmental Impact Study done by British Petroleum in Cape Vincent at the 1000 Islands.


“The cumulative effect of the adjacent St. Lawrence and Cape Vincent Projects would be very much the same as if either project were essentially doubled in size. On a regional level, the effect of the four wind projects will be to create a continuous swath approximately 25-30 miles east to west, from Evans Mill all the way onto mainland Canada, where wind turbines will be ubiquitous.


”This is the future BP sees for an area that has traditionally been one of NY’s prime environmental and recreational resources. Is this the future you envision for the 1000 Island region or the rest of NY? This amounts to an unacceptable sudden and uncontrolled environmental transformation of an entire region of New York State driven by corporate greed and questionable ethics.


Your idea is for wind energy to play and important role in NY’s energy future. However, it will be increasingly difficult to site wind energy projects when town’s and expanding anti-wind groups see these actions as the prime example of wind company behavior, and the perception becomes that state officials have the inability to control it.


Sadly the decisions being made in Cape Vincent by town officials, who should be the stewards of these sensitive resources, is poisoned with conflicts of interest with two wind developers. Neither developer at this writing has signed onto Attorney General Cuomo’s Wind Energy Ethics Code. Six out of ten officers hold wind energy leases in violation of their own town ethics code. The very people who should be protecting this area have deep financial incentives to do otherwise. There exists a clear blatant trend of actions that show their financial incentives have precluded them from carrying out their sacred oath to protect both citizens and the environment. Cape Vincent is the worst example, but other local town’s suffer from similar symptoms as well.


The entire atmosphere that surrounds wind energy development in Northern NY has become unacceptable and intolerable by any reasonable standard, unless you are a wind developer or a wind lease holder. Your office or the Attorney General can no longer ignore this situation for political expediency.


Petition:

We, the undersigned
•Request that an immediate moratorium be placed on wind energy development for two years to sort out all the evolving and constantly changing issues surrounding this new technology which carries so many potential negative impacts.

•Request that you direct the Attorney General to modify his wind ethics code to mandatory from
the current voluntary participation, and be unyielding in its enforcement.

• Request that you direct the Attorney General to immediately investigate the Cape Vincent ethics situation to ensure that this beautiful and precious area gets the protection it deserves, and that these officers are held accountable for their actions.

• Request that you be aggressive in the protection of New York’s treasured places by banning this questionable high impact use from such areas and those areas immediate adjacent so they receive the protections they deserve for future generations.

• Many of N.NY citizens have been intimately involved on these issues in their respective towns for some time. We are requesting a meeting with you and your staff with a representative group to discuss these matters and bring clarity to the threats that face our communities and environment.Thank you for your consideration of this extremely urgent matter.
Sign the petition

DARREL AUBERTINE'S ~ "ENERGY BACKYARD"

NY SEEKING DEVELOPER FOR GREAT LAKES WIND PROJECT

Great Lakes Offshore Wind Project


Not long ago I posed the question.

Where in the world is Darrel Aubertine?

Darrel Aubertine was elected to represent the people of the 48th district. this comprises Jefferson, Oswego, and parts of St. Lawrence Counties.
Citizens in each of these counties are struggling with an endless list of issues concerning wind development. Important issues such as corruption, conflicts of interest, transmission lines ,pilot payments ,eminent domain , property values, and many more…

Valley News on line
article by Carol Thompson 02-23-2008
Excerpts.

Wind farm woes continue for Oswego County residents
In regard to Galoo Island Wind.
A proposed wind farm in Jefferson County has Oswego County residents upset because they could be forced into giving up property rights so that power lines can run from one county to the other.
No one from Oswego County government was made aware of the proposal, drawing the ire of Oswego County Legislature Chairman Barry Leemann. He took the opportunity to criticize area Assemblyman Darrel Aubertine, who is running for the 48th District Senate seat in Tuesday’s special election, for failing to contact county government with information about the proposed project.

“I am not pleased that Mr. Aubertine did not find it necessary to contact us in regard to this project,” Leemann said.
Darrel Aubertine said through a spokesperson that the local residents deserve a role in the consideration of the placement of the transmission lines.
“Darrel strongly supports wind farms and other forms of alternative energies, but also feels very strongly that local residents deserve a role in the consideration as to where the placement of transmission lines, etc. should be,” Aubertine campaign staff member Travis Proulx said Wednesday.
“He believes that his role as a public official, regardless of where he is serving, should be to help the local residents take an active role in such discussions so that local issues and concerns are heard loud and clear.”
V.n.o.l.2/23/08
~~~

The only thing heard loud and clear is Darrel Aubertines silence

When it comes to helping his constituents with wind energy issues Darrel has vanished, however it appears he is very busy these days planning New York’s Wind future, and it seems as though the decision making does not involve any of the taxpaying constituents.
However Mr. Aubertine has been known to get involved in local wind energy issues in Cape Vincent, for personal gain one such example is when he advised the conflicted town board to vote on wind issues.

THE VALLEY NEWS ONLINE
Carol Thompson 10-29-2008
Excerpts.

In a letter dated June 15, 2006, Aubertine wrote to the Cape Vincent Town Board that he did not perceive it to be a conflict-of-interest for board members to vote on a contract in which they, or their family members, had evident financial interest. They are said to have had a contract with a wind-turbine company that intended to place turbines in the Town of Cape Vincent, Aubertine’s hometown.

The town-board vote was in regard to the location of wind turbines. Aubertine wrote that the two board members should be allowed to vote on the issue because they are not the only property owners standing to gain.
V.n.o.l.10/29.08

Here is a copy of the letter Darrel Aubertine wrote to the Town board

In your biography it states that you view Central and Northern New York as New Yorks "Energy Backyard" Is this why you have not been around to help your constituents with wind energy issues?

Have You Gone From Milking Cows To Milking Wind?

apparently one persons "ENERGY DUMPING GROUND" IS "ANTHER'S ENERGY BACK YARD"This is Acciona's Turbine Setback map on it Turbines #40,41,47,48 are listed as Darrel Aubertines Turbines...



DARREL AUBERTINE WRITES LETTER TO CAPE VINCENT EXPLAINING POSITION ON WIND TURBINES.

"The proposed windfarm does not include any turbines on the waterfront ,which is a critical issue for Margert and me".

WHERE IN THE WORLD IS DARREL AUBERTINE?

DARREL AUBERTINES LEGACY OF GREED

NY Seeking Developer for Great Lakes Wind Project -

NY Seeking Developer for Great Lakes Wind Project - ABC News

By CAROLYN THOMPSON Associated Press Writer

LEWISTON, N.Y. December 1, 2009 (AP) The Associated Press
New York state is looking for developers to build and operate wind turbines in the Great Lakes as part of a plan to use more renewable energy.

The New York Power Authority on Tuesday invited potential developers to submit proposals for offshore wind projects in Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. The authority plans to award one or more projects a year from now.

The offshore turbines would be the first for New York and among the first in North America, depending on when they get up and running.

The state-owned utility wants to see them producing between 120 and 500 megawatts of electricity by 2015, the year Gov. David Paterson has set for the state to be meeting 45 percent of its electricity needs through improved energy efficiency and clean renewable energy.

"This is not a dream. This is becoming a reality," NYPA President and Chief Executive Richard Kessel said at the Niagara Power Project, another NYPA electricity producer that diverts water from the Niagara River for hydropower.

NYPA is seeking one or more developers to construct, operate and maintain 40 to 200 turbines two to seven miles off shore in one or both of the lakes.

Authorities have estimated the total project would cost $700 million to $1 billion, which the owners could make back in power sales. NYPA would buy all of the power, Kessel said, which would be connected to the grid via an offshore substation.

The state, working with environmental groups, has identified potential locations that wouldn't interfere with shipping or wildlife migration, Kessel said. Lakes Erie and Ontario are the smallest of the five Great Lakes, which together form the largest surface freshwater system on earth.

"We have to be very sensitive to the environment of the Great Lakes, whether it's the fish or the birds or bats, or the water itself," Kessel said.

Great Lakes Offshore Wind Project
NYPA has announced a major step forward on its Great Lakes Offshore Wind Project. On December 1, President Richard Kessel released a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the development of utility scale (120 MW to 500 MW) wind generating projects in New York State waters of Lake Erie and/or Lake Ontario.

The release of the RFP followed several months of outreach to community and business leaders, local and state officials, environmentalists and the general public, whose feedback was incorporated into the document. NYPA had announced the major public-private initiative for the potential development of wind power projects in the New York State waters of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario in April.

The RFP is available for all to view.


For more information on the Great Lakes Offshore Wind Project, contact us at NYPAWindPower@nypa.gov.



Return to NYPA Wind Power home

Media-Newswire.com - Press Release Distribution -

Media-Newswire.com - Press Release Distribution - PR Agency

(Media-Newswire.com) - Governor David A. Paterson today announced that four New York advanced-energy projects will receive more than $88 million in funding to support Smart Grid demonstration and energy storage projects through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. These projects were competitively selected with 28 other projects funded nationwide to help build a smarter, more efficient and more resilient electrical grid.

New York strengthened the applications by pledging a 10 percent match or $8.8 million from New York’s Innovation Economy Matching Grants Program. In total, the awards of $620 million announced Tuesday by U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu will be leveraged with $1 billion in funds from the private sector to support more than $1.6 billion in total Smart Grid projects nationally.

“The fact that our State is well represented among the states in receiving these funds is testament to New York’s position as leader in the New Economy. Smart Grid and energy storage efforts are critical pieces of my ‘45 by 15’ energy efficiency and renewable energy goals, and continue our path to creating a stronger clean energy economy and a cleaner environment for all New Yorkers,” Governor Paterson said. “Three State authorities, including NYSERDA, LIPA and NYPA, are actively involved in these projects, and we are proud of the recognition they have received. I applaud President Obama, Energy Secretary Steven Chu and our entire Congressional Delegation for their work to secure these critical funds that promote economic recovery, development and environmental stewardship.”

The funding awards are divided into two topic areas. In the first group, New York received three out of 16 awards nationwide to support fully integrated, regional Smart Grid demonstrations. These included:

Secure Interoperable Open Smart Grid Demonstration in New York and New Jersey ( $45,388,291 ) - Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc., will demonstrate a scalable, cost-effective Smart Grid prototype that promotes cyber security, reduces electricity demand and peak energy use, and increases reliability and energy efficiency. The system will include renewable energy generation, grid monitoring, electric vehicle charging stations, transmission automation, and consumer systems that will help expand the use of renewable energy and lead to greater consumer participation in the electricity system.
Long Island Smart Energy Corridor ( $12,496,047 ): The Long Island Power Authority will partner with two branches of the State University of New York ( SUNY ) to create a Smart Energy Corridor along the Route 110 business corridor, involving 800 customers. The project will demonstrate the integration of a suite of Smart Grid technologies, such as smart meters, distribution automation, distributed energy resources, and electric vehicle charging stations. The project also will include testing cyber security systems, identifying the optimal combination of features to encourage consumer participation, and educating the public about the tools and techniques available with the Smart Grid.
Evaluation of Instrumentation and Dynamic Thermal Ratings for Overhead Lines ( $720,000 ): The New York Power Authority ( NYPA ) will demonstrate the effects that Dynamic Thermal Circuit Ratings ( DTCR ) technology can have on areas of the New York State transmission system where there is abundant wind generation potential, including Massena ( St. Lawrence County ) and Chateaugay ( Franklin County ). This project could result in a five to 15 percent increase in transmission line capacity to allow for more wind power, deferring millions of dollars in capital expenditures on transmission projects an enabling improved situational awareness for grid operators.

In the second group, New York received one out of 16 awards nationwide to help fund utility-scale energy storage projects that will enhance the reliability and efficiency of the grid, while reducing the need for new electricity plants. In this group, the New York State Electric & Gas Corporation ( NYSEG ) received an award of $29,561,142 to demonstrate an advanced 150 MW Compressed Air Energy Storage ( CAES ) facility that utilizes an underground salt cavern to store compressed air. This demonstration site at Watkins Glen in Schuyler County, combined with an innovative Smart Grid control system will improve grid reliability and provide a resource to accept wind generated power without timing constraints. The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority ( NYSERDA ) supported the project initially with a $200,000 feasibility study and then a $1 million contribution for the demonstration project.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand said: “This is a great investment for New York. These federal dollars will help create more clean, homegrown sources of energy right here in New York, make us more energy independent, reduce our emissions and improve our environment, while helping to rebuild our economy. I will continue working with Governor Paterson, Senator Schumer and our entire Congressional Delegation to make sure New York gets its fair share from the federal government.”

Congressman Steve Israel said: “Back in May, Kevin Law and I announced a plan to bring federal dollars to Long Island so the bustling Route 110 corridor could be outfitted with the latest Smart Grid technologies. Today, we learned that our plan worked and LIPA will receive nearly $12.5 million to work with SUNY and bring Smart Grid efficiency to commercial, industrial and residential customers along Route 110. With this demonstration project, we will continue to lead the way as a green energy corridor, bringing the latest clean energy technologies to Long Islanders so we can all lower our utility bills and reduce our dependence on foreign oil.”

Senate Majority Conference Leader John L. Sampson said: “The Senate Majority has passed several bills that to move New York to a greener and more energy efficient economy. I applaud President Obama, U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, and Governor Paterson for their leadership in ensuring New York State and the nation are leaders in the new energy economy, and I am confident the selected projects are smart investments that will create jobs and improve our economy.”

NYS Smart Grid Consortium Chairman Robert Catell said: “The breadth and diversity of the smart grid projects supported here in New York is quite unique. The Consortium has fostered collaboration among all key smart grid stakeholders and I am excited to work with all of our statewide members to maximize the collective value of these projects to benefit all consumers.”

NYSERDA President and CEO Francis J. Murray, who also serves as Vice Chair of the New York State Smart Grid Consortium said: “By advancing these cutting edge initiatives, this funding will not only further the development of a Smart Grid in New York State, but will demonstrate the potential for creating a more efficient grid and improved energy storage for the rest of the nation. The federal government’s support is absolutely essential in helping New York achieve Governor Paterson’s ambitious goals for creating a stronger economy and a more secure energy future.”

New York Power Authority President and Chief Executive Officer Richard M. Kessel said: “We’re very pleased that NYPA has been awarded a Smart Grid Regional Demonstration grant through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The grant will allow us to study how we can increase the ability of NYPA’s transmission system to deliver wind-generated power more efficiently, which is part of our effort to achieve Governor Paterson’s goal of having 30 percent of the state’s power supply derived from renewable energy resources by 2015.”

LIPA President and CEO Kevin S. Law said: “This is a great day for all Long Islanders; we applaud President Obama, Secretary Chu, Governor Paterson and Congressman Israel as well as Senators Schumer and Gillibrand and our entire congressional delegation for the recognition and support for the Smart Energy Corridor project. The Smart Energy Corridor project is consistent with Governor Paterson’s 45 x 15 plan and will help to modernize our electric system, reduce energy costs and stimulate the local economy with the creation of new clean energy jobs.”

Garry Brown, Chairman of the New York State Public Service Commission, said: “We are very pleased New York won such a large share of these highly competitive federal funds. The projects that will now get underway will help speed creation of a more technologically advanced electric grid and new energy-related innovations. The announcement today moves us closer toward attaining Governor Paterson’s laudable goal of creating a clean energy economy and a host of new clean energy jobs in New York.”

Michael Conroy, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of NYSEG and Rochester Gas & Electric, said: “We are extremely pleased that the U.S. Department of Energy has recognized the merits of our proposed Compressed Air Energy Storage demonstration project and has chosen to award funding to the project. We look forward to continuing to work to make this project a reality.”

---

Iberdrola wants to delay spending

Iberdrola wants to delay spending -- Page 1 -- Times Union - Albany NY:2943:


By LARRY RULISON, Business writer
First published in print: Thursday, November 12, 2009
ALBANY -- Iberdrola SA, the Spanish company that bought two upstate New York utilities last year in a $4.5 billion deal, now says it cannot afford to make all the investments in its gas and electric system it had promised state regulators.



The two utilities, New York State Electric & Gas and Rochester Gas & Electric, are asking the state Public Service Commission if it can hold off on $77 million in required infrastructure spending this year.
Iberdrola is required to spend $270 million in upstate New York this year and another $270 million next year as a condition of its purchase of Energy East, a holding company that owns NYSEG and RG&E.

Instead, Iberdrola only wants to spend about $193 million this year and $276 million next year -- about $71 million less than what it previously agreed to with the PSC, the five-person panel that oversees utilities in the state.

Today at its monthly meeting in Albany, the PSC commissioners are expected to vote on how they should proceed with Iberdrola's request, which is unusual because it was made as part of a separate rate hike request before the PSC. The item is listed on the "consent" portion of the commission's agenda that contains items that are typically not debated.

PSC spokesman James Denn declined to comment on today's agenda, saying it was his policy not to comment on agenda items before the commissioners get a chance to vote on them. He also declined to comment on Iberdrola's wish to modify the terms of its agreement with the PSC.

This is not the first time Iberdrola has sought to get around the conditions of its agreement with the PSC. Back in February, NYSEG and RG&E went to the PSC to request a rate hike, even though Iberdrola's 2008 agreement with the PSC specifically prohibited the two utilities from doing so until September of this year. The two utilities argued that the economic crisis had imperiled their finances, requiring the early rate hike.

The PSC dismissed the request in April, and the two utilities came back to the commission two months ago with a plan that would raise the typical gas and electric bill more than $30 a month. NYSEG's service territory spreads across upstate New York, and it has about 45,000 customers in the Capital Region. RG&E only services the Rochester area.

Officials with NYSEG could not be reached for comment, but in testimony before the PSC that was filed on Sept. 17, officials with NYSEG and RG&E said that although they plan to cut back capital spending this year, they plan to make it up by 2011. In fact, the two utilities will actually end up spending $1 billion through 2011, $242 million than is actually required by the PSC over that time period.

The testimony also suggests that the utilities believe that their plans to cut back spending are consistent with an order the PSC issued back in May that requires utilities in the state to cut back on unnecessary spending and come up with "austerity" plans.

The testimony doesn't address an additional $200 million in spending that Iberdrola agreed to make on wind farm projects in New York state.

Department of Energy - Secretary Chu Announces $45 Million to Support Next Generation of Wind Turbine Designs

Department of Energy - Secretary Chu Announces $45 Million to Support Next Generation of Wind Turbine Designs

New Facility to Allow Testing for Large Turbine Drive Systems
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced the selection of Clemson University to receive up to $45 million under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for a wind energy test facility that will enhance the performance, durability, and reliability of utility-scale wind turbines. This investment will support jobs and strengthen American leadership in wind energy technology by supporting the testing of next-generation wind turbine designs.

“Wind power holds tremendous potential to help create new jobs and reduce carbon pollution,” said Secretary Chu. “We are at the beginning of a new Industrial Revolution when it comes to clean energy and projects like these will help us get there faster.”

The Large Wind Turbine Drivetrain Testing facility will enable the U.S., which leads the world in wind energy capacity, to expand development and testing of large-scale wind turbine drive-train systems domestically. Wind turbine sizes have increased with each new generation of turbines, and have outgrown the capacity of existing U.S. drivetrain testing facilities. The new testing capability will ultimately improve U.S. competitiveness in wind energy technology, will lower energy costs for consumers, and will maintain rapid growth in the deployment of wind energy systems.

The new facility will be located at the Charleston Naval Complex, a former Navy base in North Charleston, S.C. and will be a part of the Clemson University Restoration Institute campus. The test facility will operate as a non-profit organization with a business model designed for sustainability while providing ongoing state-of-the-art testing to wind turbine manufacturers.

The Large Wind Turbine Drivetrain Testing facility will feature power analysis equipment capable of performing highly accelerated life testing of land-based and offshore wind turbine drive systems rated at 5-15 megawatts (MW). These dynamometer tests of drivetrains are required to demonstrate compliance with wind turbine design standards, reduce wind turbine costs, secure product financing, and reduce the technical and financial risk of deploying mass-produced wind turbine models.

Learn more about DOE’s Wind and Hydropower Technologies Program.

France's former president tilts at windmills

France's former president tilts at windmills Business guardian.co.uk

* Wind turbines damaging France's landscape-Giscard
* Says rules opaque on fiscal advantages for developers
* Says solar power key to fight global warming in long-term
* EDF's buy of U.S. Constellation energy "a strategic error"

By Muriel Boselli
PARIS,
Reuters, Wednesday November 18 2009

Valery Giscard d'Estaing, the former president who championed France's dependence on nuclear power, may seem a modern Don Quixote as he leads a fierce battle against the expansion of wind power turbines.
But unlike the fictional knight charging at windmills, Giscard's quest may not be futile.
Growing political opposition, a lack of government support, and changes in the regulatory framework mean that France is in danger of missing its ambitious wind power capacity target, set by the European Commission.
Giscard, president from 1974 to 1981, told Reuters in an interview that wind turbines were blighting the French landscape and were helped by questionable fiscal and financial rules.
"The French landscape is one of the world's most beautiful but it's sensitive, fragile," said Giscard, 83 years old but who still puts in daily hours at his left-bank Parisian office.
"When I was President I tried to protect it. At the time the ecologists demanded it but they have since completely reversed their position," he said, referring to green groups supporting the development of wind power.
France has lagged EU peers Spain and Germany, where Giscard was born, in the development of its wind power sector, mostly because of its nearly CO2-free nuclear capacity, which meets 80 percent of French electricity needs.
France aims for onshore wind energy to reach 20,000 megawatts (MW) by 2020, equivalent to Germany's wind capacity. It currently produces some 4,000 MW from wind power and also wants to build from scratch 5,000 MW in offshore wind capacity.
"WRONG TARGET"
Giscard blasted wind power for what he called its "outrageous" lack of transparency on the fiscal and financial advantages for developers, which he compared to the subprime mortgages blamed for setting off the global financial crisis.
"When subprimes were invented in the United States, the explanation was that it would help the poor but in reality it was a scheme by banks to make profits," he said. France subsidises wind power by setting inflated power rates at which state-owned utility EDF buys the green electricity. Wind producers sell their output to EDF at 80 euros per megawatt hour, about twice the cost of nuclear-generated power.
"I hope that the next head of EDF will be more reserved in this matter than his predecessor," he said, referring to Henri Proglio who takes the helm of EDF on Nov. 23.
"It's abnormal that EDF supplies a type of electricity, which is a lot more expensive than other types and that the price difference is paid by the public," he said.
When asked how France would meet its 23-percent target for renewable energy by 2020 without using wind power, Giscard replied: "The European Union chose the wrong target."
Giscard added that Europe had failed to agree on a target that included nuclear power mainly under the pressure of Germany, which turned its back on atomic energy 10 years ago.
It was a mistake in the battle against global warming not to include nuclear energy as the aim was to limit the quantity of CO2 emitted in the atmosphere, he said.
"In the upcoming debate in Copenhagen, I hope and I trust the (French) President will start a debate on CO2-free energies," he said, referring to next month's summit where nations will seek an agreement to fight climate change.
Giscard also favoured solar power.
"Solar power is still in its early stages but we can make the assumption that in 30 to 40 years we will make discoveries."
He created in 1978 a commission for solar energy, with the aim for solar to eventually meet a substantial share of French energy needs. It currently only provides 190,000 MW hours per year, enough to supply a town of 85,000.
Giscard also called EDF's decision to acquire part of U.S. power company Constellation Energy a "strategic error" and said he hoped Proglio would "rectify the situation."
"Since the major risk with nuclear is security, it's very difficult for a state company to be operator in another country, which can have a complex and different legal system... so I find it extremely unwise to expose ourselves," he said. (Reporting by Muriel Boselli, editing by William Hardy

Climate Change ~ Global Scamming!

Global Warming, a multi-billion dollar scam
November 28, 6:57 PM
Tucson Conservative Examiner Andrew Montalbano Even in light of hundreds of private e-mail messages and documents hacked from a computer server at a British university, the Copenhagen 2009 conference will go on without a hitch. These released e-mails are causing a stir among global warming skeptics, who say they show that climate scientists conspired to overstate the case for a human influence on climate change just days before the international summit.

~~~~~~
Climate Change Fraud - Because the debate is not over


Written by Alan Caruba, Warning Signs
Sunday, November 29 2009 16:42

Now that some enterprising and possibly conscience-stricken soul has served up the emails and other data of the Climate Research Unit (CRU) of the University of East Anglia, revealing the deliberate efforts to hide the corrupted research that justifies the “global warming” fraud, all the various journalists and alleged climate scientists who have been a party to it are trying desperately to cover up or minimize the scandal.

~~~~~~~~~~

Written by Tony Hake, Climate Change Examiner
Sunday, November 29 2009 16:32

MICHAEL MANN first of climate Change Scientists to be investigated
The fallout from the Climategate event continues as one of its primary participants, Dr. Michael Mann, is to be investigated by his employer, Penn State University. Among the more than one thousand emails released on the Internet, Mann featured prominently in many of them oftentimes making rather controversial comments.

Mann serves as the director of the Earth System Science Center at Penn State and has long been one of the more controversial figures in the debate about manmade climate change. He is the author of the infamous ‘hockey stick’ graph which was used by Al Gore in “An Inconvenient Truth” but later was proven to be inaccurate.

---

NEW YORK STATE RENEWABLE PORTFOLIO STANDARD

Retail Renewable Portfolio StandardCase 03-E-0188
■About the Initiative
■Public Service Commission Documents
■Related Documents & Resources
■Working Group Documents

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

About the Initiative
The 2002 State Energy Plan required that the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority examine and report on the feasibility of establishing a renewable portfolio standard (RPS). NYSERDA's preliminary report found that an RPS can be implemented in a manner that is consistent with the wholesale and retail marketplace in New York and that an RPS has the potential to improve energy security and help diversify the state's electricity generation mix.

The report also stated the expectation that an RPS would spur increased economic development opportunities in the renewables industry, including the attraction of renewable technology manufacturers and installers.

HOW MANY OPPORTUNITIES ARE GOING TO FOREIGN OWNED COMPANIES?



Accordingly, on February 19, 2003, the Public Service Commission instituted a proceeding to develop and implement a renewable portfolio standard for electric energy retailed in New York State to address increasing concerns with the climate effects of, and over-dependence on, fossil-fired generation.


If Global Warming is a fraud, and many of the companies in the wind industry are foreign owned.
Are we benefiting from the New York RPS initiative?

---

St. Lawrence Wind ~ DEIS ~ Executive Summary

ACCIONA'S attempt to justify why turbines are necessary in Cape Vincent.

GLOBAL SCAMMING!

Wind-energy projects are highly subsidized by the taxpayers through tax subsidies. The industry would not exist without the Federal Production Tax Credit, which over the years will enable the large energy companies many foreign owned to escape paying billions of dollars in federal income taxes.

This Was On the American Wind Energy Association Website

(Global Wind Power Continues Expansion:
Pace of Installation Needs to Accelerate to Combat Climate Change,
press release, Global Wind Energy Council, )

They are justifying the need for wind turbines as a means to combat global warming, something that may be a fraud.
If indeed it is proven that Climate change is a fraud, and nonexistent then there isn't a need for wind turbines, and they should become nonexistent as well.

Both of ACCIONA'S, NY projects not affected by new PSC 'ENERGY DELIVERABILITY' Study

Watertown Daily Times PSC adds new wind farm study to list

Under the PSC's order, dated Oct. 20, all renewable energy projects built at 80 megawatts or more in capacity must conduct the "energy deliverability" study.

Acciona Wind Energy

Acciona Has Two current proposed Wind projects in New York State, both are similar in that they have conflicted public officials with wind energy lease agreements.

Both Projects slide under new PSC rule

St.Lawrence Wind Farm, being proposed by Acciona in Cape Vincent 52, turbines at 79.5 megawatts.
And the West Hill wind farm in Stock bridge Madison County 25 turbines with a total capacity of 37.5 megawatts.

Both of Acciona's proposed projects fall short of these new requirements , so they will be spared the added expense of proving that their projects are even viable. This sounds like a neat little loophole. How fortuitous!

Under the PSC's new order, dated Oct. 20, all renewable energy projects built at 80 megawatts or more in capacity must conduct the "energy deliverability" study
Renewable energy development advocates say the study duplicates others, adds time and expense and may be used to refuse development. But the PSC says the study will show whether the power can reach areas with need.

By Nancy Madsen
Times Staff Writer

Watertown Daily Times

29 August 2008

CAPE VINCENT — St. Lawrence Wind Farm developer Acciona has shrunk its proposal from 96 turbines to 53.

Project manager Pete Zedick said the winnowing was a result of the environmental studies ("and feedback") from its draft environmental impact statements.

Wind farm plan at risk of being blown away -- Ontario, CA

Wind farm plan at risk of being blown away - St. Catharines Standard - Ontario, CA

Posted By MATTHEW VAN DONGEN , STANDARD STAFF
Posted 8 hours ago


Niagara Region is in danger of losing its long-planned wind farm and the more than half-million in taxpayer dollars already spent on the project.

Regional council voted in 2006 to partner with St. Catharines-based Rankin Construction on the building of a $25-million, five-turbine wind farm in Wainfleet. By 2007, Rankin had won a provincial contract that pays 11 cents for every kilowatt-hour of electricity produced and also a guaranteed connection to the area hydro grid.

But now, the partnership, Wind Energy Niagara, is about to give up its guaranteed grid connection to try and qualify for the more generous provincial contract offered under the new Green Energy Act.

"Now it's a race, with the connection basically going to the guy who can build the windmills the fastest," said Tom Rankin, president of the construction company. "It's a gamble we're taking ... but it's one we were sort of forced to take."

Construction hasn't started on the wind farm because of delays in local approvals and turbine delivery.

The new Green Energy Act offers small-scale wind projects a "feed-in tariff" of about 14 cents per kilowatt-hour. Wind Energy Niagara can't access the sweeter deal, however, without giving up its grid connection priority.

Theoretically, that means another wind developer could squeeze out Niagara's proposal by gaining permission to hook into the grid first, using up the remaining scarce capacity.

That is a risk, said regional finance commissioner John Bergsma, who told councillors at a corporate services committee meeting Thursday the Region has already spent $520,000 on the project. Rankin has contributed a similar amount.

But Bergsma said Niagara's partnership is "well-positioned" in a free-for-all to win approval for a grid connection from the Ontario Power Authority.

"For one, we're local," Bergsma said, noting the province is trying to encourage community partnerships in green energy. "We've already done all the work and spent the money for this connection.... We think this project meets all the criteria the government has put forward."

The local project could have gone ahead under its old contract.

But Rankin said the long delay in getting started, combined with the rising cost of materials, has made the 11- cents-per-kilowatt-hour deal unaffordable for his company and the Region.

He suggested that's part of the reason the province is now offering a higher feed-in-tariff.

"They saw a lot of smaller projects weren't going ahead," Rankin said. "Now the price is right. It's the regulations that are hurting us."

Port Colborne Mayor Vance Badawey said he believes the province should be helping the local project move forward, not throwing up roadblocks.

"This is a bit of a sore spot for me," he said. "The Region has invested a lot of money into this project. So has Rankin."

Rankin said he's still confident Ontario will acknowledge the benefits of a local community energy partnership. But he knows of at least one other major wind developer interested in a competing grid connection.

"It is frustrating to think we've been working at this for .... years and all of a sudden a newcomer could come in and take our capacity away," he said.

Blowing in an uncertain wind - Business - NZ Herald News

Blowing in an uncertain wind - Business - NZ Herald News
By Grant Bradley

Wind power - the great green hope to ease fragile electricity supply - is being buffetted from all sides. Wind farm neighbours, courts and economics are hammering away at plans to expand the industry which now provides around 3 per cent of our power but is forecast to grow to 20 per cent within the
Wind's main proponent, state-owned Meridian Energy, is likely within the next few days to announce it will fight an Environment Court ruling which killed off one of the biggest wind farms in the world, the $2 billion Project Hayes in Central Otago.

This will reignite a fight with opponents including former All Blacks, an artist and a poet and challenge the court which agreed that economic justification did not outweigh environmental impacts.

Any appeal over the Hayes decision would be to the High Court on points of law but driving it is Meridian's contention that any large infrastructure project would now struggle to get over the bar set by the Environment Court.

Near Wellington, neighbours of Meridian's Project West Wind complain of sleepless nights and feeling "seasick".

Energy companies have for the past two years done a lot of prospecting for wind sites but have mainly been holding back on going ahead with projects because the figures don't stack up.

New Zealand, with its prevailing westerly winds in the Roaring Forties, has some of the best wind resource in the world. It is free and in a carbon constrained market, a fuel of the future.

So why has wind farming fallen out of favour? Besides the economic challenge it mainly comes down to who lives nearby.

Like most power, we like using it but don't like seeing it being made.

Project backers have long had to deal with claims that birds and bats fall victim to the massive blades but one of the more bizarre claims this year came from Taiwan where a farmer claimed hundreds of his goats had died through sleep deprivation because of noise from a nearby wind farm. Reports could not be found to substantiate the claim.

In this country there's been a messy scrap between pioneer turbine maker Windflow Technology and its only customer, NZ Windfarms, which had withheld payments while seeking greater technical reassurance. There is a thaw in the impasse but it did give encouragement to wind power sceptics' view the industry is still towards the fringe.

Contact Energy hasn't helped the cause either, stalling its own 540MW Waikato project by calling for a year's delay in a hearing it had previously described as urgent. Opposition from well organised and in some cases wealthy neighbours, and failure to get all its ducks in a row led to the backtrack by Contact, which conceded it was a victim of its own overconfidence.

ElecIt is now concentrating on geothermal development, although still pursuing two wind farm consents so it is ready to go ahead with them when the economics are not so challenging.

The big projects make for big targets.

In 2006, then-Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Morgan Williams warned the mega-project philosophy, dominated by state owned enterprises (SOEs) was bound to lead to tension. He urged more community ownership of wind farms to avoid losing local support for them.

At Makara near Wellington there was never much local support for the West Wind project and there's even less now it's producing power from 62 turbines, measuring 110m from ground level to blade tip. Around 300 people live within 2km of the project and complain their peace has been shattered.

One resident, Hans Renner, said what used to be a tranquil valley has been transformed by the windfarm on the hills.

"Quite often you used to be able to hear a cow fart in the next door neighbour's farm and that's a kilometre away."

The joinery business owner says hearing problems mean he is particularly sensitive to the low frequency noise emanating from the windfarm.

"I can hear it, obviously, but I can also feel it."

Renner says the lack of sleep riled him so much one night that he tracked down Meridian chief executive Tim Lusk to his Martinborough holiday home and phoned him to complain at 4.30 one morning.

"We chatted for 15 minutes - he seemed like a reasonable bloke."

Noise levels vary according to the wind direction and speed. It was most obvious at night when trying to sleep.

"On Saturday or Sunday afternoon people come out here, stay for the afternoon, go home and wonder what the fuss is about. If you're out here after 11pm you'll known what we're complaining about."

The Makara Guardians was formed 12 years ago to oppose windfarming and past president Jenny Jorgensen said she had no objection to the turbines as long as they were far away from houses.

"The impact has been sleep deprivation and outside I get a feeling of seasickness."

Meridian has been bombarded with around 100 complaints a month since the farm started operating in April.

Spokesman Alan Seay said he was not surprised at the level of opposition but said the company was confident the project complied with noise standards.

In the interests of being a "good neighbour" Meridian was working with the turbine manufacturer Siemens to reduce noise.

Meridian, responsible for generating almost a third of the country's power, all from renewable sources, felt squeezed, said Seay. "The frustrating thing about this is that we get told by the Makara Guardians that wind power is fine but not near them or near houses. We go down to Central Otago where we're a million miles away from houses and we can't build one there either."
The country had decisions to make, he said. "If we want most of our power to come from renewable sources and we're ruling out wind ... then we're never going to achieve that."

Meridian's wind development manager Adam Muldoon also hit out at what is now widespread scepticism within the industry about the financial viability of wind power.

He said evidence that helped sway the Environment Court was "oversimplistic". Calculations needed to take in the company's energy mix - how wind complements its hydro generation - and extremely detailed analysis of 1000 price paths and hundreds of different wind forecasts.

Muldoon acknowledged the economics were challenging but any power project that relied on imported equipment was.

Engineering and technical specialists Aurecon have done work on wind energy projects in New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Europe. It uses numerical weather prediction models to simulate the physics of the atmosphere and calculate wind speeds at a given location anywhere in the world for the past 50 years.

Blair Walter, Aurecon's renewable energy leader, says for wind projects to be viable they must hit the economic sweet spot and conform to a complex series of criteria.

Ideal sites are elevated and exposed to the west with gently sloping terrain, there must be road access, grid connection and they have to avoid getting tripped over by environmental impacts including visual impacts and noise.

As a rule of thumb, long-term power prices are around $70 to $80 per megawatt hour and most wind farms at the moment cost the equivalent of more than $100 per megawatt hour to build with high turbine prices, although manufacturing in China could improve supply.

Governments in European countries, South Africa and Australia effectively subsidised wind power.

'We're a bit proud in New Zealand because we've built projects without needing a subsidy. If you look back 10 years wind was marginal but just waiting for that little push or change in conditions for it to go big. Not a lot has changed in those conditions."

TrustPower has long established wind farms in Manawatu and says conditions are improving to build a small part of a 200MW project at Mahinerangi near Dunedin. It could make a decision to go ahead in January.

Spokesman Graeme Purches said the market for turbines was competitive and the exchange rate favourable.

"Sometimes you look at the delays caused by the RMA but in a perverse way they're helpful because the technology is improving all the time.

"We'll end up with a better wind farm at Mahinerangi than we'd have been able to build two years ago."

By Grant Bradley |

“Wind Turbine Syndrome” book now available - Wind Turbine Syndrome - Nina Pierpont’s Research

“Wind Turbine Syndrome” book now available - Wind Turbine Syndrome - Nina Pierpont’s Research

Bureaucracy trips up renewable energy projects

SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
David R. Baker, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, November 27, 2009

Excerpts from original article:
click title to link to read complete article.

---

California's renewable power boom is off to a slower start than planned.
Delays have hit more than half of the big solar, wind and geothermal energy projects under development throughout the state, according to a recent government report. They're still moving forward, but not at the pace their developers expected.

a result, California probably won't meet its goal of getting 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by the end of 2010 - a key element of the state's fight against global warming.
In some cases, solar plants and wind farms have had difficulty lining up financing, particularly after last year's economic meltdown.
Others need new transmission lines to carry their electricity to market.

Some draw fire from environmentalists for their potential impact on plants and wildlife.

And for many, the process of winning government permits to begin construction has dragged on longer than expected.
The local, state and federal agencies involved have been buried in applications, more than they can easily handle.
Some agencies are now adding staff - a rarity in these times of constant budget cuts - to break the logjam.
"Until we solve the transmission and the permitting, it's going to be very difficult to move forward at the scale we need," said John Woolard, chief executive officer of BrightSource Energy, speaking at a renewable power conference in August.

Beyond California
The problem has implications far beyond California's borders.

Climate-change legislation pending in Congress would force the entire country to rely more heavily on renewable power.

But the same basic problems that have hampered project development in the Golden State would apply elsewhere as well.

The slowdown also could pose a financial risk for developers.

Under the economic stimulus package signed by President Obama this year, renewable power developers can receive a grant worth up to 30 percent of each project's cost, in lieu of taking a tax credit of equal value.
But in order to qualify for the grant, a project has to begin construction before the end of 2010.

And construction can't begin until the project receives all its permits.

Delays common

"Each particular project is unique," said Julie Fitch, director of the utilities commission's energy division.

"There's a lot of different permits that are necessary, and they may be on track on nine of them and behind on one."

The permit application process can be a labyrinth.

For projects that lie on federal land, developers also need approval from the Bureau of Land Management, part of the U.S. Department of the Interior.

On a percentage basis overall Wind and Solar consumption is likely to remain in the low single digits for decades.

RIGZONE - BP's Hayward Sees Upside to Economic Growth, Energy Demand
by Dan Molinski

Excerpts from article to read full article click title

The dip in global growth rates is temporary and the world could soon resume a sharp-rising spurt in economic activity, accompanied by higher demand for energy, the head of BP said.

"We're living in a time of unprecedented growth...And with that comes a dramatic increase in energy demand," Chief Executive

Tony Hayward said Tuesday.

Speaking at the Commonwealth Business Forum, a meeting of more than 50 countries, most of them former British colonies, Hayward said fossil fuels will continue to be the key provider of energy.
He said the percentage contribution from alternative energy sources such as wind and solar to overall consumption is likely to remain in the low single digits for decades.

The BP chief touted natural gas as the hands-down cleanest-burning fossil fuel, and said its increased use will be the best way to meet global demand

WHERE IN THE WORLD IS DARREL AUBERTINE?

Cape Vincent Wind power is a hot topic. I literally have people coming to this blog from across the globe.
Everyone has an opinion these days on wind power in Cape Vincent ,and the surrounding areas.

WHERE IN THE WORLD IS DARREL AUBERTINE ?

Recently at the Galloo Island public hearing H. Douglas Barclay a former state Senator and U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador
Made one comment in particular that I found interesting, the comment is as follows. Oswego County has become a dumping ground for power generation downstate.

I found this quote in sharp contrast with something I found in Darrel Aubertines biography.

Darrel Aubertine's Biography

In May 2009, Senator Darrel Aubertine was chosen to also lead the Senate Energy & Telecommunications Committee, another key area of interest for Central and Northern New York, which the Senator refers to as New York’s “Energy Backyard." The region is home to many power generating facilities, including two nuclear facilities in Oswego County and the Moses-Saunders Hydropower Dam in Massena. As a member of the Assembly, he served more than five years on the energy committee and in his role as chair of the Senate Committee, has worked to create and preserve jobs, lower energy costs and encourage development of renewable energy sources.
At who's expense Darrel?

Apparently one persons "DUMPING GROUND" is anothers "ENERGY BACKYARD"

JEFFERSON COUNTY BOARD OF LEGISLATORS

All Jefferson County Residents
There will be a County Board of Legislators meeting Tuesday, November 24 at 195 Arsenal St, Watertown, NY 5:00 pm. They will be talking about PILOT agreements.
click link to read post on Jefferson's Leaning Left

Inside the IDA on the Galloo Island PILOTNANCY MADSEN / TIMES STAFF WRITER
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2009


A highly-anticipated Board of Legislators meeting tonight will focus on the payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement for the proposed Galloo Island Wind Farm.

Dirty wind-power war

Dirty wind-power war

How public relations can drive public policy

Terence Corcoran, Financial Post
Published: Thursday, October 29, 2009

When industries look for government subsidies for money-losing propositions, a common business model these days, one of the most important strategic elements is to make sure you have a well-oiled public relations machine to keep the facts from getting in the way. Voters don't like to back money-losers, which means keeping them steadily misinformed or at least confused.

Renewable energy industries -- wind, solar, biomass, human treadmills -- have a particularly tough job. In North America, where so-called green energy companies and electric utilities are on the brink of receiving uncountable billions in direct subsidies and zillions in indirect subsidies via higher electricity prices, the PR effort is in full swing.

Ontario, Alberta and other provinces along with Ottawa are busy working on wind and solar development schemes, even though they are documented money-losers. U.S. President Obama this week was hailed as "the man who's done more to advance the cause of renewable energy than anyone in the nation's history." Or so said the head of Florida Light and Power after Mr. Obama announced $3.7-billion in economic stimulus spending on smart meters that would make it possible for utilities to manipulate prices and force people to pay more for renewable energy. In Congress this week, debate is raging over a clean energy bill that would direct windfall carbon taxes on fossil fuels to renewable sources of energy.

To what degree do voters in Canada and the U.S. know they are to be come feeder funds for subsidy-seeking industrial firms? If the industry has its way, not too much. What the voters don't know they shouldn't be told.

All of which is to introduce a little public relations story related to a commentary we ran on this page last week by the authors of a new German study on Germany's disastrously wasteful rush into alternative energy. The study, "Economic impacts from the promotion of renewable energies: The German experience," showed how German electricity consumers and the German economy paid dearly for the country's plunge into wind and solar energy. The program was massively expensive, and the authors of the study warned that other jurisdictions would be well advised avoiding the German model.

The study was written for the prestigious Rheinisch-Westfalisches Institut in Essen, Germany, by Manuel Frondel, Nolan Ritter, and Colin Vance. After FP Comment published the commentary from the study, the following news release landed:

To: ' tcorcoran@nationalpost.com'Subject: heads up: this week's attack by IER on the wind industry. this time it's Germany.

Good afternoon:

I'm checking in with you again today about IER's latest

attack on the wind industry. On October 19, the Institute for Energy Research (IER), an anti-clean energy group that produces bogus research aimed at derailing U.S. policy away from clean, renewable sources of energy, struck again. This time the target was Germany, a global leader in wind energy; an earlier IER attack trained its falsehoods and flawed methodology on Denmark.

The latest IER attack is focused on Germany's "feed-in tariff," a system used in other countries to encourage the development of renewable energy. Their report is called 'Economic impacts from the promotion of renewable energies: The German Experience.'

IER's strategy is to discredit renewable energy in other countries at a time when the U.S. industry is growing and policies still being developed. This report goes so far as to include a state-by-state U.S. map showing how much a German-style feed-in tariff would increase electricity costs in each state. The U.S. Congress is considering a national Renewable Electricity Standard (RES) which is a very different policy from the feed-in tariff so this comparison simply does not apply... Previous IER reports have been discredited by prominent international organizations and think tanks. But the facts so far have not deterred their disinformation campaign, and we expect them to take on other countries that have successfully integrated wind into their energy mix. Stay tuned... An AWEA representative is available to discuss: What are IER's motives? Why the IER's math does not compute. How the study is just the latest in a concerted effort by wind opponents. Sincerely, Shawna Seldon, The Rosen Group, New York

Note, among other things, that the news release -- put out by the American Wind Energy Association through the New York public relations firm -- does not mention the German institute (Rheinisch-Westfalisches Institut) that did the study. Instead it refers to another group (IER) that paid for the study. By association, it implies the German report to be "bogus" and riddled with errors. It seemed like a charge worth following up, so I sent a note off to the German institute and asked for its response to the wind industry's claims that the report might be bogus or otherwise tainted. One of the authors of the report sent me this:

Dear Mr. Corcoran, Thank you for your interest in our report on Germany's experience with renewable energies, for which I served as the lead coordinator and co-author for RWI, an economics research institute in Germany. With regard to your questions, let me first confirm that the report was written jointly by my RWI colleagues Manuel Frondel, Nolan Ritter, and myself. The report was commissioned by IER, but I can assure you that beyond the broad definition of the topic -Germany's experience with renewable energy -IER had no role in determining the report's content. Indeed, some of what we advocate in the report, such as the use of cap and trade to achieve emissions reductions, is not a position supported by IER. These positions were also advocated in publications released long before our association with IER, which I would be happy to send you. Concerning the American Wind Energy Association's claim that the research cannot be trusted, it is important to emphasize that every figure cited in that report is clearly documented and drawn from reputable sources, many of which are from the German government itself. In this regard, the rebuttal in the E&E story [a U.S. news agency article on the study] suggests that we ignore job creation figures put out by the German government. This accusation is patently false. On page 22 of the report, we present a colored chart, assembled from a government-commissioned study, that shows gross employment in the renewables sector of 278,000. This is closely in-line with the 280,000 figure cited by E&E. Finally, I would note that RWI's criticism of government programs is not limited to the renewables sector. The institute has a long history of criticizing government subsidies for the coal industry, which hasn't won it a lot of friends in its home town of Essen, the heartland of Germany's coal extraction. If you have any particular questions about the report or the topic more generally, please do not hesitate to contact me. I welcome any opportunity to discuss our findings and to hear feed-back. With best regards, Colin Vance, Senior Researcher, RWI; Professor of Quantitative Methods, Jacobs University Bremen

In the PR war over subsidies, the wind industry appears to be waging a dirty war.

Doyle signs new wind farm law

Updated: Wednesday, 30 Sep 2009, 9:52 PM CDT
Reporter: Lindsay Veremis
CALUMET COUNTY -
A new law will make regulation of wind farm sites uniform throughout the state. Governor Jim Doyle signed a bill Wednesday afternoon requiring statewide standards for the construction and operation of wind farms, but not everyone is embracing the change.



"Property values have plummeted, some people can't even get people to look at their homes when they put them up for sale," Calumet County Resident Ronald Dietrich said.

Dietrich says the Public Service Commission rules that regulate wind projects are too lax, but he isn't sure the new law will help.

"The state is taking away local control and they're losing the impact of what local people know about the area and their needs," he said.

In contrast, Doyle sees the law as a big step forward for Wisconsin. The measure replaces a patchwork of local regulations, with a common standard for wind energy development. The Public Service Commission will set those regulations, municipal standards cannot be more stringent.

"From community to community you didn't know what the rules were going to be, what new ordinance was going to be thrown out," Thad Nation with CREWE, Clean Responsible Energy for Wisconsin's Economy said.

Supporters say the law will help Wisconsin diversify its power source and meet the state's mandate for renewable energy.

Its an issue Calumet County is watching closely. This summer the county's wind energy ordinance was struck down in court for being too broad. The county has put a hold on any new projects.

Staff in the county's planning department say its wind farm regulations are in limbo right now. The county is waiting to see if the State Supreme Court will review its case, but in the meantime officials are working on a new ordinance. They aren't sure how the state standards will factor in.

"That's totally up in the air," Dietrich said.

He says the former ordinance summarized what people in the county want, he only hopes the service commission weighs those desires when it sets a new standard.

Trouble in Green Paradise: Wind Farm Scams

Trouble in Green Paradise: Wind Farm Scams

By Bob Ellis on November 16th, 2009
Environmental activists like to tell us that the “green” movement is a benign, good-willed group of humanitarians who want humanity to be able to live in peace and harmony with our planet, while oil and coal companies are just a bunch of greedy white men in business suits who want to get rich and wreck the planet.

Really? There’s no greed in the environmentalist movement? There’s no greed, scamming, and dishonesty going on there?

Think again. Think again for a long time.

From the Financial Times:

Italian finance police, mounting an operation code named “Gone with the wind”, on Wednesday said they had arrested two of the country’s most prominent businessmen in the wind energy sector.

Police said the charges related to fraud involved in obtaining public subsidies to construct wind farms. They are also investigating the sale of wind farms to foreign companies…

“Gone with the wind”, mounted by the finance ministry’s anti-fraud police, started in 2007 and began by blocking public subsidies worth €9.4m ($14m, £8.4m) granted by the ministry for economic development. Last year police confiscated seven wind farms with 185 turbines in Sicily linked to IVPC.

Anti-Mafia prosecutors in Sicily have launched a parallel investigation. The Financial Times was told in April that a large number of wind farms had been built with public subsidies but had never functioned.

I have nothing against wind power or any other form of clean energy, per se. If a source of effective, clean, renewable energy can be crafted at the same or less cost than fossil fuels, I’m all for it. Unfortunately evidence is mounting that in addition to higher costs with less effectiveness, “green” projects like these are plagued by fraud (perhaps because most of the hot air driving them is based on a fraud?).

With the fossil fuel industry, even if there is some greed, at least we receive a useful product (one you cannot go a day without in our modern world) for a decent price, while “green” energy costs us more, gets us less, and can be a fraudulent enterprise built on a fraudulent claim.

One of those arrested in this scheme in Europe, Oreste Vigorito, is a former partner of Brian Caffyn, a former partner of the Nantucket “Cape Wind” project, according to the European Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow.

According to the Boston Herald, the American taxpayer and consumer is once again on the short end of the stick with this “green” scam:

In 2006, the Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk University undertook the most comprehensive review yet of Cape Wind’s public subsidies.

“What we found was quite remarkable,” David Tuerck, the institute’s executive director, said at the time. “Cape Wind stands to receive subsidies worth $731 million, or 77 percent of the cost of installing the project and 48 percent of the revenues it would generate. The policy question that this amount of subsidy raises is whether the project’s benefit is worth the huge public subsidies that the developer gets.”

Even more interesting perhaps is the fact that this project received $115 million in porkulus, er, stimulus funds from the taxpayers, but hasn’t done anything to merit such a–excuse the pun–windfall:

In September, after First Wind affiliates received $115 million in federal stimulus money, U.S. Rep. Eric J. Massa (D-N.Y.) wrote to President Barack Obama, calling the grants “very alarming” and saying the company “abused the public trust.

~~~
CONGRESSMAN MASSA ~ LETTER ~ TO OBAMA

~~~

“No electricity has been produced for sale out of the projects,” but the company “has already collected production rewards for non-existent energy,” Massa told Obama.

But the people pushing wind farms just want to save the planet, right? They aren’t the greedy ones; it’s those evil oil companies (that supply the material for the vast majority of our modern infrastructure including not only gasoline for our cars and to transport our food, but the plastics which virtually everything is made from these days) that are the only nasty profiteers, right?

Perhaps the environmentalist movement isn’t as altruistic as some Leftists environmental advocates would have us believe?

Galloo Island PILOT talks are reined in

Watertown Daily Times Galloo Island PILOT talks are reined in

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2009

Jefferson County's Board of Legislators slowed down its consideration of the payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement for the proposed Galloo Island Wind Farm.

The board's Planning and Development Committee, which met Tuesday night, recessed to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday to hold its discussion then...