Wind turbines and associated meteorological tower proposals submitted to the Federal Airport Administration

Below are a few maps of wind turbines and associated meteorological tower proposals submitted to the Federal Airport Administration between 2003 and October 2011

To view all wind turbines and associated meteorological tower proposals submitted to the Federal Airport Administration between 2003 and October 2011 click here. To download these to your Google Earth view click here (this large file may take a few minutes to download and will make moving around in Google Earth much slower. It can be used most effectively to show tower proposals in your current view).

BP Acquires sole rights to TURBINE LUST RESORT

 Turbine Lust is back by popular demand 
NOTE:
 Now under new Management  British Petroleum purchased Acciona's interests in TURBINE LUST,
TURBINE LUST is an affordable all inclusive vacation enjoy  hiking fitness , and  fun you can feel good about ~ a clean green sustainable dream vacation.

Our Gorgeous green energy facility has been developed to provide people with a unique one of a kind experience.
Enjoy nature walks and partake in educational activities such as identifying and collecting bird and bat carcasses learn how to field dress turbine kill.



Additionally, if you so choose you can take your carcass to the Turbine Kill Grill where Chef Carol  Smurphy ,  will cook it to perfection .
Bon appetite !

Early risers are able to experience magnificent visual beauty as the morning sun rises behind the turbine fields, casting beams of light on their sleek white blades, creating A breathtaking panoramic view, hundreds of Majestic turbines, their blades spinning gracefully in the wind .
 A gentle flicker ushers in a new day...

In the evenings kick back and Relax with our twenty-four hour Vibroacoustic massage, partake of the hypnotic nightly light stimulation therapy treatments .

Or book a twilight cruise on BP's  luxury yacht, you will be enchanted by the twinkling glow of turbine lights gently strobing across the surface of the St. Lawrence River.

After this you can retire to your cabin where the nocturnal rhythmic Thump, Thump, Thump, of the turbine blades will lull you to sleep.
A perfect end to a perfect day
~~
Typical cabin at our resort

We offer many activities and entertainment opportunities as well.
Wind turbine tours.
Ever wonder what the inside of a turbine looks like? Wonder no more ,tour a real wind turbine .


Or play a game of Bird kill bingo ,(similar to cow pie bingo but without the methane.)

For entertainment, we provide a mock disaster and fire evacuation drills



For our more adventurous guests we offer Turbine base-jumping.




 And for those not so adventurous ~ extreme ironing competitions.




Additionally, in the winter there is an annual  Turbine Ice throw hockey tournament.

All this and much, much more.

Turbine lust resort is a True Turbine Utopia where all your dreams will come true.
.
We offer many amenities such as earplugs and tinted strobe-filtering goggles, we also provide a variety of medications to make your turbine experience everything you hoped it would be...

 No pets allowed!
 However we do have a veterinarian on call 24 hours.
Yes, our vacation packages may cost more than your average vacation, but this is not your average vacation. Imagine how good you will feel knowing that you are doing your part to save the world.
All accommodations powered by green energy.

Located in the magnificent thousand Islands where the lake and the river meet
Book your dream vacation now. limited availability .


Operators are standing by, call now to book your dream vacation  1-800 -TURBINE 666

Note: Before booking guests must sign a liability waiver and a confidentiality /non disclosure agreement


LIABILITY RELEASE FORM
On this __________ day of ____________________, 20_____, intending to be legally bound hereby, the undersigned agrees and does hereby release from liability and to indemnify and hold harmless British Petroleum , and any of its employees or agents representing or related to Turbine Lust Resort in regard to resort Guest Visitation and Overnight Housing. This release is for any and all liability for personal injuries (including death) and property losses or damage occasioned by, or in connection with any activity or accommodations for this resort. The undersigned further agrees to abide by all the rules and regulations promulgated by British Petroleum and/or its affiliate groups and vendors throughout the Turbine Lust  Visit.
________________________________

Five-year PILOT for Fort Drum biomass plant to be proposed to municipalities

By TED BOOKER
TIMES STAFF WRITER

SATURDAY, JUNE 2, 2012

A five-year payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement for the biomass energy plant to be constructed at Fort Drum by ReEnergy Holdings LLC, Albany, will be proposed to taxing jurisdictions for approval in June.
The Jefferson County Board of Legislators will vote on the PILOT agreement June 5, Carthage Central School District will vote June 11 and the town of LeRay will vote June 14.
The five-year PILOT plan will take effect in 2013, and the plant’s $32 million property assessment will be fully taxable in 2018. The following payment schedule will start in 2013 and end in 2017: 40 percent of an assessed property value of $28 million; 45 percent of $29 million; 50 percent of $30 million; 55 percent of $31 million and 60 percent of $32 million.
ReEnergy CEO Larry D. Richardson said the deal was negotiated over a six-month span and that the five-year payment term — shorter than most PILOT agreements — was agreed on to make the deal palatable for the taxing jurisdictions involved. The company plans to invest about $34 million to convert the post’s coal-fired plant to produce energy using biomass materials.

Link here to full story from the Watertown Times

Comments to the PSC from a practicing attorney and a resident of the Town of Madison.

I write as a practicing attorney and a resident of the Town of Madison. 

Horizon/EDP Renewables has applied to the Town Planning Board for a special permit to construct a 36 turbine project in the Town of Madison.  Each turbine, a type never yet used in the U.S., will be 492 feet tall.  Madison is the home of the first Wind Farm in NYS  --  Madison Wind Farm.  Horizon/EDP now owns this small 7 turbine project  (328 feet tall turbines) located in a relatively unpopulated area on farmland whose owners live there and chose to live with the turbines.

The Town of Madison has no zoning or land use laws.  Its Town officials are ill-equipped, professionally or by experience, to either approve or disapprove a project of such scope and magnitude.  Horizon/EDP has "threatened" to opt into the Article 10 process if the Town does not approve the entire project.

 I have reviewed the proposed regulations and, while they are certainly far more rigorous than the Town's local process, these regulations will not necessarily protect those affected.  In situations where local laws are inadequate (indeed, the Town adopted setback requirements suggested by the industry), the regulations should clearly recognize the principle, applicable state-wide, that a heavy industrial use such as this does not belong in populated residential areas.  In our case, if this project is approved, over 150 homes will lie within 3,000 feet of a huge industrial machine.  What assurances do we have that members of the Siting Board will seriously consider the character and nature of the community when making their decisions? 

This is a thriving, growing community.  Colgate University is only 4 miles away from the proposed project.  What due diligence will the Siting Board be required to undertake to verify or question the assertions of the developer?

 Horizon/EDP submitted a DGEIS, not even site-specific, that is riddled with misinformation and deliberately misleading statements, not the least of which is its characterization of the project area as largely rural and vacant.  Their maps are a travesty.

  If the State wants control over this process, then it should strengthen the law and the regulations to guard the public against such blatant abuse of process.  An example --  Horizon/EDP stampeded the Town into accepting the DGEIS because it needed to show progress by March ! or lose its place in the NYSIO line.  The Town was unaware of this motive.  The consultant who advised the Town has major ties to the industry.

 If the State wants to take over the process of siting these ever-growing projects, the regulations that govern its actions, must be stringently written and strictly applied. The needs of those who live here should be given equal weight to the far more powerful clout of the industry.

 I recognize that the State is encouraging the development of renewables in Central NY; however, it is short-sighted to permit the mindless destruction of thriving communities with growing clean, local businesses --  brewing and hops cultivation, for example -- in the name of wind power, which is arguably not as clean or efficient as one might think.

 The State is pouring money into small business initiatives in Central NY.  The regulations should compel the Siting Board to weigh these initiatives against the potential adverse effects of a massive wind project.  Otherwise, money is simply being flushed down the toilet.  Perhaps the regulations should hold the developers to certain efficiency and production standards.  The going rate is 24 - 30% of capacity.  Not a good track record.

  Townships all over the State, Fairfield, Jordanville, Lowville, Richfield Springs and Litchfield, to name only a handful are engaged in lawsuits, making often futile efforts to protect what they value.  We now look to the State, Article 10, the Siting Board and its regulations to act in OUR interests, not the interests of big business and corporate greed. How would the Siting Board vote on this project?

Jane Welsh
Jane Welsh P.C

Residents of Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence Counties will again have access to an air medical transport service

Excerpts from story
by Timothy W. Scee II
Special to Newzjunky.com
Published June 1, 2012
link to original
WATERTOWN, N.Y. — For the first time in five years residents of Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence Counties will again have access to an air medical transport service as helicopter operations are scheduled to begin Friday.

Jefferson County Emergency Medical Services officials joined local leaders and members of the Fort Drum Regional Health Planning Organization Thursday afternoon in welcoming the first landing on Samaritan Medical Center’s helipad by a LifeNet helicopter.

LifeNet, a subsidiary of Air Methods Corp., based in Englewood, Colo., will be stationed at Watertown International Airport in Dexter where it will deploy staffed helicopter services throughout the tri-county area and transport trauma patients to Syracuse hospitals.
The military had provided air services until 2007, when it transferred to Fort Lewis, Wash., its Military Assistance to Safety and Traffic, or MAST, program, which annually flew about 60 critically injured people from Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties to Upstate Medical University or other Level 1 trauma care facilities.
~~~~~~~~
Sadly, Air medical service may not make any difference for Cape Vincent and the areas in Jefferson County slated for proposed Wind development.
An interview with retired EMS pilot Ray Slavik provides important insight into controlling an aircraft near utility-scale turbines.





Slavik : Don't kid yourself, they will most likely not land anywhere in the County where these turbines are located.

Read Ray slavik's complete interview at this link

Additionally, I found another medevac website they have posted a statement about wind turbines they also say that it may be a hazard and landing is at the discretion of the pilot .
Bottom line ~ depending upon the conditions that exist at the specific time that you need the air ambulance the wind turbines may or may not constitute a hazard.

If there is a hazard you will have to be transported to the air ambulance by vehicle to the helicopter wasting precious time plus with the transfer from unit to unit there is the risk of added trauma to the injured party .
~~~~~~~~~
Statement from Medevac website link below
Eagle III
Latest News

Additional source:
 Watertown Daily Times

What goes thump in the night ~ and day?

There was a story in yesterday’s Ogdensburg Journal concerning Hammond submitting comments contesting wind regulations outlined in Article X of the 2011 Power NY Act.

The  Hammond town council submitted their comments Friday. Regulations under the Article X energy law could override local planning boards and zoning codes in regards to the placement of wind turbines and farms, said Town Supervisor Ronald W. Bertram.

“There were two issues first being home rule... and the other being the lack of sound standards,” said Mr. Bertram.
Council members argue that the C-weighted, or low-frequency sound, produced by wind turbines can have negative impacts on the town.
“They are not taking that into consideration - that is the major factor in placement of wind turbines,” said council member Douglas E. Delosh.
~~~
Siting wind turbines and Noise has been a point of contention between wind companies and residents.
The wind companies claim their turbines are not noisy however, a remarkable comment posted to this article tells a different story ...

I was on Wolfe Island on a quiet afternoon last weekend. I parked for a moment on a dirt road leading off the paved highway from Horne's ferry dock to Marysville.

Three turbines were about three hundred yards from where I parked. The sound from the turbines was very loud -- thrump, thrump, thrump. It is hard to describe . Not quite like any other noise you are accustomed to hearing. It is a dull roar but with a steady pulsing rhythm.

I would sell my house at whatever price I could get for it if I had to live within any proximity of those things.

Doubt what I am saying about the noise? Find out for yourself. It is not as if you have to go to Iowa to find out. Go to Wolfe Island or Tug Hill. Easy trips to make. Sure -- the sound will vary depending on conditions and distances. But believe me. The sound is real. It is significant. And it would be highly intrusive to the enjoyment of your rural home. Nobody in their right mind would build or buy a home in the vicinity of where I was standing on Wolfe Island last week.
By Pater Fri., Jun. 01 at 11:26 am

More at this link

Cape Vincent town committees set informational meeting

Cape Vincent town committees set informational meeting

CAPE VINCENT — The town’s comprehensive plan and zoning law revision committees will hold a public briefing session at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Cape Vincent Recreation Park on James Street. The purpose of the session is to inform residents that the draft comprehensive plan and revised zoning law will be made available for public review in preparation for upcoming formal public hearings.

The public hearing on the comprehensive plan is June 19 and the zoning law hearing will be held June 27.

The draft comprehensive plan and revised zoning law will be available on the town of Cape Vincent website at townofcapevincent.org, the community library on North Real Street and the village clerk’s office, East Joseph Street.
~~~
Draft Comp Plan is up for view and comment. Note, though, at the June 5 meeting we will not be taking comments. It will be just a session to tell people the Draft is ready for public review and to have them review the Plan and the Draft Zoning Law and give us their opinion, comments and questions. The Draft Zoning Law will be posted some time next week.

In an appeal to the Public Service Commission BP expresses concern about local zoning laws.

UPDATE 2:52 PM / 6/1/2012

In a comment letter to the Public Service Commission, Richard F. Chandler Director of Development for BP’s Cape Vincent Wind Project wrote the following concerning Local laws ~any override of local laws should be provided by the Siting Board early in the process. Also, once a project has met the standards for project approval, the local community should bear the burden of proof to demonstrate why the more restrictive requirements are appropriate rather than the applicant demonstrating why they are not appropriate. Finally, to the extent that a recently commissioned wind project in New York meets community standards, such projects should be used as a guide by the Siting Board rather than having the Siting Board assume that any local law is reasonable unless refuted by an applicant.
~~~
BP realizes that Zoning laws are a stumbling block for their project development consequently; BP wind energy had wind lease holders sign what they call Good Neighbor Agreements.
 BP crafted these agreements in order to subvert our communities zoning law. These agreements are nothing more than land use variances; BP has no authority to write land use variances.
Additionally, Chandler wrote: BP Wind Energy has already been engaged with the local community for years on the Cape Vincent Wind Farm project and such work should not be ignored.

Cape Vincent is in the process of developing an updated zoning law Past efforts to update our zoning laws have been thwarted by BP.

BP came to Cape Vincent, like a thief in the night;
their plan was to steal Cape Vincent’s future by secretly signing, land owners & Board members to wind contracts with loyalty clauses. One of BP's first moves was to sign Planning Board Chair Richard Edsall to wind contracts thereafter using him as a tool to do their bidding.

As land owners signed away their wind rights they were signing away Cape Vincent’s hope for a prosperous future. These contracts would seal Cape Vincent’s fate by turning our tiny community into an industrial wasteland and destroying any hope for economic prosperity.
There would be great economic gain but, ultimately only for BP.

Yes, Mr. Chandler BP Wind energy has been engaged with the local community for years and such work should not be ignored…

 UPDATE~ Additional info~
By now we all know about the insidious cooperation clause that has
been exposed in wind lease agreements, here are links to both
Acciona and BP lease agreements which show nearly identical language.
The agreements require lease holders to assist and fully cooperate with the wind companies getting their projects approved. This isn't a big deal for a regular green-shirted lease holder, but it is a
VERY BIG DEAL if the lease holder happens to also be a town official.

Link here to read entire BP Good Neighbor agreement

**  link here to BP Comments to Public Service Commission Re: Article 10

BP's ~ New Math ~ 200 +85 = 190

When Bp acquired Acciona’s assets in the CV wind farm Bp’s Peter Gross wrote to CV supervisor Hirschey, “we anticipate that an expanded CV wind farm could produce approximately 200 megawatts (MW) requiring BP to invest in excess of 300 million.”
In a letter to the Public Service Commission, Richard F. Chandler Director of Development for BP’s Cape Vincent Wind Project wrote, “with the acquisition of the neighboring St. Lawrence Wind Farm project in February 2012, the Cape Vincent Wind Farm now can reach upwards of approximately 285 MW in size.”
This would this would mean 190 (1.5 MG ) turbines, add to that the 86 turbines on Wolfe Island.
 (As the crow fly’s Wolfe Island is approximately one mile from the shores of Cape Vincent)  This equates to 276 turbines turning the thousand Islands into ~
“The biggest windmill complex east of Mississippi, far bigger than Maple Ridge.”

The cumulative effects would be devastating for the thousand Islands.

Military wants to limit wind development

AIR DEFENSE/ HOMELAND SECURITY
RADARS Currently IMPACTED


214 Total Radars
-83 impacted by Wind Turbines
-39% of
DoD/DHS
Radars impacted

 May 2012,
California San Diego’s East County)
Radar concerns have already axed a half dozen wind projects near Barstow after the Department of Defense raised concerns. Wind developers have been conducting testing in hopes of building up to 15 industrial wind facilities on public properties owned by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, but adoption of a proposed “adverse impact zone” could kill those plans.
The military hasn’t officially adopted an “adverse impact zone” — a reference to interference with military activities — described by Navy sustainability official Tony Parisi during the recent meeting.
To help map the zone, a laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is validating military tests of how wind turbines affect radar, Parisi said in a telephone interview. The matter has been discussed at the highest levels of the Navy and the Department of Defense, and a final decision is expected this summer, he said.
The military likely would oppose all wind projects in such a zone, he said.
The military’s concern could be a significant obstacle to wind energy development in Southern California’s deserts, said Nancy Rader, executive director of the California Wind Energy Association, who heard Parisi’s presentation April 25 at the Ontario Convention Center. The meeting was organized by California energy officials as part of a multiple-agency process to plan for renewable energy development in the desert that minimizes harm to wildlife habitat and other natural resources.
Military priorities tend to trump other land-use interests, she said
AIR DEFENSE/ HOMELAND SECURITY.
~~~~
Radar issues and wind turbines are not a new concern.
Back in September of 2011 there is an article in Master resource by Lisa Linnowes; Ms. Linowes is an expert on the impacts of industrial-scale wind energy development on the natural environment, communities, and the regional grid systems. A conservation and land use advocate with over 20 years of executive business experience, Ms. Linowes has held high-profile elected and volunteer positions in community planning, land negotiation, and education outreach.
~~~
Wind Energy and Radar: A National Security Issue — MasterResource
by Lisa Linowes
September 26, 2011

Military leaders are under pressure to not disrupt White House green energy policies even while green energy technology is disrupting our navigation aids and impairing U.S. national security.

Washington has a track record of muzzling military testimony to protect its pet policies and political friends. Last week, Air Force Gen. William Shelton admitted he was pressured by the administration to change his testimony regarding LightSquared’s network and its adverse impact on military space-based navigation systems. We applaud Shelton for not bowing to the pressure.

But the military has not been honest about the effect wind turbine technology has on our national radar systems.

The fact is that our air space has been made less safe by turbines and our national security compromised because of a reckless policy of siting wind towers within 50-miles of radar installations. Military radar experts in the field know the damage that’s been done. But with the debate surrounding energy policy dominated by politics and money, the military has bowed to the pressure.

Read the complete article written by Lisa Linnowes at Master resource ~link here

March 15,2012
The Watertown Times printed an article titled
CAN WIND FARMS AID CRIMINALS?
That is a question the federal government may have to tackle if the Department of Homeland Security does as Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., has asked, and deploys military-grade radar along the U.S.-Canadian border to nab low-flying aircraft. The Defense Department has warned that wind turbines interfere with radar and has opposed their placement near military installations.
Turbines' effect on radar has not been a big issue along the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario, where developers have eyed a number of locations for wind farms. That could change if DHS deploys the more sophisticated radar — something Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano strongly hinted last week could happen.
Additionally, this same Watertown Times article includes quotes by Jim Madden Bp's former project manager in regard to what he thought about RADAR DEPLOYMENT and the possibility that Turbines may produce false detection readings on U.S.-Canada border .
"It's certainly something we study," said Madden.
Mr. Madden said the issue has not surfaced at Bp's 86 turbine project proposed for Cape Vincent, and he was not familiar with DHS's possible plans for radar. Adjustments in radar software often can fix the problem, he said, depending on the type used.
Report to the Congressional Defense Committees the Effect of Windmill Farms on Military readiness link ~ here ~

Military tests conducted between 2002 and 2005 by the U. S. Air force and the United Kingdom Ministry of Defense found that wind turbines located within the line of sight of military radar can adversely affect its ability to track aircraft and other aerial objects.
These findings virtually stopped the development of wind energy facilities across the country.

The FAA halted work on about a dozen land-based wind farm projects that were within the line of sight of any military radar. The Sierra Club sued the Pentagon in June of 2006, for failing to complete the report within the mandated time period. In an attempt to force the release of the Department of Defense Report two Democratic Senators from Illinois, Richard (Dick) Durbin and Barack Obama, blocked a Senate vote on a Defense Department nominee Robert L. Wilkie and they announced that they would block the nomination of Andrew Steinberg to be Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs until the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a conclusive determination as to whether the operation of wind farms under construction in the Midwest will interfere with radar systems.~~~
Without this certainty, potential investors will fear that their resources could be lost.
~~~~The Sierra club published a post on their website
stating that the DOD released their report in response to their lawsuit. Claiming that the result of the DOD's report was "vindication of the Club's position , that windmill construction should move forward". We now seem to be back where we started with the radar issue back on the horizon. This is a matter of public safety not an issue that needs to be expedited by political arm twisting or by court room theatrical maneuvers by wind lobbyists.

Thursday, September 7, 2006

This is the press release from Illinois Senator Dick Durbin and Barack Obama ~ click here ~ to view actual page


This is the press release from Senator Durbin's website ~ click here ~ to view actual page


This is the press release from Senator Durbin's website ~ click here ~ to read report



~~~~~
Sources:
Master Resource ~ Wind Energy and Radar: A National Security Issue

Watertown Times ~ Can Windfarms Aid Criminals?

Sierra Club website
East county magazine
Link to original  source from Press Enterprise