A tree doesn't grow in the Wisconsin Town of Westby in Vernon County (Unless a wind developer says it can)
Westby wind energy project gets green light (Click Here For Source)
WESTBY, WI A wind proposal in Westby, which could produce up to 100 percent of the energy needs for the city, is moving forward after the city council granted permits for the installation of three turbines.
Heartland Wind LLC will lease land from the city and Glen Stalsberg on a 1,300-foot elevated ridge on the west edge of the city, according to Curt Bjurlin, the project’s developer.
The initial project calls for the construction of three wind-generated turbines at a cost of $3 million to $4 million per unit, with construction anticipated to begin in 2009 or early 2010.
Heartland Wind will lease the property for 20 years, making payments of $1,000 annually per turbine site during construction phase and $6,000 annually per turbine once they are operational.
After the 20-year lease, expires the company may offer two five-year renewals for a possible total 30-year contract.
As part of the agreement, the city of Westby and the Stalsbergs will not be allowed to plant trees or construct buildings on the leased property because they could interfere with wind flow.
.SECOND FEATURE!
Same Circus, New Clown
Oil executive, natural gas lobbyist, and George W. Bush appointee becomes top CEO of the Amercian Wind Energy Association.
Gas and oil interests now openly in charge of American Wind Energy Association (click here for source)
Whose interests are being served? As many people have long pointed out, the industrial wind industry is not an alternative to but a symptom of big energy....
On Nov. 14, the the industry trade group American Wind Energy Association announced a new chief executive officer (CEO) to replace Randall Swisher after nearly 20 years: Denise Bode, who will take over in January.
Denise Bode has been the CEO of natural gas lobby American Clean Skies Foundation. Before that, she was president of Independent Petroleum Association of America and legal counsel to former Senator David Boren of Oklahoma, who sits on the board of Conoco Phillips.
She was appointed to George W. Bush's Energy Transition Advisory Team and has lectured at the Heritage Foundation and the Federalist Society.
NOTE FROM THE BPRC RESEARCH NERD: Why do big oil, big natural gas, and big coal-fired power plants all love big wind? What do they all have in common?
BIG MONEY.
Industrial scale wind turbines are the only renewable energy option which keeps us reliant on big thermal power plants. (In Wisconsin this means coal-fired plants) The reason? The 40 story tall turbines can't function without drawing electricity from the grid. If the grid goes down, they can't function. Until the wind hits a certain speed, they can actually use more electricity than they are producing. They need CO2 emitting power plants to operate. This is why the National Academy of Sciences found that big wind's ability to reduce current CO2 emissions is negligable. A Norwegian study of Danish wind power came to the same conclusion.
The big push for industrial scale wind has lead to deforestation of ridge tops all over the continent and the siting of turbines in bird and bat migration corridors and other protected areas of environmental importance.
These huge machines are notoriously inefficient. Fond du Lac county's newest wind farm operated at just 17.5% of capacity in the last quarter.
So where is the profit for the developers? Here's where big wind and big oil meet as equals: BIG MONEY. Big government subsidies made up of our tax dollars foot the bill.
The American Wind Energy Association, a wind lobbying organization, has long been seen as a wolf in green clothing by many who are concerned with the environment. Industrial scale wind energy is the only "green" enegy option that does not reduce CO2 emissions, requires destruction and fragmentation of natural habitat, and is so inefficient and unreliable that additional thermal fired power plants must be built to back it up.
So, given the amount of money involved, and the amount of property developers have grabbed up from unsuspecting farmers, it does not surprise us at all that the American Wind Energy Association has now chosen a new chief executive officer who is a Bush appointee with long roots in the oil and natural gas business. We'd love to know what sort of salary she is getting, and who is paying it.
Same Circus, New Clown.