Industrial wind doesn’t work! Chances are the legislators representing you either don’t know that, or they receive so much money or so many promises from the wind lobby they don’t care. Ignorance or greed, there’s not much in between.
That leaves citizens who oppose wind power with two options: educate your lawmakers or replace them. You’ll find out soon enough if your representative is a candidate for the education option and if not … toss them out.
Here are a couple of points to consider:
- The courts will not overturn what they feel is supported in law, so you need to get to the source of the law to have any impact.
- State agency policies are driven by the officials who hold the power to hire and fire them, so you need to get to that source of power to have any impact.
Conveniently, the source for both is the person you elect. And happily, you have the power to hire and fire them.
This is a hard task to take on alone. There are citizen’s groups forming throughout the country to take on the wind lobby. As we find them we link them here for your convenience. Find one near you and join. If you can’t find one, form one. The folks linked here will help.
The real danger is that as each case is decided, precedent is building in favor of the heavily funded wind companies and their enablers. To have any real chance of turning the industrial wind juggernaut around, you need to arm yourselves with facts from the many resources available, many of which are linked at this site.
For the specifics on the Friends of Lincoln Lakes ruling read the Bangor Daily News online article: Friends group loses Rollins project appeal – By Nick Sambides Jr.
Now, spend some time reading the court’s ruling in the Maine based Friends of Lincoln Lakes v Board of Environmental Protection, et al. The ruling language is boilerplate – repeated over and over in case after case. Reading it will point you to some of the issues that need your attention:
Oh, and by the way … if you think you haven’t yet been impacted by industrial wind, you have! You’re already paying higher taxes to subsidize them and higher electricity rates if they’re hooked to your grid. And if they’re not in your neighborhood, they will be. There’s far too much money available to the wind developers to leave a patch of land empty.
So I suggest you take this issue seriously.
Allegheny Treasures 
Thanks for this important editorial, so manifestly wise. Incumbent politicians are almost universally clueless about energy matters. In Appalachia in this election year, perhaps all of us should harken to the words of Harry Caudiil, written 30 years ago:
“… Protests while heard will produce little change. Since the year 1000 the discovery of immense new stores of resources coupled with endless technological innovations have elevated living standards enormously but society is still essentially feudal, still fundamentally composed of barons and serfs. The distinction is one of power. The industrialists — that is the destroyers and polluters — are the barons. They sit in board rooms where the weight of limitless millions focuses. The serfs are the millions of one vote citizens whose taxes subsidize and support the system. They can never reach the ear of a president or governor, and their usual, and usually worthless, way of asserting an opinion or preference is a letter to the editor. As was the case in feudal England, the barons blithely disregard them while acquiring new tax immunities, new special privileges, and new millions.”
Amen! Although today, it’s hundreds of billions.
Yes elected official do not understand the issues.
For the proposed Pinnacle Knob Project, there were two community public hearings. Not one elected state official attended the public hearing. Where is the leadership?
During the state evidentiary hearing, on Oct 26, 2009, Senator Walt Helmick, hand delivered letters of support for the project from Delegate Allen Evans and Senators Dave Sypolt and Bob Williams. Remember Senator Walt Helmick does not represent Mineral County voters. Senator Helmick has his own agenda.
Yes, elected officals did not have the time to attend public meeting, but found time to write a letter. But they filed their letter at the final hour. Why because they do not have to be responsible to the voters.
Here is example of the thinking that Senator Williams offers: Oct 26, 2009:
“West Virginia has long served the nation with its vast energy resources; over the last several years, we have come to realize those resource is also the power of wind.”
“This inexhaustible, non-polluting resources generates much needed energy at no cost, allows the generation export of a valuable commodity – electric energy to the Interstate Transmission Grid.”
“I believe the state should welcome this kind of investment, both for its green qualities as well as its many employment and tax revenue benefits. “
If you were to question these elected officials you would learn they do not understand the impact of Industrial Wind Turbines.
Did the elected officals read the letters of concern expressed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the WV DNR concern over the proposed project, next to state wildlife managment lands.
Industrial Wind is high cost with low social benefits. It is not reliable and unpredictable. It creates Grid instability.
DAVE SYPOLT
Post Office Box, 5
Kingwood, WV 26537
(304) 357-791 4 (Senate)
(304) 698-5299 (Mobile)
davesypoIt@wvsenate.com
BOB WILLIAMS
14th Senatorial District
STATE CAPITOL
BUILDINIG, ROOM20 9-\h’
CHARLEST2O5N3 05 October 2 3 , 2005
(304) 357-7995
AlLEN V. EVANS
HC 33, BOX 3025
DORCAS, WIT 26847
PHONE: (304) 257-1426