Mexico state: Indians approve embattled wind power project

Updated 5:40 pm, Friday, July 31, 2015

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Residents of a heavily Indian area have approved the installation of a huge wind power project in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in southern Mexico, the Oaxaca state government said Friday.

The proposed construction of 132 giant wind turbines is meant to generate 396 megawatts of power, but the project has raised concerns over vibrations, bird deaths and invasion of Indian lands.

The company behind the project and the Oaxaca government teamed up to offer residents an average 45 percent reduction in power costs.

State officials said Friday that the project was approved during eight months of community consultations and public hearings.

But opponents contend the consultations violated their rights as Indians. They say that supporters were transported to consultative hearings and that opponents were effectively excluded.

Rodrigo Penalosa, one of the opponents, said the government “manipulated the consultation process from the start” to assure approval.

Hundreds of wind power turbines already dot the area around the isthmus, the narrow waist of Mexico lying between the Pacific ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. Its location ensures a flow of winds.

The government says the wind farms provide cheap, clean electricity.

But opponents complain that the privately owned wind farms have ill effects on fishing and agriculture.

The newest farm, known as “Eolica del Sur,” would take up 5,332 hectares (13,175 acres) in the township of Juchitan.

Residents had blocked a previous project, arguing it did not comply with Mexico’s obligation under international law to consult Indian groups over projects in their territories.

The state government said the Eolica del Sur project was the first of 20 wind farms installed in Oaxaca to carry out such consultations, and officials pledged that any future projects would be required to do so.

Mexico state: Indians approve embattled wind power project

Dominion Virginia Power looking to build first solar energy plant in the state

Norfolk, Va. – Dominion Virginia Power wants to build the first commercial solar energy plant in the state.

The company says it will save money in the long run, but first there will be a slight surge in customer bills.

If Dominion Power gets its way, a field of solar panels will be soaking up the sun in Northern Virginia by the end of 2016.

Dominion filed an application with the Virginia State Corporation Commission to build a $47 million solar energy plant in Fauquier County – the first in Virginia.

Dominion wants to temporarily raise customer’s bills by $.04 each month during construction and then drop $.02 per month once it’s built.

At peak capacity, the Remington Solar Power Plant could power 5,000 homes.

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Dominion Virginia Power looking to build first solar energy plant in the state

State Seeks its Due for Energy

BHUBANESWAR:One of the major contributors to the National Clean Energy Fund (NCEF), the State has demanded its due share from the national kitty for promotion of renewable energy generation.

 The Centre has been collecting a cess of `50 per tonne of coal produced or imported from the year 2000 for research and development of clean energy technology. Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitey enhanced the cess to `100 per tonne in the Budget this year.

The NCEF corpus has swelled to `10,127 crore by March, 2014 and with the doubling of cess, it is expected to grow by another `6,800 crore during the current financial year.

 While coal-bearing States, including Odisha, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand have been making significant contribution to NCEF, major beneficiaries of the fund are western States.

The Centre has been generously assisting Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra to facilitate generation of solar energy in a big way, official sources said.

  “The State has a long list of projects which are in urgent need of funds. Any amount of assistance from NCEF will be of great help to implement the project in time and meet the green energy obligation,” said Minister of State for Energy Pranab Prakash Das.

As per the renewable purchase obligation (RPO) of Odisha Electricity Regulatory Commission, the State utilities have to buy or generate at least 5 per cent green power.

 The State has targeted to instal capacity of 350 MW from solar, wind and bio-mass sources during the 12th Plan period.

The renewable energy potential in the State has been assessed at about 16,000 MW by Odisha Renewable Energy Development Agency (OREDA).

 Situated in a temperate zone, having considerable sunshine round the year, the long sea cost with fair wind velocity and the vast mountain range with small fountains, the State is a promising destination for generation of green energy. This can be converted into reality, if the Centre paid due attention to the State, Das said.

 As the Union Finance Ministry is managing NCEF, the Ministry and New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has little say over fund distribution.

Even though NCEF is flush with money, MNRE is reported to have received about `500 crore till July 2014 and has utilised only `1.6 crore in the last three years.

The Energy Minister said he will raise the issue during the next conference of the State Power Ministers scheduled on September 9 in New Delhi.

State Seeks its Due for Energy

State appeals court upholds Cohasset wind turbine approval

COHASSET – Plans for a controversial wind turbine on Turkey Hill could soon move forward after the state appeals court upheld a land court ruling that the town’s planning board acted appropriately when it approved the project.

The state appeals court on Wednesday upheld a Boston Land Court judge’s ruling against neighbors and a nearby skilled-nursing home who challenged the project’s legality.

The neighbors sued in March 2011 alleging that the planning board failed to acknowledge their concerns and violated the town’s bylaws when it granted special permits to the Trustees of Reservations, a statewide conservation group that oversees much of Turkey Hill and would operate the turbine.

According to the lawsuit, the 410-foot-tall Turkey Hill turbine would be erected in the northwest corner of Cohasset, in the 314-acre Whitney Thayer Woods, and would be within 1,000 feet of the Golden Living skilled-nursing home and homes on the Hingham side of the border.

Jim Younger, the director of structural resources and technology at the Trustees of Reservations said in a statement Wednesday that the group is “very pleased” with the court’s ruling and grateful for the widespread support for the project.

“At this time, we are still very interested in moving forward with the project and will be reassessing our options following the lengthy delays to the project. We will keep the community informed as we complete this review,” he said.

Damon Seligson, an attorney for Golden Living, could not be reached for comment.

While the lawsuit addressed a host of concerns – including the risk of collapse, and noise related to construction – it focused on the “flickering shadows” that the 150-foot blades would cast on nearby properties.

A land court judge in 2012 upheld the board’s approval, determining that the permit’s special conditions adequately address safety concerns and follow zoning bylaws.

For example, the permit requires that the organization monitor flickering and make sure that it doesn’t exceed 30 minutes per day or 300 hours per year.

Golden Living claimed that the trustees failed to prove the turbine wouldn’t result in excessive flicker, but the appeals court agreed that the conditions of the permit are sufficient.

“The generally accepted industry practice limits shadow flicker to no more than thirty hours per year,” the ruling states, noting that there are no state or federal regulations for shadow flicker.

The turbine was the first project approved under Cohasset’s wind-energy conversion facility bylaw, which town meeting approved in 2008. The planning board rejected an earlier proposal for two turbines in Cohasset Heights off Route 3A.

Golden Living in the appeal also said the land court judge “abused his discretion” by excluding their expert witnesses, which were identified three months after discovery closed.

Page 2 of 2 – The appeals court determined the judge “was entitled to determine that allowing the experts to testify after Golden Living’s late disclosure would have prejudiced the defendants or caused delay of the trial.”

Reach Jessica Trufant at jtrufant@ledger.com.

State appeals court upholds Cohasset wind turbine approval