Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Mass. bill would streamline wind-energy permits

Nearly a third of the wind-energy projects in Massachusetts wind energy projects are on hold because of lawsuits or permit appeals. To help meet the state's energy goals, Gov. Deval Patrick's administration has introduced a bill to streamline the appeals process, David Abel of The Boston Globe reports. Patrick previously said Massachusetts should produce 2,000 megawatts of wind power, enough for 800,000 homes, by 2020, up from its current 9 megawatts.

“For us to see progress, there needs to be a lot more certainty in the permitting process,’’ Ian Bowles, secretary of the state’s Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, tells Abel. “That’s what we’ve heard clearly from the wind industry in order for them to do other significant wind projects in the state.’’

Opponents of the legislation say it give the state too much power and allows developers to steamroll legitimate opposition, based on noise pollution, loss of pristine views, and risks to birds and bats. The director of the Massachusetts chapter of the Sierra Club says he hopes the bill is amended to allow more local input, while some groups that initially opposed it have removed their objection due to more protections for local control in the latest version. (Read more)

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