“I was in Boone, North Carolina, from 1977 through May 1983 at Appalachian State and, trust me, we got many laughs out of this windmill. Especially how it generated one MW of reliable electricity and, somehow, did so without the blades ever turning.”   – Victor Culpepper

On social media, environmental scientist Victor Culpepper remarked (above) about an early wind project with reference to an article, Ill-Fated Windmill Just Outside Boone (July 11, 2016). A previous MasterResource post recounted the 1940–45 Grandpa’s Knob grid wind power project in Vermont; the article below from North Carolina’s Department of Natural and Cultural Resources summarizes a 1979 wind project.

On July 11, 1979, Boone celebrated “Windmill Day” with a street festival to dedicate NASA’s Mod-1, the world’s largest megawatt industrial windmill on Howard’s Knob.

The windmill was installed on the 4,400-foot peak as part of a program run by NASA and the U.S.

“The systemic opposition of the locals to massive solar arrays and wind farms has created a new class of environmentalists. They live in and support greenery over government machining their living space. In contrast, the Washington, D.C. ‘environmentalists’ lobby and push from their concrete jungle. Going green and private property rights are aligned against Big Brother.”

The exchange (on Facebook) began with a post by Kevon Martis on the community pushback regarding a 1,000+ MW solar installation in Sanilac County, Michigan (see picture below). “Proposed Solar Farms Cause Community Concerns” reported concerns over water drainage (a recurring issue), and lower property values. Incessant noise and other issues can cross property lines in the case of industrial solar also. This is one battleground of many hundreds, of which nearly 300 wind/solar projects have been rejected or delayed in the U.S.…

“As of mid-March 2023, NOAA Fisheries has handed out 15 marine mammal Incidental Take Authorizations (ITAs) to offshore wind projects from NC to MA. These will allow companies to ‘take’ 111,817 whales, dolphins and seals. The harassment, injury, and killing of marine mammals are referred to as ‘takes’.”

Let the debate continue on the cause of the recent surge of whale deaths in the vicinity of several wind farms off the northeastern coast. But note the case of such a causal relationship, which appears to be growing, not receding.

Consider this letter from a local citizen in the local newspaper, EastBayRI (May 10, 2023), “‘Take’ authorizations prove NOAA is lying about whale deaths:

The marine science community knows this much for certain: The high-resolution geophysical (HRG) surveys used to site offshore wind turbines and transmission cabling causes harm and mortality to marine mammals.…

“Last year, every offshore wind equipment manufacturer reported substantial financial losses as raw material costs, order delays, labor problems, and antiquated manufacturing plants overwhelmed their revenue gains. Correcting these problems necessitates higher equipment prices, reduced manufacturing capacity, and/or relocating to lower-cost countries. These steps can set back delivery times and delay project start-up dates. Developers are also finding that building Jones Act-compliant installation and support vessels are taking longer and costing more, further challenging their projects’ economics.”

On Day One, Joe Biden canceled the Keystone XL pipeline construction permit issued by the Trump administration, costing union jobs. He rejoined the Paris Agreement on Climate Change so John Kerry could have a job.  It was no secret where this administration was heading. 

Days later, Biden issued an Executive Order calling for the nation to build “a new American infrastructure and clean energy economy that will create millions of new jobs.”…