[northernborn]

https://www.vpr.org/post/fish-and-wi...bears#stream/0

there are signs all over the national forest stating the negative impacts of wind farms. laminated sheets. cant miss them.

https://nationalwind.org/wp-content/.../64-Tidhar.pdf


Impact of windmills devastate Vermont

I have read numerous times that the proposed wind project will provide energy for 14,000 to 16,000 homes. Those numbers are derived from the “nameplate capacity,” which is the potential capacity of a wind facility should it be generating power 100% of the time. Wind developers themselves claim facilities generate only 30% to 33% of the nameplate capacity; this puts the total number of homes receiving electricity at 4,600 and 5,300 respectively.

Knowing this, the wind developers continue to mislead the public with the larger number associated with the nameplate capacity. The existing facility has been producing power at an average of only 21% of nameplate capacity since 1997.

Proponents have stated wind energy is environmentally friendly. The concept in itself may well be, but let’s take a look at the environmental impact industrial wind development will have on Vermont. ANR witness Forrest Hammond stated in direct testimony filed December 21, 2007, “An industrial project the size of the one proposed would displace large numbers of bears from this critical habitat and cause long-term harm to the bear population in southern Vermont.”

The Deerfield Wind Project would adversely affect 80 acres of National Forest, the first wind project on National Forest property. A total of 19,700 acres of National Forest in Vermont has been studied and determined suitable and viable for wind development.

How much wildlife would be displaced should thousands of acres in our National Forest be industrialized? Bears are already losing their habitat, forced into suburbs seeking food. Hundreds of miles of Vermont ridgelines are at risk with the acceptance of the Deerfield Wind Project. The negative impact extends beyond Searsburg and Readsboro. The environmental and economic impact on Vermont will be devastating. And, I might add, tourism depends on the pristine environment Vermont has to offer. Hundreds of miles of ridgelines littered with industrial wind turbines will not attract tourists.

The answers to energy conservation? How about we start in our own homes? Change the lighting to energy efficient bulbs throughout Windham County. This alone would displace the energy that the Deerfield Wind Project would produce. America needs to cease wasting energy. Do we need our cities’ skyscrapers burning lights 24 hours a day? There are endless energy conservation measures we can all partake in.

If people really want to be green, and make a noticeable impact, then take measures to get off the grid. The technology is here for solar, hydro, and wind on a residential level, providing jobs and profit for alternative energy companies. The feeling I get from industrial wind generation is corporate America in bed with federal government wearing an alternative energy facade. Another corporate money grab, providing no substantial results regarding the energy crisis. It’s in our hands, my friends.

We Vermonters need to change how Americans blatantly waste energy. The answer does not lie in destroying thousands of acres in our National Forests and littering our ridgelines with industrial wind turbines. This is not being green, by any stretch of the imagination.

Gerry DeGray, president, Save Vermont Ridgelines

Searsburg

The Deerfield Valley News

7 February 2008

[northernborn]

the OP really doesn't get that there is NOWHERE in VT you can be alone, I've hijed into the farthest from road areas that there are and could still hear the noon whistle in a town...north of RT 4 there isn't anywhere I've hunted moose and grouse and bobcats that I could get away from the sound of traffic. snowmobiles and atvs, its not possible. its a densely populated state. not as bad as manhattan ofcourse but alone and quiet? nope. halifax was the best i could find and it was not secluded but quieter.

[arctichomesteader]

Originally Posted by northernborn

the OP really doesn't get that there is NOWHERE in VT you can be alone, I've hijed into the farthest from road areas that there are and could still hear the noon whistle in a town...north of RT 4 there isn't anywhere I've hunted moose and grouse and bobcats that I could get away from the sound of traffic. snowmobiles and atvs, its not possible. its a densely populated state. not as bad as manhattan ofcourse but alone and quiet? nope. halifax was the best i could find and it was not secluded but quieter.

Were you ever in central or northern Essex County? Places like Victory, Ferdinand, Lewis, Avery's Gore, Warner's Grant?

[okbymeman]

Originally Posted by northernborn

the OP really doesn't get that there is NOWHERE in VT you can be alone, I've hijed into the farthest from road areas that there are and could still hear the noon whistle in a town...north of RT 4 there isn't anywhere I've hunted moose and grouse and bobcats that I could get away from the sound of traffic. snowmobiles and atvs, its not possible. its a densely populated state. not as bad as manhattan ofcourse but alone and quiet? nope. halifax was the best i could find and it was not secluded but quieter.

Are you serious? In any case, hearing the faint sound of traffic isn't going to spoil things too much.

[timberline742]

Originally Posted by northernborn

the OP really doesn't get that there is NOWHERE in VT you can be alone, I've hijed into the farthest from road areas that there are and could still hear the noon whistle in a town...north of RT 4 there isn't anywhere I've hunted moose and grouse and bobcats that I could get away from the sound of traffic. snowmobiles and atvs, its not possible. its a densely populated state. not as bad as manhattan ofcourse but alone and quiet? nope. halifax was the best i could find and it was not secluded but quieter.

Come on.

[squarpeg]

its a densely populated state. not as bad as manhattan ofcourse but alone and quiet?

Really densely populated? Vermont? I guess it is all in the eye of the beholder. I grew up in NY just outside Manhattan, to say something like "not as bad as Manhattan" in some type of comparable way... is so absurd as to be laughable. I do not think the OP was looking for something akin to living within the arctic circle.



To the anti-wind person. I am sorry I do not support your position. Lots of NIMBY people came out of the woodwork when turbines were suggested. Well we did get rid of the Nuclear plant and now my friend we need to move forward with other forms of energy in VT. Your correct in the need for greater efficiency which is the easiest and most achievable way to reduce our carbon footprint. I am in agreement that solar is great even though we live in the cloudiest state in the nation. Wind should be a part, as hydro should be. All have some type of issue, some type of environmental impact. We need to move away from carbon based energy production. I am glad your concerned about bears but there seem to be plenty of them from my observations. I am very doubtful wind turbines on a number of ridge lines is going to endanger them to a critical degree. What is far more important is the reduction of carbon emission which in the end could cause much more damage to not only bears but the whole world ecosystem. I appreciate your passion but I think you are on the wrong side of this issue.

[ansible90]

Originally Posted by squarpeg

Really densely populated? Vermont? I guess it is all in the eye of the beholder. I grew up in NY just outside Manhattan, to say something like "not as bad as Manhattan" in some type of comparable way... is so absurd as to be laughable. I do not think the OP was looking for something akin to living within the arctic circle.



To the anti-wind person. I am sorry I do not support your position. Lots of NIMBY people came out of the woodwork when turbines were suggested. Well we did get rid of the Nuclear plant and now my friend we need to move forward with other forms of energy in VT. Your correct in the need for greater efficiency which is the easiest and most achievable way to reduce our carbon footprint. I am in agreement that solar is great even though we live in the cloudiest state in the nation. Wind should be a part, as hydro should be. All have some type of issue, some type of environmental impact. We need to move away from carbon based energy production. I am glad your concerned about bears but there seem to be plenty of them from my observations. I am very doubtful wind turbines on a number of ridge lines is going to endanger them to a critical degree. What is far more important is the reduction of carbon emission which in the end could cause much more damage to not only bears but the whole world ecosystem. I appreciate your passion but I think you are on the wrong side of this issue.

I agree with both of your points. During the time the wind turbines are being installed it might disrupt the habitat, but once it is finished all the bears will see are large "poles" sticking up into the air. According to a class I took last year, the bear population in VT and NH has been increasing in recent years. And then there was the video on the news last night of a polar bear wandering around in the hallway of a Russian apartment building. That is part of the habitat we have to protect by moving away from fossil fuels.

[Bearsdad]

I had a job opportunity to relocate to VT, so i took an extended vacation and checked things out. I noticed several things. Many older houses in very poor condition and they wanted ridiculous prices for those for sale. Some new construction and newer houses in nice shape but totally unaffordable for the normal person. I am talking a house that would sell for 300k in PA was 600-750k there. And i don't know where these people come up with the money to buy thrm because wages are not great there.

Very isolated, which i like, but forget going to any chain stores you go to now. Everything is mom and pop unless you drive an hour or more in some direction. No nightlife i could see unless you went to the local bar, where you are immediately identified as an outsider. People are friendly but i am not sure how welcoming. Several i talked to in looking around seemed to resent the fact someone from out of state wanted to move there. I looked at several houses and one seller actually told me he wouldn't sell to an out of stater.

Seems like a nice place to live if you keep to yourself and would be satisfied to never leave the house except to go to work. And, if you can afford the real estate, taxes and cost of living. I don't know how anyone who works their affords to live there.