Windmills controversy sparked in Northern Mich -

[greenman3610]

click on "This Week's Report"

http://www.michigannow.org/

TRX3: A company called Mackinaw Power, was willing to set up 6 windmills on Bonnett’s land. The company would sell the electricity. Bonnett would get $400 a month for each windmill. That’s almost $30,000 a year. While the company got ready to build a test tower, citizens complained to Cheboygan County. Matthew Bonnett mocks them.

AX3: “Well the ice will build up on the blades in the wintertime and throw it a half mile or a blade will fly off and kill ya. They don’t want the shadow falling on your property. It will cause high blood pressure. And then the noise, they’re too noisy, and they’re going to interfere with your television sets and cause abortions in cattle and mastitis in cattle.”

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I bow to nobody in my environmental awareness, - but these anti windmill people are freaking nuts.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

1. Some of them cause clocks to reverse themselves, depending

of course on the wind direction.... be afraid, be very afraid.

[madrchsod]

2. the biggest concern around here was the noise

and the bird kill. the noise is a non issue and the bird kill is pretty much a non issue also. the big issues are "set backs" and rental fees.

[elehhhhna]

3. how the heck tall are these things, anyway?

[elehhhhna]

4. AND did you see this tripe;

Some "...residents...claim they’ve become mentally ill from the flickering light of the windmill blades that Mackinaw City already has."

please.

[madrchsod]

6. had to leave...yes some idiot said

the same thing around here. they are really cool at night because they have red lights on the blades .

[jayfish]

10. I Think They 're Spooky.

I know they are safe but, something just doesn't seem right about very large metal objects moving at a high rate of speed. I didn't know they had them in Mackinaw last time we were up there and when I saw them I was a little uncomfortable. Strange I know.

Jay

[Solo_in_MD]

5. I feel the same ones that are being opposed in Mass.

Offshore wind farm is being proposed but the rich and famous crowds on Cape is going NIMBY

[paparush]

7. They do kill birds too....

Personally, I'll sacrifice some birds for any small measure to move toward non-petroleum based energy.

[greenman3610]

8. Massachusetts Audobon says the bird kill is

minimal to nil.

[Lindacooks]

9. There's a huge windmill close to my house.

Only three blades, it's absolutely silent and there is no bird kill. Because it's so large, all the problems are solved. It's a 1.65 Megawatt Wind Turbine that can power 500-600 homes all by itself.

And the only way you'd have 'flickering light' because of the blades turning is if you lived directly under them.

[madokie]

11. My neighbor/friend has a generator he recently took out of service

due to a maintenance procedure. And I can honestly say I miss the little noise it made, the reminder of the wind speed outside, the knowing it wasn't electricity generated by coal or natural gas, suplementing the hydro power.

[JPZenger]

12. Not Noisy

The wind farms should not be placed in highly scenic areas and should be setback long distances from homes. However they are not noisy.

To minimize bird kills, some wind farm operators have agreed to not operate them during peak migratory seasons. The wind turbines can be locked so they do not move, which is already done during extremely high winds.

Some of the wind farms are controlled on a daily basis by computers in Spain.