Property values decrease
Property values decrease in areas where the turbines are visible. read more here......
Thesite for this proposed project would be on the highest mountains in Greenbrier county. The 124 wind turbines would tower at least 400 feet above the mountains making them visible from a great distance. Each one would be the equivalent of a 40 story building.
Huge tax benefits for wind factories
Wind power companies can put considerable burden on local and state governments yet they receive tax benefits not available to other businesses or individuals. For one example, their property is assessed on only 5% of its value where as our homes are assessed at 60% of their value. read more here
Adverse affect on Tourism
Unobstructed ridgelines sloping down to picturesque valleys have been the selling point for tourists and second home builders in Greenbrier County for a long time. Documented studies from Scotland reveal that tourism and property values are significantly harmed when 400’ foot tall industrial wind turbines are built: http://www.viewsofscotland.org/library/tourism.php
Wind turbines kill bats!
As predators of insects bats serve an important role in nature. Although they only produce 1-2 offspring per year bats can live for thirty years in the wild. On forested ridges near bat caves large numbers of bats are being killed by industrial wind turbines. New evidence indicates the air pressure difference created as the huge turbine blades sweep by bursts blood vessels in the bat’s lungs causing instant death.
Invenergy first claimed their Buffalo Mt., Tennessee wind farm had a bat mortality of 20.8/turbine annually. However, the post construction study determined it was over three times that. 63.9 bats killed per turbine per year! If Beech Ridge is built that could translate into 158,472 bats killed by the 124 turbines over the 20 year life of the project. Pretty big impact for a summer output equal to about 4% of one modern conventional plant.Now I know why it has been said that the negative impact to forest habitat per megawatt produced can be greater with industrial wind turbines than conventional plants.
http://www.vawind.org/Assets/Docs/Very_Shaky_Environmental_Claims.pdf
Wind Energy is inefficient!
Studies by Denmark, one of the leaders in the world in producing wind power concluded that wind power has “serious environmental effects, insufficient production, and high production costs.” Wind energy has not turned out to be the clean alternative we had hoped it would be. read more here
Significant environmental degradation!
- Extensive peer reviewed scientific studies by Dr. Nina Pierpont detail the very real hazard to human health if constantly exposed to the infra-sound emanating from arrays of wind turbines. http://www.windturbinesyndrome.com/
- Northern Greenbrier County and the Cranberry Wilderness boast some of the darkest skies left in the US east of the Mississippi. Urban astronomers travel long distances away from city sky glow for the opportunity to spend a night under a West Virginia starry sky. That opportunity will be forever lost to everyone once FAA lights with twenty mile visibility begin blinking on hundreds of turbines towering 270’
above Greenbrier’s 4,500’ ridges.
- Destruction of wildlife habitats negatively impacts hunting and other recreational activities
So many acres of forest habitat are destroyed in construction of a modern wind project requiring miles of clearing and grading it could be argued that per kilowatt of energy produced, wind projects are more destructive than conventional plants requiring a much smaller footprint.
http://www.vawind.org/Assets/Docs/Very_Shaky_Environmental_Claims.pdf
See picture gallery of the desctruction caused by a wind farm in
Cefn Croes Wales, Scotland
Stress on local infrastructure
- Interference with Emergency Management radio transmissions
read more here
- Increased demand on Volunteer Fire Departments due to risk of brush fires and lightning striking turbines
- Damage to roads caused during construction phase. Imagine what it takes to transports 124 turbines (each 400 foot tall) over our small country roads to get to the top of our highest mountains.
OFFSET CO2 EMISSIONS ARE VERY SMALL
Look up the Canadian study done for Prince Edward County at: http://www.aandc.org/research/wind_pec_present.html . The study notes the British Dept. of Trade estimates a modern wind turbine saves about 0.078 tons of CO2 emissions/hour. However, a single 18 wheel truck traveling at 60mph produces 0.08 tons CO2 emissions per hour! Given the uncontrolled growth of road traffic, the erecting of turbines may be seen as a futile exercise. How many turbines would we have to build each year merely to keep pace with traffic growth? Are CO2 emissions from transportation a problem? Absolutely, but don’t be fooled into thinking wind turbines will have much effect whatsoever in addressing this problem.