Visual impacts associated with wind development projects are often among the issues of greatest concern for surrounding property owners and the community. A guide issued by the Clean Energy States Alliance, A Visual Impact Assessment Process for Wind Energy Projects, provides an effective and objective aesthetic impact assessment review methodology that provides clear guidance for developers, planners, and regulatory decision makers and also ensures the protection of important scenic and cultural resources.

Denver CO - As part of its 2010 webinar series, U.S. DOE’s Wind Powering America program is presenting Community Wind Across America. Windustry Executive Director Lisa Daniels will join other presenters in a discussion of the benefits of strategic partnerships.

Sept. 15, 2010, 10 a.m. to noon, MDT.

This webinar explores how consumer-owned utilities and the communities they serve can benefit from partnering with other utilities to gain economies of scale for wind projects.

Lessons & Concepts for Advancing Community Wind, released by The Minnesota Project, seeks to advance the development of community-based wind projects in the United States by drawing keys to success and policy recommendations from three compelling Midwestern case studies.

Times are CDT - Have you ever wondered what the Midwest's energy future looks like? Join the Great Plains Institute for a free introductory webinar on the Energy Choice Simulator to find out. The Energy Choice Simulator (ECS) is a user friendly and open source energy model that provides a portrait of future energy trends and their environmental impact in the Midwest.

The National Wind Coordinating Collaborative has released an updated factsheet summarizing the interactions between wind turbines and bird and bat populations in the U.S. The information is divided into three categories: conclusions that have broad consensus, ideas that have been presented but not broadly supported yet, and areas where knowledge gaps remain.

The County Wind Ordinance Survey was designed to help users navigate through the permitting regulations for wind energy development at the local level. The information provided will be useful for all wind developers but specifically targets Community Wind developers who are interested in local permitting and siting rules as well as local officials who are working to develop wind ordinances for their area. This survey provides a single place to access the local permitting and siting rules for a certain area as well as providing additional resources for information relating to wind energy siting, such as wildlife interactions and federal permit requirements.

In 2007 the Wind Turbine Guidelines Advisory Committee was established to provide advice and recommendations on developing effective measure to avoid or minimize impacts to wildlife and their habitats related to land-based wind energy facilities.

A new study answers a long-nagging question of whether property values will decline due to nearby wind energy development. The answer is no, according to a report released by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy: "The Impact of Wind Power Projects on Residential Property Values in the United States: A Multi-Site Hedonic Analysis."

The Harvesting Clean Energy Conference is the Northwest’s premiere gathering to advance rural economic development through clean energy production. Clean energy offers practical, profitable opportunities for our farmers, ranchers, rural utilities and towns, tribes, and regional economy.

What It Covers

This guide from the National Association of Counties was released in November, 2006. According to the NACO website, "this publication is designed to provide county commissioners, planners, and other local county government officials with a practical overview of information required to successfully implement commercial wind energy projects in their county."

Click here to download the guide from the NACO website.