Trump Admin Halts Offshore Wind Projects Over National Security Concerns

The action affects five large offshore wind projects under construction and builds on a broader Trump administration review of federal wind policy.

The action affects five large offshore wind projects under construction and builds on a broader Trump administration review of federal wind policy.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a Dec. 22 social media post that the five paused projects were “expensive, unreliable, heavily subsidized.”

“ONE natural gas pipeline supplies as much energy as these 5 projects COMBINED,” he wrote, noting that President Donald Trump “is bringing common sense back to energy policy & putting security FIRST!”

Source-The Epoch Times

And Democrats call Trump a "dictator"

Seizing Private Land Is Next Step in Fight Against Climate Change

Eminent domain is becoming the weapon of choice against opposition to large wind and solar projects being planned and constructed around the United States.

The dream of net-zero carbon emissions—and its vision of blanketing hundreds of millions of acres of American land with wind turbines and solar panels—is running up against the reality that most of the land in America is still privately owned and many Americans don't want these massive industrial installations near their homes.

But that may prove to be a temporary impediment.

“There is a major effort under the Biden administration to consolidate power over land and resources, because whoever owns the land and resources of a nation, controls the people,” Margaret Byfield, executive director of American Stewards of Liberty, a property rights nonprofit, told The Epoch Times.

“With current siting practices, an area the size of Texas is required to accommodate the wind and solar infrastructure we need to reach nationwide net-zero emissions by 2050." That will be a lot of stealing.

Read more at the Epoch Times

We are becoming a communist nation under Democrats. Trump, and I hope he will be elected, will have a lot on his hands in January 2025 as the country is quickly going down the tubes under Joe Biden and the socialists.

And last year, NetEra Energy was fined $8 million for killing over 100 Bald Eagles with their wind turbines--guilty to three counts of violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.” Democrats have no respect for our national Bird or for its citizens.

Democrats enriching our enemies and improvishing our people

Without a replacement, abandoning fossil fuels, supports China

"Wind turbines and solar panels that can generate electricity intermittently, are themselves totally dependent on fossil fuels for all their components. Renewables offer NO energy independence, as America has never imported electricity from foreign countries. Wind and solar just generate intermittent electricity.

Further, the raw materials that are essential for building EV batteries, wind turbines, and solar panels, are increasingly dependent on the supply chain of exotic minerals and metals being mined in developing countries with miniscule labor or environmental regulations.

With America representing only four percent of the world’s population, the elite leaders desire to have America’s emissions lowered to reduce its impact on the world’s climate, is like that of someone poring a bucket of hot water into the ocean and claiming that it will change the temperature of the entire ocean!"

How will America run its military (ships, planes, and vehicles) without fuel?

Read more...

Where are the "Green" people? The hypocrisy is defeaning

Spate of Whale Strandings Near Offshore Wind Projects Becoming Impossible to Ignore

But Feds Still Deny Link

It seems as if the left’s “green energy” initiatives that are meant to be environmentally friendly are actually doing more harm to the environment than good.

Whales are being stranded on American beaches that just so happen to be near offshore wind projects, leading many to believe that these projects are actually causing these deadly strandings.

According to Fox Business, however, federal agencies such as the Marine Mammal Commission are denying any link between the strandings and the offshore wind projects, despite previous warnings from the National Ocean Atmospheric Association (NOAA).

Read more...

Did Joe Lie to the Unions to get their Vote?

Top Union Leader Realizes Joe’s Real Agenda

A top union leader has slammed Joe Biden over his executive order cancelling the Keystone XL Pipeline, which cost approximately 11,000 construction jobs.

Actually, everyone should be slamming Joe for just about everything.

Nearly 4 million in Texas are without power due to a failed power grid because of frozen wind turbines.

According to reporting by Axios, “Organized labor is crucial to the Biden coalition. But there are significant tensions among environmentalists, the president’s team addressing climate change and some parts of the labor movement. The Laborers’ International Union of North America said the Keystone decision will cost 1,000 existing union jobs and 10,000 projected construction jobs.”

Read more...

Round table discussion to be held at the Lake Worth Casino on large oean turbines

February 10, 2017

Contact: Ben Kerr, Communications Specialist
Phone: 561.586.1631
Email: BKerr@lakeworth.org

Ocean Energy Round Table Discussion with Rep. Kathleen Peters
Sunday, February 12th 4:00pm
Lake Worth Beach Casino Ballroom

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Lake Worth, FL. – Following the recent announcement of the Ocean Energy Collaborative between FAU's Southeast National Marine Renewable Energy Center (SNMREC) and the City of Lake Worth, the leading domestic and international companies conducting research and design of large ocean turbines have been invited to attend and participate in a roundtable discussion for the purpose of establishing Lake Worth, FL. as "ground zero" for all advanced ocean energy development in the United States.

The invitation-only event will include local economic development officials; SNMREC; industry representatives, and special guest, Representative Kathleen Peters, Chair of the Florida House Energy & Utilities Subcommittee.

Lake Worth's proximity to the Gulf Stream, its ownership of a municipal electric generating plant and its commitment to becoming a community reliant upon renewable energy sources, have all played a significant role in SNMREC's decision to invite the City to join together in the collaborative effort. To-date, a joint application has been submitted to Florida's Office of Energy in the hopes of receiving a Renewable Energy and Efficient Technologies Grant in the amount of $350,000.00 dollars.

Please contact Ben Kerr, the City of Lake Worth Communications Specialist with any questions or comments.

National bird is expendable under Obama

Even our national bird is no longer sacred--

Speaking about global cooling earlier, now we get back to global warming that 88% of Democrats believe. Obama is a full believer in global warming and now is aiding the wind industry. The administration will allow those corporations with wind farms to injure or even kill eagles that stand in their way of this renewable energy source. This new policy will aid NextEra (FPL), the number one producer of wind power in the country.

Two Bad Ideas - Sugarcane Burning and Windmills in the Glades

Comment Up
Mr. Frank J. Morelli posted this as a comment on my blog entitled, Wind Farms in the Glades, another Bad Idea. As his points are well said, I have moved his commentary up to the front page.

Two Bad Ideas

Last week the Palm Beach County Commission decided to grow and burn sugarcane on the old Mecca Farms property, and this week the Commission approved 12,900 acres of wind turbines that will ultimately employ 15 to 20 skilled workers in the Glades, where more than 4000 residents are looking for jobs.

Unemployment rates in November were 44.9 percent in South Bay and 30.4 percent in Pahokee.

Environmental groups are concerned about the negative environmental impact of over one-hundred, 30 story high fans. Besides, there are less expensive and more efficient ways to conserve energy like the renewable, geothermal, self-sufficient Free Enterprise Agency plan that I proposed three years ago for the Glades.

If the county had employed that plan there would now be 2000 permanent light manufacturing jobs in the Glades.

Burning sugarcane off the Mecca Farms property is a really bad idea. In the Glades burning is a long standing practice and anyone who moves under the rain of ash cannot complain, but residents who are already situated next to the old Mecca Farms debacle are entitled to continue to enjoy clean air.

I believe the Commissioners are about to buy more lawsuits. Why close sugar production in the Glades, take away their jobs, only to create a nuisance and jobs in Palm Beach Gardens?

Not only will environmentalists sue to prevent the Mecca Farms sugarcane burning, but nearby residents will have a cause of action sounding in nuisance.

I proposed the creation of a county association to be formed to construct and operate a job training and production facility for 2000 workers. The then President of the Florida Senate Jeffery Atwater favored the plan. I drafted legislation and offered it to Senator Larcenia Bullard who proposed a modified plan for Miami-Dade.

Commissioner Aaronson, usually a cautious member of the Commission, favors the Wind Turbines and wants to proceed without hearing from environmental groups.

I think that is a mistake. Environmental groups are poised to stop 114 whirling fans that will only employ 10 to 15 workers and the fast moving blades will kill 40 times that many birds each year.
Burning and turbines are two really bad ideas for the economy and the environment.

Frank J. Morelli, Wellington

Wind Farm in the Glades - Another "train to nowhere"

Comment Up

Another Scam in Palm Beach County.

With the promise of 300 temporary jobs over nearly 13,000 acres in the heartland of the Everglades as well as the threat of killing off our wildlife by twirling blades, Burt Aaronson, a Palm Beach County Commissioner who never lets us down said, "All these people out of work are endangered species too." The Unions used their clout and lobbied its passing because of jobs. More jobs, more members. More members, more dues. Everyone should know by now that the Unions just cost government billions in wasted money usually to themselves.

Literal beacons of the "green" energy movement, giant wind turbines have been one of the renewable energy sources of choice for the US government, which has spent billions of taxpayer dollars subsidizing their construction and use across the country. But high maintenance costs, high rates of failure, and fluctuating weather conditions that affect energy production render wind turbines expensive and inefficient, which is why more than 14,000 of them have since been abandoned. It is just a matter of time that the wind farm in the Glades will go the same route.

Before government subsidies for the giant metals were cut or eliminated in many areas, wind farms were an energy boom business. But in the post-tax subsidy era, the costs of maintaining and operating wind turbines far outweighs the minimal power they generate in many areas, which has left a patchwork of wind turbine graveyards in many of the most popular wind farming areas of the US.

Read the rest of the story.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has gathered data on a region-by-region basis to identify the nation’s wind-energy resource.The results of this effort are contained in the Wind Energy Resource Atlas of the United States. The Southeast region consists of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi and South Carolina.

“There is little wind energy potential in the Southeast region for existing wind turbine applications (Zabransky et al. 1981). Even along coastal areas, existing data from exposed sites indicate at best only class 2 at 50 m (164 ft) above ground. The only places in the Southeast region estimated to have class 3 or higher annual average wind resource are the exposed ridge crests and mountain summits confined to northeastern Georgia and extreme northwestern South Carolina.”

Did we eliminate that one wind tower on our beach redevelopment? We waste more money in this country on "trains to nowhere."

Today at the Lake Worth beach

Comment Up

High surf and a beautiful day at the beach.

As Retha Lowe once said, our beach has been like a football game for 30 years. It hasn't been that long but there certainly have been obstacles in the way to going forward. The Casino is coming along on time at a $6 million dollar price tag. If someone can't redevelop the rest of our beach and make it beautiful for $5,000,000, the amount of the PB County Bond money, then folks, we have a problem.

Knock off the jungle Jim for Suzie and all of the unnecessary such as wind turbines. Keep our beach a beach. We have plenty of "green" as it is.

Let's protect our property and not allow a restaurant to dictate hourly terms of operations. It is our beach. If we want our beach to close by 10pm, then it is our right, not the tenants. We can find a tenant. Let's not be running scared and have Tom, Dick and Harry jerk the City of Lake Worth around and want to charge us $2 to 3 million more for turtle lights so that someone can sell beer and wine until 1am in the morning.

The folly of Wind turbines at the Lake Worth beach

Comment Up

This afternoon at 2pm there is a workshop (yes, another one) on the beach redevelopment. We will learn why the developers want to take millions more of our money and can't work within budget. They will blame it on the other guy, the usual suspect, and Staff will give us ways that it all can be accomplished by eliminating more from the project.

The recommended project element changes are:
§ Deferrals
§ 1 Small Trellis
§ 1 Entry sign
§ 33% of Benches
§ 2 Cisterns at pavilions
§ 1 small shade sail
§ Solar on pavilions
Material Changes include:
§ Change Bike Trail from concrete to asphalt
§ Playground surface change to rubber mulch (change location)
§ Change promenade material from colored concrete to entry portal pavers with rest
standard concrete
§ Change Casino walks from colored concrete to pavers
§ Change Casino concrete road to asphalt with paver crosswalks

The add/alternate items include:
§ Wind Turbines and pedestals (a feature that Commissioner McVoy is gaga over)
§ Sculptured Landform
§ Granite Markers

The Elements recommended for Utility Capital Improvement Project Funding include:
§ Parking Lot and Roadway Lighting
§ Water System
Elements not in the ILA and previously funded through other sources include:
§ Decal Parking Lot
§ Sanitary Lift Station

"Wind turbines need wind. Not just any wind, but the nicely flowing, smooth, laminar kind. That cannot be found at 30 feet height. It can usually not be found at 60 feet. Sometimes you find it at 80 feet. More often than not it takes 100 feet of tower to get there. Those towers cost as much or more, installed, as the turbine itself. How much tower you need for a wind turbine to live up to its potential depends on your particular site; on the trees and structures around it etc. Close to the ground the wind is turbulent, and makes a poor fuel for a small wind turbine."

Read about the truth regarding wind turbines here.

As wind turbines need wind to produce energy, how much wind do we get at the Lake Worth beach?

Wind speed at the Lake Worth beach.

As this is not the time to get silly about "green," all wind turbines should be deleted from this budget freeing up over $130,000. Solar panels should be explored and discussed more.

Our Leaders - Lake Worth

Comment Up

Thanks for being different
SURPRISE!
Peep, peep, Tax increase and Budget approved.
Vote: 4/1, Commissioner Maxwell dissenting

Several new positions were approved-- a sustainability manager, an internal auditor, a marketing manager, an economic development specialist and an events coordinator although the City Manager said "We have no new positions." Commissioner McVoy compared the Budget to us paying for groceries. Maxwell says that "Government likes to spend money. We have discovered a new source of revenue to spend more money." It looks like the 1.3 mils stays in the budget and we are all just assessed more. NO one even suggested that the millage be reduced while I was there. So, what was that comparison all about last week?

Grab the cash and pass the ammunition--we must pay for services--everyone must pay for services they receive--everything must be fair. The piggy bank is now down to zero. It ALL disappeared over the last few years! All cash reserves have been spent! It's sort of like the missing beach fund and the $4 million from the Utility. Employees from the Utility were in the conference room waiting, just in case. The black hole was never discussed other than the normal BS Budget so called "reductions." Stanton now wants to build up the Reserve Fund once again for a "rainy day." Instead of punishing the residents, what about an investigation and I don't mean one from an internal auditor. No wonder City Hall is in lockdown and all the photographs that used to be on the walls have disappeared.

The Commission gave all sorts of kudos to Comite de Defensa del Barrio for cleaning up some streets. This is a group against ALL anti-illegal immigration groups, people such as myself and Arizona 1070 believing that we are all racists. It was suggested that property values have fallen because people don't take care of them. Well, commissioners, my neighborhood is pristine perfect and my condo fell 17.5% in value. We, out here, pick up any trash thrown by others onto our property and we spend a lot of money to ensure that our property is maintained.

It was just another love fest between the commission and staff. We had already heard 70 hours plus of propagandized budget workshop meetings. Once again, the public was blamed suggesting that we did not have an interest in the way they spent our money as it was said only one person showed up for those meetings. Well, I was there for every single one of them, walking out on all of them, other than the wrap up meeting. We are invisible to City Hall and we bloggers do lie. Get that?

SOME HIGHLIGHTS:

• Over $500,000 in expenditures on Consent Agenda was passed 5/0

• Commissioner McVoy nominated Dena McCracken to the Centennial Celebration Committee 5/0 This is an excellent choice.
  

• Capital Improvement Program for 2012/2016 (5 year plan) approved of $58,264,983 passed 4/1 Maxwell dissenting. This is totally unacceptable to have budgeted over $25 million to spend this year.
  

• Shuffleboard Courts: Mulvehill wants a charette and believes demolition was to be stopped. No clear plan for courts and Maxwell, McVoy and Golden want a plan. Golden says that there will never be tournament play there again. Kroll says that the electrical has already been totally stripped. He is efficient. Kroll says to refurbish courts is really expensive and that we had a charette around 3 years ago on what people wanted for that space. I don't remember that, Mr. Kroll and I do not have dementia yet. $12,000 to demolish he says. Mulvehill suggests a splash park. Thanks Commissioner. Perhaps I will find my second childhood again. Motion was made to have a charette in 60 to 90 days and get public comment. I hope that it is 90 days when perhaps the snowbirds who play shuffleboard will be back and have a chance to comment. We always have to prove that shuffleboard courts for the seniors and our history is worthy. Passed on a 5/0 vote.

• New Business expenditures approved for over $2.8 million that included health care for $2,118,779 and public risk insurance and utility property insurance for $663,501. The biggest expense we have besides public safety, is employees. It is a wonder that anything is left over to run this city. Seriously.
  

• Fees were raised on Use and Occupancy for rental property...up, up. Public hearing on 9-20, passes 5/0 (Just another fee that has been raised in our city...how many IS that now?)
  

• McVoy still wants wind turbines at the beach even though he has been alerted to the folly of wind turbines and wind generation in general. The Commission approves of a grant not to exceed $110,000 for an agreement to develop and implement an Energy Assurance Plan to DC Group of S. Florida...just another group coming here grabbing the cash. We spend money like we have it. Passes 5/0
  

• Approved the demolition of 722 S. Lakeside Drive and 1809 N.Dixie Hwy. Fees will be charged to the property owners. How laughable is that. You can charge to the moon comes home but Lake Worth taxpayers are the ones picking up the tab. Passes 5/0

The Commission has no idea what they just did. The City Manager does. And Commissioner Scott Maxwell got the hell out of town today.

Wind Turbines near Belle Glade?

Comment Up

Palm Beach County has given the go ahead on a firm, Wind Capital Group from St. Louis, to install Wind turbines on thousands of acres of sugar land near Belle Glade.

Wind turbines were recommended on our beach redevelopment and are extremely noisy. As those involved say that even turtle lighting will cost us millions, perhaps the lofty idea of wind turbines has been eliminated from our beach. Michael Trebilcock, a Professor of Law and Economics, University of Toronto, says:

An excerpt from his article written in April 2009 says, "There is no evidence that industrial wind power is likely to have a significant impact on carbon emissions. The European experience is instructive. Denmark, the world’s most wind-intensive nation, with more than 6,000 turbines generating 19% of its electricity, has yet to close a single fossil-fuel plant. It requires 50% more coal-generated electricity to cover wind power’s unpredictability, and pollution and carbon dioxide emissions have risen (by 36% in 2006 alone).

Flemming Nissen, the head of development at West Danish generating company ELSAM (one of Denmark’s largest energy utilities) tells us that “wind turbines do not reduce carbon dioxide emissions.” The German experience is no different. Der Spiegel reports that “Germany’s CO2 emissions haven’t been reduced by even a single gram,” and additional coal- and gas-fired plants have been constructed to ensure reliable delivery.

Indeed, recent academic research shows that wind power may actually increase greenhouse gas emissions in some cases, depending on the carbon-intensity of back-up generation required because of its intermittent character. On the negative side of the environmental ledger are adverse impacts of industrial wind turbines on birdlife and other forms of wildlife, farm animals, wetlands and viewsheds."

According to the article in the PB Post, that is exactly what environmentalists are worried about--killing migrating birds. The County does not care about that at all. Has it done its research? Did some outside company give them a song and dance? What will this end up costing our environment?

Lake Worth Beach Redevelopment

Comment Up

Turtle Nests at Lake Worth beach

First of all let me say this--It is NOT a Grant; it is a BOND.
On Tuesday night, staff kept using the word grant while discussing the beach. The beach redevelopment is from a 2002 $50 million Recreational and Cultural Obligation Bond Referendum which resulted in funding for the City of Lake Worth Municipal Beach redevelopment project in which we, the voters, approved of this Bond that included $5 million for our beach redevelopment and we have been paying on this Bond ever since on our advalorem tax bills.

By accepting the Bond, the City of Lake Worth must maintain the beach in a non-discriminatory basis for 30 years thus the reason why decal parking anywhere on the beach property was eliminated. The 55 or so spaces that we will get are not part of the Bond money and will be located on the north side of our beach down closer to A1A. You want to go to the Pier--put on your hiking shoes.

At the time we talked about the beach redevelopment, it was very clear that we or anyone involved in the project would protect turtle nesting at the Project in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations. We talked about proper lighting. We made it clear what we wanted and those involved had no problem. We talked about pavers on the walkways and then that was going to be too expensive and were informed that it would now be monolithic slabs.

At the end of it all we will be lucky that we have any upper level parking as the design elements of the project are getting chipped away. Who in the heck needs wind turbines? This plan was devised by a bunch of selfish "green" people who had more brains than sense-- cuckoo over all things green, friends of Rene Varela and Cara Jennings and I would wager to say, people who seldom if ever go to the beach.

To me, to tell us now, after we discussed this a year ago, that the turtle lighting is going to cost us a small fortune ($2 million dollars) when it was less than $100,000, is totally unacceptable. Commissioner Maxwell asked why could learned professionals be off by this amount of money? The answer basically was that the lighting package at the upper parking lot was not addressed. Someone failed in the design. Someone failed to consider upper level lighting? Who do we hold responsible? I hold Staff responsible and whoever got the contract for our beach redevelopment. This is OUR money they are screwing with. No one is giving or granting us anything. Someone on the Commission should have demanded all of the documentation and everything from the charettes and get to the bottom of the responsibility. Perhaps they did. People need to be held accountable. They NEVER are in government. Usually it is, "Oh well, let's vote on the cost overrun."

Literally we are taking $5 million from the PB County Bond, to lose control of our beach and to redesign parking lots that when completed, will give you no ocean view when you drive up to the beach. You will be able to drop off your family at the top and drive back down to the lower level (the Greater Bay concept) to park unless you are lucky enough to find a parking space across from Benny’s, as these spaces will be reduced by 164. Have you seen the beach lately? The trees, bushes and grass that are all in place look great. There is no need to pull these all out to redesign parking lots. Insane is getting to be my favorite word lately.

$5 million is a hell of a lot of money but not enough for those contractors and architects involved. Can we please locate the missing $3.5 million in our beach fund, tell the County and Burt to stuff it. Tell those contractors at the beach to do the same. Let's spruce up our beach leaving control of it to Lake Worth and to our turtles. It is the Lake Worth taxpayer who pays for all the maintenance, the lifeguards, the parking pay stations, you name it. Retain our decal parking allowing us to park anywhere on our property. Jungle Jims and more seagrape are not important.

Spending $5 million dollars to fix up our beach is absurd but the mentality is "Well, we have the money; we need to spend it." Has any government ever turned down money with strings in their entire lives? To even think about spending one dime more than the $5 mil is out of the question.