A proposal in the North Carolina General Assembly would ban developing wind energy in the mountains, a move that wind power advocates say will kill their dreams of generating clean electricity from some of the best wind resources in the nation.
A Senate committee is set to debate the proposal today in Raleigh. The sponsor, Sen. Charles Albertson, said he's all for renewable energy but not when it comes to harnessing wind in the Appalachian Mountains, because the turbines would "mar the landscape."
The proposed legislation would ban all wind turbines except single units that generate electricity only for private use. Such units could not be hooked up to the power grid to sell excess power, a condition that wind energy advocates takes away a key incentive for building wind turbines.
Read the full story at newsobserver.com.