News Elsewhere contains mainly articles we have permission to republish from Views of Scotland and Country Guardian. You can learn more about these organisations by visiting: http://www.countryguardian.net/ and http://www.viewsofscotland.org/. Occasionally we will also post news from elsewhere on the web.
The U.S. government for the first time has enforced environmental laws protecting birds against wind energy facilities, winning a $1 million settlement from a power company that pleaded guilty to killing 14 eagles and 149 other birds at two wind farms in the western state of Wyoming. The Obama administration Read more
A huge US energy supplier has agreed to pay out $1m (£620,000) over the deaths of golden eagles at two wind farms. Duke Energy Renewables agreed to the sum after pleading guilty to charges over the deaths of 14 eagles in the past three years at the Wyoming sites. It Read more
A nine-turbine wind farm at Belford Burn would be an “appalling scar” on the landscape, according to nearby residents and some tourists. Representatives from applicant Energiekontor and Northumberland County Council’s planning department were left in no doubt of the strength of feeling against the development at a public meeting on Read more
WIND energy firms were yesterday accused of trying to hoodwink locals by deliberately choosing obscure names for Highland windfarms. German firm ABO Wind UK has made up a Gaelic name – Allt Carach – for its 25-turbine project near Beauly. http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/3481519
Germany is seeking to force Britain and other European countries to commit themselves to building many more wind and solar farms under a new European Union target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Berlin is demanding that the 2030 emissions target, which the EU is negotiating as its contribution to a Read more
In 2007, a team of Met Office scientists predicted there would be 0.3°C warming during 2004-2014. This prediction has turned out to be wrong. We are almost into 2014 and there has been no warming at all since 2004. Smith et al (2007): 0.3°C in 10 years In 2007, a Read more
Scotland will become the first state in the world to put a price on the value of its natural environment and the benefits it provides, in a pioneering project which could transform the way it makes decisions on planning. Academics have estimated that nature is worth between £21.5bn and £23bn Read more
A leading Liberal Democrat suggested David Cameron was ‘full of c**p’ last night for wanting to ditch green levies on energy bills. The Coalition feud over environmental issues boiled over after the Daily Mail revealed that the Prime Minister has privately told ministers to ‘get rid of all this green Read more