Business and political leaders in Western Maryland's Garrett County are lining up against a proposal to allow the clearing of up to 400 mountaintop acres of state forest for the construction of 40-story wind turbines.
With a pair of public hearings scheduled this week, Garrett's Chamber of Commerce, Board of Realtors, Democratic Central Committee and Republican state delegate and senator have come out against the proposal to use two state forests in the county for wind farms. So has the mayor of the town of Oakland.
"I've taken time to talk to a lot of people, and a vast majority are against this," said state Sen. George C. Edwards, a Republican who heads the delegation from Garrett and Allegany counties. He sent a letter to Gov. Martin O'Malley asking him not to allow state land to be used for wind farms. "Even people who support windmills don't support them on state land," Edwards said.
Charlie Ross, president of the Garrett County Chamber of Commerce, agreed. "There is an aesthetics issue. And people who come to Garrett County to live or visit want to see that aesthetics preserved," he said. "Since tourism is our biggest industry going right now, we don't want to do anything to harm that industry."
But David F. McAnally, chairman of Pennsylvania-based U.S. Wind Force, said he believes people will support his company's proposal to build a total of 100 turbines on two state forest tracts once they hear all the facts.
McAnally said it's worth using a fraction of 1 percent of the public land in Western Maryland to increase the supply of clean electricity to the state, which faces a power shortage in future years.
"We will reach a time when we will not be able to tell our kids or grandkids that they can turn on the light when they flick the switch," McAnally said. "Wind power is a part of that solution."
U.S. Wind Force is running ads in Western Maryland newspapers that say "Support Wind - for a Cleaner Energy Future." The company notes that Maryland has long allowed lumber companies to cut trees in state forests for timber. Some power line towers are allowed in state forests.
Author and climate change activist Mike Tidwell, who supports wind energy as a way to fight global warming, said he thinks Maryland should ban logging in state forests if it's going to prohibit wind farms. He said logging is more environmentally harmful than wind mills.
