TOO BREEZY FOR WIND TURBINES?

Sun Journal, Rumford - Selectmen and a large crowd came to hear a presentation by Boston-based wind power company First Wind on its proposed Longfellow wind farm project for Black Mountain and North and South Twin mountains.

Instead, everyone learned that such a project might not even be viable, because First Wind studies so far show that wind atop Black Mountain is too strong for wind turbine engineering to handle, said Matthew Kearns, vice president of business development for First Wind. "The gusts are extraordinary, and that's a problem for wind turbine bearings," Kearns said. "Turbine blades like a nice even wind."