After years of planning and debate, construction on a wind farm in the town of Antrim is scheduled to begin next week.
Walden Green Energy, the company behind the project, has notified state and local officialsthat it intends to break ground on or around August 6.
That follows a ruling in the project’s favor earlier this year by the state supreme court.
Lisa Linowes, with the group Wind Action, has been fighting the project for more than seven years. Local residents and others are concerned about the environmental and human health impacts of the turbines once they are operational, she said, as well as runoff and blasting from the construction process itself.
“There’s a lot of sadness in the town of Antrim,” she said.
The projectwill include nine turbines, providing power to an estimated 12,000 homes. Opponents, including Linowes, argue the emissions benefits it presents do not outweigh its risks.
