'Clean' energy getting a more critical appraisal

mlive.com (Michigan)
by Nathan Bomey Ann Arbor Business Review
Thursday September 18, 2008, 1:17 AM

It was an unexpected jolt to the alternative energy industry - a bold assertion that some types of clean energy could have a negative environmental impact.

When the U.S. Bureau of Land Management in June issued an order halting solar power projects on federal land for two years until an environmental assessment could be completed, an uproar vibrated across the solar energy community.

The order was repealed less than a week later, but the message lingered: As the nation - and the state of Michigan - rushes to invest in alternative energy, questions about projects' environmental impact are demanding answers.

The message particularly resonates in Michigan, where vast natural resources, including forestry in the Upper Peninsula and freshwater lakes, could be at risk if alternative energy initiatives aren't carried out responsibly.

Issues include responsible land use, impact on wildlife and environment, unexpected alterations to natural resources, and influence on global economic factors such as food prices.

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