Poland adopts new law on wind farms

The lower house of parliament has adopted a new law banning construction of wind farms close to dwellings and has hiked property taxes for wind farm owners, Reuters reported. Wind farms must be built at a distance from housing of at least 10 times the height of the turbine, or about 1.5 to 2 km. The ruling PiS party said it had to address citizens' complaints about noise levels from wind farms, however critics say it is a move to stifle renewables. "Because of the renewable energy madness we are reducing our GDP growth," Energy Minister Krzysztof Tchórzewski said, referring to subsidies granted to renewable energy sources.