Peninsula Daily News news services

NASELLE — Energy Northwest is proposing to build a wind farm on Radar Ridge near Naselle in Pacific County with partial funding from the Clallam County Public Utility District, but opponents worry about the fate of federally protected marbled murrelet.

The Daily News of Longview reports the proposed 82-megawatt wind project would be within the flight path of the robin-sized seabird, which was listed as threatened in 1992.

Energy Northwest wants to install as many as 32 wind turbines on land leased from the state. Public utilities in Pacific, Grays Harbor, Mason and Clallam counties are sharing in development costs.

Advocates say the project would create jobs and help utilities meet a state mandate for renewable energy. Environmentalists say it could put the declining marbled murrelet population at risk.