BergerWorld: 2nd Quarter 2007

For more than 4,000 years, wind has provided a valuable energy source, and today's energy planners are increasingly turning to wind power as an attractive renewable, cost-effective and clean source that serves to reduce the greenhouse effect.

The Berger Group is assisting Windkraft Nord USA (WKN) to introduce a 61.2-megawatt wind farm on a 3,400-acre site in Scurry County, Texas. Berger experts are providing technical support and regulatory coordination to obtain necessary federal, state and local approvals and permits. To date, the Team has conducted extensive field studies to obtain airspace obstruction approvals from the Federal Aviation Administration and the U.S. Air Force; consulted with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) regarding avian and bat impacts and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) on wetland area jurisdictions; and undertaken extensive field surveys for archaeological resources in coordination with the Texas Historical Commission. The Team recently assisted in preparing the final due diligence in response to inquiries from potential investors to ensure that all environmental permits are obtained in a timely manner to support project construction.

When completed, the project will encompass 21 state-of-the-art, three-megawatt wind turbines that will reach heights of just under 500 feet. Construction is expected to be completed by August of 2007. Based on Berger's success in Scurry County, the Team was commissioned by WKN to perform project permitting and site work at a second wind farm in Rotan, Texas.

Berger is also providing engineering and environmental services to Iberdrola, the world's largest owner and operator of renewable energy projects, for a proposed 30-megawatt wind power facility spanning 1,100 acres in Lempster, New Hampshire. Incorporating 12 state-of-the-art wind turbines, the facility will have the capacity to meet the annual electricity needs of 10,000 homes throughout the state. Aside from being the first major wind power project in New Hampshire, it will be one of the first new wind power projects in all of New England in over a decade. The facility is expected to enter commercial operation in 2007.

The Team initiated work by conducting site assessments and field studies, including wetland, avian, bat, raptor and biological resource surveys, as well as habitat evaluations. Berger then provided environmental compliance and permitting services; conducted a phase one environmental site assessment; coordinated with USFWS and the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services on migratory birds, raptors, and threatened and endangered species; and consulted with the New Hampshire State Historic Preservation Office on historic and cultural resources. In addition, Berger provided aerial and digital contour mapping services, civil engineering assessments and conceptual road alignments, including centerline layouts for crane and equipment access roads and equipment staging areas. Throughout the project, Berger also provided on-site support and coordination, and assisted in providing presentations and public outreach materials to local and state boards and agencies.