Gage County Wind Farm Lawsuit Dismissed

By Gordon Hopkins A lawsuit filed by Gage County landowners over the repowering of the Steele Flats Wind Farm has been dismissed. Kevin and Jeanne McIntyre, presented by attorney Gregory Kratz, objected to the county issuing building permits to NextEra Energy, the company that owns and operates Steele Flats, for the repowering project. Repowering means retrofitting existing wind turbines with new or refurbished technology, such as turbines or blades or even making the tower taller, which can in turn increase the energy output. The McIntyres alleged they “have suffered significant damage and will suffer further damage,” according to their suit, “by way of the proximity of their real property to each of the wind turbines.”In his decision, Gage County District Court Judge Rick Schreiner cited multiple reasons for dismissing the case, including procedural issues such as failure to deposit the district court docket fee and not filing an appeal in a timely manner. Judge Schreiner also noted, “Furthermore, the Wind Farm has been operating in Gage County for over a decade. To support a plausible injury in fact, the McIntyres needed to plausibly allege a specific, concrete injury from the repowering activity, as opposed to the Wind Farm as originally permitted in 2013.”Steele Flats, which consists of 44 wind turbines, 12 in Gage County and 32 in Jefferson County. A similar lawsuit was filed by Kratz in Jefferson County District Court. That case is still pending. The repowering project continued as the court case progressed and has been completed.

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