Is There A Future For WindEnergy In Jefferson County?

By Gordon HopkinsA moratorium on wind turbine permits, which has been in place for more than a year, expired on Saturday, April 1, 2023. That does not necessarily mean new wind turbines are in the offing.The moratorium was first enacted to give more time for review of Jefferson County’s zoning regulations regarding the placement of wind turbines in the county. Technology has changed since the last time the regulations were reviewed more than a decade ago. After numerous hearings and meetings and input from the public, commissioners voted to enact several changes to regulations.Some critics have complained that the new regulations, in particular a one-mile setback, are so restrictive that it makes further wind energy expansion in the county impracticable.Commissioner Michael Dux said, “We have well over a year, year-and-a-half. We’ve had a lot of time to think about this individually and make some different conclusions ourselves as to what we thought was passed.”Commissioner Mark Schoenrock concurred, “The Planning and Zoning Committee had numerous hearings with ample opportunities for public input. The members of our Planning and Zoning Committee heard from many citizens, both pro and con. We, as a board, have heard from many citizens, both pro and con. But we believe that the recommendations of the Planning and Zoning Committee and the actions that the board of commissioners took last week reflects the will of our citizens here in Jefferson County. And those regulations now will take effect.”Response from NextEraThere is one wind farm in Jefferson County, Steele Flats, owned and operated by NextEra Energy Resources. The new regulations will not impact the existing wind farm. However, NextEra has plans for another wind farm in the county, Big Blue Wind, which was in the works when the moratorium was enacted. Matthew Jones, Project Director Development for NextEra, spoke recently at a hearing of county commissioners, “There are 72 landowners that have signed up 171 parcels for the Big Blue Wind Project. Many of them have been around for more than 10 years. In addition to that, there’s another 11 families or unique landowners that have signed up or have planned to sign up. They’re pending. They’ve got another 21 parcels. And then we also have 25 families that have signed up as part of the Steel Flats Project. So a total of 108 families have signed up for wind energy leases in this community with a total acreage of more than 30,000 acres.”It is unknown at this time what will happen with any of those leases.FJN reached out to NextEra for a reaction to the new regulations.“We appreciate the consideration that Jefferson County officials have applied to revising wind energy regulations,” said Sara Cassidy, Manager of Development Communications for NextEra. “We are disappointed by the commission’s decision to enact some of the strictest setbacks in the state. At this time, we are re-evaluating the regulations to decide our path forward in Jefferson County.Cassidy said, “We do remain hopeful to be able to develop in Jefferson County and bring numerous economic benefits to the community, including the potential for tens of millions of dollars in additional tax revenue which can be used to enhance schools, roads and essential services, as well as millions of dollars in landowner payments. Furthermore, we will continue to work closely with county officials to address any questions or concerns about our proposed project or wind energy development.”Steele FlatsThroughout the debate on wind turbine regulations, representatives of NextEra repeatedly pointed to Steele Flats. Opponents of further wind expansion sited concern about various issues, such as noise, shadow flicker and the viewshed. According to NextEra, they have no received complaints from neighbors of Steele Flats.At a meeting of the commissioners on Tuesday, March 28, Commissioner Schoenrock disputed that assertion, “Well, I will say here publicly this morning, I’m aware of a number of complaints in the steel facts in the steel flats project. People have not complained about it publicly, because they do not want to upset their neighbors. But they’ve talked to me as their elected official. So if there’s anybody makes any statements that there is no complaints about this in the seal flats project, that’s simply not accurate.”FJN spoke to Schoenrock after the meeting and he acknowledged that, although Steele Flats has been in operation for more than 10 years, he only began hearing complaints when the campaign against further energy expansion started.“If there’s complaints, they’ve got to get to us.” said Planning and Zoning Administrator John McKee. “I mean, we can’t act on anything if we don’t know.”VolkswindThe new regulations only apply to new wind turbine permits. In 2013, Jefferson County Commissioners approved a permit for a company called Volkswind for the construction of a wind farm consisting of 43 turbines along the north side of U.S. Highway 136, between Jansen and Harbine.That project has never moved forward but the permit is still valid. If the project were to go forward, McKee indicated the project will have to follow the regulations established in 2013, when the project was approved.“I haven’t had anybody apply or anything else to move forward,” said McKee. “I’m not concerned about it right now until they start making application. We’ll do a lot of checks and balances if that were to proceed.”

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