Harvesting the Wind

Dear Editor,

“Harvesting the wind is a breeze,” says Pattern, the developer of the Uplands Wind industrial wind turbine (IWT) project in Lafayette, Grant, and Iowa counties, in a full-page, full-color mailer that it recently sent out in a desperate attempt to try to reverse the anti-IWT movement that is growing in SW Wisconsin.  

The truth is that harvesting the wind with one of Pattern’s wind turbines would be like planting a novel, experimental crop that would require about a 100% cost-sharing subsidy from the US Farm Service Agency. The crop would yield only about 30% on investment (in a good year) and produce toxins that pollute the soil, water, and air. It would be dangerous to the health and safety of the landowner as well as that of their spouse, children, and neighbors. A real harvest of nightmares. Mass starvation would result if it weren’t for a variety of other safe, reliable, economical, high-yield crops.

IWTs are one component of the Green New Deal (GND) fantasy, along with industrial solar and electrical vehicles (EV), dreamed up by the whack-jobs running the federal government in their attempt to decrease the production of CO2. They, along with other world climate crazies, think that if they can stop CO2 production, they can stop climate change. The climate has always been changing ever since the earth was formed--with or without humans and fossil fuels--and can’t be stopped. The facts show that CO2 and methane are unrelated to climate change. CO2 is a plant nutrient and is essential for plant growth and life--Dah! If CO2 levels go up, plant growth and crop yields increase, which stabilizes CO2.

 As reality sets in, the GND is quickly falling apart. Lately, there has been a rash of canceled IWT projects.  The green EV movement has recently hit a concrete block wall as fantasy gives way to reality. After a brief period of EV novelty sales to the financially well off (mainly as a second car for commuting), EVs are backing up on car dealers’ lots. Recently, half (1000 of the 2000 Buick dealers) dropped the Buick line rather than being forced to sell EVs.  The average person who needs reliable transportation is not buying an EV. They are exorbitantly priced, even with the $7K plus tax subsidy.  Ford and GM have stopped building their battery factories and slashed EV production. Ford lost $36K last quarter on each EV it sold.  Insane! Consumer Reports surveyed EV owners and found that they “have almost 80% more problems” than owners of gas/diesel-powered, internal combustion cars, including issues such as charger availability, charging time, getting stuck out in Timbuktu with a dead battery, dangerous  battery fires, failure in extreme heat or cold, and battery replacement (1/3 of the vehicle price). Remember the disastrous EV road trips taken by cabinet members Granholm and Buttigieg.

IWTs, just like EVs, are slowly heading for the brick wall of reality.   There will still be fools and charlatans out there telling you how wonderful IWTs are, promising you, your township, and your county a lot of cash to host IWTs. However, with all their problems slowly being exposed, IWTs are also doomed--just like EVs. Real science is trumping (no pun intended) political science. Reality is trumping fantasy.

Landowners should never sign a contract to host an IWT for any amount of money flashed in their face.  Neighbors of IWT hosts should never sign a good neighbor agreement. Let’s keep each other, our friends’ neighbors, communities, and our environment safe and healthy by keeping IWTs out of Wisconsin. Existing IWTs should be torn down, deconstructed.

Let’s tell Pattern and its employees to pack up and leave SW Wisconsin--get out and go try to harvest suckers in some other state! 

George Schwarzmann Jr.   

Belmont Township, WI