The conference room at the Mineral Point Comfort Inn was nearly filled Thursday for the Town Board meeting that focused on the wind power projects slated for the area.
The project is being proposed by Pattern Energy. Pattern was invited to the meeting but eventually declined, opting instead to offer a virtual public information session billed as “learning more about the Uplands Wind Project.” That session will be held Thursday, March 19 from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. To RSVP go to bit.ly/UplandsWind.
Pattern said they will provide project updates and answer questions.
According to a map handed out at the meeting there are eight units planned for an area near Edmund and ranging toward Iowa-Grant schools. The brunt of the project-61 in allis planned around Mineral Point and extending to the Yellowstone Park area near Blanchardville.
Pattern has been attending township and county meetings providing updates. They have been accused of providing faulty information and while the say they want to work with the affected landowners and be part of the community there presentations have been met with skepticism.
One of the top issues landowners are concerned with is the size of the wind towers. They have to be big to generate 6.2 megawatts of power.
The towers are projected to be 652 feet tall which is 110 feet taller than the Washington Monument. Blade length is 261 feet with a weight of 27 tons. The total weight is 100 tons and the oil and coolant capacity is 600 gallons.
There is also a huge amount of concrete needed to place the towers which have a 25 year life span.
Bob Oberhauser who serves as chairman, Tim Stracka and Carly Cody make up the Mineral Point Town Board. Oberhauser and Stracka said the goal is to get out in front of the final decision on the project by the three member Public Service Commission which has the final say so. At present affected areas can only issue testimony as there is now requirement for local approval.
It is possible to file an online complaint with the PSC. Mail in testimony can be sent to Public Service Commission of Wisconsin, PO Box 7854, Madison, WI 53707-7854.
Speaking to a consumer specialist can be done at 1-800-225-7729.
In a recent communication from the Town Board the following information was shared:
“21 possible wind turbine locations are in the Town of Mineral Point. 64 total in the project area. 51 of those are proposed to be built which will total 300 MW. These are 6+ MW turbines and are up to 700 foot tall. This includes a generator tie line from a new substation at DD and DDD to the ATC line on Hwy 18. That line will be up to 200 foot tall and run nearly 15 miles.
No-uplands.com provides detailed maps on their home page that were built from the relief map provided by Pattern.”
Richard Jenkins who has been battling wind projects in the area from the start spoke passionately about issues caused by the massive turbines. He said many health issues come into play including cardio-vascular, stress, nausea, and excessive noise.
Jenkins, who has traveled the state to view the affects of projects in force added stray voltage, water contamination and property devaluation as other concerns. He said he has asked for a water study but Pattern has refused to do it.
Another concern is medflight being able to navigate and land among the towers if needed. While medflight has yet to weigh in on the project it was pointed out it may be an issue if the service is needed.
One other issue is with the fact that landowners are signing on to allow turbines on their property as there are financial benefits to do so. But that does not sit well with neighbors who oppose the project.
“This could get ugly with neighbors against neighbors,” Jenkins said.
One of the members of the audience added: “We need everyone to stand up and fight this. We can still stop it.”
While stopping the project seems a slim chance with past PSC action the thought is a small chance is better than no chance.
There was some traction made last week when SB3 received a public hearing at the state capitol.
Senator Howard Marklein (R- Spring Green), Rep. Travis Tranel (R-Cuba City), and other residents of the 17th Senate District were among those who testified in favor of Senate Bill (SB) 3 on Tuesday, March 10. Introduced last January by Sen. Marklein and Rep. Tranel, SB 3 would require local elected officials and municipalities to sign off on large wind and solar projects as they go through the approval process.
Marklein issued the following statement:
“In recent years, citizens in rural communities and their local elected officials have felt ignored when they express concerns about large utility projects in their backyard,” Marklein said. “This legislation would reaffirm local control by empowering municipalities and their elected officials by giving them a seat at the
table when it comes to approval of large-scale wind and solar projects.”
Since 2009 Wisconsin Act 40 took away local control under Governor Jim Doyle, the Public Service Commission (PSC) is responsible for granting a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity for proposed large wind and solar facilities without any approval from local officials. SB 3 would amend the review process to require municipalities to approve or deny a project no later than 90 days after receiving a request.
The PSC would be unable to complete its evaluation until every municipality within the proposed area has approved the project.
Sen. Marklein was joined by Rep. Travis Tranel and dozens of residents from around Wisconsin as they advocated for SB 3 before the Senate Committee on Utilities, Technology, and Tourism. Many of the speakers traveled from southwestern Wisconsin to testify on the legislation.
More information from the hearing includes:
Objective: The bill aims to return control to local governments (cities, towns, villages) over renewable energy project siting.
Approval Process: Municipalities must act on projects within 90 days; failure to act results in automatic approval.
Support and Opposition: Co-authors include Senators Marklein, Tomczyk, Jacque, Nass, and Quinn, with support from Rep. Tranel and Representative Tom Tiffany.
Critics argue it could restrict or hinder the development of renewable energy projects.
With the legislative session adjourned the bill is still in the legislative process.
Meanwhile the organizers of the meeting point out that it is important to keep up the fight by filing complaints and talking to your representatives.
It was stated that Pattern has not completed their filings yet.
“We are ahead of the game,” Stracka said. “Contact the PSC as we need our voices heard. This is so wrong.”