Wind Power News: Nevada
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They are the products of the organizations or individuals noted and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch.
Owners want payoff to stop turbine project
ELKO — An Elko couple whose plan to install a wind turbine on their property along Sundance Drive is offering disgruntled neighbors the chance to pay them not to put up the tower. “Neighbors can pay for the wind rights,” Travis Gerber, attorney for Scott and Sheri Baker, said at the Elko County Commissioners meeting, after commissioners voted to ask the Elko County Planning Commission to look again at the wind ordinance. “The Bakers have to eat $6,000” in a . . .
BPA reworking process for planning transmission lines
Renewable energy developments in the Northwest may soon benefit from more flexibility in the transmission planning process. The past several years have been marked by an increase of wind power developments, partially because of laws requiring utilities to add renewable energy to their portfolios. The Bonneville Power Administration, which controls three-quarters of the Northwest’s high-voltage transmission lines, has been working to figure out how to prepare for the new wind power. But not all of the projects that generated transmission . . .
Good Energies venture plans 990-megawatt wind farm in Nevada
Champlin/GEI Wind Holdings LLC, a North American wind-energy developer backed by Good Energies Inc., asked state regulators for permission to build a 990- megawatt wind farm in southeast Nevada. The project would use as many as 350 turbines, according to a permit application filed with the Nevada Public Utilities Commission. The cost wasn’t disclosed. The project is one of the first proposed by Santa Barbara, California-based Champlin/GEI since its creation in November, after Good Energies agreed to provide as much . . .
Feasibility of huge transmission line will be studied
A new development agreement has been inked to study the feasibility of a 725-mile transmission line that begins in Wyoming, traverses across Utah and ends in Nevada. The project by TransWest Express and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Western Area Power Administration proposes to tap wind energy in southeastern Wyoming and convey up to 3,000 megawatts of renewable power to the Marketplace Hub outside of Las Vegas. Under terms of the agreement, TransWest would kick in up to $25 million . . .
BLM rapped for silencing citizens
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management has decided to allow members of the public to speak during meetings held to gather public comments. A brouhaha developed after an Aug. 31 meeting in Primm, Nev. The point of the meeting was to gather public input on environmental concerns related to a planned solar development. But people, some of whom drove hundreds of miles to express their views, were not allowed to speak and instead were told to write their thoughts on . . .
Good Energies wind subsidiary plans 990MW in Nevada
The US development subsidiary of European renewables group Good Energies is planning a 990MW wind project that would be the largest in America. The Wilson Creek Wind Project would be built on some 125.5sq km of federal land located 32km northeast of Pioche, Nevada, and 150 miles (241km) from Las Vegas. Wilson Creek Power Partners says in its application to the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada (PUCN) that the area, encompassing Mt. Wilson, Table Mountain, White Rock Mountain and Atlanta . . .
Promise of jobs from solar, wind power a hard sell in the desert
SEARCHLIGHT, Nevada–It’s easy to find Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s house in his tiny desert mining hometown. “You looking for Dirty Harry? Just look for the house with the wind turbine in the yard and the big solar panels on the roof,” says a patron at the Searchlight Nugget Casino bar. Reid’s passionate personal commitment to the promise of renewable energy-–often subdued when he is in Washington–-is visibly evident throughout his home state. In the scorched desert 20 miles outside . . .
The winds of change
Should neighbors be upset about a 66-foot wind turbine going up on a two-acre lot? Or should they be thankful it isn’t a 135-foot wind turbine on a one-acre lot? The taller wind towers on smaller lots were originally considered by Elko County last fall as commissioners prepared to pass an ordinance setting restrictions on the alternative energy machines. The action followed passage of a state law that prevents local governments from passing “unreasonable” restrictions on windmills. Few residents came . . .
Neighbors lose appeal of wind turbine tower
ELKO — Sundance Drive will soon be home to a 66-foot tall wind turbine tower, despite protests from 14 neighboring households. After a nearly three-hour appeal hearing Monday, Elko County Commissioners unanimously agreed with a decision by the Elko County Planning Commission to allow the tower. The vote could set a precedent for other local residents wanting to put a wind turbine on their property. “What we’re talking about is the future of wind turbines in agricultural residential districts,” Commission . . .
Ninth Circuit allows Nevada wind farm construction to proceed
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed a district court decision that allowed the construction of a Nevada wind farm, rejecting claims that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) violated NEPA in approving its construction. W. Watersheds Project v. BLM, No. 11-15799 (9th Cir. 7/15/11) (unpublished). The wind farm project would involve the construction of more than 75 wind turbines, more than 25 miles of new roads, nine miles of fencing, two gravel pits, a microwave tower with overhead . . .
