July 10, 2013
Iowa

Possible wind farm expansion discussed by supervisors

By ANDREW POTTER - Staff Writer | Times-Republican | July 10, 2013 | www.timesrepublican.com

The possible expansion of the Vienna wind farm near Gladbrook was discussed by the Marshall County board of supervisors during a meeting Tuesday.

John Kunc, planning and zoning director for the county, said there have been initial talks with MidAmerican Energy to add more turbines to the west of the existing wind farm site.

All talks have been preliminary and no permit applications have been submitted to the county.

“There have been very limited details on that project going forward,” Kunc said.

Supervisors chair Dave Thompson said it would be premature to comment on the proposed expansion since they have yet to receive anything official on the matter.

The current Vienna site has 25 turbines in Marshall County and 20 in Tama County that were constructed last year.

Thompson said overall he has received positive feedback on the turbines in the county. He said the landowners would be the ones to determine if the county is oversaturated with turbines.

Kunc also monitors public health in the county, and he said the county is keeping an eye out for Cyclospora. There have been 22 cases in nine counties in Iowa of the illness which causes up to 57 days of diarrhea symptoms. Residents are advised to wash their fresh produce to help avoid getting the illness.

There have been no cases of Cyclospora in Marshall County.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/07/10/possible-wind-farm-expansion-discussed-by-supervisors/