September 1, 2013
Indiana

Weighing in on wind farm debate

Public eye, Sept. 1, 2013 | Kokomo Tribune | kokomotribune.com

With 80 members residing in Tipton County the Citizens Action Coalition of Indiana was prepared to present testimony supporting the elimination of a property value guarantee for the proposed Prairie Breeze Wind Farm.

Incorporated in 1974, the citizens group has presented testimony at many Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission meetings on state and federal utility and energy policies.

“Requiring a property value guarantee will set a bad precedent for Indiana,” Lindsay Shipps, communications director, said in a press statement. “It would most likely suppress development, deny landowners a viable income, scare other businesses from investing in your county for fear of onerous restrictions such as this, and create a slippery slope for similar requirements that could apply to other industries.

“Think about the possibility of lowered property values because of other industries, such as factory farms, fracking, and manufacturing,” she said. “Will you, Tipton County, be enforcing such a property value guarantee on behalf of your citizens against these industries? Or are you just going after wind?”

The CAC would be more sympathetic to the complaints about lowered property values if the evidence existed, Shipps said. The largest study, by the University of California Berkley, didn’t show any conclusive link to lower property values, although wind opponents point to some smaller studies that suggest otherwise.


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/09/01/weighing-in-on-wind-farm-debate/