July 4, 2014
Kentucky

JPC meets again to discuss wind turbines

MARLA TONCRAY | The Ledger Independent | July 3, 2014 | www.maysville-online.com

Members of the Maysville-Mason County Joint Planning Commission met Wednesday for further discussion on wind turbines.

At the end of more than one hour of discussion, it was decided to treat small to mid-scale wind turbines as accessory use by right.

The accessory use classification is attached to windmill power produced at a principal site, for use only at that site.

An example of an accessory use turbine is located on the property of the Mason County Area Technical School on Kenton Station Road. Considered a small turbine, it produces energy specifically for use at the school and not for other sites or purposes.

Under the recommendation to classify small to mid-scale turbines, the following restrictions will be recommended to the Mason County Fiscal Court.

The maximum height in every zone of the county will be 75 feet; setbacks will be 1.1 times the distance of the height of the structure from a structure; sound levels will be less than 30 DSA and less than 50 DBC; abandonment and decommissioning requirements; insurance coverage; speed control and electrode magnetic control.

Wednesday’s meeting was the second held by the JPC after a public meeting in June about a proposed wind farm in May’s Lick by Duke Energy Renewables.

The first meeting put restrictions on large scale, industrial wind turbines to heavy industrial zones only within the county.

The next step for the JPC board members will be to meet again in August to put their final recommendations together on wind turbines. The recommendations will then be sent to the Mason County Fiscal Court, who is charged with drafting and adopting ordinances related to zoning and planning in the county.

The court can reject or adopt the recommendations of the JPC.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2014/07/04/jpc-meets-again-to-discuss-wind-turbines/