October 15, 2016
Vermont

Holland: Dairy Air Wind files met tower application

HollandDairy Air Wind Files Met Tower Application | Meteorological Tower To Measure Winds For Planned Industrial Wind Turbine On Farm | Robin Smith | Caledonian Record | October 15, 2016 | www.caledonianrecord.com

HOLLAND – Dairy Air Wind has filed an application for a certificate of public good to raise a wind measurement tower on a dairy farm on School Road.

The meteorological or “met” tower application was filed two weeks ago as the Holland Select Board was debating whether to oppose the tower and the industrial wind turbine planned for Dairy Air Farm.

The met tower is planned by renewable energy developer David Blittersdorf, who is the principal behind Dairy Air Wind. He has an easement to put the met tower and later the wind turbine on the farm owned by Brian and Kim Champney.

Since the application was filed for the met tower with the Vermont Public Service Board, the select board voted to oppose the met tower and also the 2.2-megawatt wind turbine.

The select board and other statutory parties like Northeastern Vermont Development Association and neighboring property owners have 30 days from the Sept. 30 filing date to sign up to comment on the met tower project.

The board has sent out a survey to all voters and property taxpayers in Holland, similar to the kind of survey sent out in Brighton several years ago, to find out what recipients think about a wind turbine on a Holland farm.

In Brighton, the survey showed respondents were opposed to the now-defunct Seneca Mountain wind project.

Holland selectmen on Monday are expected to discuss the survey. Selectmen’s Chairman Brett Farrow has abstained from taking a position on the wind turbine while the other two selectmen voted to oppose it. Farrow said he wants to see how the town feels about the turbine.

The turbine planned for Dairy Air Farm is expected to be nearly 500 feet tall. The met tower, a narrow metal tube holding measurement equipment with a ground-based small equipment cabinet, would be 196 feet tall.

The location for the met tower is on a small knoll about a football field’s length from School Road, near where the turbine would likely be located.

Consultants for Dairy Air Wind say the met tower will go up and collect measurements even as the application goes forward for the wind turbine.

Environmental and community impact studies are underway for the wind turbine project.


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2016/10/15/holland-dairy-air-wind-files-met-tower-application/