September 12, 2017
New York

Stefanik voices concerns about wind farms & Fort Drum

WWNY | September 12, 2017 | www.wwnytv.com

North country Congresswoman Elise Stefanik is weighing in on the potential effects of industrial wind turbine development at Fort Drum.

The Republican lawmaker sent a letter to U.S. Army Chief of Staff General Mark Milley voicing concerns.

“In recent months, I have grown increasingly concerned that the Department of the Army (DA) and the Department of Defense (DoD) are not appropriately considering the cumulative impact of industrial wind development projects on Fort Drum and other installations around the country,” she wrote. “I urge the DA and DoD to heavily scrutinize each project throughout the approval process to ensure aggregate effects of new wind turbine construction are factored into determinations of ‘no hazard.'”

Last week, north country Assemblywoman Addie Jenne took a stand against wind power projects around Fort Drum.

The Democrat said she plans to introduce legislation that would prevent wind turbine installations around the post from receiving state subsidies.

On Tuesday, the Fort Drum Regional Liaison Organization issued a position statement opposing eight proposed wind power projects, saying they “will have a negative impact on Fort Drum and threaten its future.”

According to the statement, existing wind turbines in Lewis County and on Wolfe Island in Canada already distort radar at Fort Drum’s Wheeler-Sack Army Airfield. This negatively affects “safe flight operations for helicopter and fixed wing aircraft.”

The FDRLO also said the turbines affect the accuracy of weather data taken by Doppler radar in Montague.
 
Stefanik does not say she’s opposed to wind power projects; she’s calling on the Army to adequately assess the projects’ impact on military readiness.

See her full letter

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2017/09/12/stefanik-voices-concerns-about-wind-farms-fort-drum/