November 28, 2017
Vermont

Developers withdraw Swanton Wind project proposal

Posted By Alicia Freese on Mon, Nov 27, 2017 | www.sevendaysvt.com

Developers have withdrawn a controversial proposal to put seven wind turbines on a Swanton ridgeline. Swanton Wind, which is run by the Belisle family, announced Monday that it was “pausing development work” because of anti-wind sentiment among state officials and uncertainty around potential changes to the federal tax code.

In a press release, spokesman Nick Charyk, a former Vermont Democratic Party operative, said that “the project currently faces a hostile environment from an administration opposed to wind energy, regulators and monopoly utilities who import a majority of Vermont’s power while opposing many independent local power projects.”

Although Swanton Wind’s application has been withdrawn from the Vermont Public Utility Commission, Charyk said the project will resume at “a more predictable time.”

Gov. Phil Scott, a Republican, has called for halting large-scale mountaintop wind projects. Earlier this year, he appointed Tony Roisman, who’s also expressed concern about ridgeline wind turbines, to chair the Vermont Public Utility Commission.

The Swanton project has faced resistance from residents living nearby, including former Republican lieutenant governor Brian Dubie.


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2017/11/28/developers-withdraw-swanton-wind-project-proposal/