LOCATION/TYPE

NEWS HOME

[ exact phrase in "" • results by date ]

[ Google-powered • results by relevance ]


Archive
RSS

Add NWW headlines to your site (click here)

Get weekly updates

WHAT TO DO
when your community is targeted

RSS

RSS feeds and more

Keep Wind Watch online and independent!

Donate via Paypal

Donate via Stripe

Selected Documents

All Documents

Research Links

Alerts

Press Releases

FAQs

Campaign Material

Photos & Graphics

Videos

Allied Groups

Wind Watch is a registered educational charity, founded in 2005.

News Watch Home

Ohio wind turbine law changes proposed, setbacks eased, counties urged to negotiate 

Credit:  By John Funk | The Plain Dealer | December 7, 2017 | www.cleveland.com ~~

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Another legislative effort is under way to revive wind farm development in Ohio, which has been stymied since 2014 by restrictive zoning rules added to an unrelated budget bill.

Sen. Matt Dolan, R-Chagrin Falls, has introduced legislation that would allow wind turbines to be closer than currently allowed to properties not included in a proposed wind farm.

As in a bill proposed earlier this year, property line minimum setback distances to adjoining properties would be based on the height of a turbine and the length of its blades.

What’s new is that Sen. Bill 238 would also reference a portion of Ohio tax code, which Dolan argues already gives county governments a good deal of control over wind development.

The tax code gives Ohio counties the authority to negotiate lower property taxes for developers proposing large projects, including wind farms, and to use those negotiations as leverage for whatever the county or its residents want.

Every wind farm built so far in Ohio relied on such “payments in lieu of taxes,” say analysts, because the negotiated payments provided developers enough of a tax break to make a proposed wind farm fiscally possible.

In other words, local governments already have the ability to control wind projects, making the need for the 2014 draconian, one-size-fits-all state rules questionable.

“Local control has been there, but because it was not referenced, it was accurate for some to say there was no local control,” Dolan said in an interview.

Wind energy development has become an issue in attracting new businesses and manufacturing, said Dolan, especially high-tech companies.

“This is an extremely important issue for Ohio. We’ve got to make sure that Ohio has a broad-based energy portfolio. And investors in wind energy are anxious to get into Ohio. This means billions of dollars for our economy.”

Troy Balderson, R-Zanesville, and chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said an initial hearing most likely will occur after the first of the year.

Reaction from Ohio economic development groups and from and an affiliate of Internet giant Amazon was immediate and positive.

“SB 238 would … help foster more investment in developing wind energy resources and position Ohio for the 21st century economy,” said Braden Cox, an economic development director for Amazon, in a prepared release.

Noting that Amazon is committed to operating its web services with 100 percent renewable energy over time, Cox added that Amazon Web Services must have “access to a renewable energy market that is robust, reliable, and cost competitive.”

Zachary Frymier, director of energy and environmental policy for the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, called the proposal “a commonsense approach that will adequately protect the interests of property owners, enable wind developers to invest in our state, and bolster manufacturing opportunities up and down the wind energy supply chain.”

And Alex Fischer, president and CEO of Columbus Partnership, said, “We have seen an increasing private sector demand for renewable energy, including wind, in our economic development efforts at the Partnership, and believe Ohio’s business climate would be enhanced if we can offer companies a wide array of affordable, clean energy choices.”

Source:  By John Funk | The Plain Dealer | December 7, 2017 | www.cleveland.com

This article is the work of the source indicated. Any opinions expressed in it are not necessarily those of National Wind Watch.

The copyright of this article resides with the author or publisher indicated. As part of its noncommercial educational effort to present the environmental, social, scientific, and economic issues of large-scale wind power development to a global audience seeking such information, National Wind Watch endeavors to observe “fair use” as provided for in section 107 of U.S. Copyright Law and similar “fair dealing” provisions of the copyright laws of other nations. Send requests to excerpt, general inquiries, and comments via e-mail.

Wind Watch relies entirely
on User Funding
   Donate via Paypal
(via Paypal)
Donate via Stripe
(via Stripe)

Share:

e-mail X FB LI TG TG Share


News Watch Home

Get the Facts
CONTACT DONATE PRIVACY ABOUT SEARCH
© National Wind Watch, Inc.
Use of copyrighted material adheres to Fair Use.
"Wind Watch" is a registered trademark.

 Follow:

Wind Watch on X Wind Watch on Facebook

Wind Watch on Linked In Wind Watch on Mastodon