Wind farm facts
Yankton Daily Press & Dakotan | www.yankton.net
Concerning the Press & Dakotan’s story about Prevailing Winds (Jan. 17), let’s look at the facts.
The article said, “The output of the wind farm at its peak is more than the Gavins Point Dam’s hydroelectric power.” That may be true, but don’t forget when the wind isn’t blowing the output of the wind farm is ZERO. Overall, they are 30-40 percent efficient. It always must be backed up by something else. That’s why consumers rates go up: They pay for two sources of electricity instead of one.
In describing the size of the wind farm, they leave one thing out: A 200 MW wind farm produces about $150 million in tax credits for multinational corporations over 10 years. That’s why they build them. And nobody gets electricity that doesn’t already have it. Then it says, “Both (wind and water) do not cost us anything” insinuating that once they are built, it’s all free going forward. But they didn’t mention the 20-40 semi-trucks it takes to haul in the crane when these things break down, which is often. That’s not free. And $15 million a year in tax credits isn’t either.
Then they talk about the larger size of the blades but forget to tell you about “infrasound,” a low-decibel noise that the ear cannot hear but the body can feel. This causes people to suffer migraine headaches, sleep deprivation, vertigo, and agitation. This was all testified to at the Prevailing Winds PUC hearing in Pierre last October.
They stated that Prevailing Winds withdrew its application in 2016 because of “misinformation surrounding the project.” Those were Prevailing Winds talking points then. The truth came out in the new application in 2018. They didn’t have enough land signed up. The whole public hearing was a bluff. Read it on the PUC docket.
Wind developers are now working Yankton County. You folks better do your homework. Prevailing Winds signed 136 contracts where they could put wind turbines, but only 29 landowners are getting them. The rest got nothing but a thick contract they should have read and have lost their full “bundle of rights” on their land for decades.
Gregg Hubner, Avon
Author, “Paradise Destroyed: The Destruction of Rural Living by the Wind Energy Scam”
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2019/01/24/wind-farm-facts/