July 10, 2019
New York

Public hearing held to determine fate of Bluestone Wind Project

Katie Jones | WBNG | July 9, 2019 | wbng.com

A public hearing will be held all week to analyze whether or not the Bluestone Wind Project should receive approval.

The project would bring 27 wind turbines to Broome County. The developers of the project, Calpine, says wind energy will help the community.

“The project will provide significant tax revenue over the life of the project, so 20 to 30 years. There are jobs associated with these projects to operate and manage the wind farm,” said Alec Jarvis, Calpine development director.

Residents of the area disagree. They say turbines will be put right in their backyards.

“My closest windmill will be at my house, 1500 feet away. I’m appauled at that,” said Pat Kurz, a resident of the Town of Sanford.

In addition to proximity, residents also cite health and environmental concerns.

“It is definitely true that you can get headaches, you can have a noise in your ears, and for some people it has an affect on the brain,” said Anne Lawrence, Broome County Concerned Residents co-chair.

Developers who analyze data that could have an affect on health say that there is no relationship between health effects and the operations of wind turbines.

Addressing residents’ environmental concerns, developers say, “The overall clearing of trees or upgrading of roads and associated infrastructure is likely to be in the 300 acre range.”

Residents say, those wind turbines will destroy the tourism industry.

“Our big industry is tourism, our big industry is the out of doors, and I can’t imagine camping underneath an industrial turbine,” said Kurz.


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2019/07/10/public-hearing-held-to-determine-fate-of-bluestone-wind-project/