July 17, 2022
South Dakota

Hughes County to hold public hearing on North Bend Wind Project permit July 27

By Jody Heemstra | DRGNews | Jul 16, 2022 | drgnews.com

Hughes County has scheduled a public hearing before their Board of Adjustment to consider a conditional use permit for the North Bend Wind Project. The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, July 27, 2022, at 5:30 pm in the large courtroom on the third floor of the Hughes County Courthouse. The public is encouraged to attend.

The North Bend Wind Project is a 200 MW project that is proposed in Hughes and Hyde Counties, South Dakota. As proposed, the project would be interconnected to Western Area Power Authority’s (WAPA) existing Fort Thompson to Oahe 230 kV transmission line at a new switchyard that would be constructed in Hyde County adjacent to the existing line by WAPA within the East 1/2 of Section 16, T 110N R 73W just south of the project substation.

The project would have a maximum nameplate capacity of 200 megawatts (MW) consisting of up to 71 General Electric 2.82-116 wind turbine generators (WTGs). Within Hughes County, the North Bend Wind Project is requesting approval to construct up to 27 turbine locations. Each WTG would have a hub height of 88.5 meters (290 feet) and a rotor diameter of 127 meters (416 feet) with a total height with the blade tip at its highest position of 152 meters (499 feet). The WTG turbine model that is being proposed to be used at North Bend is slightly taller than the turbine model that was installed in conjunction with the Triple H Wind Project in Hyde County.

The Project will include additional infrastructure and facilities, including but not limited to 16-foot-wide permanent access roads leading to each turbine, up to two permanent meteorological towers, a temporary construction laydown yard, and a 34.5 kV underground electrical collection system. Electricity generated by the WTGs will be collected at a central project substation where the voltage will be stepped up from 34.5kV to 230 kV.

A conference call option will be available to participate in the hearing if you are unable to attend in person. If you would like to participate by phone, please call 1-667-770-1890 and enter access code 5534266#. Please mute your phone when you are not addressing the Board of Adjustment.

While the public is encouraged to present their testimony to the Board of Adjustment, there will be a time limit on the testimony for each person and testimony time is not transferrable. Hughes County staff will also receive written testimony on the matter. You can submit written documents up until noon on July 26th. Send your comments to Hughes County Planner, 104 E Capitol Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501 or Planner@co.hughes.sd.us. Documents which have been submitted on this matter are available for public review on the Hughes County web site at www.hughescounty.org. If you have questions on this public hearing, please contact our Hughes County Planner, Eric Booth, at 605-773-4441.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2022/07/17/hughes-county-to-hold-public-hearing-on-north-bend-wind-project-permit-july-27/