April 25, 2023
Arkansas

Wind turbines could be ‘at least’ 500 feet tall

By Becky Gillette - March 22, 2023 - eureka.news

Scout Clean Energy, which said it has obtained leases from private landowner to build a $300-million Nimbus Wind Facility off County Road (CR) 905 near Green Forest, wrote in an email to the Independent on March 21 that the 43 wind turbines planned would be “at least” 500 feet tall depending on the final turbine selection.

“Along with turbine type, the blade lengths can vary and we have not selected the turbine model for the project yet,” Nimbus Wind Facility Project Manager Dave Iadarola wrote.

A football field is 360 feet long. At 500 feet, the towers would be just 46 feet shorter than the tallest building in Arkansas, the Simmons Bank Tower building in Little Rock.

Some local residents who fear negative impacts from the project have protested the secrecy about such a huge development, including no public meetings or notices, and private meetings between Scout Clean Energy and Carroll County officials. Residents have also objected to the company not being required to get permits from the Arkansas Public Service Commission (APSC).

Opponents have expressed alarm that such a huge development could be planned with little governmental oversight.

Iadarola wrote that Scout will be filing an Eagle Conservation Plan and a Habitat Conservation Plan related to bats that will be reviewed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission.

“We have done multiple years of bird and raptor/eagle studies onsite,” Iadarola wrote. “Industry standards are to perform at least two years of eagle use surveys, which we have completed. In addition, we have completed multiple bat studies along with several other environmental studies. These are standard practice for all wind projects across the country and are used to determine what plants and species are present onsite.”

Both APSC and Scout have said no permits from APSC are needed to build the turbines. Scout said the electricity generated from the turbines would travel via a new four-mile transmission line to connect into the Dry Creek Substation owned by the Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corp., then connect with the regional transmission grid operated by MISO (Midcontinent Independent System Operator).

Iadarola said depending on the buyer of the power, the transmission line – like the wind project – is not required to go through the ASPC permitting process. If the buyer is from out of state, no permits are needed.

Former Green Forest Mayor Charlie Reece said he has a problem with the project going forward without a public hearing.

“I think the public needs to be in on the decision,” Reece said. “I just think it is imperative before they go any further to have public hearings on it. I don’t feel comfortable with it. While energy is necessary for growth, I’m not sure we are going about it the right way.”

Reece said he had read that an energy shortage is expected in Carroll County in the future. He said the fact that electricity proposed to be generated by Nimbus won’t be used in Carroll County or even elsewhere in Arkansas is “amazing.”

“That is a deceptive practice on their part,” said Reece. “The public in general really has no idea what is going on. They are just trying to pull the wool over people’s eyes. I’m in favor of clean energy but to have this happen without public hearings is unacceptable. I have talked to numerous citizens around not only in Green Forest, but Berryville. They are concerned about the impact it can have on wildlife, particularly bald eagles. If you saw my camera, you would see how many pictures I have of bald eagles. I have a problem with people signing off on this project without involving the public.”

Scout has announced it will have public information sessions, which are different from public hearings held by government agencies, twice in April.

A closed meeting was held March 14 between Scout, their attorney John Alexander, County Judge David Writer, County Attorney Steven Simmons and Ronda Griffith, who was acting Carroll County Judge after the resignation of former County Judge Sam Barr, and who continues as administrative assistant to Writer. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss a road use agreement with Scout.

Griffith wrote in an email that the meeting was not “closed” to the public, it just wasn’t “open” to the public.

“This meeting was no different than any other meeting the County Judge has with his attorney, or even a vendor,” Griffith wrote in an email. “Most attorney/client conversations are of a private nature, and not public.”

Griffith said the county started considering the road use agreement this past year.

“The initial agreement was not acceptable to the county, so we are still in negotiations with them,” Griffith said. “It was a good meeting this past week with both attorneys there.”

Griffith said she has been getting as many telephone calls from landowners in favor of the project as opponents. “People in favor of this project think this is a good thing,” she said.

Winter said the county’s main concern is the roads and weight of components, as the county doesn’t have any dimensions or specs regarding size of the turbines and their parts.

“That is all we are liable for,” Winter said. “The road usage agreement is what we discussed with our lawyers just making sure everything is fair on both sides of that. I know people are thinking we are being secretive, but I am as transparent as I can be. They know what I know. There is no road use agreement yet. That is what I keep trying to tell people coming into the office. Everything is open. I can’t answer the questions people want answered. That is why we want Scout to hold a town hall meeting so the company can answer their questions.”

Writer said there is nothing the county can do to stop the project because there are no zoning or land use ordinances in the county.

“That is the way the people of the county prefer it,” Writer said. “People don’t want you to tell them what they can and can’t do on their property. That has always been left up to the landowner. I don’t have a leg to stand on with that.”

He said he has visited CR 905 and believes the road is not going to be torn up bringing the components in, and that Scout has agreements with landowners for areas where they will have to widen the road to get turbine components around sharp corners.

“That is already negotiated with the landowners,” Writer said. “The road should be better than it is right now. It should be minimal what they are going to do.”

Writer is neither in favor nor against the project. “I’m not pro or con,” he said.


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2023/04/25/wind-turbines-could-be-at-least-500-feet-tall/