Bill to establish wind turbine siting rules would allow local governments to pass stronger restrictions 

State lawmakers have introduced legislation that would create, for the first time, a regulatory framework for the development of renewable wind energy projects in Arkansas.

Senate President Bart Hester (R-Cave City) teamed up with Rep. Brad Hall (R-Rudy) and Rep. James Eaton (R-Huntsville) to sponsor the Arkansas Wind Energy Development Act. It was filed on Wednesday.

Senate Bill 437 addresses a range of issues related to the construction of wind turbines, including public safety, standards for decommissioning wind energy facilities, standards for permitting wind farms and the authority state and local governments would have to regulate projects. Across the country, state governments have been adopting various approaches to the regulation of wind projects, which can be fraught with controversy and public pushback over concerns the gigantic wind turbines are dangerous or negatively impact the environment.

If SB437 were to become law, it would require the Arkansas Public Service Commission to develop rules ensuring wind turbines are located at specific distances from “non-participating” landowners, meaning landowners who did not sign leases with wind companies to build turbines on their land. Turbines would also have to be a mile away from schools, hospitals, nursing homes, churches, parks, and the city limits of towns and cities.

The Arkansas Public Service Commission, which regulates utility services like water and electricity, would also have permitting authority. But if a local government adopted additional regulations, a permit from a local legislative body would also be needed.

The bill would require that companies complete environmental impact assessments and participate in public hearings and other forms of public notification. Nearby non-participating landowners would be protected from excess sound and other disruptions, like shadows and ice thrown from turbines, unless they sign waivers with the company saying they allow it.

The framework would also give city and county governments leeway to pass stronger restrictions, and it would add the state regulations on top of federal regulations already in place. Madison County has already passed a one-year moratorium on wind turbine development within the county last year, and residents of Carroll County are considering a similar measure as some residents take on a legal fight with the nearby Nimbus wind farm.

Without a thorough analysis of wind energy regulations in other states, it’s hard to say whether the Arkansas proposal would introduce burdensome hoops for project developers to jump through that might curtail the expansion of the renewable energy sector here.

Wind energy has drawn some scrutiny from some Arkansas lawmakers in recent months, when Sen. Jonathan Dismang (R-Searcy) and Rep. Jeremiah Moore (R-Clarendon) led a failed effort last month to limit the size of turbines to ostensibly protect waterfowl populations that faced backlash from energy leaders and wind advocates. The bill could signal the types of regulations local governments might try to implement.

The wind industry already has some concerns.

Several national wind companies, such as Triple Oak Power, Vestas, and Scout Clean Energy are investing in large turbine projects across the state, especially in the windy Arkansas Delta.

“SB437 recognizes the connection between Arkansas’s wind energy resource and economic growth. Wind power is one of the all-of-the-above energy solutions that can both help Arkansas meet its growing energy demand, with a low-cost energy resource, while also providing a boost to rural economies and new jobs,” Emily Brumit, director of development for wind company Triple Oak Power, said to the Arkansas Times. “SB437 appears to establish a significant new regulatory bureaucracy for wind in Arkansas, with restrictions on the use of private property to develop wind energy. We look forward to working with the legislators on a reasonable policy for wind energy.”

“The bill is very extensive so we are still reviewing it,” Simon Mahan, executive director of Southern Renewable Energy Association, said in a statement. “But there are a number of concerning provisions that would either ban or significantly impede wind energy development. If Arkansas needs more power, quickly, raising barriers on a new industry risks electric reliability and economic development.”

Mahan has worked as a renewable energy advocate for years, helping to develop the renewable industry across the southern United States. His advocacy for new power generation comes as Entergy and Southwestern Electric Power Company project energy shortfalls after 2027 as electricity demand will outpace supply.

SB437 was assigned to the Senate Insurance and Commerce Committee, though it has yet to receive a hearing date.

[Update: Arkansas SB437 was passed in the House and Senate on April 16 and sent to Governor Sarah Sanders for her signature.]