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Wind Power News: Texas
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch in its noncommercial educational effort to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch. They are the products of and owned by the organizations or individuals noted and are shared here according to “fair use” and “fair dealing” provisions of copyright law.
Wind turbine fire in Nolan County
A wind turbine in Nolan County caught on fire Saturday morning. At 11:47 a.m. on December 30, crews responded to a turbine fire near the intersection of Highway 89 and 126. They also tackled some small grass fires. Ecca Fire Department, Mulberry Canyon Volunteer Fire Department, Nolan Volunteer Fire Department, and Lake Sweetwater Volunteer Fire Department responded to the scene, and crews are monitoring the area for any remaining hot spots. Complete story »
Stephens County property owners fight against wind turbine project ‘jeopardizing’ land, NextEra sites benefits to farm
A group of property owners in Stephens County is fighting against a potential project placing wind turbines on the land. The county’s commissioners will soon be voting on whether to give the wind turbine company a tax abatement, which residents believe will determine if the project will be completed. Zola George has about 320 acres of land he’s kept with his high school sweetheart since they were first married, “We’ve been enjoying that place since the mid-80s, I’ve taken my . . . Complete story »
Thousands of old wind turbine blades pile up in west Texas
Every year since 1958, the West Texas town of Sweetwater has hosted the World’s Largest Rattlesnake Roundup, which is exactly what it sounds like. Thousands of the venomous ophidians are rooted out of their dens and brought to the Nolan County Coliseum to be gawked at, “milked,” and often beheaded and skinned. It started as a way for the region to rid itself of some of its least-welcome residents. Now community leaders wish they could do the same with several . . . Complete story »
Texas Land Commissioner commits to protecting Texas waters from 860 square-mile “wind farm”
As a ninth-generation Texan, I have always loved and respected our beautiful coast, its vibrant economy, and the hard-working men and women whose livelihoods depend on the preservation of these waters. Since taking the helm of the General Land Office as the first female Land Commissioner in state history, I have also had the immense responsibility of stewarding over 13 million acres of state lands, protecting our state’s open beaches, and providing critical relief to Texans in the aftermath of . . . Complete story »
Low wind could hamper wind turbine production in Texas
Some of the hottest days of the year in North Texas are on their way and energy experts say the state’s wind turbines may not produce as much power because of low wind forecasts. Texas leads the nation and even most of the world with wind energy production with 15,000 plus turbines throughout the state. Dr. Todd Griffith, of UT Dallas’ Wind Energy Center says the turbines account for the production of about 24% of the state’s energy grid according . . . Complete story »
West Texas ranchers sue ERCOT over wind farm connected to Chinese billionaire
A pair of West Texas ranches are suing ERCOT, claiming the state’s power grid operator violated a 2021 law when it failed to stop a Chinese billionaire’s wind farm from moving forward in Val Verde County. It’s the latest battle over the Blue Hills wind farm, a 46-turbine project planned near Comstock and started by Houston-based GH America Energy, whose parent company is owned by Chinese businessman Sun Guangxin. In response to the project, the Legislature passed the Lone Star . . . Complete story »
Solar and wind companies are coming to rural Texas. These residents are trying to keep them out.
In Franklin County, a group of locals are concerned about potential environmental harm from renewable energy facilities and support a bill that would impose more regulations on solar and wind. The industry says it’s being unfairly singled out. Volunteer firefighter Jim Emery grew emotional as he spoke to the crowd at an anti-solar development town hall meeting in his northeast Texas community. Emery, who worked for decades at the nearby coal power plant before it closed in 2018, didn’t worry . . . Complete story »
Property owners, conservationists, wind energy: Tension grows in West Texas
Every night, just after the sun sets over his expansive West Texas ranch, Dell Dickinson can see bright, blinking lights flashing across the night sky. Nearly 500 feet high, the red dots illuminate the once-natural skyline, frustrating the rancher enough to close his blinds. For almost 80 years, very little development surrounded the Dickinson ranch – a 7,000-acre spread deep within Val Verde County. It had been with the family since 1942, when Dickinson’s grandfather settled the land and called it . . . Complete story »
Tax abatement for NextEra’s wind farm to come before the county Ben Shaffer
The tax abatement for NextEra’s wind farm is on the Midland County Commissioners’ Court agenda Monday. In November, county commissioners approved a reinvestment zone for the planned location of the wind farm, the first step toward granting a tax abatement, but the abatement discussion itself was postponed to a later date. NextEra is developing the facility, a 141-megawatt facility comprised of 47 3-megawatt turbines. They will be placed on surface acreage Pioneer owns on the Hutt ranch in southeast Midland County. . . . Complete story »
Gulf shrimpers brace for offshore wind
VENICE, La. – Trae Cooper risks punctures to the fiberglass hull of his grandfather’s boat every time he pulls out into the gray waters at the mouth of the Mississippi River. Trawling for shrimp that swim along Louisiana’s muddy coast means coexisting with the forgotten pipelines, corroded steel, gnawed plastic and bits of iron that the oil industry left behind as it marched gradually through these marshes and out to sea. And that’s why Cooper, 39, and many shrimpers in the . . . Complete story »
