Wind Power News: Iowa
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch 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.
Iowa Utilities Board holding hearing on Cardinal-Hickory Creek transmission line
The Iowa Utilities Board is hearing arguments this week on a proposed transmission line that would affect some residents in the Dubuque area. The Cardinal-Hickory Creek line would span 100 miles from Dane County, Wisconsin through Dubuque County. Three companies are involved in this: ITC Midwest, Dairyland Power Cooperative, and American Transmission Company (ATC). ITC spokesperson Rod Pritchard says the new line will have many benefits, including, “increased reliability to the system, expanded system capacity, and access to more different . . . Complete story »
Wind energy carries steep hidden costs
Since 2004, MidAmerican Energy has set up wind farms. They run on wind, which is free. MidAmerican has spent $11.6 billion to set them up. Alliant Energy is spending $2.4 billion. MidAmerican is “repowering,” or replacing, the blades of 1,215 wind turbines and other parts in its fleet of more than 2,600, a multiyear maintenance project. Iowa had 2,073 turbines last year, seven times more than in 2004, data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration show. MidAmerican estimates that it . . . Complete story »
Page County sets wind turbine meetings
(Clarinda) – Page County officials are seeking feedback on wind turbine issues. Public meetings take place Monday, December 16th at the Page County Courthouse’s Page Room, and Wednesday, December 18th at the Bricker Room of Shenandoah’s Public Safety Center. Both meetings begin at 5 p.m. Page County Supervisors Chair Alan Armstrong tells KMA News both meetings are designed to gleam public comments on the placement of wind turbines in the county. “What we’re hoping to have is people who still have . . . Complete story »
‘Good neighbors’?
Every life, every work is a legacy. Survivors of the Great Depression left a legacy of extreme frugality. The 80s farm crisis impacted not just our farming practices and lifestyle but also our psyche. Survivors fear loss of the farm, the lifestyle, and loss of identity. We hang on to property at great costs to our legacy. Converting agricultural and wildlife areas to the use of industrial wind turbines irreversibly destroys it. It is a legacy of destruction starting with . . . Complete story »
Adair County Supervisors put limits on wind farms
Leaders in southwest Iowa’s Adair County have voted to limit the development of wind farms. Following a public hearing Tuesday at the Adair County Board of Supervisors meeting, and a waiving of the second and third readings, the supervisors approved an amendment to the Wind Energy Ordinance 31B. The amendment caps the number of commercial wind turbines or wind farms erected within the boundaries of Adair County at a total of no more than 535. Adair County currently has 532 . . . Complete story »
Iowa County Board of Supervisors approves, adopts wind ordinance
A long-debated wind ordinance in Iowa County has officially been approved and adopted by the county’s board of supervisors. The agreement sets regulations on where energy companies can place wind turbines across the county. In August, the Iowa County Board of Supervisors voted down a proposed ordinance after representatives from two energy companies argued it was too restrictive, but others argued it was too lenient. “The 2,000-foot setback on the non-participating [residents], would really hinder future development in this county,” . . . Complete story »
A new problem for clean energy: Dealing with old windmill blades
If you live in a state where wind power is generating an increasing share of electricity, you’ve probably passed a windmill blade being towed down the highway and assumed that another new wind turbine is being installed somewhere. You might be wrong. Wind turbines put into service in the 1990s and the 2000s are reaching the end of their useful lives of 20 to 30 years and are being replaced. That’s creating a massive amount of junk that needs to . . . Complete story »
Green energy’s black eye
Green wind energy is earning something of a “problem-child black eye” as part of utilities’ efforts to improve efficiency. The Des Moines Register reported demolition crews at a western Iowa wind farm operated by MidAmerican Energy are cutting 120-foot turbine blades into thirds, part of the utility’s efforts to “repower” nearly 110 turbines, updating existing towers with longer blades, new hubs and refurbished generators. MidAmerican officials said that when the work is done the wind farm will generate nearly 20% . . . Complete story »
We all lose when species of animal becomes extinct
What should we think when a recent National Geographic tells us the last northern white male rhinoceros has died? The dogma of grinding the rhino’s horn into dust, then boiling the dust in water for a cure of impotence, has caused the wholesale slaughter of the rhinos – based upon a lie. The Geographic opens your eyes – that we humans are the most dangerous species to ever walk the Earth. Will our county supervisors read the Oregon State University study stating . . . Complete story »
‘You won’t understand it until you live it’
To all Madison County tax paying residents: My name is Tanya Lamb. I am 50 years old. I have lived at my residence for 26 years, my husband for 37 years. We, at the very second you read this, live in the footprint of industrial wind. My husband loves to boast “I’ve planted every tree but two” on our once beautiful property. He started planning his future on our property in 1982, when he planted rows of evergreens that now . . . Complete story »
