Wind Power News: Kansas
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They are the products of the organizations or individuals noted and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch.
Water, wind and fire have parts in Reno County Comprehensive Plan
Countywide zoning for renewable energy projects – including commercial wind and solar farms – along with imposing stricter flood zone regulations are among recommendations in a draft update to the Comprehensive Plan for Reno County. The 70-page plan also proposes the county create a unified fire district with a single fire chief, that it evaluate low-volume roads for closure and that it creates a “township maintenance plan” for prioritizing joint county/township road projects. The Reno County Commission, during a study . . . Complete story »
NextEra Energy Resources to open local offices, host open houses for new wind project
NextEra Energy Resources, a subsidiary of NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE), is hosting two open house events and opening local offices for a prospective wind energy project in Nemaha County. The project, Soldier Creek Wind Energy Center, includes up to 120 wind turbines and is expected to create hundreds of construction jobs and bring millions of dollars of economic impact to the area. “We are very excited about the Soldier Creek project,” said Spencer Jenkins, associate project manager for NextEra . . . Complete story »
Wind farm reps update county on project
ERIE – Representatives of a wind farm planned for southwest Neosho County met with county commissioners Thursday evening to update them on the project. Senior Development Manager Jade Scheele and Julianna Pianelle of Apex Clean Energy met with Neosho County commissioners and discussed agreements for road use and other aspects of the Neosho Ridge wind project. “We’re excited that the community has been so welcoming,” Scheele said. The project is planned for 40,000 acres between Thayer and Erie. She said . . . Complete story »
Fickle winds blow on wind farm project
The Diamond Vista Wind Farm, stretching from Roxbury to Dickinson County, received heavy approval in November, but the opinion of some has soured since then. Diamond Vista was originally financed by Tradewind Energy, LLC, but was acquired by Enel Green Power in early 2018. This will be the sixth Kansas wind farm owned by Enel, the most in the state. Diamond Vista will have 95 3.15 megawatt (MW) turbines, producing a total of 300 MW. “We’re right in the middle . . . Complete story »
Wind farm agrees to pay
A payment in lieu of taxes agreement signed Tuesday by county commissioners and Diamond Vista wind farm will yield an annual donation of $900 per megawatt to the county. Pat Hughes, attorney for the county in contracts with the wind farm, told commissioners the estimated donation, considering an anticipated 300-megawatt output, is $270,000. That amount will be adjusted for money the wind farm pays in expenses. “The county will receive at least $100,000 per year,” Hughes said. PILOT agreements are . . . Complete story »
EMS requests new digs
County resident Dwane DeWeese requested that the county give $150,000 apiece to USD 382, USD 438 and Pratt Community College from money the county receives from the Ninnescah Energy Wind Farm and will receive from the Pratt Energy Wind Farm currently under construction in southwest Pratt County. DeWeese said he was making the request strictly on his own and had no communication with any of these institutions to ask for the money. The commissioners said they also have needs for the payments from the wind farm but would consider the request. DeWeese said he was having electronic issues with the wind farm generators. His cell phone sometimes doesn’t work and he can’t always make contact with his irrigation system through his cell phone app for remote access. The remote control program cost $6,000. When the wind and light are right, he said he was bothered by the constant flickering as the blades spin. Complete story »
Proposed Reno County wind farm renamed
The company developing a 220-megawatt wind farm in eastern Reno County is renaming the development Pretty Prairie Wind Farm, Reno County Commissioner Dan Deming advised Tuesday. Deming and Commissioner Bob Bush both had individual private meetings with officials of NextEra Energy last week to get an update on the proposed project, which the company initially dubbed Silver Lake Wind, after the name of a road running through the project. Pretty Prairie being near the center of the proposed 84- to . . . Complete story »
Editorial: Oppose Westar rate increases
Advocacy groups are right to oppose rate hikes sought by Westar Energy. The Citizens Utility Ratepayer Board, or CURB, a state agency that represents consumers in utility rate cases, and staff members from the Kansas Corporation Commission filed testimony last week asking the KCC to reject Westar’s request for a $17.2 million rate increase. Instead, the groups believe Westar should cut rates for Kansas customers by anywhere from $69 million to $125 million. “CURB’s evidence strongly supports the need to . . . Complete story »
Lawyer asks to represent both sides
A lawyer hired by the county commission to represent the county’s interests in a wind farm project sent an email to county commissioners asking if he could also represent potential investors in the Diamond Vista wind farm project. Pat Hughes, with Adams Jones Law Firm in Wichita, was hired to make sure the county doesn’t end up with out-of-pocket expenses years down the road when the turbines are shut off, taken down, and hauled away. His email was sent directly . . . Complete story »
Wind farms pollute prairie landscape of Maxwell refuge
Once, when on a trip to Alaska, our naturalist guide, after seeing all the wonders of Alaska, challenged us upon returning to our homes to look for the natural beauty in our own states. Maxwell Wildlife Refuge is just such a place. Civilization can scarcely be seen from parts of the refuge, making me think that this is the way the prairie looked when my great-grandfather immigrated to the Smoky Hills region in 1864. However, this refuge is threatened by . . . Complete story »
