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Wind Power News: Kansas
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch in its noncommercial educational mission to provide information about industrial wind energy development to readers seeking such information. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch. They are the products of and owned by the credited organizations or individuals and are shared here according to “fair use” and “fair dealing” provisions of copyright law. The original articles, links to which are provided, may have additional links and photos and other media that were not included here.
Wind farm foe to detail challenge
County commissioners will receive a protest Jan. 12 about how a conditional use permit for the county’s southern wind farm was approved in 2019. Former commissioner and wind farm opponent Dianne Novak has been placed on the agenda for the meeting. Her contention is that calculations regarding how many protests were needed to block conditional use permit were incorrect. The commission approved the application June 10, 2019. Protests had to be filed within two weeks. According to a letter to . . . Complete story »
New regs virtually ban commercial wind farms in Barton County
The Barton County Commission came short of approving an outright ban on commercial wind turbines in Barton County, but resolutions approved Tuesday make them virtually impossible. Meanwhile, large and small non-commercial wind projects will still be allowed. Environmental Manager Judy Goreham presented three resolutions regarding Wind Energy Conservation Systems (WECS) and the Barton County Zoning regulations and maps. These were recommended by the planning commission. All three were eventually approved 5-0 as presented, but not without a few failed attempts . . . Complete story »
Wind turbine catches on fire in Lincoln County
On Thanksgiving morning at around 6:00 am, a wind turbine in Lincoln County reportedly caught on fire. According to the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, a wind turbine near the Ellsworth exit on I-70 burst into flames. The fire was extinguished by the Westfall Fire Department. No injuries were reported and the cause of fire is unknown. Complete story »
Department of Energy terminates taxpayer-funded financial assistance for Grain Belt Express
The Department of Energy (DOE) today announced the Loan Programs Office (LPO) has terminated its conditional commitment for the Grain Belt Express Phase 1 project, a high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission line intended to connect wind and solar capacity across Kansas and Missouri. The conditional commitment, which would have provided a taxpayer-funded loan guarantee of up to $4.9 billion dollars, was issued by the Biden administration in November 2024 – one of many conditional commitments that were rushed out the . . . Complete story »
Planning commission votes in favor of 2-year moratorium on proposed wind farm in Dickinson County
In a 6-1 vote, the Dickinson County Planning Commission formally favored halting a proposed wind farm project in the county. The commission specifically voted in favor of a two-year moratorium on plans for the Hope Ridge Wind Farm. The 334-megawatt wind farm would include multiple townships and about 75 turbines. The planning commission’s vote is essentially a recommendation that will go before the Dickinson County Commission for a final decision. Jon Beck, with Enel North America, the company proposing Hope . . . Complete story »
Proposed wind farm project prompts massive turnout at Dickinson County meeting, most opposed
A proposed wind farm project prompted a massive turnout Thursday night at a planning commission meeting in Dickinson County. The majority of the crowd strongly opposes what’s planned. Commissioners met to consider allowing a 334-megawatt wind farm in multiple townships. The hours-long Dickinson County Planning Commission meeting convened in Herington Thursday night after covering one agenda item: consideration of a wind farm. The commission heard from Hope Ridge Wind Project representatives about the plans to erect a wind farm in . . . Complete story »
1 more way the admin’s ‘green’ electricity plan will cost consumers big: 91,000 miles of new transmission lines
For over a decade, there has been a project proposal to build about 800 miles of transmission lines from Kansas through Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana to deliver wind-generated electricity to consumers. However, a recent Aug. 8 ruling by an Illinois court halts the planned construction of lines in that state. This project, known as the Grain Belt Express, will need to be replicated about 110 more times across the U.S.—creating up to 91,000 miles of new transmission lines in total—if . . . Complete story »
Harvey County bans large-scale wind farms and solar farms
Companies will not be allowed to build wind and solar farms in Harvey County. The Harvey County Commission voted unanimously Tuesday to ban commercial wind and utility-scale solar renewable energy projects in the county. The new regulation still allows personal wind and solar energy installations, such as those used at homes, and limited-scale solar construction. The Harvey County Planning and Zoning Advisory Board recommended a code change. With the county commission’s vote, it becomes official as soon as the legal . . . Complete story »
Marshall Wind Farm has ‘operational issue’
Turbines have not turned on the Marshall Wind Farm south and east of Beattie for the past month. A spokesman for the company said Friday that an “operational issue” led to the turbines being turned off temporarily. The 36-turbine wind project is owned by BHE Renewables of Omaha, Neb. Dan Winters, company spokesman, said BHE is “currently looking into a potential operational issue at the Marshall Wind Farm.” Complete story »
Community meetings & public hearing on second draft of revised wind farm rules coming later this month
The Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on the second draft of its revised regulations for wind energy projects later this month, and a number of community meetings will take place before then to help educate the public. The process of revising the rules to better align with the new standards for solar projects approved by Douglas County leaders in May 2022 has been underway since the beginning of last year, though the county has had regulations . . . Complete story »
