Wind Power News: Minnesota
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.
Letter didn’t address reality
In an April 24 letter to the Herald, UND Professor Dexter Perkins thoroughly bashed the usage of coal for generating electricity. However, he erroneously claims that solar and wind generating sources are non-polluting. Spent wind turbine blades, after only 15 years of service, are being quietly landfilled by the thousands out on the lone prairie. We are never allowed to see the real costs of turbines, land leases, transmission line conductors, horribly expensive maintenance costs, turbine lives of only 25 . . . Complete story »
In Minnesota, old power plants could be the on-ramp for new wind and solar
Minnesota utilities will soon use existing fossil fuel plant infrastructure to transport clean energy to Midwest’s regional electricity grid. The workaround avoids the Midwest’s bottlenecked transmission grid managed by the Midwest Independent System Operator, Inc. (MISO), the regional transmission organization currently hamstrung by a lengthy project queue and a capacity shortage. The process of connecting new generation to the grid in MISO’s 15-state territory takes an average of three years, according to an Americans for a Clean Energy Grid study. . . . Complete story »
NextEra gives commissioners update on Dodge County Wind Farm, proposed solar farm
The Mower County Board of Commissioners received an update from NextEra Energy projects in the area, including their wind farm in Dodge and Steele Counties as well as a solar project within Mower County. During the board’s meeting Tuesday, Tom Von Bische, Early Stage Development for NextEra presenting for Mark Lennonx, project director of renewable development for the Dodge County Wind Project (DCWP), brought the commissioners up to speed on a total of three projects with the DCWP having the . . . Complete story »
University of Minnesota researchers drill down on ways to protect eagles in wind farms’ airspace
Resilient as bald eagles are, they are no match for wind turbine blades, whose spinning tips can reach speeds of up to 200 mph. Intent on keeping the two apart, a team of University of Minnesota researchers with expertise in wildlife behavior, neuroscience and mechanical engineering is continuing its work to find solutions through what bald and golden eagles hear and how it affects their behavior. The findings might help create acoustic deterrents at wind farms that could save the . . . Complete story »
Planned Minnesota wind farm to be moved farther from Jeffers Petroglyphs site
The Minnesota Historical Society and two Dakota bands have consented to a wind farm near the Jeffers Petroglyphs after the developer moved its turbines farther away from the ancient and sacred site. The Big Bend project near Comfrey would be one of the state’s largest wind farms, and it would be paired with a big solar array – a unique arrangement for renewable energy developments. The historical society and the the Upper and Lower Sioux Indian communities objected to the original . . . Complete story »
Copper theft from an Albert Lea farm wind turbine
ALBERT LEA, Minn. – Copper has become a hot commodity in southeast Minnesota in recent months. The metal was reported stolen earlier this week from a wind energy farm site near Albert Lea. Freeborn County Sheriff Sergeant Keith Bolinger tells KIMT they have taken several reports in the last month and a half of copper theft from various wind farms not only in Freeborn County but Mower County and Iowa. He says the sheriff’s office is taking specific actions as . . . Complete story »
Minnesota natural gas plant serves public interest better than renewable-resource alternatives, state Appeals Court rules
The Minnesota Court of Appeals has upheld state regulators’ approval of a power company’s proposed $700-million natural gas power plant as being necessary and more reliable than renewable energy sources. The Aug. 23 ruling supporting construction of the estimated 525-MW Nemadji Trail Energy Center comes after a challenge from project opponents who said it would accelerate climate change impacts. The three-judge panel said Minnesota Power and the state commerce agency “offered extensive evidence and analyses that … transition to intermittent . . . Complete story »
Rock County gets wind farm
A 109-megawatt Walleye Wind farm has been approved for Rock County by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission. The wind project will include up to 40 turbines that will provide electricity to Minnesota Municipal Power Agency. Comissioner Joseph Sullivan said “this wind farm will continue to grow our carbon free energy sources that Minnesotans are asking for”. The Walleye Wind project is expected to bring up to 185 jobs during construction and up to four full-time positions after construction is complete. Complete story »
Copper theft from wind turbines causes thousands of dollars in damage
The Mower County Sheriff’s Office received multiple reports involving copper theft and property damage to wind turbines located in rural Mower County. The turbines are owned by EDF Renewable Services and are located in the 2600 block of 680th Avenue in rural Mower County. The sheriff’s office said five turbines in that area had damage done to them and copper wire stolen. Eight other turbines have also been damaged and had copper removed prior to this theft. The estimate on . . . Complete story »
Next generation wind turbines in Minnesota could be 60 stories high
WATERTOWN, S.D. – The blades of the giant propellers sprouting from cornfields look like they’re almost dragging on the ground. The Dakota Range 1 & 2 wind farm under construction near here will sport the largest turbines of any of Xcel Energy’s many wind projects – and even bigger turbines are on tap for southwestern Minnesota. The yet-to-be built Plum Creek project will feature turbines 655 feet tall when their blades are fully extended, about 160 feet higher than Xcel’s new . . . Complete story »
