Wind Power News: Ohio
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.
Conneaut turbine removal on track
CONNEAUT – An eyesore in Conneaut’s harbor is to be removed this year A draft of the city’s 2020 budget includes $163,000 for demolition of the wind turbine. The turbine was struck by lightning in Feb. 2017 and has not functioned since. One of the blades was destroyed by the strike. After it sat idle for some time, the city sued and eventually took control of the turbine. Last year, council authorized City Manager Jim Hockaday to put out a request . . . Complete story »
Wind turbine case set for trial in January
CONNEAUT – The years-long fight over the wind turbine at Conneaut Middle School may soon be settled. A pair of wind turbines were built in Conneaut in 2009 and 2010, one next to the city’s waste water plant, and another next to Conneaut Middle School. NexGen Energy Partners, the operator of the wind turbine, filed suit in 2011 against the companies that made and sold the turbine, Elecon Engineering and Reflecting Blue Technologies, respectively. A trial is set for Jan. 22, . . . Complete story »
Groups sue to prevent birds ‘getting diced’ by wind turbines
Two conservation groups are suing the federal government over concerns that a landmark Great Lakes wind project could hurt waterfowl and songbirds. The American Bird Conservancy and the Black Swamp Bird Observatory filed a lawsuit Wednesday contending that the Department of Energy and the Army Corps of Engineers failed to adequately consider risks, such as bird collisions or species displacement, posed by the planned Icebreaker Wind project in Lake Erie. Icebreaker Wind is slated to be the first project of . . . Complete story »
Bird conservation groups sue to try and block ‘Icebreaker’ wind farm project in Lake Erie
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Two bird conservation groups sued the Energy Department and Army Corps of Engineers in an attempt to stop the development of a Lake Erie wind turbine farm about eight miles off the coast of Cleveland named “Icebreaker.” The American Bird Conservancy of Washington, D.C. and the Black Swamp Bird Observatory in Ohio said in a lawsuit that the evaluations of the project by both agencies flies in the face of the National Environmental Policy Act and the Clean . . . Complete story »
Wind power supporters argue referendum could kill industry
COLUMBUS – Business and environmental groups told state lawmakers Tuesday that subjecting proposed wind farms to votes of the people would likely kill the industry in Ohio. “House Bill 401 is an alarming proposal that would take away landowners’ rights by subjecting wind energy development to a local vote that could result in the cancellation of a project after the permitting,” said Susan Munroe, economic development director for Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy and former president of the Van Wert . . . Complete story »
Conneaut’s harbor roads reopen after turbine scare
CONNEAUT – Roads in the harbor opened again on Friday after being closed for a day and a half due to potential danger from a damaged wind turbine. The turbine was struck by lightning in 2017, which destroyed one of the turbine’s blades. The lightning strike also partially melted the turbine’s gearbox, City Manager Jim Hockaday said. “When it blew hard enough on Wednesday, it broke loose whatever temporary kind of weld it had,” Hockaday said. Contractors hired by the city . . . Complete story »
Ohio bill would let townships block wind projects after they are approved
Ohio lawmakers are looking to erect more hurdles to wind energy in the state. House Bill 401 would let opponents compel individual township referendums on new or modified wind farm projects after they get approval from the Ohio Power Siting Board. “Nobody’s going to build anything under threat of a township referendum,” said Andrew Gohn, eastern regional director for the American Wind Energy Association. “That approach would be fatal to the industry because of the regulatory uncertainty that it would . . . Complete story »
Turbine project AEZ intent clarified
Seneca County commissioners approved a resolution Thursday clarifying their intent that the refiled Seneca Wind commercial wind turbine project should not be under the county’s former Alternative Energy Zone. In March, the commissioners voted to rescind the county’s AEZ, which had been put in place by a previous board in 2011. The AEZ ended June 30. However, when sPower refiled its Seneca Wind project it had withdrawn in August, there was confusion about whether the new project would be “grandfathered” . . . Complete story »
State lawmakers urged to allow wind farm referendum
COLUMBUS – In person and in writing, scores of residents from a swath of northwest Ohio – from Champaign to Huron counties – on Tuesday urged state lawmakers to give them the power of the ballot to keep out what they say are unwanted wind farms. Walt Poffenbaugh, of Norwich Township, Huron County, sees three proposed turbine projects across Seneca, Sandusky, Erie, and Huron counties as essentially one industrial-sized project with a cumulative effect on the region. “Republic Wind, Seneca Wind, and Emerson . . . Complete story »
Commissioners support LEEDCo project
JEFFERSON – The Ashtabula County Board of Commissioners have shown support for a wind energy project off the shores of Cleveland that aims to put six wind turbines in Lake Erie. The Lake Erie Energy Development Corporation, or LEEDCo, is a non-profit corporation formed in 2009 that plans to construct the first freshwater offshore wind project in North America, according to information provided by LEEDCo vice-president of operations David Karpinski. Commissioners recently passed a resolution in support of the project, known . . . Complete story »
