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Wind Power News: Wyoming
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch in its noncommercial educational effort 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.
Biologist: Wind development outpaces slow work of tracking eagles
SHIRLEY BASIN—Mike Lockhart has been patrolling this vast sagebrush sea for hours, driving county roads and stopping at vantage points to glass for raptors as they ride aloft early afternoon thermals. The abundance of white-tailed prairie dogs and their pups provides easy pickin’s for the golden eagles, turkey vultures, ferruginous hawks and other raptors that flourish here along with pronghorn, black-footed ferrets, greater sage grouse and swift fox. That’s good for the raptors, Lockhart said, but not so good for . . . Complete story »
Plugging in: WAPA approves power connection for wind farm
After three years of evaluation, the Western Area Power Administration has approved a request to connect the Rail Tie Wind Project with its transmission system. The decision marks one of the many permissions required for ConnectGen to move forward with building the wind farm, which will be located near Tie Siding off Highway 287. Slated to begin operations in 2023, the $500 million project will generate 504 megawatts of energy, according to the ConnectGen website. It’s estimated to create $130 . . . Complete story »
Wind energy faces bird-kill and other habitat challenges
Collisions with rotating wind turbine blades kill a variety of birds in Wyoming – from passerines to raptors. Exactly how many birds – and whether mortality rates might pose a threat to local and migrating bird populations – remains unknown, according to state and federal wildlife officials. The overlap of strong, steady winds and prime wildlife habitat – such as for the greater sage grouse – also poses threats, unless wind energy facilities are located to avoid impacts to critical wintering, breeding and nesting areas. . . . Complete story »
Greenlit powerlines portend Wyoming wind energy boom
Having recently cleared key legal and permitting hurdles, developers are slated to begin construction of two major high-voltage transmission lines connecting Wyoming to several states in the West. When completed, the Gateway South and TransWest Express transmission lines will open the door to a major expansion of wind energy development in the Cowboy State, industry officials say. “The TransWest Express project opens the ability for Wyoming wholesale electricity supplies to reach new markets, like southern California, Arizona and Nevada, that . . . Complete story »
Biologist, green energy proponent blasts wind energy producers for golden eagle deaths
Despite his love of green energy, a Wyoming biologist tracking golden eagle deaths is calling for Carbon and Albany Counties to put the brakes on wind energy expansion. “In my opinion, existing wind projects are already causing a chronic population decline of resident eagles,” Mike Lockhart, a biologist with 33 years of experience, told Cowboy State Daily last week. Lockhart’s comments referenced his years-long eagle tracking project, which attributed multiple golden eagle deaths to wind turbine strikes. Lockhart said that . . . Complete story »
Interior approves big power line for renewables in U.S. West
The Interior Department yesterday announced the final approval to construct a 416-mile transmission line intended to move renewable energy across three Western states. The Energy Gateway South transmission line from PacifiCorp will support the utility’s renewable expansion and will carry wind energy from Wyoming to solar-rich areas of Utah, as well as power from traditional plants. The line is set to originate near Medicine Bow in southeastern Wyoming, travel through northwest Colorado and end outside of Mona, Utah. The project . . . Complete story »
Crowding the skies
As wind energy projects continue to blow into northern Carbon County, various entities have sought to determine the impacts it has or will have on wildlife. In 2021, the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) had considered a moratorium on any energy projects in the Shirley Basin area. The discussion of this moratorium came following a presentation from the Wyoming Game and Fish Department regarding a study of wind energy project impacts on the Medicine Bow Pronghorn Herd Unit. That . . . Complete story »
Laramie biologist’s presentation shows deadly impact of wind power on eagles
During a one-hour presentation to Carbon County Commissioners earlier this month, a 33-year veteran of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service provided documented evidence of the deadly impacts of wind turbines on the golden eagle population in the Shirley Basin. Mike Lockhart of Laramie is a research biologist who has conducted field studies on golden eagles and other raptors since 1972. Lockhart told county commissioners that he believes global warming is a real threat that needs to be addressed. However, . . . Complete story »
Turbine turbulence: Residents continue legal battle against Rail Tie Wind Project
In another step in a yearslong battle over the proposed Rail Tie Wind Project, some area residents are making their case the Wyoming Supreme Court. The Albany County District Court upheld an Albany County Commission on March 30 decision to grant a permit to ConnectGen, the company leading the project. Known as a Wind Energy Conservation System (WECS) permit, the decision gives ConnectGen the go-ahead to move forward with its wind farm project, which is in planning and permitting stages . . . Complete story »
Wind energy company pleads guilty to killing eagles
The wind energy company ESI Energy Inc. (ESI) must pay more than $8 million in fines and restitution and serve a five-year probation after pleading guilty to violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, according to a statement released by the United States Department of Justice. In the U.S., ESI is a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Inc., one of the largest providers of renewable energy, per Reuters’ Barbara Goldberg. The company deliberately elected not to apply for proper permits for “any . . . Complete story »
