[SustainableTompkins] Enfield wind farm a county-wide concern

[Cris McConkey]

> However, the zoning we have seen developed in areas we have projects 
> typically has a clause stating that these property line setbacks only 
> apply to non-participating neighboring properties
This is precisely how I understand the proposed Enfield law handles 
set-backs.  The opinion piece writer was misinformed.

--Cris

Abigail Krich wrote:
> Thank you for sending this column out, Eric. While I find the column 
> heartening overall, I do have to take issue with the claim that there 
> is no reason for setbacks larger than 50'. Since I cannot attend any 
> of the town meetings, I thought I would share my comments with the 
> rest of the group.
>
> For those of you who I do not know, let me say first that I am 
> currently working as a renewable energy developer focused mainly on 
> wind projects. I am not making these statements out of any anti-wind 
> sentiment, but I do think it is important for wind to be developed 
> responsibly seeing as any given project will be around for few decades.
>
> I have gone through the process of seeing wind zoning ordinances 
> adopted in other towns in upstate New York where we had projects. The 
> setbacks that are decided upon are always a critical component that 
> can kill a project if that is what the board is after. I have seen 
> 1000' or more proposed! What typically gets settled upon in a town 
> that is not trying to prevent a project is something on the order of 
> 125% - 150% of the total structure height (tower plus blade). There 
> are often larger setbacks from the tower to occupied structures.
>
> Though modern wind turbines are very safe, of the roughly 75,000 MW 
> that have been installed around the world, there are a handful of 
> instances where a blade has broken or a tower collapsed. For reasons 
> of public safety,  setback from property lines, public roads, or power 
> lines of at least the height of the structure is considered to be a 
> good idea. Anything above that is an extra safety factor. Turbine 
> heights vary, but the structure height for machines being installed in 
> the northeast ranges from 388 feet to 492 feet high, making a 50 foot 
> setback not very effective. Though it is a shame that this 
> discriminates against smaller landowners' ability to host a turbine, 
> the distance the blade reaches out from the center of the tower is 
> going to be between 125 and 164 feet on current machines, again making 
> a 50 foot setback far too small.
>
> However, the zoning we have seen developed in areas we have projects 
> typically has a clause stating that these property line setbacks only 
> apply to non-participating neighboring properties. Thus, if two 
> adjacent properties each have a turbine on them, there does not need 
> to be a setback from their mutual property line. Additionally, there 
> is often a clause allowing for property owners to waive a setback 
> requirement. This would require a formal, recorded contract between 
> the developer and the neighboring property without turbines and would 
> include some form of compensation worked out between the parties. 
> Unless these two clauses are included, it can be very difficult to 
> build a project.
>
> While a fixed 600' setback seems a bit high to me depending upon what 
> machines are being proposed, it is hard to say how big the machines 
> will be five years from now. A setback as a percentage of the 
> structure height allows the rules to adjust as the machines change in 
> size. Additionally, if the zoning has not been written to distinguish 
> between large and small wind turbines, a 600' setback would surely 
> prevent most landowners from installing residential sized turbines in 
> their back yards.
>
> Best regards,
> Abby
>
>
>
> On 9/24/07, *Eric Banford* <brew_bird at yahoo.com 
> <mailto:brew_bird at yahoo.com>> wrote:
>
>     Excellent guest column in the Ithaca Journal today from Marguerite
>     Wells:
>
>     http://ithacajournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070924/OPINION02/709240315
>
>     Most Tompkins County residents have heard there is a proposed
>     10-turbine wind farm in the Town of Enfield. The great majority of
>     Tompkins County residents and Enfield residents are in favor of it
>     for many reasons, but do not turn up at Enfield town meetings to
>     speak their minds. There are a small handful of Enfield residents
>     who are opposed to the wind farm project, who turn up at every
>     town meeting to voice their opinions, and the rest of us, who are
>     not such squeaky wheels, are in danger of losing the opportunity
>     to have a wind farm because of our complacency.
>
>     The issue of concern at the moment is the wind ordinance the town
>     is discussing. This local ordinance would govern the placement of
>     the towers, and as such is an important piece of legislation to
>     have in place to make the wind farm go forward. However, there is
>     one-line item in the proposed law that is very problematic — it
>     requires a 600-foot setback from any property line or road. Such a
>     setback may be important for physical infrastructure such as
>     houses, but property lines are invisible, and criss-cross the
>     rural landscape with no relation to residences or roads. There is
>     no safety-related reason for this property setback, and it
>     effectively prohibits the wind farm from being developed, because
>     almost no landowner, even those with hundreds of acres, has a
>     parcel large enough and windy enough to allow a 600-foot setback
>     from all boundaries. The setback from roads is equally arbitrary;
>     there is no safety reason for this either. Many wind farms have
>     turbines near roads, with no problems. If the town intends to
>     prevent the wind development, then it should do so
>     straightforwardly and because it is unwanted. It should not
>     backhandedly prevent it through setback restrictions. If, instead,
>     the town would like to reasonably regulate the wind development,
>     as it should, while allowing it to go forward, it should remove
>     the property line and road setbacks altogether, or minimize them
>     to something like 50 feet so that landowners with parcels of all
>     sizes and shapes can equitably choose to allow a turbine on their
>     land if they want one. A turbine will pay a landowner several
>     thousand dollars a year in rent, and if only very large landowners
>     can have one, this regulation heavily favors them over those of
>     more moderate means.
>
>     The Town of Enfield should welcome the proposed wind farm. It
>     could send much-needed revenue into the town coffers, to improve
>     the school, roads, and services, while reducing town taxes to
>     residents.
>     It would put Enfield on the map, generating jobs, building a wind
>     energy education center, and being an example of community-owned
>     energy generation for the whole state. Opponents of the project
>     seem primarily opposed to change in principle.
>
>     They voice concern over declining property values, although
>     studies show only increased or steady values near wind farms. If
>     they're honestly concerned about birds, keep house cats inside and
>     stop driving so much, cats and cars kill many more birds than
>     turbines. Health and safety concerns, both for humans and
>     wildlife, are hype, not based on fact. Modern turbines are very
>     quiet, and do not cause any health problems or disturbance to
>     neighbors. Would densely populated Europe allow thousands of them
>     in their midst if they did?
>
>     Enfield town meetings happen on the second Wednesday of the month,
>     and Oct. 10 is the next one, at 7 p.m. in the community building.
>     Mark your calendars, and be the squeaky wheel that helps move this
>     project forward. Otherwise, Tompkins County's best hope for green
>     local energy will be squashed at the hands of the only five
>     citizens who are exercising democracy.
>
>     Letters of support can be sent to the Town of Enfield Board,
>     Enfield Town Hall 168 Enfield Main Road, Ithaca, N.Y. 14850
>
>     Marguerite Wells lives in Enfield.
>
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