Allen and Anderson counties commissioners have enacted documents setting out guidelines that must be observed for energy companies to erect wind-farm turbines.
Anderson’s are stricter. If all or part of a wind farm is to be on its landscape, it probably would occur in the south part of county, not far from where EDP Renewables has proposed to place 500-foot-tall turbines in Allen. That assumption comes from studying a map of the county to the north.
Clearance between a tower and residential and commercial property is a key component in each county.
In Anderson: Setback of at least 2,000 feet is required between a turbine and any residence or commercial structure on unleased land. It also requires a 1,500-foot setback on leased property. A further consideration is two-mile clearance for airports, including private grass runways on private rural property.
In Allen: Setback from public roads is 1.1 times height of apparatus, or 550 feet with a 500-foot tower. As for structures, setback is twice the height or 1,000 feet on leased land; 1,400 feet on unleased land.
EDP has obligations for about 14,000 acres in northeast Allen County, and near the county line with Anderson. NextEra has options in southeast Allen, and Bourbon County to the east.
A third energy company, Calpine, created a divide when it announced plans for a wind farm in Anderson. That led to several contentious meetings, and the more restrictive regulations.
Coffey County permitted turbines near Waverly, and within easy view of many Anderson County residents.
FROM A pragmatic view, all this means Anderson County may be sitting on the outside, watching its neighbors cash in on economic development, reaping benefits from several months of construction with scores of workers, ongoing high-paying jobs for a dozen or more technicians (on call 24/7, which will mean an uptick in population) and payments in lieu of taxes (PILOT) until a 10-year state-imposed tax abatement concludes.
Common fears center on noise, vibration, glare from impellers twirling in the sunlight and “just plain ugly” towers disrupting an otherwise pristine countryside. The severity of the concerns depends on each person’s point of view.
When proposals — EDP’s is more advanced — reach public action stage, planning commissioners will be asked to consider a variance to agricultural zoning to permit turbines and transmission lines, which will be extended underground at least on a landowner’s property. County commissioners will rule on the forthcoming recommendation.
Each individual involved as a landowner also will carefully negotiate with a company and strike a deal that is acceptable — financially and for how it will affect his or her lifestyle.
County commissioners should negotiate a payment contract that is equitable for what is being constructed until property taxes join the mix. Coffey County’s contract, with EDP, pumps about $500,000 a year into its treasury through a PILOT.
While any erection of towers is well into the future, it is none too early for Allen County commissioners to consider how they will deal with whatever comes their way.
