After watching and learning from the year-long process of approving new wind turbines in the Montezuma Hills, one county supervisor will ask Tuesday for a temporary ban on such projects.

Supervisor Barbara Kondylis will present the issue at Tuesday's Solano County supervisors meeting. The discussion comes after the Planning Commission recently approved 75 new wind turbines in an area east of Travis Air Force Base.

The latest wind turbine project was stalled after the Travis Wing Commander Col. Steven Arquiette wrote the county seeking a delay until a new radar system was activated at the base

in November. His objection was lifted nearly a year later when his superiors announced the new turbines would not cause more radar issues.

Although the 700 or so existing turbines cause some radar problems - such as smaller planes disappearing off the radar or appearing when they aren't really there - it was deemed by Air Force specialists that the new turbines wouldn't cause more problems because the new turbines would be within the current bunch.

Now, Kondylis wants to see the approval of similar projects stopped until the kinks of the new radar system are worked out.

"I really think it's time for us to stop and give Travis a chance to get their radar in place," she said. "Hopefully they will be able to resolve the problem.
It's not a good idea to have airplanes flying around that no one can see."

One remaining question Kondylis has involves the Federal Aviation Administration's "letter of no hazard" filed in November 2006 regarding the turbines. She said it was only a month or so later that Travis representatives began complaining of radar issues. She said she wonders how the two sides could have different opinions.

"We never heard from the FAA again," Kondylis said. "The FAA never did anything. It's a safety issue and a security issue for Travis."

The Board of Supervisors meets at 9 a.m. in the Supervisors Chamber in Fairfield.