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Members of the state Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council, or EFSEC, will take with them two main messages heard Monday at an evening hearing from citizens, property owners and group representatives.
One was to approve the project quickly and let the community and state reap the renewable power, tax revenue, business and job benefits; the other was a warning that the project is in the wrong, rural location and poses fire and other liabilities that haven't been fully addressed.
Kittitas resident Linda Huber, a former Kittitas City Council member and county commissioner, urged approval of the $330 million, 95-turbine project, saying it was the county's chance to make this area the renewable energy center of the Pacific Northwest. "Let's get on with the permitting."
She hopes work at the site will start this fall with full construction next year.
Huber said fire concerns are, indeed, being addressed and tax revenue from the turbines will go to a local fire district, school district and other local governments. She also said construction jobs will be created as well as permanent jobs operating the wind farm.
Chris Burtchett, a Reecer Creek Road resident, said her contact with rural residents around the project planned for eight miles northwest of Ellensburg indicates several are "disheartened and discouraged" over the project and worried about the loss of scenic views and property values and safety concerns.
"Please don't rubber stamp this project," Burtchett told EFSEC members. "Please consider alternative sites."
By one count, 10 spoke in favor of approving the project, six clearly spoke against siting the project in the planned location, and three made comments or asked questions that didn't indicate their position. The project is proposed by Desert Claim Power LLC, part of the French-owned enXco Inc.
EFSEC Manager Allen Fiksdal, after Monday night's hearing, said council members will begin deliberations soon on a recommendation that will go to Gov. Chris Gregoire who makes the final decision.
Before that recommendation, a supplemental environmental study must be finalized, and Desert Claim will submit its final reply to concerns raised at the Monday session. Intervenors, who are party to EFSEC's formal adjudication process, then have time to respond to Desert Claim's reply.
Fiksdal said a recommendation to the governor is expected by the end of this year or this fall. This is the third wind farm that EFSEC has reviewed in Kittitas County.
Craig Nevil of Cle Elum and Catherine Clerf of the Kittitas Valley said approval of the project should be expedited as construction costs are rising and the availability of capital for the work is tightening.
Edward Lulofs, an adjunct Central Washington University professor of physics and engineering, also a Reecer Creek Road resident, warned that the possibility of wildfires from the wind farm threaten his property, and local fire agencies are not equipped to handle a wind turbine fire.
He said he questions why corporate profits and "short-term goals" in the Desert Claim project are taking priority over wildlife and rural residents' concerns.
After the hearing David Steeb, Desert Claim's project director, said the project will enter into an agreement with a local fire district for coverage and protection of the 5,200-acre project site north of Smithson Road.
Steeb also said Desert Claim is working with the state Department of Fish and Wildlife on a plan for protection of wildlife and habitat in the project area during construction and operation of the wind farm.
"What I heard last night, and what we've been experiencing, is overwhelming community support for this project," Steeb said. "The community sees the benefits and want them as soon as possible."
A second public hearing for anyone to speak is also planned for the Puget Sound area, set for 7 p.m. July 21 in Rooms C-110-111 at South Seattle Community College, 6737 Corson Ave. S., Seattle.
To find all Desert Claim wind farm documents online, including the latest environmental study, go to www.efsec.wa.gov.
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