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The Board approved the resolution to make the change at the April Board meeting.
None of the county application requirements have changed but the process for developing a wind energy plan has been modified from a one-step to a two-step process, Moore said.
The biggest cuts will come in Fort Madison, where 407 workers at a wind turbine blade factory will be out of work. About 220 workers there will be retained.
The company blamed difficult market conditions due to lack of congressional action on a wind energy tax credit as well as increased use of natural gas-fired power plants and an overall sluggish economy.
Siemens laying off half its work force in Hutchinson
September 18, 2012 by Emily Behlmann in Wichita Business Journal
September 18, 2012 by Emily Behlmann in Wichita Business Journal
Siemens, a German conglomerate, announced Tuesday it is laying off 146 employees at its wind turbine nacelle plant in Hutchinson, leaving just 152 employees there.
All told, 615 employees in Siemens' wind power business will lose their jobs. Siemens said the change would primarily affect employees in Iowa, Kansas and Florida.
Commissioners unanimously approved the recommendation of the Ellis County Planning and Zoning Commission for a conditional-use permit for Fort Hays State University to construct two wind turbines, contingent upon meeting several requirements.
The project for two 2.1 megawatt Suzlon turbines.
Power of wind energy not yet realized in Pratt County
June 30, 2012 by Carol Bronson in Pratt Tribune
June 30, 2012 by Carol Bronson in Pratt Tribune
Wind turbines interfere with agriculture, especially with aerial application of herbicides, pesticides and fungicides, he said. Another detractor is this area's location on a major fall migratory route for whooping cranes, an endangered species.
At 110 feet, the windmills on a hill south of the campus have been deemed too tall by the Federal Aviation Administration. The chance of losing $1 million in federal grants has prompted the college to take action that could cost up to $150,000.
The FAA informed the college roughly a year ago that the windmills are in Blosser Municipal Airport's airspace.
Despite an incentive agreement that references it, Mars Chocolate North America won't construct a wind turbine for its Topeka site.
That is because having a wind turbine on the Kanza Fire Commerce Park would interfere with the airspace of nearby Forbes Field.
"The Sandsage Prairie is an ecosystem that is very fragile, and impacting it in a large way could have an impact on the species that depend on that ecosystem," Barton said, adding that two species in particular are the longnose snake and the lesser prairie-chicken.
Commercial wind energy projects will require a "special use" permit, which does not authorize construction of the project until the applicant (developer) has obtained a power purchase agreement for the electricity to be generated.
Commission attorney responds to Indeck's legal position
November 23, 2011 by J.W. Keene in The Pratt Tribune
November 23, 2011 by J.W. Keene in The Pratt Tribune
"Unless Indeck intends to commence construction before the moratorium expires and the county rejects your request for a suspension of the moratorium, the moratorium will have no effect on Indeck," said Hughes. "Thus, threats of litigation over any loss caused by the moratorium are premature and they are ill-founded."
Indek lawyers threaten legal action against county
November 11, 2011 by J.W. Keene in The Pratt Tribune
November 11, 2011 by J.W. Keene in The Pratt Tribune
The letter urged commissioners to withdraw the moratorium on wind farm generators in the county or, at a minimum, to suspend its effect on properties included in the Wildcat Wind Farm Project.
Marked by neighbor disputes, county zoning regulations and economic recession, Ellis County remains a county without active wind energy development. Production tax credits are set to expire in 2012, and Kansas' largest wind farm now is taking shape in southern Kansas.
"This court cannot know how much electricity would be generated from Wabaunsee County wind, and eventually kept out of the interstate power grid, if there were no board prohibition against (commercial wind farms)," Nuss wrote. "This type of information would be relevant (to further analysis)."
Carrick said he is concerned about his cattle because workers drive through his pastures, causing ruts in the field. He said now he is finding large holes that have not been filled.
"We don't want to see the land destroyed," said Michael Carrick, landowner.
The commissioners' motion claims the development of land for utility scale wind energy production, prior to the adoption of zoning regulations, will threaten the utility and integrity of subsequently adopted zoning regulations, and creates risk of injury to public welfare.
Cimarron II wind farm planned; turbine choice is up in air
July 6, 2011 by John Green in The Hutchinson News
July 6, 2011 by John Green in The Hutchinson News
"We have a longstanding contract with the Tennessee Valley Authority, since 2009. Because we've contracted with a federal authority, however, from an administrative standpoint it takes longer. The project has to go through a more rigorous and thorough environmental review."
It is my opinion that the proposed projects will have an adverse impact upon the overall ecosystem of the Tallgrass Prairie, a true national treasure. The last remnants of the Tallgrass Prairie run from Osage County northward, into northern Kansas and I believe that the Osage Nation must join others in its protection, restoration, and properly make use of the limited opportunities.
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Expansion of protected area kills Cowley County wind project
May 15, 2011 by Rick Plumlee in The Wichita Eagle
May 15, 2011 by Rick Plumlee in The Wichita Eagle
Whether turbines should be in the Flint Hills - and it appears they mostly will not be - is part of the dialogue over how best to leverage the sprawling, environmentally sensitive tallgrass prairie that Brownback has called "an ecological jewel."
A lawsuit filed by more than two dozen Ellis County landowners and a prospective wind developer against the Ellis County Commission was dismissed Wednesday.
Dismissal comes on the heels of zoning regulation changes passed 2-1 at Monday's commission meeting.