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Heated debate surrounds Greenbrier County plan
Heated debate surrounds Greenbrier County plan
LEWISBURG — Editor’s note: Chicago-based Invenergy has proposed building a 124-turbine wind farm in northern Greenbrier County, a proposal that has generated a great deal of opposition. The project must receive approval from the state Public Service Commission and public hearings are scheduled on Invenergy’s application at 1:30 and 7 p.m. Tuesday at the State Fairgrounds in Fairlea. This first of a four-part series on wind farms takes a look at wind energy on the national level.
As the controversy grows over a proposed 124-turbine wind farm in northern Greenbrier County, critics and supporters of the $300 million project will air their views at state Public Service Commission hearings Tuesday at the State Fairgrounds in Fairlea.
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LEWISBURG — Editor’s note: Chicago-based Invenergy has proposed building a 124-turbine wind farm in northern Greenbrier County, a proposal that has generated a great deal of opposition. The project must receive approval from the state Public Service Commission and public hearings are scheduled on Invenergy’s application at 1:30 and 7 p.m. Tuesday at the State Fairgrounds in Fairlea. This first of a four-part series on wind farms takes a look at wind energy on the national level.
As the controversy grows over a proposed 124-turbine wind farm in northern Greenbrier County, critics and supporters of the $300 million project will air their views at state Public Service Commission hearings Tuesday at the State Fairgrounds in Fairlea.
The debate between NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) and wind developers has a long history.
Wind farms were introduced in the United States in California during the late 1970s in an effort to offset the cost of rising energy bills caused by the OPEC oil embargo. Many of the original wind farms were inefficient and primarily used as tax shelters.
Currently there are more than 15,000 wind turbines operating in the U.S. which produce less than 1 percent of the nation’s power, according to Kathy Belyeu of the Washington-based American Wind Energy Association. The AWEA was formed in 1974 and is the national trade association and a lobbying firm for wind energy developers.
California continues to lead the nation with electricity produced by wind power, but the 186-megawatt Beech Ridge Energy wind farm in Greenbrier County would be one of the largest operations east of the Mississippi River. West Virginia’s first wind farm — a 44-turbine project completed in 2002 in Tucker County — is currently the largest in the east.
Wind energy proponents got a boost during President Bush’s 2006 State of the Union address when he proclaimed wind power could ultimately produce 20 percent of the nation’s electricity, although no timetables were given. An appropriations bill currently being debated in Congress has $44 million pegged for wind energy research this year.
But Belyeu presents a more conservative viewpoint on the future of wind energy.
“Our projection shows that there are just over 9,000 megawatts currently installed, and we foresee at least 3,000 megawatts being added this year and in 2007,” she said. “We believe that wind power could be about 6 percent of the nation’s total electricity by 2020 if good government policies are put into place.”
Critics of wind energy claim federal tax credits given to developers are unfair and create enormous profits for companies. Mountain Communities for Responsible Energy, the leading voice against Beech Ridge, has been distributing information which says “wind is the most heavily subsidized source of industrialized power in the nation.”
Wind developers receive tax credits of 1.9 cents per kilowatt hour produced for the first 10 years. After that, the federal production tax credit is eliminated.
A nationally recognized critic of wind energy, Glenn Schleede of Virginia, published a study in 2005 titled, “Big money discovers the huge tax breaks and subsidies for wind energy while taxpayers and electric customers pick up the tab.”
In his report, Schleede said the tax breaks were eventually paid by the consumers of the electricity produced.
“These generous tax breaks and subsidies are at the expense of ordinary taxpayers and electric consumers and are hidden in their tax bills and monthly electric bills,” he wrote. “Government officials seem unaware or uncaring about either the large transfer of wealth to wind farm owners from ordinary citizens — or the fact that large amounts of capital are being spent on projects that produce only small amounts of unreliable, low-value electricity.”
Green pricing, or “green credits,” allows electricity customers to pay the additional costs for renewable energy through direct payments on monthly bills.
Schleede concluded the 14-page report with accusations that wind developers were misleading officials about the facts concerning wind farms.
“While the facts about the adverse environmental, ecological, energy and economic impacts are becoming clear, taxpayers and consumers face a difficult task in getting government officials to understand,” he wrote. “Many government officials apparently do not have the staff or other capabilities to check the validity of information provided to them by special interest groups.”
Beech Ridge maintains the project will produce $400,000 per year in taxes for Greenbrier County and more than $200,000 per year will be paid in state taxes while providing 200 temporary construction jobs and 20 permanent jobs.
If the tax credits are eliminated after 10 years, what prevents companies from abandoning wind farms that are no longer profitable?
This isn’t the norm, according to Belyeu. Estimates project the Beech Ridge wind farm will be in operation for 20 years.
“There aren’t any abandoned sites in the U.S, but there are some in California which aren’t working too well,” said Belyeu, whose organization has more than 800 members. “These projects are being built because companies believe in them.”
The back and forth finger-pointing comes from both sides in this nationally controversial issue. Last summer, while touting wind energy, AWEA executive director Randall Swisher also slammed those who opposed his efforts.
“Wind energy works because it is one of the cleanest, most environmentally friendly energy sources in the world, helps reduce our country’s dependence on foreign sources of energy, creates jobs and supports local economies,” he said. “But despite all of these benefits, there is a huge ongoing effort by wind energy opponents to mislead the public and hinder or block further wind energy development across the country.”
In Monday’s installment, The Register-Herald will take a closer look at wind farm activity in West Virginia and Greenbrier County.
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