Panel set to vote on suspension of wind siting rules
Wisconsin Ag Connection|March 1, 2011
On the very day it was supposed to take effect, a legislative committee will be voting Tuesday on a measure that would suspend a rule package that creates uniform statewide standards for the development of wind farms in Wisconsin.
On the very day it was supposed to take effect, a legislative committee will be voting Tuesday on a measure that would suspend a rule package that creates uniform statewide standards for the development of wind farms in Wisconsin.
On the very day it was supposed to take effect, a legislative committee will be voting Tuesday on a measure that would suspend a rule package that creates uniform statewide standards for the development of wind farms in Wisconsin. The Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules will take up the issue at its meeting at the State Capitol in Madison. March 1 was supposed to be the day that the new siting rules became law.
Governor Scott Walker has been opposed to the standards and has proposed legislation earlier this year to require a grater setback distance between a turbine and neighboring property line; though that effort never received a vote during the special session of the Legislature. He feels that wind turbines can …
... more [truncated due to possible copyright]On the very day it was supposed to take effect, a legislative committee will be voting Tuesday on a measure that would suspend a rule package that creates uniform statewide standards for the development of wind farms in Wisconsin. The Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules will take up the issue at its meeting at the State Capitol in Madison. March 1 was supposed to be the day that the new siting rules became law.
Governor Scott Walker has been opposed to the standards and has proposed legislation earlier this year to require a grater setback distance between a turbine and neighboring property line; though that effort never received a vote during the special session of the Legislature. He feels that wind turbines can diminish property values, cause noise pollution, and create distracting vibrations.
But Keith Reopelle, the policy director of Clean Wisconsin, says suspending the wind siting rule will kill jobs and move Wisconsin in the wrong direction on clean energy policy.
Last year, the Public Service Commission drafted the wind standards based on recommendations from a diverse stakeholder advisory group.
Currently, there are 12 wind farm projects in the works around Wisconsin, with billions of dollars already allocated toward them.