1/29/12 How Wisconsin Got Its Wind Rules AND Falling over in 2009, Catching on fire in 2012: More trouble in Altona Wind Project

Sunday, January 29, 2012 at 09:30AM
The BPRC Research Nerd in Emerging Energies, Setbacks, Wisconsin public service commission, wind farm accidents, wind farm accidents, wind siting council, wind siting rules legislation and policy, wind turbine collapse, wind turbine fire

In terms of safety, how close should an industrial scale wind turbine be to a home?

Is it OK to waive the safety setback--- also known as the collapse zone-- in order to help a wind developer get his project up and running?

Watch as the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin's Wind Siting Council discuss not just waiving the safety setback but also changing the term to "courtesy setback".

According to some council members, when it comes to wind turbines, 'safety' is a relative term. Several council members make it clear they don't believe there are safety issues.

The majority of the members of the Wind Siting Council had direct or indirect financial interest in creating rules that allow turbines to be sited as close as possible to Wisconsin homes. The rules they created are set to go into effect in March of 2012 unless legislators step in.

 

Article originally appeared on Better Plan: The Trouble With Industrial Wind Farms in Wisconsin (http://betterplan.squarespace.com/).