Wind farm developers on schedule

By Dan MacArthur
North Forty News

The permitting process for the Maxwell Ranch wind farm is proceeding as planned following a series of public open houses attracting several hundred residents from across the region.

Bruce Morley of Wind Holding, LLC, said the information gathered in the open houses will be incorporated into the permit application, which he said should be submitted to Larimer County by March.

Colorado State University, the Colorado State University Research Foundation and Wind Holding propose to install up to 100 wind turbines on 11,000 acres of ranchland extending almost to the Wyoming border.

CSURF, a private, not-for-profit foundation created to assist the university, owns the 9,000-acre Maxwell Ranch, where the bulk of the turbines would be located. The wind farm would be developed by Wind Holding, which describes itself as "a consortium of the world's most experienced wind-power developers and financial institutions from Europe and the U.S."

CSU two years ago announced plans for the Green Power Project to provide research opportunities and a sustainable energy source of clean energy capable of meeting all the university's electricity needs. Revenues from sales of any additional capacity would support the university. CSU uses about 16 megawatts at peak demand. The wind farm would generate up to 200 megawatts.

The meeting at the Livermore Community Hall was the largest, drawing 150 of the estimated 330 of those attending the three open houses, which included Wellington and Ault. Participants clustered around an array of displays illustrating continuing refinements to the proposal.

The modifications came about as a consequence of public comments and results of ongoing studies analyzing the environmental impacts of the project, according to Jeremy Call, director of operations for EDAW, the lead consultant on the project.

Principal among those changes was relocating all proposed turbine sites to the east of Red Mountain Road.

"Because of what we heard, we moved them," he said.

Mike Powers, another principal in Wind Holding, said several of the most visible turbines located in front of houses off of U.S. Highway 287 also were eliminated.

Current plans show 94 turbines. Each structure towers 405 feet from the ground to the tip of the blade.

The placards for the first time provided a graphic depiction of the evolving options for locating the associated 30- to 40-mile-long 230-kilovolt transmission line required to deliver electricity to an Ault substation. From there, electricity could be distributed by Platte River Power Authority, Xcel Energy or the Western Area Power Authority.

The transmission line would be located within a one-mile-wide corridor paralleling existing transmission lines. Wooden H-frame or single steel transmission towers would be employed ranging from 65 to 110 feet high. Powers said Wind Holding already has permission to use the ranchlands for the transmission line. He said it would purchase easements for any additional property required but could not condemn property using eminent domain.

The open house evoked a range of reactions.

Red Mountain Road resident Karen Smith was among the fiercest of critics. "You've got a long way to go and a big fight on your hands," she promised Bill Farland, CSU senior vice president for research and engagement.

Smith said she and her neighbors have retained an attorney and plan to fight the proposal. Despite a ruling from the state attorney general to the contrary, she insisted that the Green Power Project violates the intent of the late Fred Maxwell, who bequeathed the ranch to the university.

"It's a cattle ranch for cattle. They want to turn it into a for-profit operation," she insisted.

In addition to the visual pollution, Smith said she also objects that the proposal was "underhandedly handled" without notifying the public. "Not fair. Not fair," she said.

Stephanie Russell was somewhat more ambivalent. A Louisville resident, she and her family own a cabin on Red Mountain Road.

While a believer in green energy, Russell said she was distressed about the wind farm's footprint.

"This beautiful land, I hate to see what's going to happen to it," she said.

Secondarily, Russell said, she also was concerned about the effect on property values.

Livermore resident Tom Wingfield staked out the opposing pole, praising proponents for the extensive mitigation, including relocation of the turbines.

"I personally don't mind the view of wind farms," he said. "I find them majestic," as well as far more attractive than the plumes emitted from coal-fueled power plant stacks.

"I'm definitely in favor of converting to wind energy," Wingfield said. "I can find nothing better than wind, frankly, for electrical needs.