Immediate release
January 16, 2008
More information
Ed Blume
RENEW Wisconsin
608.819.0748
eblume@renewwisconsin.org
Katie Nekola
Clean Wisconsin
knekola@cleanwisconsin.org
608.251.7020, ext. 14
Calumet County morass blocks wind projects again
Clean energy advocates expressed frustration over the Calumet County board’s adoption of a 70-day moratorium on issuing permits for wind turbines.
The action leaves wind developers wondering whether the County, which has among the best wind resources in the state, is effectively off-limits to commercial-scale projects.
State law requires utilities to get 10 percent of the electricity they sell from renewable sources by 2015, but local restrictions have paralyzed wind developers from moving ahead with project to help meet the goal.
"As far as the wind industry is concerned, countywide limits and delays speak louder than the state’s renewable energy goals,” said Katie Nekola, energy program director for Clean Wisconsin.
“What's the point of state government promoting renewable energy development in Wisconsin when it’s practically impossible to obtain permits for wind turbines?" asked Michael Vickerman, executive director of RENEW Wisconsin, a statewide nonprofit group that promotes renewable energy.
"This marks the third moratorium on wind development adopted by Calumet County 2005. It seems that every time the Board considers changes to its ordinance regulating wind turbines, it moves farther and farther away from resolving the controversy and allowing projects to move ahead. What a morass Calumet County has become!" Vickerman said.
Between the moratorium in Calumet County and a restrictive ordinance in Manitowoc County, four wind projects totaling 200 megawatts (enough to power 60,000 Wisconsin homes) have ground to a halt, Vickerman added.
RENEW and Clean Wisconsin back a proposal being considered by the Governor’s Global Warming Task Force that would allow wind developers to seek approval from the Public Service Commission, the state agency that regulates utilities and large wind projects (over 100 megawatts), instead of local authorities.
“Wisconsin cannot afford to lose clean energy opportunities at a time when our Governor and others in the region have made a commitment to stopping global warming,” said Nekola.
- - - - -
Clean Wisconsin, an environmental advocacy organization, protects Wisconsin's clean water and air and advocates for clean energy by being an effective voice in the state legislature and by holding elected officials and corporations accountable. Founded in 1970 as Wisconsin's Environmental Decade, Clean Wisconsin exposes corporate polluters, makes sure existing environmental laws are enforced, and educates citizens and businesses. Phone: 608-251-7020, Fax: 608-251-1655, Email: info@cleanwisconsin.org, Website: www.cleanwisconsin.org.
RENEW Wisconsin is an independent, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that acts as a catalyst to advance a sustainable energy future through public policy and private sector initiatives. More information on RENEW’s Web site at www.renewwisconsin.org.
| Preview | Attachment | Size |
|---|---|---|
| Calumet County moratorium - Press release.doc | 270 KB |
“We wanted to do something genuine, not phony,” said Bob Chesebro, president of family-owned Wigwam Mills, Sheboygan, about his company’s decision to install a solar energy system.
Initially, Chesebro wasn’t sure which kind of solar energy system to go with. But the more he delved into the question, the more he came to believe that solar hot water would provide the best fit for the
103-year-old company.
Placed in service in February 2008, Wigwam’s 27 solar collectors supply 47 percent of the hot water used by the company to shrink, bleach, antimicrobial treat, wash and soften 40,000 pairs of socks each day. . . .
| Preview | Attachment | Size |
|---|---|---|
| Sock maker steps up to solar hot water | 181.62 KB |
May 29, 2008
To the Town of Union Plan Commission:
My name is Michael Vickerman, and I am here tonight representing RENEW Wisconsin’s 320 members who support EcoEnergy’s Community Wind initiative. This three-turbine project would supply Evansville Water & Light with a zero-emissions, locally available and renewable source of electricity for a minimum of 20 years. We urge the Town of Union to adopt a reasonable ordinance that would allow the construction of this community-scale project to proceed.
RENEW acknowledges that every energy source presents trade-offs, and wind-generated electricity is no exception. However, if one looks at this project through a broad lens that takes into account gaseous emissions, energy and price security, and economic impacts to local landowners and governments, there’s no question that the benefits of this project far outweigh the detriments. EcoEnergy’s proposal advances a number of public policy objectives in a single stroke. These objectives include:
1) Securing adequate supplies of energy from a sustainable sources;
2) Buffering ratepayers from future electricity surcharges caused by the rising cost of diesel fuel, coal, and natural gas;
3) Reducing air and water emissions from generation sources;
4) Preserving working farms and pasture land;
5) Reducing the flow of capital out of Wisconsin for energy purchases; and
6) Increasing the flow revenues into Wisconsin’s energy-producing communities.
If erected, EcoEnergy’s Community Wind project would diversify Wisconsin Public Power Inc.’s resource mix, which is at present heavily weighted toward the combustion of fossil fuels imported from other states and nations. This overreliance on fossil fuels is the primary reason why energy prices are rising this year. Bear in mind that when the cost of diesel fuel increases by 60% over 12 months, the cost of coal delivered to Wisconsin power plants will go up. And when the price of natural gas shoots up by more 50% since January 1, utilities become motivated to look for energy sources whose price they can lock into. Windpower is one of those few energy sources that can help utilities there.
There is one additional benefit from a Community Wind project that might not be apparent today: electricity for vehicular transport. WPPI, which now has four plug-in hybrid vehicles, is a leading utility advocate for electrified transportation. It now costs the average car owner about $8.00 to buy enough gasoline to drive 50 miles. The amount of electricity it takes to drive 50 miles, some 12 to 13 kilowatt-hours, costs an electric vehicle owner about $1.50. Given the current disparity of costs between electricity and gasoline, it seems to me that the transition to plug-in vehicles is a matter of when, not if. I believe that plug-in vehicles, whether hybrids or all-electrics, will become a common sight on city streets in five years. Why? Because the alternative--to leave things the way they--will become too expensive for the average person. And when these vehicles hit the mass market, their owners will want to fill their batteries with clean, renewable, locally produced energy. Imagine the feeling of security, environmental responsibility and civic pride that Evansville citizens would experience knowing that the electricity that powers their motor vehicles is produced from a wind project that’s visible from town. The EcoEnergy Community Wind project can make that future possible for Evansville and the surrounding area, if you let it.
Michael Vickerman
509 Elmside Blvd.
Madison, WI 53704
Immediate release
December 18, 2007
More information
RENEW Wisconsin
Ed Blume
608.819.0748
Clean Wisconsin
Ryan Schryver
608.251.7020, ext. 25
Trempealeau County sharply limits wind service
Calling it an effective ban on commercial wind generators, Wisconsin clean energy advocates blasted Trempealeau County’s new wind ordinance, which was adopted Monday night on a vote of ten to six. The county’s wind ordinance requires developers to place wind turbines at least one mile from neighboring residences, schools, hospitals, and businesses. This is the longest set back distance imposed to date by a local government in Wisconsin. Speaking to the county board, RENEW Wisconsin Executive Director Michael Vickerman said that the ordinance “steers Trempealeau County toward a head-on collision with state energy policies, which designate wind power as a preferred energy source.” RENEW Wisconsin, a statewide nonprofit organization, advocates for public policies and private initiatives to support renewable energy. State policy favors wind power, because “it has shown itself to be a clean, safe and affordable energy option that helps reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and reduce global warming emissions,” according to Ryan Schryver of Clean Wisconsin,T an advocacy organization for clean water, air, and energy.T “Local governments, as well as the state, should be looking at ways to eliminate the barriers to renewable energy instead of creating new obstacles for siting wind developments, as this ordinance does,” continued Schryver. “This ordinance " all 16 pages of it " could have been boiled down to one sentence: No wind energy system greater than 150 feet in height will be permitted in Trempealeau County,” Vickerman told the county board. “If every county were to adopt a wind ordinance as arbitrarily restrictive as the one before you, renewable energy development in Wisconsin would slow to a stand still,” Vickerman added. Presenting an oversized map of Trempealeau County, Jim Naleid, representing Holmen-based AgWind Energy Partners, said that “There is not one square inch of land where a commercial wind turbine can be legally sited under this ordinance.” AgWind Energy Partners recently installed a meteorological tower in the county to measure wind speeds. END Clean Wisconsin, an environmental advocacy organization, protects Wisconsin's clean water and air and advocates for clean energy by being an effective voice in the state legislature and by holding elected officials and corporations accountable. Founded in 1970 as Wisconsin's Environmental Decade, Clean Wisconsin exposes corporate polluters, makes sure existing environmental laws are enforced, and educates citizens. RENEW Wisconsin is an independent, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that acts as a catalyst to advance a sustainable energy future through public policy and private sector initiatives.