Proposed Ban On Wind, Solar Energy In Knox County Moves Forward

CENTER, Neb. — Two kinds of commercial renewable energy projects could soon be prohibited in one northeast Nebraska county.

The nine-member Knox County Planning Commission held a special meeting, with two public hearings, Tuesday evening in front of a large crowd at The Barn at God’s Country just northwest of Center, Nebraska, to receive public comments regarding a proposed ban on all new commercial wind and solar developments in the county.

After both public hearings, planning commission members approved recommending that the Knox County Board of Supervisors prohibit all new commercial wind and solar energy projects in the county. The supervisors’ next regular meeting is slated for 9:30 a.m. May 14 at the county courthouse in Center.

Knox County Clerk Joann Fischer told the Press & Dakotan that the planning commission’s recommendations likely will be presented next week to the supervisors, who then will schedule two public hearings at a future meeting to take comments before voting on whether to approve the proposed ban or not.

The planning commission considered comments on Tuesday from several members of the public — both for and against the proposed ban — regarding the health, safety and general welfare of Knox County residents as it relates to this matter; the effects on agriculture and recreational land; and whether new commercial wind and solar developments should be prohibited in the county.

Planning commission members first held a public hearing — which lasted well past two hours — on potential changes to Chapter 9, Community, Utilities and Energy, of Knox County’s comprehensive plan, a document that is more than 150 pages long.

After closing the public hearing, members of the planning commission had a discussion, with Commission Secretary Keith Nielsen of rural Bloomfield, Nebraska, wondering why large wind energy projects, like North Fork Wind (NFW) LLC’s proposed North Fork Wind Project, are not constructed near large cities that benefit from the power that they generate.

“They don’t like the looks of them,” Nielsen said, noting that is one reason some meeting attendees spoke in favor of banning all new commercial wind and solar energy projects in the county.

If it was built, the North Fork Wind Project, an industrial wind development project valued at about $1.3 billion, would reportedly cover more than 42,700 acres in Knox County and see the construction of more than 150 wind turbines, with each measuring more than 600 feet in height.

Neil Clausen of rural Wausa, Nebraska, another planning commission member, said the topic of renewable energy, especially wind energy, has been a divisive one in Knox County for more than a year.

“They’re not easy decisions to make when you’re sitting on this side of the table, I can tell you that,” Clausen said.

Nielsen then made a motion to recommend to the Knox County supervisors that they “ban all new commercial wind and solar developments as being in the best interests of the public health, safety, convenience, order, prosperity and welfare of Knox County and its present and future residents and the demonstrable benefit to agriculture and recreational land” in the county.

“As part of this motion, I further move that the commission amend the comprehensive development plan as per the red-lined stricken language from Chapter 9 of the comprehensive development plan, which has been presented to the commission by the zoning administrator,” Nielsen said.

Planning commission members unanimously approved the motion on a roll-call vote.

Regarding Chapter 9 of Knox County’s comprehensive plan, for example, it currently states that wind is “one of those resources in abundance” in Nebraska, as well as not a “new technology,” as pioneers used windmills for power and to work water wells on their farms and ranches.

“Wind can be used to produce electricity through the construction of small-scale or utility/commercial grade wind conversion systems (wind turbines),” according to the comprehensive plan. “However, not all areas of the state have the ideal levels needed to produce electricity on a utility or commercial level, but the use of small-scale wind turbines on homes and businesses will work in most parts of Nebraska.”

The planning commission then held a second public hearing — which lasted only about 30 minutes because several meeting attendees had left the meeting given the late hour — on the possible repeal, in their entirety, of Section 8.08, Commercial/Utility Grade Wind Energy Systems, and Section 8.23.05, Commercial Solar Conversion Systems, of Knox County’s zoning regulations, a document that is more than 180 pages long.

After closing the public hearing, members of the planning commission had very little discussion.

Nielsen then made the same motion as earlier to recommend to the Knox County supervisors that they ban all new commercial wind and solar developments in the county.

In addition, he moved that the planning commission recommend to the Knox County supervisors that Section 8.08, Commercial/Utility Grade Wind Energy Systems, and Section 8.23.05, Commercial Solar Conversion Systems, of the county’s zoning regulations be repealed and stricken in their entirety “as per the red-lined stricken language, which has been presented to the commission by the zoning administrator,” Nielsen said.

The planning commission also unanimously approved this motion on a roll-call vote.

Knox County is currently home to two operational commercial wind energy conversion systems that both are on a much smaller scale than NFW’s proposed 600-megawatt North Fork Wind Project. NFW is a wholly owned subsidiary of National Grid Renewables based in Bloomington, Minnesota.

The Elkhorn Ridge Wind Farm, the first project of its kind constructed in Knox County, is a roughly 80-megawatt system located north of Bloomfield, Nebraska, that was established in 2009. The Crofton Bluffs Wind Farm, located southwest of Crofton, Nebraska, was established in 2012 and is a roughly 40-megawatt system.

Terry Johnson of Wausa, Nebraska, who was serving as the Knox County Economic Development director when the first commercial wind energy conversion systems were constructed in the county, addressed planning commission members early during the first public hearing on Tuesday, noting that he was against the proposed ban and does not understand why the county’s attitude toward renewable energy has changed over the years.

“At that time … everybody was along for the ride to make Knox County a better place,” Johnson said. “Along with that came wind energy. I remember the day of the groundbreaking, when the governor was here and everyone spoke of this new opportunity. The supervisors were there, (as were) other dignitaries of the county. We were all patting each other on the back, saying, ‘Hey, this is a good thing for Knox County.’”

Johnson told the planning commission that he cannot believe Knox County could prohibit “something that could possibly be a very good thing” for the county and its future.

“I don’t know what happened in 15 years, I really don’t,” Johnson said. “We’ve gone backward, totally gone backward against where I think we were going. Even the governor gave our Knox County Development Agency (a) ‘Community of the Year’ award for the county as a community. Everybody around the state knew about Knox County.”

Mike Kumm of rural Wausa, Nebraska, a former Knox County Planning Commission member, spoke in favor of the proposed ban during the first public hearing.

“People have often said, ‘What changed?’” Kumm said of the county’s attitude toward renewable energy. “That’s a fair question. What has changed when it comes to wind energy and what we know as a county and what we know as a nation going forward?”

In Kumm’s opinion, what was initially proposed “as an opportunity to capture additional value and use a resource available to us” is not what commercial wind and solar energy projects are about today.

“Wind energy development (and) solar energy development in America today has become not about harvesting a natural resource for energy production, but about harvesting government grants and revenue,” Kumm said. “The fear is, these companies signed it with the promise that they’re going to be around for 20, 30, 40, 50 years, and they might fully intend that to be the case. The question is, what happens when they don’t make it 20 or 30 years? What happens if they go bankrupt?”