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More South Dakota wind farms; Building wind energy in Nebraska
(Monday, Nov. 15, 2004 -- CropChoice news) -- Below are 2 items dealing with wind energy 1. South Dakota could get four more wind farms 1. South Dakota could get four more wind farms By JOE KAFKA PIERRE -- Four South Dakota counties could figure prominently in a
Minneapolis-based power company's plans to expand its production of
electricity from wind energy. Xcel Energy, formerly known as Northern States Power Co., wants to produce
another 3,100 megawatts of electricity by 2019 to meet a growing demand for
power in Minnesota. The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission is expected to
make a decision on the plan within a year. Along with increased generation of electricity from traditional fuels such
as coal and extending the life of its nuclear power plants, Xcel's proposal
would boost its current 467 megawatts of wind power to 1,700 megawatts. Xcel now buys electricity from a wind-farm complex in the Buffalo Ridge area
near Lake Benton, Minn. Buffalo Ridge has the largest concentration of wind turbines in the nation,
with about 25 individual wind farms and more than 600 turbines capable of
500 megawatts. A new study commissioned by the Minnesota Department of Commerce said the
cost of adding 1,100 megawatts of wind energy into the Xcel power grid by
2010 would be "quite modest." The study focused on building 734 more wind turbines in parts of
southwestern Minnesota and northeastern South Dakota, including 67 each in
Brookings and Deuel counties, and 33 turbines each in Grant and Roberts
counties in South Dakota. Lincoln and Pipestone counties in Minnesota now share 532 wind turbines, and
the study focused on adding 99 in Lincoln County, 35 in Pipestone County,
100 in Mower and Murray counties, 157 in Nobles County and 33 in Rock
County. Xcel would not build the wind farms. It would contract to buy the power from
firms that install the turbines. Bob Sahr, South Dakota Public Utilities Commission chairman, said it makes
sense to extend the Buffalo Ridge wind-farm complex. "Conceptually, it would be very logical to not have those machines stop at
the border because our wind resources are better than other states," he
says. "They're going to go where the wind resources are good, and they think
South Dakota has some great wind resources because otherwise I think they'd
just as soon do all of this in Minnesota." PUC analyst Steve Wegman said wind-farm developers already have preliminary
easements with many Brookings, Deuel, Grant and Roberts County landowners.
Several companies erect wind turbines, and any combination of them could be
involved if such a project is developed, he said. The study theorized 300 megawatts of wind energy from the four South Dakota
counties, with 100 megawatts each in Brookings and Deuel counties and 50
megawatt wind farms in Grant and Roberts counties. South Dakota now has one
40 megawatt wind farm in Hyde County, in the center of the state. County register of deeds offices confirm that several wind developers have
filed options to obtain easement rights from landowners in eastern South
Dakota. Some were obtained several years ago in anticipation of development,
and others are more recent. Carol Jean Mortenson, Roberts County register of deeds, has several easement
options in her files. It's not surprising that wind farm developers want to
build turbines in the area, she said. "This is the obvious place to put them," Mortenson said. "I mean, what are
there, three days of the year when we don't have wind?" Leon Mack, who farms in Deuel and Codington counties, said he signed an
easement option several years ago and is eager to have turbines put on his
land. Farmers get annual payments from such leases. "It sure would be a nice income, but you can't count your chickens before
they hatch," Mack said. "I'm 65 years old and I'd like to see it happen
before I'm gone to help the kids keep the farm going." Xcel is committed to expanding the amount of power it gets from wind farms,
said Price Hatcher, Xcel's manager of renewable energy purchases. While he
could not specify if certain projects may be developed, Hatcher said it
seems logical to extend wind farms into South Dakota along Buffalo Ridge. "Given that Buffalo Ridge runs along the border and turns north, that would
be a very likely place for development as the Minnesota side fills up," he
said. But expanding wind farms along the ridge depends on being able to move that
additional electricity to the Minneapolis-St. Paul area and other more
populated cities where demand is increasing, Hatcher said. "The real challenge is moving the energy," the Xcel official said. "The wind
resource is there in South Dakota, but transmission is the challenge." Xcel has started beefing up vital transmission links in southwestern
Minnesota and into eastern South Dakota, Sahr said. Not only will that be a
conduit for wind energy development in Brookings, Deuel, Grant and Roberts
counties, but it also will add a better electrical hookup to the state's
largest city, he said. "There's a lot of activity going on that will allow them to help meet
electrical growth needs in Sioux Falls and tap into South Dakota wind
resources," he says. "We've got the wind. In six years, Xcel is saying they
could have 300 megawatts in South Dakota, but this isn't a done deal yet." Source: http://www.yankton.net/stories/111104/new_20041111033.shtml
2. Momentum building for wind energy: Public power system seen as main road block to Nebraska development By Robert Pore Wind power can generate crucial economic development dollars for rural
communities, schools, farmers and ranchers, said Chuck Hayes, director of
special projects for Center for Rural Affairs.
The Center for Rural Affairs and the Nebraska Farmers Union will be holding
education and information meetings next month across the state about the
potential Nebraska has for reaping this renewable energy source. Also, according to Hayes, producing electricity from wind power is the
cornerstone of proposed legislation from Sen. Donald Preister of Omaha.
There will be a hearing on Preister's LR292 -- renewable energy and energy
efficiency legislation -- before the Legislature's Natural Resources
Committee at 9 a.m. Nov. 18, in Room 1525 of the State Capitol building. Wind turbines are sprouting up in surrounding states, such as Iowa, South
Dakota and Colorado. In Colorado, voters passed a ballot initiative on Nov. 2 mandating that 10
percent of the state's electricity be produced by wind. The amendment
includes a standard net metering system for farmers, ranchers and
homeowners. The ballot initiative came about after four unsuccessful
attempts in the statehouse to pass the initiative. Nebraska has become one of the nation's leading producers of another
renewable energy source -- ethanol. The state also has a huge potential to
develop another renewable energy source with wind energy, said John Hansen,
president of the Nebraska Farmers Union. Nebraska has the sixth best wind potential in the nation, yet only 0.5
percent of the state's electricity comes from wind. "We are lagging far behind all of the rest of the top 10 wind resource
states in developing wind energy," Hansen said. "We need to figure out how
our state can not only develop our wind energy resources, but do it in a
fashion that provides the most economic benefit to economically depresssed
rural Nebraska." Hayes said there is strong support among Nebraskans for developing wind
energy in the state. He said a poll by the state energy office showed that
96 percent of the population wants wind power. "The biggest obstacle seems to be that we are a public power state," Hayes
said. "Most Nebraskans like the fact that we are a public power state, but
in this particular case that can work against us." What is needed is legislation to adjust some rules to allow for either
private or private/public partnerships to get wind energy launched in
Nebraska in a big way. "Being a public power state, we don't qualify for the federal production tax
credit, which is 1.9 cents per kilowatt hour, which people in Iowa,
Minnesota and other states can get," Hayes said. "That is a disadvantage for
Nebraska." Developing a strong wind energy industry in Nebraska could help in rural
economic development. "It can provide much-needed rural development dollars in our small towns,
for our farmers and ranchers and for our schools," Hayes said. "Wind
turbines provide jobs not only for the initial construction of them, but for
maintenance." And because it is a renewable fuel, it is good for the environment. "The energy source is clean and free," he said. Hayes said there are some people who still believe that finite resources
(fossil fuels) are infinite. "But they are not infinite," he said. "We are sitting at our peak and we are
going to be on the downward slope and sooner or later they won't be
available to us. Why not address the problem now?" Hayes said while the will is there with the state's people, the job is to
get lawmakers, who have blocked past attempts to develop wind energy in
Nebraska, to make it happen.
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