I’ve written before about attempts by environmental groups to protect Steens Mountain from energy development.

Environmental groups wanted the state to add Steens Mountain to a list of places in Oregon where energy development is prohibited. But the Energy Facility Siting Council – which decides where large wind farms are located – recently rejected the idea.

The decision is a blow to the Oregon Natural Desert Association, Portland Audubon and other groups trying to keep wind turbines and other types of energy development away from the slopes of this Southeast Oregon icon.

The most immediate threat – in their view – are plans by Columbia Energy Partners of Vancouver to build three wind farms near Steens in Harney County. The three projects are located next to each other, totaling more than 300 megawatts of power and 120-180 turbines. Environmental groups say they should be treated as one single large project, instead of three smaller ones.

Oregon has a list of official State Protected Areas where energy development is off limits. It includes the Columbia River Gorge Scenic Area. ONDA and Audubon argued that Steens Mountain deserves to be on the list, too. They say large scale wind development threatens the wildlife and scenic values of Steens.

ONDA Executive Director Brent Fenty says, “There are appropriate places for energy development in Oregon’s high desert but Steens Mountain is not the right place. Steens is an area that the public has made clear should not be developed, but instead should be permanently protected for its iconic vistas and incredible wildlife habitat.”

It probably didn’t help matters that the EFSC meeting where the issue was decided was held in Harney County. Local officials are big supporters of the proposed wind farms because of the jobs they’d create during construction and operation of the facilities.

Related Story:

Wind Farms, Sage Grouse, And Loopholes

The Oregon Natural Desert Association filed a petition to protect Steens with the state earlier this month. It would block all energy development within the Steens Mountain Cooperative Management Area, but the most immediate threat is from wind energy.

ONDA says it generally supports wind development, but adds that Steens Mountain deserves some special protection. It’s asking the Energy Facility Siting Council to include Steens on a list of state protected areas. That includes places such as the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area.

Regardless of how you feel about wind, the view of dozens of tall wind turbines dramatically changes the scenery. The impact of large wind farms on wildlife is not well understood. In a press release ONDA says…

“There are appropriate places for energy development in Oregon’s high desert but Steens Mountain is not the right place. Steens is an area that the public has made clear should not be developed, but instead should be permanently protected for its iconic vistas and incredible wildlife habitat.”

The deadline for comments is Friday, May 28. Email them to energy.siting@state.or.us. The council meets June 11 in Burns to consider the petition.

Steens Mountain is protected by federal law ever since Congress passed the Steens Mountain Cooperative Management and Protection Act in 2000. But ONDA says the law doesn’t specifically prohibit energy development and wants this added level of protection. A Vancouver company, Columbia Energy Partners, proposes building a large wind farm near Burns. It’s being supported by Harney County as a way to create some badly needed jobs.

For More Information:

ONDA: Protect Steens Mountain

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Hood River County Says No To Wind Farm
Pentagon Drops Objections To Oregon Wind Farm
Wind Farms, Sage Grouse, And Loopholes

Based on a photo by Ted Timmons.

A controversial plan to build a county owned wind farm near Hood River is dead.

County officials came up with the idea as way to make up for falling revenues from timber sales. But many people in the area were opposed, saying it would ruin scenic views, lower property values, and cause problems for wildlife.

The plan was to build six turbines – about 300 feet tall – on Middle Mountain within view of Hood River’s famous “fruit loop” of orchards and vineyards. Opponents said the turbines would also be visible from the Columbia River Gorge Scenic Area.

What appears to have killed the plan was money. On Monday, Hood River commissioners received a new financial report showing the wind farm would produce only one-third of the revenue the county was hoping to get. Commissioners were also told they’d have to spend about $1 million on planning before construction could begin.

The vote to drop the idea was unanimous.

But opponents are worried that commissioners haven’t given up on their wind farm dreams. A group called the Gorge Forum is gathering signatures for a ballot measure to prevent Hood River County from spending money on wind turbines more than 150-feet tall. They have until June 23 to collect 446 names. Should they succeed, the voters will decide the matter in September.

Another group fighting wind farms in the area is Stop Wind Farms Here.

The Pentagon says it will no longer try to block construction of a massive wind farm in Gilliam and Morrow counties. At stake were millions of dollars in spending and hundreds of jobs.

Work on the Shepherd’s Flat wind project was supposed to start about two months ago. But in early March, the Pentagon put everything on hold when it said the wind turbines might cause interference at an Air Force radar station near Fossil.

This is one enormous wind farm. More than 330 turbines and 845 megawatts of power. About as much energy as a nuclear power plant. 700 construction jobs. And depending on who you ask, it will either be the biggest wind farm in the United States – or the biggest wind farm in the world.

The Pentagon’s announcement led to weeks of discussions between the Defense Department and members of Oregon’s Congressional Delegation. Today, Senators Wyden and Merkley, joined by Congressman Walden, released a statement saying the Pentagon will upgrade the radar station instead of continuing to fight construction.

While good news for Shepherd’s Flat, the congressional statement also notes that it’s unclear how this will affect future wind farms. Wyden, Merkley and Walden say they’ll continue to work with DOD to make sure these kinds of issues are worked out ahead of time, instead of waiting until the last minute.

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Billion Dollar Deal Signed For Mega Wind Farm In Oregon

Associated Press: Gov’t OKs 1st US offshore wind farm

By approving the project, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar is also rejecting arguments that the project will harm wildlife, fisheries and scenic values.

Wind turbines in Eastern Oregon. Photo by John Womack.

When it comes to building wind farms in Oregon, the size of the project really does matter.

Small wind farms, those producing 104 megawatts or less, go before county governments for approval. Larger wind farms require state permission. The process is very different, depending on which government makes the decision. The state process involves consulting with ODFW on impacts to wildlife and is more expensive.

So what’s to stop a wind developer from taking a big wind farm and breaking it up into smaller projects to avoid state regulations?

Not much according to some environmental groups.

That’s why the Oregon Natural Desert Association, the Oregon Sierra Club and the Audubon Society of Portland went before state regulators earlier this month asking them to fix the rules so wind developers can’t game the system.

See Earlier Story: Wind Farms, Sage Grouse, And Loopholes

The Energy Facility Siting Council is expected to take up the issue again at its next meeting, April 30. But in the meantime, it’s taking public comments on the issue.

So here’s your chance to have a say. The deadline is 5:00pm on April 2nd, a week from today.

For e-mail comments send them to:

• energy.siting@state.or.us

Regular mail should be addressed to:

• Oregon Department of Energy
• Attn: Energy Siting
• 625 Marion St. NE
• Salem, OR, 97301

For more information see this page from ONDA.

Conservation groups ask Oregon Department of Energy to fix energy permitting loophole

Eastern Oregon turbines. Photo by Ted Timmons.

The growing debate over wind farms and their impacts on the environment were laid out before a group of state regulators Friday afternoon in Hood River.

The Energy Facility Siting Council (EFSC) is being asked to clear up confusion over how to define a “large” wind farm. It’s important because large projects are regulated by the state, while smaller projects are controlled by counties. The state process is more complex, costs more, and has tougher environmental standards.

Environmental groups says some developers are artificially breaking up large wind farms into smaller projects so they can dodge state regulations. They want the EFSC to adopt new rules that will make it harder to do that.

Bob Sallinger with the Portland Audubon Society told the council that changing the rule is necessary to protect the environment of Eastern Oregon from expansive wind farm development. “These projects are rapidly changing our landscape. We’re developing wind energy projects at a rate that’s unprecedented and in places where we never anticipated they would go,” he says. “They’re probably going to change our landscape more than any other development aspect over the next 20 or 30 years.”

The environmental groups are particularly concerned about the Greater Sage Grouse. Recently, the Interior Department said the sage grouse is in so much trouble, it deserves the protection of the Endangered Species Act. But it put off listing the bird because there are so many other species of wildlife that are in worse shape.

If the sage grouse is to recover, Oregon will play a big role. ODFW says the state has 20% of the bird’s remaining habitat. The environmental groups say that without more state control, large wind farms could fragment the habitat. In other words – break it up into small and disconnected chunks where the grouse will have a harder time surviving.

“Much of Eastern Oregon,” says Dave Decker of the Oregon Natural Desert Association (ONDA), “is one of the remaining core areas for greater sage grouse. He describes Interior’s decision as, “A clear call from the federal agencies that look at this bird, to all of that state that have core sage grouse habitat, to really step up protections for them.”

Opponents of the rule change didn’t directly challenge the environmental arguments. Instead, they said there’s very little evidence that wind developers are trying to avoid state regulations by breaking up large projects into smaller ones.

The project that set off alarms in the environmental community are three wind farms planned for the Steens Mountain area in Harney County. The idea of wind turbines on one of the state’s best known icons offended many, plus the area has considerable sage brush habitat.

What also ticked off environmentalists is that all three of the wind farms are 104 megawatts, just small enough to avoid the state siting process. They says the three wind farms should be treated as one large project, noting that one developer is building all of them, that the projects are located next to each other and share a transmission line.

Columbia Energy Partners of Vancouver is the company behind them. President Chris Crowley told the council they’ve withdrawn the county applications for parts two and three, and will submit them to the state. Because of that, he says, the environmental groups no longer have anything to complain about.

Harney County Judge Steve Grasty agreed there’s little other evidence that wind developers are trying to skirt state regulations. He also called the proposed rule change an attack on Oregon’s land use planning system. And like another local official at the meeting, said he was offended by the suggestion that counties aren’t capable of making complex land use decisions.

Grasty says the wind farms will provide a badly need economic boost to the county, which currently has some of the highest levels of unemployment in the state. He blamed environmentalists for Harney County’s economic troubles. “They stop everything we try to do,” says Grasty. “We’ve seen this over and over.”

The members of the council agreed to take in more public comments during the next several weeks and plan to vote on whether or not to move forward at their next meeting at the end of April.

BETC has turned out to be so popular, that legislators are now worried the credits have become too expensive.  Late Friday, the House Revenue Committee approved HB 3680, an updated version that’s designed to control costs and close some loopholes. And unlike a 2009 attempt that was vetoed by Governor Kulongoski, this time he’s okay with the changes.

Here’s how HB 3680 will bring BETC under control.

• Large scale wind projects are being slowly phased out. This year, projects larger than 10 megawatts are limited to a $3.5 million dollar maximum tax break. The cap is lowered to $2.5 million in 2011 and then to $1.5 million in 2012.
• It limits all BETC credits to $300 million for the 2009-2011 budget cycle.
• It closes loopholes that allowed some renewable energy developers to game the system. In some cases, businesses had figured out they could get bigger tax credits if they submitted several small proposals instead of one large one.

Figures released by the Governor’s office says HB 3680 will save the state about $55 million during the current budget cycle and about $97 million in 2011-2013.

BETC is also credited with creating 1,800 renewable energy jobs since 2006. That number is expected to double in the next two years.

Called the Shepherd’s Flat Wind Farm, it covers about 32,000 acres in Gilliam and Morrow counties. GE says it will provide 338 turbines that will produce about 845 megawatts of power. Construction is expected to take place in 2011 and 2012. GE adds this is the single largest order ever for its turbines.

Shepherd’s Flat is being developed by Caithness Energy of New York, which in recent years has become focused on building mostly renewable energy projects.

When Oregon approved the site certificate in July of 2008, Shepherd’s Flat was described as the “biggest” wind farm in the world. GE repeated that claim in its press release on Thursday. That may be an exaggeration. Caithness describes the project as the “largest” in Oregon. And the American Wind Energy Association calls it the biggest in the United States.

Too bad the power it generates isn’t staying here in Oregon. A month after getting the site certificate, Caithness signed a 20 year deal to sell the power to Southern California Edison.

Energy Trust of Oregon is sponsoring state-wide discounts on compact fluorescent light bulbs. No coupon necessary. Retailers across the state are dropping prices. For a complete list of where to get the discount, see this story from the Salem Statesman Journal.

Maybe The Dam Should Stay

Some in Jackson County think tearing down the Gold Ray Dam is a bad idea. A candidate for county commissioner says a repaired dam could provide revenue for the county by producing electricity. From the Medford Mail Tribune.

29 Years Later And It’s Still A Mess

The Army Corps of Engineers starts work this month on removing a million cubic yards of silt from the Cowlitz River. The silt comes from Mt. St. Helens, the result of the “clear cut” explosion from about 29-years ago. The Corps continues to work on a long range silt control plan. From the Longview Daily News.

MONDAY’S STORIES

Did LNG Company Get A “Too Good To Be True” Deal For Land?

LNG opponents are raising questions about a land deal struck between the Port Of Astoria and Oregon LNG. The company is leasing 92 acres of land from the Port for about $38,000 a year. Critics say it should be a lot higher. From the Daily Astorian.

Proposed Wind Farm May Be Doomed By Endangered Bird

Plans to build the first wind farm in Western Washington are running into trouble. The site in Pacific County, called Radar Ridge, is on the flight path of the marbled murrelet. The murrelet lives mostly on the ocean, but nests in coastal forests. From the Longview Daily News.

What We Lose If The Dam Goes

Salmon counts on the Rogue River are considered some of the best in the region. That’s because biologists can count live salmon as they pass through the Gold Ray Dam. But Jackson County wants to remove the dam, perhaps as soon as next year. When that happens, officials will have to rely on counting methods that are not as accurate nor up-to-date. Still, they don’t mind. From the Medford Mail Tribune.

Thinking About Sewers

Coburg is one of the largest towns in Oregon without a sewer system. City officials say that’s limiting Coburg’s ability to grow and threatens the water supply. But building a sewer system would cost about $25 million and residents are in an uproar. From The Eugene Register Guard.