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Lessons Learned Christopher Moore. Southwest Renewable Energy Conference September 15, 2010. Agenda. Bio Obligatory Commercial Ordinances Primary Issues Health & Safety Issues Other Issues Final Points. Christopher Moore. 25 years developing, building and operating power plants
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Lessons LearnedChristopher Moore Southwest Renewable Energy Conference September 15, 2010
Agenda • Bio • Obligatory Commercial • Ordinances • Primary Issues • Health & Safety Issues • Other Issues • Final Points
Christopher Moore • 25 years developing, building and operating power plants • Natural Gas, Diesel, Biomass, Wind • Renewables since 2001 • Amoco, Alliant, Reliant, Gamesa, small IPPs • Projects in 20 states
Nature Energies Inc. • Small firm based in Rochester, MN • Develop, own, and operate • Wind in MN, AZ • Solar in CA, AZ • Biomass in CA
Nature abhors a vacuum and developers abhor an ordinance? • No ordinance – Great, maybe • Raises the bar for subsequent applicants. • A defined ordinance, while perhaps initially intimidating, provides the road map to a permit.
Critical Elements • Primary Issues • Physical impacts for groups • Health and Safety Issues • Physical impacts for individuals • Other Issues • Local issues
Sound • Easily modeled • Less easily described • Illinois treats sound as pollution • Type of sound • Type of Source to type of Receiver • Time of day limits • Best method is to visit a wind farm
Property Values • REPP study – 2003 (repp.org/articles/static/1/binaries/wind_online_final.pdf ) • LAWRENCE BERKELEY NATIONAL LABORATORY Study – 2009 (eetd.lbl.gov/ea/ems/reports/lbnl-2829e.pdf ) • Private studies – 2004-2007, completed as part of permit hearings • No negative impact on property values
Health and Safety • Individual impacts • Subjective • Resonates because most Charters require the protection of the health and safety of the community. • Resolution is setbacks
Setbacks • Early development – setbacks consisted of two areas, safety zone and annoyance zone. • Annoyance zone has expanded • The annoyance is measured linearly, but the impact of setbacks is exponential.
Setbacks Map Green = Signed land Yellow = Road (500’) and Residences (1500’) Orange Line = Property line setbacks
Setbacks Map Total area in this example = 12 square miles Total leased area = 8 square miles (66%) Land available for siting turbines = 1.9 square miles (16%)
Setbacks Map Properties eliminated from potential for turbine siting.
Other Issues These are the actual project construction standards
Final Points • Ordinances are beneficial • Group issues are what people care about • Health issues are what get raised • Setbacks have an exponential, not linear, impact • The actual construction of the project is almost an after thought.
Questions Christopher Moore Nature Energies 2720 Superior Drive NW, #103 Rochester, MN 55901 chris.moore@nature-energies.us 612.749.4236