Dec 04 - Journal Record - Oklahoma City

The only people who don't like wind farms are the people who don't have one - that was the punch line of a humorous story T. Boone Pickens told the crowd at Revolution: Oklahoma Wind Conference on Tuesday. But on Wednesday, conference attendees heard from a few people who are concerned that the wind industry is growing too fast to fully account for its effect on the environment, the economy and a multitude of secondary issues.

"This is going to happen," said Sue Selman, owner of a ranch just north of Woodward, shortly after Wednesday's program. Selman said she is not against wind energy. "But it's got to be done right, or we're in trouble. It's got to be done reasonably and ethically," she said.

Selman said she and others who share her concerns have asked the Legislature, the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, and state environmental agencies to form some sort of regulatory structure for the newly blossoming industry.

"We've begged for some kind of regulation, some accountability," said Selman. "I know some of these companies have been rushing to try and get their foot in the door before any regulation can happen."

Though wind farms have been touted as a way for landowners to increase their wealth, Selman said bad contracts have caused financial hardship for some landowners. The two-day wind conference hosted a panel of attorneys on Tuesday afternoon who discussed problems landowners may experience in dealing with wind farm developers. A landowner could be made liable for taxes owed by the development company, for instance.

"One had to get permission from the wind developer to use his oil and gas rights," she said.

The keynote speaker for Wednesday's luncheon was Mark Tercek, CEO of The Nature Conservancy, based in Arlington, Va. Tercek, a former managing director and head of the Center for Environmental Markets for Goldman Sachs, stressed the environmental concerns posed by wind energy.

A nuclear power plant can be built on a 1,000-acre tract of land, but a solar energy plant with comparable generation capability would require 80 square miles - or 51,200 acres - said Tercek, and a comparable wind farm would require 200 square miles.

Land use changes related to the lucrative allure of the wind energy industry could cause unintentional consequences, Tercek said. Wind farms may have a negative effect on birds' and animals' natural habitat. The lesser prairie chicken, for instance, does not like wind turbines. The grassland-nesting bird is an endangered species present in regions of Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Texas. The lesser prairie chicken needs about 25,000 acres to flourish, said Tercek, but the development of wind farms has fragmented the birds' habitat.

"No one knows for sure why the lesser prairie chicken avoids wind turbines and other vertical structures," said Tercek.

The birds might interpret the vertical structure as a roost for predatory birds, or perhaps the chickens dislike the shadows cast or the noise emitted by the wind turbines. For whatever reason, the lesser prairie chicken has abandoned large areas of its former habitat to move away from wind farms.

Selman's ranch has hosted viewings of the lesser prairie chicken for 14 years, she said. But her concerns extend beyond the plight of the lesser prairie chicken. Selman also questioned the health and economic effects of the huge power lines that need to be constructed to get the power from the wind farms onto the regional electricity grid.

OG&E is building a 120-mile long, 345-kilovolt transmission line connecting the wind farms in the Woodward area to the grid in Oklahoma City. Already, the electricity utility has received complaints from homeowners who are concerned the line will come too close to their property. Selman said she met a man who was concerned the power line, which may come within 70 feet of his property, would interfere with the function of his pacemaker.

OG&E has received some complaints from property owners worried that the line will come too close to their homes. The transmission line is critical to a regional plan to improve electricity transmission and to utilize more wind-generated electricity.

Tercek said the Nature Conservancy does not oppose the construction of wind farms, seeks to provide developers with all the information they need to make informed decisions. Wind farms can be constructed in ways that do not harm the environment, or which find ways to mitigate negative effects of construction. Tercek acknowledged that financial concerns play a driving role in what decisions are made, both by developers and landowners.

"How is the landowner who chooses (to provide a habitat for) chickens instead of a wind development to be compensated?" said Tercek, suggesting tax incentives.

Originally published by Janice Francis-Smith.

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