Air Force surrenders to green energy, while Beaufort County Commissioners go for the gold | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's Note: This article originally appeared in the Beaufort Observer.

    While our neighbors in Carteret and Craven counties are fighting against a proposed wind farm near Newport, our Beaufort County Commission is fighting to help a "green energy" company build one near Pantego. But a major obstacle to that idea comes in the fact that the proposed wind farm would be very near the flight paths military planes use in training in Eastern North Carolina. So our county leaders have been lobbying to get the Department of Defense to knuckle under and accept the wind farm so they can get the tax money they think will come from it.

    The most recent result of this was a press release distributed to the media by County Manager Randell Woodruff recently that announced that the Air Force has in fact thrown in the towel and cut a deal to move the wind turbines a couple of miles and take a change that they will not kill a pilot someday.

    But the Observer has well placed sources that tell us that this is all about political correctness and that the military leaders are having it crammed down on them and they have been order to shut up about it. You have to know they are being gagged when you ask for an interview and they politely decline to even talk about the subject.

    One retired pilot told us that the idea that a four-mile corridor free of tall structures is sufficient is, in his words, "laughable." He told us, "of course that may be true if everything is working correctly. But four miles is like threading a needle. At the speed we fly you over four miles in a matter of seconds. An equipment malfunction can put you in trouble in the blink of an eye."

    We learned that the White House has ordered the Department of Defense to not block any "green energy" projects, regardless of how they actually feel about the risks. "It's all political" we have been told. The trouble is, we are putting our pilots at risk. And this will likely become a factor in future "base closing" reviews.

    But our Manager and Commissioners see dollar signs. Manager Woodruff has said that he anticipates the Pantego wind farm will bring in about a million in tax revenue. Remember that number. Once its built we'll let you know exactly how much they actually end up paying in property taxes, and we'll bet you it will not be anywhere near that much.

    None the less Click here to read the Air Force press release.