Wind Mill Farms Pro and Con | Eastern North Carolina Now

    A meeting was held in Edenton on Nov 22 in order that local citizens will understand the benefits, or detriments, to the community regarding wind farms. The meeting included a 2 hr. video and the moderator was John Droz of Morehead City, who is a retired Physicist and Environmental Advocate. He has been retired from the General Electric Aerospace Engineering Division located in Utica NY, for 30 yrs. and undertook this project on his own and at his expense without contributions from any outside entity. As he stated, he wants the decisions about whether communities agree, or disagree with this project, to fully understand the science and arguments, for and against.

    In N C, the beginnings of this process originated with Senate Bill, SB 3, during the Perdue administration when her party was in control of the House and Senate. When the legislature changed to Republican control of both chambers, House Bill, HB 298, was introduce to correct the effects of the Senate bill. The House bill died without being adopted but is certain to be bought up again in the coming Legislative session. In the meantime, advocates such as Mr. Droz have been speaking out and as more is known, the adoption of the House bill seems to have a better chance of passage.

    Mr. Droz is of the belief that there is no net societal benefit to be gained from Wind Mill Farms, but he seeks to inform the population of the effected counties, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Chowan and Terrell, so that science will be the determining factor rather than the hype of the developers. These groups dangle revenue in front of elected leaders whose counties need economic development, of any kind. The elected leaders are receptive because it provides a relief valve that reduces the need to increase property taxes in order to offset the rising costs of government.

    The citizens of Chowan Co came to this meeting in order to be proactive in their consideration of what was presented. The meeting was very well attended including Commissioners from Perquimans and Terrell Co. Although no poll was taken, the overall sentiment of those in attendance appeared to oppose going forward although that sentiment was not universal. Some citizens stated that they wanted to study the issue in detail while others questioned why European Country's seem to be more favorable.

    The video these voters saw, involved people in upstate New York who dealt with the onset of Wind Energy in their community. The plan was accepted by the citizens as a good thing, initially, for all the reasons that we have heard. But as people began to understand the details, differences began to develop that pitted neighbor against neighbor as well as pitting citizens and their elected leaders against each other. After a period of a couple of years of disagreement the elected officials were voted out of office.

    In the case of Chowan Co, Apex Development representatives have come to their county to sell the project. The Commissioners that attended the meeting from Terrell and Perquimans Counties were both Republicans. It is presumed that they will report their findings. The people in the video were critical of the Investor Sales Reps who seemed to prey upon poor counties where the community leaders could be swayed by the financial considerations in their area, not the noise and real estate value concerns of the citizens. In the end, Mr. Droz stated repeatedly that there is no, Net Positive, benefit to the citizens or the community from these projects. Further, this process is lobbyist driven only and that the only reason the investors are involved is because of the Federal Tax Subsidies, similar to the Solar Energy investments by the Dept. of Energy, last year.

    At present, there are 20 states with laws that are friendly to these developers. However, the turbines stand a minimum of 400 feet tall to a maximum of 600 ft. Therefore, as people learn more about all the details, opposition appears to be growing. Large landowners seem to favor the turbines while small landowners are less so.

    The video stated that this issue has health and financial implications and the citizens of our counties need to understand all the details, before their elected leaders make a commitment to proceed. In order to know more, please consult, Alliance for Wise Energy Decisions. Once there click on NC at the top task bar.

    A few years ago, the Commissioners of Carteret Co voted in favor of allowing wind projects to proceed. Then as more became known about the downside, the citizens took a negative view of these projects which lead to the Commissioners reversing their position.

    The Commissioners of Perquimans Co., admit that the Wind Farm project represents 1cent in property taxes. That of coarse is before the Commissioners consider a tax rebate to the developer. The Commissioners in Pasquotank Co, except one, are in favor of these projects because " it is better than nothing ". Are these reasons good enough? Will these economic benefits be worth the costs? Will Real Estate values to adjoining properties be negatively affected? Will the health risks be a negative consideration? Only time will tell.
Go Back


Leave a Guest Comment

Your Name or Alias
Your Email Address ( your email address will not be published)
Enter Your Comment ( no code or urls allowed, text only please )




Overland Contracting Headquarters Means New Jobs For Wake County A Business Perspective, Business, Your Economy Governor McCrory Highlights Importance Of Historic Tax Credit At BuzziSpace Grand Opening


HbAD0

Latest Your Economy

Nestlé, the largest food and drink company in the world, raised prices by a collective 9.8% in the first three months of the year as inflationary pressures increased input costs for the business.
Get ready to see higher electricity bills if the North Carolina Utilities Commission approves a requested price hike by Duke Energy Progress.
We live in times when technology is becoming increasingly important and significantly transforming how people work. Of course, when you're bringing your work into the online realm, you need to be aware of the dangers it can bring to your data.
Members of the Senate Agriculture Committee discussed the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX in a Thursday hearing, during which a top regulator acknowledged that he met with former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried on multiple occasions.
Progressives across the country are working tirelessly to rewrite the history on school reopenings, claiming that it was a bipartisan effort. The reality is far different, and, in fact, progressive leaders fought to keep schools closed.

HbAD1

A recent survey reported massive school staffing shortages in North Carolina in August. That’s roughly 11,000 vacancies, which would impact the quality of education students receive.
RX Industries, of South Carolina, has announced the completion of its expansion in Beaufort County (SC).
Today, the U.S. Department of Education released the 2022 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Long-Term Trend results.
Progressives have sought to use public schools to advance their social and political agenda for nearly a century

HbAD2


HbAD3

 
Back to Top