Humboldt Wind Project Faces Tough Scrutiny Despite Local Goal of 100% Renewable Energy by 2025
For the second time in ten years, Humboldt County’s environmental community in coordination with neighborhood groups in the area hope to kill a wind power project proposed for Monument and Bear Ridge area south and west of Rio Dell in the most northerly part of California’s Lost Coast.
As an example, Friends of the Eel River’s Conservation Director, Scott Greacen, wrote recently,
While Friends of the Eel strongly believes that an accelerated transition to clean energy is needed to stem the worst impacts of climate change, infrastructure project siting is critical to a project’s suitability, and one of this size at this particular site could have dire impacts on imperiled wildlife and their habitat. You may remember that Shell Energy had a similar proposal for the same site many years ago that was withdrawn in the face of strong community opposition.
The potential of Earth’s temperature crisis to altogether eliminate endangered species juxtaposed with environmentalists resistance to green power’s impacts on the local environment underscores the complexity of transforming a global power grid from fossil fuels to cleaner energy sources and takes the scope of the conversation out of Humboldt County alone and joins it to the global effort to maintain a livable planet.
The Project
Just under a year ago, Humboldt County’s Planning Department announced that an applicant, Humboldt Wind LLC, a subsidiary of Terra-Gen, had applied to build the Humboldt Wind Energy Project, and that Humboldt County would be the lead agency in the CEQA process which would include an Environmental Impact Report.
Since then, Terra-Gen has completed the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on its proposal to build as many as 60 turbines, with 500 foot rotors, along two coastal ridges southwest of Rio Dell, to produce a maximum 155MW (155,000,000 watts) of renewable power. This is nearly equal to PG&E’s natural gas generation station at King Salmon which can deliver up to 163MW of power.
As part of the CEQA process, on Tuesday, the 28th of May, Terra-Gen hosted an open house in Ferndale at the Old Steeple to speak with the community about their proposed project. About 50 people attended the open house. Humboldt local Natalynn DeLapp, who is serving as a local liaison for the Humboldt Wind Energy Project, led the meeting.
If built at its proposed scale, the project’s energy production will be equivalent to just over a third of the Humboldt County’s current demand for electric power. However, staff from Terra-Gen stated that the plans are adaptable to input from the public and therefore details may change as the CEQA process moves forward. Already the project may pull back from most or all of its Bear River Ridge footprint after objections about its intrusion into the “Cape Mendocino Grassland” which is an important repository for native grasses and is also highly populated bird territory.
According to its website, Terra-Gen is a renewable energy company producing 1.3 GW through wind, solar and geothermal sources in the western United States. Locally, work on its proposed Humboldt Wind Generation Project in Humboldt County has already produced a completed Draft Environmental Impact Report with a public comment deadline that ended on the 14th of June.
California Carbon Budget
Despite local concerns, wind power development fits into local, state and global frameworks for reducing carbon emissions as quickly as possible.
One reason such an obviously impactful project is moving so quickly is that despite local concerns, this project fits into the global imperative to reduce GHG which the State has a developed policy framework to meet stated goals on a schedule.
After the Kyoto Protocol on climate went into effect in 2005, California passed AB 32 in 2006 which began California’s process of setting goals to reduce its to decrease its carbon footprint. Currently, California’s goals are to cut its 1990 GHG footprint 40% by 2030 through a variety of strategies including increasing the percentage of electricity generated from renewable sources to 50% and reducing its reliance on fossil fuels for transportation by 50%. Currently, California releases approximately 360 mmt (million metric tons) of CO2 annually. This accounts for about 7% of the U.S. national emissions.
California’s electric generation creates 16% of California’s current GHG emissions.
Humboldt County, under direction from the State of California, began its own Climate Action Plan in 2012. The County is developing its strategy to reduce local emissions as identified in the 2015 GHG inventory. The County is currently holding a set of public input meetings to identify strategies for meeting its identified goals for reducing GHG and increasing alternative energy production.
Computer generated prediction of impacts on the view from Scotia [image cropped from the DEIR]
Humboldt’s Energy Island
At the public meeting in Ferndale, in addition to learning about the scope and intention of the project, the audience also learned that Humboldt County has been identified as a premier location for generating wind power. The sustained wind over the ridges of the Lost Coast results in a 30% increase in power generation over the same turbine sited in another location.
Natalynn Delapp also told the audience while explaining the purpose of the project last Tuesday that Humboldt County is an “energy island.”
According to a 2011 report by HSU’s Schatz Energy Research Center entitled Humboldt County as a Renewable Energy Secure Community, and echoed in the Humboldt Wind DEIR, Humboldt County’s connection to the power grid is as tenuous as its connection to fibre optics. Humboldt County has one small natural gas line and two electric lines coming in from the Central Valley. According to the Schatz inventory,
[T]he total electrical transmission capacity into Humboldt County through the existing lines is 60-70 MW, less than half of Humboldt County’s peak demand. therefor local electrical generators are critical to meeting local electricity needs.
However, with energy, the isolation is less of a problem because Humboldt County can produce most of the electrical power it needs locally, although there are vulnerabilities. The three biomass plants at Scotia, Fairhaven and Blue Lake provide 18, 9, and 7% of Humboldt County’s electric generation for a total of 34%. 5% is generated by hydropower. As of 2012, less than a tenth of 1% of the local electric demand was being met through solar power. The natural gas generation station at King’s Salmon produces 60% of the local demand, and the Schatz report estimated PG&E gets only about 11% its natural gas from local gas fields.
And notably, Humboldt County’s own supply of natural gas has diminished by half since its 1992 peak. Without increased production through fracturing, Humboldt County is reliant on a single underground natural gas line from the Central Valley for the natural gas it needs to produce its current electricity demand.
Vadjos, the Terra-Gen Development Director, said one direct benefit to the Humboldt County community, and northern California as well, is that state law mandates that before Humboldt Wind can tie into the grid, Terra-Gen has to work with the Independent Service Operator (ISO) to determine the grid’s capacity to accept the power Humboldt Wind will produce. Terra-Gen will have to fund the needed upgrades which will ultimately lead to Humboldt County being somewhat less isolated on the grid.
Purchasers vs. Users
At the town hall in Ferndale, one woman was especially troubled by the fact that a community or business outside the area may purchase Humboldt Wind’s power.
Questions arise about who will benefit from the power generated on Monument Ridge. The Humboldt Wind project may produce an amount of energy roughly equal to a third of Humboldt county’s current demand, and Natalynne Delapp said, “Humboldt County would be where the energy would be used. That’s the physics of energy movement. Then there is the politics of who purchases the energy. Those are two different stories.”
The physics of energy are such that power gets pulled from the grid at the outlets closest to its production. However, towns or companies buy green power through a power purchase agreements in a competitive process, and they can buy rights to renewable energy credits of power that may be produced hundreds of miles away.
According to some, the economy for transitioning to renewable energy benefits from this financial competition to associate oneself with the greenest power possible. For example, a website called energysage.com describes the “premium” consumers pay when they enroll in a “green energy program” as going “toward funding the development of new renewable energy projects.”
Vajdos agreed in part, but also pushed back on that point. He said, “Ratepayers are a primary beneficiary of increased competition among energy producers.” He explained that the local community aggregator, Redwood Community Energy Authority (RCEA) is in negotiations with three green energy projects. Humboldt Wind is one of them. Vajdos explained that any of the 3 projects being considered will lead to lower costs for RCEA, and therefor the ratepayer, than their current sources of power. Vajdos continued, “If we cannot remain competitive with “brown power” as well as other renewable power producers, we will not be in business.”
Complex Environmental Issues
Meanwhile, the complex issues of a centralized power grid and solving environmental problems through increased infrastructure are worrisome. This subtle issue is being pointed out locally and globally. One reason the climate crisis has come into sharper focus over the past two years is teenage Greta Thunberg from Sweden. Thunberg, who has spoken eloquently at climate summits, United Nations gatherings, the European Union and the British Parliament, continues to remind global leaders, ‘We want to build our way out of a crisis created by buying and building things.”
Locally that idea was mirrored by Monday Morning Magazine co-host Jeff Hedin who said, “I am deeply concerned about Climate Change which is really caused by humans having an inappropriate relationship with the planet as a whole. We are trying to find technological solution to a behavioral problem.” And it is reflected in the impacts that the identified solution to global climate crisis may have on the problems of local environmental degradation and causes local environmentalists to balk.
During the Ferndale meeting, several objections emerged from the audience including bird mortality especially for endangered species and raptors like eagles, murralet and osprey, and clear cutting to make way for transmission lines and maintenance roads right through the heart of the Maxxam history.
Birds
Birds, including raptors, are killed by the turbine blades, trees will be cut to make way for transmission lines, and roads are more fully developed to site and then to maintain the turbines.
Terra-Gen’s Sr Biologist with Stantec, Yasmine Akky, said she estimates only 10 Marbled Murrelet will be killed by the project over the 30 year life of the project. Kevin Martin, Gen-Terra’s Director of Permit Planning, explained they are able to keep bird mortality rates much lower now than in the early years of wind power due to increased understanding of appropriate placement of the equipment on the landscape and through improving technology. Martin explained that their Alta Wind Generation Center in the Tehachapee pass, an 800 turbine wind farm shares airspace with the extremely endangered California Condors. Gen-Terra, according to Martin, invested in GPS tracking technology for the Condors, and said Gen-Terra gave that technology to the CDFW for their use in studying and protecting the extremely endangered birds in exchange for the right to also track the location of the Condors. Martin says Alta Wind staff is then able to shut down turbines when the condor come into the area.
Martin also said ornithologists continue to research and develop technology using sound and light to deter birds and bats from coming into contact with the turbines.
The Audubon Society’s mission is “to protect the birds and the places they need for today and tomorrow.” Audubon Magazine published an article on the Tehachapee Project entitled How New Technology is Making Wind Farms Safer for Birds which featured an interview with Kevin Martin in its Spring 2018 edition. At the end of the story the editors included the following statement regarding the dangers to birds from wind farms
After Audubon released its ‘2014 Birds and Climate Change report,’ which showed that climate change will threaten more than half of North America’s birds if we don’t rapidly reduce emissions, it became abundantly clear that the organization needed to focus more on expediting properly sited renewable energy. Audubon’s goal is to ensure that 50 percent of America’s energy comes from renewable sources by 2030…..
Trees and the Carbon Budget
At that meeting in Ferndale, one member of the audience repeatedly stated that the project will never be net zero for GHG because the need to cut trees means an ongoing loss of carbon sequestration.
The DEIR addresses the GHG equation of the proposed project. The production, shipping and construction of the project and its components will all consume fossil fuels producing a total of 2,400MT of GHG, which averages to under 157MT a year for the life of the project.. Until more of our national energy needs are met by renewable sources, the ongoing maintenance of the project will result in 89MT of GHG emissions. And the replacement of 170 acres of forest with electric transmission lines further cuts into the net GHG budget. The DEIR calculates all these emissions, and losses in sequestration, and is calculated to reduce GHG emissions by up to 174,000 MT every year for 30 years.
The primary need for forest removal comes from the plans proposal to cut in a new easement for the transmission line from Scotia running 23 miles east over Humboldt Redwood Company land to a substation in Bridgeville. If built as currently planned, the 100 foot wide clearing to accommodate the lines, will amount to about 170 acres. There will be another 30 acres of logging to widen the roads needed to access the wind turbines.
Nathan Vajdos, Terr-Gen’s Development Director, explained in a phone interview that he is “responsible for every aspect of the project.” He also explained that the new easement is needed because PG&E has the existing exclusive easement to the Bridgeville substation. Vajdos described the Bridgeville substation as the “only place in the grid, regionally, that has the capacity for the tie-in.” He went on to defend exclusive easements. Vajdos said, that increasing the number of power lines on the easement would make it necessary to widen it due to the way power interacts on lines that are in close physical proximity to one another.
Computer generated prediction of impacts on the view looking north from the Mattole Road. [Image cropped from the DEIR]
Community Pros and Cons
In Ferndale, De Lapp explained that, unlike the previously proposed Shell wind project, access to the Humboldt Wind project area will have minimal impact on the cities of Rio Dell and Ferndale. An old logging road at Jordon Creek Demonstration Forest, at the northernmost end of the Avenue of the Giants, will be revamped to become the primary access road. Both Wildcat and Monument Roads will only be used in case of an emergency according to the DEIR.
During her presentation, DeLapp said that in addition to the year long construction phase employment, and the 15 jobs for a permanent energy production crew, the Humboldt Wind Energy Project will become the highest county tax paying entity, second only to Humboldt Redwood Company itself.
Before the meeting began and after it ended, conversations with people who attended revealed a wide range of opinions. One woman said her neighbor had asked her to sign a petition against the Humboldt Wind project, but she had refused because she feels wind generated power will be a benefit to the community. A man said he was both optimistic and pessimistic about the project. When queried about the reasons for his pessimism, he said, “I really think [humans] are [ecologically] past the point of no return. We are probably walking dead.” Another man said he thinks that its important our community “take one for the team” in terms of the inconvenience and consequences of the project rather than buy power produced elsewhere since presumably it would be an equal inconvenience to the people in that location.
After the meeting, Martin answered some questions. One was how a small project isolated from Gen-Terra’s home operations in San Diego can be economically viable for the company. He said that the crew Gen-Terra ultimately hires will live in Humboldt County and will not be traveling from outside the area to work temporarily. And coincidentally, while we were talking, a local man asked for contacts to the human resources department as he outlined his qualifications in energy production. The permanent crew will be about 15 people who will live in Humboldt County.
The public comment period ended June 14th, but the DEIR can be found on the county’s webpage.
When asked about the quick pace of the project, Supervisor Estelle Fennell said opportunities for public input to the Humboldt Wind project will continue to be available through the planning process. She also said it meets a lot of criteria the County has been working toward with regard to climate action planning. Fennell predicted the Planning Commission will likely take the project up in July or August, then the Board of Supervisors when the Planning Commission process is complete.
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Generally speaking, this project is proposed to be built in a location that is not appropriate.
There is no reason to stud the ridge with windmills, when power can be generated miles away and delivered by transmission lines.
It’s ugly, there are inadequate roads to support the project, and there are unconsidered details aplenty.
I personally feel that power can be successfully generated on surplus lands, East of the Warner Mountains, and delivered to Humboldt. Logistically, it would be easier, the winds are plentiful, and, there is a labor force. Housing is cheaper in Modoc and out in Nevada, and even Lakeview, Oregon, with it’s new jet-fuel plant, is more amenable to development and job-creation.
Good luck building this project in Humboldt! It will never happen, in my opinion…
It’s best to put the generation where the resources is. Which, according to studies, is apparently those ridges. Long-distance transmission is less efficient and more costly, and would leave an available resource (wind on those ridges) unused. A widespread switch to renewable energy is going to require making use of available resources.
The roads are well-addressed in their planning.
“Miles away.” Classic NIMBY language. Just saying.
NIMBY is such a nasty put down. It is used as short hand for “you have No right to object to what I want because it bothers you.” Just saying.
Perhaps Mr. Kirk likes this project because it’s miles away from HIS backyard in the Arcata area and he won’t have to look at the ugly 50 stories tall turbines during the day or the flashing red lights at night. Nor will it lower his property value. Does that make him the real “not in my backyarder”? Just saying.
Everyone in Humboldt County should read the comments I submitted against this project. If you do you will probably never think of wind energy as green again. The reason is because most impacts are hidden behind fraudulent and deceptive research. In my comments I give plenty of examples and if needed could provide 100 times more. The so called bird migration, eagle and Murrelet research conducted for this project is dreadful and I explain exactly why. When looking over this DEIR it is important to understand the wind industry playbook. With this industry’s turbine related research surveys, studies and methods, they may be consistent with some state and federal guidelines, but all these guidelines are worthless because they do not adhere to or require scientific principles. Making matter worse, desperately needed wind turbine impact research, that adheres to scientific principles is being deliberately avoided by government agencies, universities, and conservation groups. As a result, wind energy developers sit back and proclaim that their research is telling truth. But what’s really taking place is that the wind industry’s contrived nonscientific research is being created to “lie” for developers.
I hope you are speaking at the planning commission meetings. The DEIR and FEIR are both a waste of paper and say nothing of value that I can tell. I was completely dissatisfied with the County’s responses to my letter of June 14 comments and am working on a statement for this coming Thursday. The blather on about cutting the trees and how it’s mostly temporary, but they totally fail to address the adverse effects of disturbing all of the grassland with respect to carbon being released into the atmosphere as far as I can tell, and the loss of biodiversity, recreational value for humans (which according to them I could not support) and aesthetic and cultural losses which also apparently mean nothing because they cannot be put into an accountant’s spreadsheet or line anyone’s pockets. Ergh, I am so upset that it is hard to know where to start. I just have a measly bachelor’s in botany and experience teaching some environmental science and biology at the high school level. So we need experts like you to stand up for us!
It’s called subsistence living.
It’s all about those carbon credits and back room deals.
The whole game is rigged.
They got us hooked on a consumer lifestyle, tell us to go shopping, to support our economy, yet all the black projects that could free our need on oil, will never see the light of day.
National Security.
Let’s keep the gas mileage in cars low so our roads can get some attention.
How about we stop feeding the military industrial budget and take those secret free energy programs back for the people.
Could be heaven on earth, if we stopped chasing predictive programming.
Beam me up Scotty!
Here Here! I’ll second that.
Imagine free energy. No more $800 utility bills trying to warm or cool your old house or $400.00 gas bills commuting to and from work. Free Energy.
But, but, but, what about the Ka-ching meters?
I ran across a few fascinating threads of late. One based on just facts (as far as I can tell) and the other one with facts supporting a fascinating theory.
If it’s just a theory and just a theory only, at least it gets us out of the dark closet of out moded ‘new modern’ theories that have proven to be highly questionable and often times harmful.
Fun facts: https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/962013188261851136.html
Fascinating Theory: https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1099515180008955904.html
To Ka-ching or to not Ka-ching, that is the answer. 😀
“How about we stop feeding the military industrial budget and take those secret free energy programs back for the people.”
~exactly!
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2018/06/09/delingpole-epic-renewables-fail-as-solar-crashes-and-wind-refuses-to-blow/
??Good morning Kelley good article, very informative,thank you.
What’s pissed me off the most is that most of the claims about why this would be a bad idea were either exaggerated or completely false, and the authors obviously knew it. The “op-ed” published at Lost Coast Outpost was one of the worst pieces of utter bullshit that I’ve ever seen in my life – everything from claims that the amount of grassland lost would absorb more CO2 than the project would prevent being emitted, to using oil industry articles for every link. Does the oil industry own these people? Some of the authors of such articles claimed to represent local tribes – are they on the take too? Who is benefiting by publishing false claims in an effort to turn public opinion against clean, renewable energy?
Mista Tails!
Get the Lobbyists and the money out of politics and government.
We are seeing people getting sick of governments that don’t represent their basic interest. The entire world is full of conflicts of interest. Follow The Money.
Sometimes It’s Better To Say NO, until the details /fine print can be better understood.
As Warren Buffet said, ” it’s a class war, and we won.”
They’ve been playing chess.
All we get is a checker board.
Solar powered checker board to make us feel better about our impact on the environment.
Because corporations, stock owners and the government have shown themselves utterly impervious to the problems of rural locals. The government pushes an agenda- almost always decades behind in technology- by supplying tax payer dollars- in this case what is more likely to be harvested than wind power- to create profit for people outside of the area, who live in their 2000 square foot, power-using homes and drive long distances to good paying jobs while leaving the people living with the negatives of the actual resource extraction with no local good jobs and lots of regulation. This process can’t be trusted to help people here as the votes don’t live here. I wonder there would be a difference in public opinion if our officials supported discounted powers or some other advantage here as compensation for the loss in quality of life in resource extraction rather than charging us more because we live in isolated areas. Because that is what they have a history of doing- they impose regulations and costs here to protect everything they want to use but wouldn’t dream of locating good paying jobs here to make up for the restrictions..
I’m sure if there were a local company who wanted to build a major wind energy product, they’d receive the exact same tax incentives and other government considerations. But we simply don’t have such a company. Thus, it’ll need to be done by an out-of-area company. You’re welcome to start a competitor to them…
Please document the loss of quality of life that you will experience.
Of course we don’t have the infrastructure and economy to build such a project. That is the point- people come from outside, take what they want and then leave, taking the profits and economy with them. Remember the Redwood Park Expansion? Remember the huge loss of jobs and the economic desert up that was left behind? No substantial company remains viable in Humboldt Co. because sooner or later they will need something that is only economically viable south. Having long since used up their own environment , they have little qualm about doing some more damage if it makes economic sense. Unless of course it affects some rich community.
OK. That’s the nature of our location to some extent but that does not mean that the wealth of California should reach into our county WITHOUT long lasting compensation. There are many functions of State or federal government that could be located here- telephone centers, headquarters for government programs, VA Hospitals, extension UC clinics, etc. Places that could function here as well as anywhere else. That would created a continuing economy.
Government, especially the State, is in love with telling people what they can’t do in remote places but it is very cheap when it comes with dealing the corresponding damage to small population. Enough of that. If people want some resource from here, whether it is water, mountain lions or wind, let them pony up , not just regulate and leave. If it is really a matter of life and death, they would be willing.
Environmentalists are attacking everyone.there destroying any chance anybody has to survive here.im a environmentally conscious person but every industry is being attacked. Evan job producing ones that are for the slowing of global warming. It’s all for the critters I know but what about the survival of the human population in Humboldt county.!!!!!
Except it won’t create more than 15 permanent jobs, and it’s not environmentally friendly. (It really isn’t!) They can’t even guarantee that local workers will be employed long term. This project will do nothing significant to help “the survival of the human population in Humboldt county!!!!!”. Planting more trees (not cutting more down) would help long term. Teaching people to conserve energy, helping people purchase more energy efficient appliances, hell, even teaching your kids to shut off the lights when they leave the room will help our county more in the long term than this project will. Restoring wetlands, etc., and home based solar, too. Walking more, driving less. If Humboldt County Supervisors are so concerned about climate change, why didn’t they start using the harsh fines and abatements when the green rushers first started bulldozing flats and clear cutting hillsides over 15 years ago? Soil and trees are carbon sinks. I wonder how many acres of trees were illegally clear cut and how many cubic feet of soil disturbed by the same mega growers that the County has now given grow licenses to? The hypocrisy of our Supervisors, especially Estelle, disgusts me. She has no credibility due to this fact alone. Old school farmers, “mom and pops” who were good land stewards begged for help when the Green rushers messed up thier neighborhoods, and the Supes said “but there’s nothing we can do, our hands are tied”. For years we heard this from them. Then, when legalization happened, the abatements and fines came out of nowhere AFTER the worst offenders got licenses because they had the money to wade through the process and grease the right palms. The mom and pops are suffering the most now, losing thier properties and livelyhoods. The grief and heartbreak is real. It sucks, and it hurts, and I’m mad as hell about it. If the Supes and planners were too stupid to think of using abatements to stem the tide of environmental destruction over 10 years ago, when the problem first sprang up, then they are clearly too stupid to be our County decision makers. Heartless corruption at it’s finest and the little guys at the heart of our rural communities get crushed underfoot. So f’ing typical. That’s what this wind turbine project aims to do as well. I’ve had it up to here with the bullshit shortsightedness of our County Supervisors. Vote the bums out. They can get in the unemployment line along with all the small growers they put out of business under the guise of “legalization”.
Vote ‘em out!
~if only.
“If built at its proposed scale, the project’s energy production will be equivalent to just over a third of the Humboldt County’s current demand for electric power.”
Then 100% of the power the project produces should be used locally.
100% of the electrons pushed around by the turbines most likely will be used locally. But that doesn’t mean the paperwork won’t be a complicated mess over half the country…
NIMBYISM at its best. We need to reduce pollution, but we want good scenic views. We want electric cars to take over, but don’t want to build projects like this that would lessen the strain on old polluting power plants that cost billions to rebuild. Save the birds, but save my view of the hills! ?????
Thank you, thank you, thank you! The amount of bullshit the opponents of this project are putting out dwarfs the entire output of the lower Eel river valleys cattle. At least the cattle’s excrement can be used for fertilizer…
Yeah.
Of course…… we can all use less energy generated by fracking….. if we put solar panels on ALL SOUTH-FACING ROOF SURFACES. All over the county I see sunlight going to waste! It should be illegal to have an appropriately situated roof surface without panels. Solar panels need to be government subsidized and citizens need to prioritize their share of this expense. Next, we need to see all-electric cars everywhere. Preserve your gas car indefinitely with the purchase of an inexpensive, used Nissan Leaf for around town. They are roomy, silent, powerful, attractive and fun! They are great cars with full back seats and roomy cargo space. Brilliantly designed. You will be amazed how seldom you need your gas-guzzler. No oil changes. No tune-ups. No radiator, alternator, generator, exhaust system… No troublesome stops at dirty gas stations to fill your tank. NO GUILT. NO EMISSIONS. People always say, “I’m waiting……” And I look down at their child or grandchild and wonder, “Waiting for what?” We can’t “wait.” Solar panels don’t kill birds and they don’t require the clearing of our local forests. And….. once you have the panels, save up for an efficient heat pump for heating and cooling your house. Good to go!
I have 7.5kW of solar, one of the largest residential systems in Humboldt. (Yes, I’m willing to put my money where my mouth is, and have spent my own money reducing my carbon emissions). I’m currently getting a whopping… 1092W. And therein lies the problem with solar in Humboldt. To put it simply, sun isn’t a resource we have in abundance. I’d be surprised if my yearly average is much over 2 peak hours/day. Solar works a lot better in, say, the southern California desert, where large solar plants are built. Wind, however, is a resource we do have in abundance, and we should make use of it.
Also, due to all solar sources tending to produce their intermittent generation at the same time, a wholesale swap to solar isn’t feasible until we have grid-scale energy storage worked out. Battery technologies are still where it’s very expensive and of questionable environmental benefits, and if we tried building a large pumped hydro station, the current best option for grid-scale storage, all the NIMBYs will be out in full force.
As to electric vehicles, things aren’t quite as rosy as you make it out to be. Most still have a liquid cooling system, with a radiator and associated components. Motors and batteries produce heat which must be managed. Your alternator (generators haven’t been around since the ’60s) is replaced by a giant electric motor with associated electronics, and many of the same issues. The transmissions and gearboxes still need fluid changes. Eventually the batteries will wear out, with a bill similar to a new engine. And so forth. They may take less maintenance than a gasoline vehicle, but they’re not maintenance-free. Attractive? For some reason EV makers seem to intentionally make them as butt-ugly as they possibly can…
True for now, but envision if we put all our energy (no pun intended) into finding ways to create localized energy and distributed power systems. In a matter of years we would no longer need the grid at all. We have the brain power and resources to do it. What we don’t have is politicians and business people that give a shit.
Even on a cloudy day you should be producing 10-25% of your systems rating. Solar actually works better when it is not too hot. That why over a yearly average systems in San Francisco can produce more than systems in Sacramento.
We should make use of wind, on a local scale. Small turbines for home use do not seem to kill birds.
Energy storage should be local, not grid based. Nothing about time of generation calls for a need for grid based storage. The environmental benefit of solar systems with batteries is not in question, they are net positive benefit.
Yes electric cars look horrible and they are not a good way to save money. Unless you already have a lease on an expensive new car, an electric car will cost you more per month to operate. (My EV was built in 2001 and cost only $3000. It is a converted Volkswagen rabbit) No they are not maintenance free, but they have much less maintenance. Yes EV have environmental impact, but it is far less than gasoline powered.
Winters, especially dec-feb or so, tend to be really dark here. I’ve had days with less than 1kWh generated. Solar panels are not linear – they produce less than half the power when you give them half the light. Yes, panels love being cold – my peak (watts, not watthours) output is in the spring, when the panels are still cold but start getting that nice bright clear light. My peak output is limited to around 4500W due to other system components, and spring is usually the only time I hit that.
There’s lots of factors that make for lower solar output up here. Winter weather being a big one, short winter days due to the latitude, low winter sun angles (and trackers costing more than the additional panels to generate the same power), low sun angles in general causing many rooftop systems to be at non-ideal angles (and racks greatly reducing the panels that can be fit without shading), daily morning and evening clouds even during the summer, year-round fog (remember redwoods get half their moisture from the fog!), shading issues for a large percentage of houses due to either trees or terrain, the sun being weaker this far north compared to the standard test conditions used to publish panel ratings, etc etc…
Most houses in humboldt have poor wind potential, since they’re built in valleys, not on the ridges. Even if you get strong gusts in a valley, it’s not the consistent constant-direction wind needed for useful generation. Pretty much the ridges and right on the coast are the only areas where wind, even on a small scale, makes any sense at all.
Local energy storage is expensive and inefficient, and requires more maintenance than the vast majority of people will put in. Grid-sized storage is much better, but harder to build. Turning the top of mount shasta into a pumped hydro setup would be a good solution, or pumping ruth to the top of the lassics, but I can just hear the protesters already…
EDIT: Sun’s coming out, 3360W at the moment…
Totally agree Joan. Many years ago it was proposed that all new homes built in California in sunny locations would have solar paneled roofs and an on site storage system that would be their main energy provider, with excess sold back to PGE and shortages covered by the grid. PGE and the building industry wouldn’t let this idea come to fruition. If they had we would be living now in a whole different world.
As many back to the landers know, there are many ways to create localized energy. Solar, water watts, small wind generators that dont impact birds, methane capture. These are the future, distributed power systems. The only reason we aren’t even close to putting into effect technology that has existed for sometime is because of the grid and the money it generates for the oil, gas, nuke companies and owners of the grid.
The grid is the problem.
I see you’ve never actually used batteries.
You know deep cycle batteries are recyclable right?
You know lead-acid deep-cycle batteries cost more than the grid cost of the energy they store for their entire lifespan, right?
Let’s pick a Trojan t-105, a very common battery in small to mid-sized off-grid systems, due to its low cost. 225 amp-hours at 6 volts, for 1.35kWh storage. Prices vary, but $150 is a good average for one. You’ll also need distilled water over its lifetime, maybe another $5 worth, but we’ll ignore that. And we’ll also ignore the parts that can be re-used between sets of batteries, like cables, even though corrosion often makes them require periodic replacement.
At 50% depth of discharge, it lasts 1600 cycles under ideal conditions. 50% is usually about the peak value point for lead-acid batteries. It gets way worse if you discharge them deeper, so you have to double-size your battery bank, but that’s not for this discussion.
50% * 1.35kWh * 1600 = 1080kWh, total lifetime storage of the battery, for $150.
US average electricity rate $0.12/kWh. $150 / $0.12/kWh = 1250kWh, amount of electricity you could just buy for the same cost of the battery.
The numbers are even worse for premium L-16s and such – but they’re still a good deal due to lower installation and maintenance costs. And I skewed every single step towards generating an optimistic number – your actual total storage will be lower in real use, due to non-ideal charging, longer periods in a discharged state, the reduced capacity of the later cycles compared to the datasheet, etc.
There’s also efficiency. Batteries waste >20% (for flooded lead-acid) of the energy you put into them. And tons of other problems with batteries. And the environmental costs of producing and recycling them.
Barring some huge advancement in battery technology, their use should be avoided whenever possible…
But the argument is that it is necessary. Now.
Why try and insult someone BT. Should I try and come back with a witty put down. Would that further the conversation. I lived off the grid for twenty years. Yeah storage was the main problem. So should we say oh well and not try and create a better battery or another way to store energy.
We have the brains and power to create a world that provides energy without destroying the planet. Had we spent the money and time that we’ve spent on better bombs and faster planes we would already be there.
PS. You say wind is abundant. How about at your place. Do you have wind generation. Would a small wind generator coupled with solar provide your energy needs without needing a massive storage system. Or a small creek that could feed a water watts.
Sadly, neither. I have about 2ft of elevation change with no water on the lot, and after a couple years of data logging with an anemometer installed on a pole on top of my roof, less mph of wind than ft of elevation change…
The grid is a really good idea, and is going to be involved in all practical energy solutions. A grid allows intermittent resources to be used where they’re needed, even if where they’re needed isn’t where they’re being generated at the time. A worldwide grid would be a huge boon to a worldwide switch to renewable energy. Consider in the most basic case that it would let solar be used 24/7 without storage…
https://reason.com/2006/04/03/to-save-the-planet-kill-90-per/
When they start teaching this to students, you better hope they don’t have forced Euthanasia when you turn grey. These kids have been weaponized and if they will absolutely be a part of the death panels.
That article illustrates how environmental extremism is like religious fundamentalism, down to the fascination with the apocalyptic stories – The Great Flood, The Plagues, the Book of Revalation, and now a winnowing of humanity down to the Ecologically Righteous. There’s a similar obsession with controlling other people’s behavior, illustrated by the Luddite wind farm opponent who said new technology is unimportant because we must change our sinful ways first. None of them consider that had the world stayed with their Luddite ideals and kept technology at a nineteenth-century level, environmental mega-disasters and social disintegration would have happened at a much lower population than at present.
The grid is not the problem! The way it is owned and operated is and as more residential solar comes on line things are changing. Saving our descendants future is a little like building the pyramids in Egypt. It’s going to take a lot of people all working together.
I lived for over 40 years with a wind turbine and since 1980 with solar as well. I have half ownership in a business making products for the solar industry presently and am a true believer BUT…
Solving the problem we are faced with will require a lot more sacrifice than just buying some panels and putting em on the roof. It’s time to face that ugly fact.
And the 6 months of the year where the solar panels don’t produce much energy???
Means six months of the year you dont need the grid and six months you do. Thats only cause of the paradigm we currently exist in. The future is producing localized energy anyway we can, always researching better ways to do it, creating distributed power systems, creating energy efficient life styles, conserving energy and treating it like a precious resource. Yeah right now we are still grid dependent. That doesn’t mean we have to be, or need to be.
Good grief, what a litany of sheltered, privileged, ignorant, pie-in-the-sky thinking.
Did you ever consider the carbon footprint of going to Baja every winter to watch whales?
Still finding the relationship between DeLapp, HCGA, the BoS and Terra-Gen, very odd IMO. Something smells rotten.
You mean because I work within the existing system to effect change? With a degree in environmental science and public policy, I have chosen a career that allows me to work to protect and restore the environment and community of Humboldt (to the best of my ability). HCGA is a grassroots trade association for licensed cannabis businesses that are working to survive and thrive in the new era of post-legalization (Prop. 64), we work within the system of laws that binds the realities of doing business in California, and seek to provide rational pathways forward for our members to be able to navigate the complexities of those systems. Whether or not one likes the way the laws were written over the past five decades (Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, California Business and Professions Codes, MAUCRSA, etc.), they remain law and we can chose to recognize them and work within them (while engaging ways to modify them), or we can sit on our hands and complain that the system isn’t fair. Let’s be real, we all know the system isn’t fair, now what are you going to do about it? I am working for Terra-Gen’s Humboldt Wind Project because again, sitting around and waiting for a perfect, impact free solution isn’t going to happen. Society uses electricity, and it has to come from somewhere. Climate change is real and we’re careening toward the point of impact that will fundamentally alter the entirety of humanity. Personally, my life’s strategy is one of action, and seeking solutions. I do my absolute best, everyday that I wake up to work to making this place better than the day before. Folks might not agree with how I go about my work, but I believe we share most of the same goals in mind. You do it your way, I will do it mine, and hopefully one (or both) of us succeed. There is no need for horizontal hostility in our community.
Sexist much?
For some reason you chose not to mention your opposition to straightening one curve through Richardson Grove to allow more efficient and less costly shipping by truck. If “ginormous” trucks going through Richardson Grove are such a problem, what does that say about even more “ginormous” heavy haulers carrying equipment up enlarged roads up to Monument Ridge? Please explain how your positions are consistent. Did you put your history with the grovies on the resume that got you the job with Terra-Gen?
What ever lady, you don’t work for these people because you “care” you work for them because you get “paid”. Gotta pay for that fancy degree somehow right? Yeah.. never been a CEQA report on a tiny home Organic garden before.. Seeking solutions or seeking a “paycheck”? So, you got “paid” to oppose the Shell turbine project.. Now, what is it? Terror Gen “pay” you more? Is that why you want to support this project now? Did they buy you a Tesla? Sounds like you don’t give a 2cents about the community, all you care about is your convoluted adgenda.. Bunch of indoor growers who want to glorifying how “offset” they are because thier s#)t don’t stink.. Seriously, if I thought this was a good project for the bigger picture I would support it.. but this sounds a huge green wash to me..
My vote is with the Wyiot…the Condors, Raptors and marbled murrelets.. Rotten indeed… Namaste’
The enormous losses that this project would cause are saddening. The DEIR and FEIR are just smoke and mirrors. It’s always about money, not what is being destroyed that money cannot buy. It is a total greenwash that would release tonnes of carbon by destroying the grasslands as well as the forest and making those huge concrete pads that will be there forever after. I hope you have presented or will present at the meeting on Thursday in Eureka.
Love the hurtful cynicism expressed from the comfort of anonymity against people who put themselves out there to make the world a better place. Yes, she gets paid for it. I’m sure you get paid for what you do – whatever that is.
Captain Kirk. I do not see this project as “creating a better world” call it what it is.. a profitable enterprise, and a green wash..at the expense of community, and environment.. Definitely smells Very very rotten Mr. Kirk..
Look to Hong Kong, the people there are real and really upset
Seems Kelley Lincoln is horribly biased or simply serving as a mouthpiece for Terr-Gen.
You can talk about California Carbon Budget but there is reason Terr-Gen is not telling us how long it will take for the windmills to become carbon neutral. It is estimated that the Wind Turbines will generate “4,336,335 MT CO2e over the 25-year project life”.
That’s right the WTG project is estimated to have only a 25 year life. And the removal of the massive concrete pads ect, and restoration of the area after that 25 years is not accounted for in the estimate of GHG’s that will be produced. Because the aren’t even required to clean up after themselves.
Concerning birds, it’s not just death by blade that is at issue and not just murrelets. Golden eagles, Bald eagles, Spotted Owls and many other birds that are not considered will also be killed of pushed ot of the area by construction noise, habitat loss, or general disturbance caused by the wind turbines.
“Visual or audible disturbance from project construction could affect adult behavior in a way that would reduce their (murrelets) ability to successfully reproduce. This impact would be potentially significant. ”
And the mitigation for this sound issue is to maintain distance buffers “if feasible”. There is an exception built in that they will take advantage of.
“No operational wind energy facilities exist within the range of marbled murrelet, so no information is available regarding the birds’ ability to avoid colliding with moving WTGs.”
We also do not know how this will affect behavior, the birds may refuse to nest near the monstrous turbines at all.
“The marbled murrelet population’s growth rate is sensitive to changes in adult survivorship (USFWS 1997), so the potential for the loss of up to 20.86 or more marbled murrelets over the 30-year life of the project could have population-level effects. This impact would be potentially significant. ”
The mitigation for the killing of murrelets is sound, but it is a project that should, and very well may take place any way. In fact Van Duzen county park is one of the few parks that does not already hae a corvid management program.
Kelley Lincoln mentions an article from Audubon Magazine regarding technology to make windmills safer for birds, that tech is not going to be used on this project at all. How many birds do solar panels kill?
“Therefore, the presence of historically documented golden eagle nest territories and alternate nest sites in the project vicinity indicates the strong probability that nesting golden eagles would be present in the vicinity of the project and may encounter the project’s WTGs over the proposed 30-year life of the project.”
“For example, construction activities and associated noise and human presence in the project area could prevent eagles from using preferred foraging habitat, deter them from nesting at historic nest sites near construction, or prevent them from tending to their eggs or young if construction activities occur near an active nest. This impact would be potentially significant.”
The mitigation measure for impacts on Bald and Golden Eagles are laughable. They basically amount to “spend a little time surveying and make sure no active nests are within 2 miles of a turbine.” Wheather or not an eagles nest is currently occupied means nothing. Eagles are know to reoccupy nest sites after many, many years.
page 19 here, https://humboldtgov.org/DocumentCenter/View/72196/35b-Biological-Resources—Environmental-Impacts-and-Mitigation-Measures
“Operational Impacts on Bald and Golden Eagles.Operation of the WTGs would pose a risk of collision to bald and golden eagles. This impact would be potentially significant. ”
Yes this project is superior to a coal fired power plant. It is not the only option greener power. It will never be carbon neutral. Solar panels take 2-3 years to become carbon positive (save more in CO2 emissions than it takes to manufacture them) Problem is that there is no massive corporations willing to pay for us all to get solar panels. That means we have to adders the issue as a society via government. Corporations only really make money by non-local generation and transportation of energy. The solution is local generation for local use.
So, because we don’t know how something will work, we should never try? There’s got to be a first somewhere. After this project, we’ll know more about how turbines affect various birds.
How many birds are killed by oil and coal production? Oilfields are nasty places with major disturbances to habitat, oil spills kill thousands or millions of birds, and coal mining is often done by stripping the entire surface and leaving behind a wasteland.
How many birds are threatened by climate change?
What math are you using to claim it will never be carbon neutral? Because all the math I know, and all the sources I find, suggest it’s well under one year until payback. For example, here’s one with pretty pictures, claiming 6 months: https://www.saskwind.ca/blogbackend/2016/1/14/carbon-and-energy-payback-of-a-wind-turbine
There are corporations willing to pay for solar panels. Large solar farms are constantly being built in the southern deserts where there’s lots of sun. And now we can build a large wind farm here where there’s lots of wind. Corporations like making a profit. Simply giving you something isn’t likely to happen. There are corporations that will put solar panels on your roof for a cut of the profit, however. Whether the paperwork usage is local or remote is irrelevant. And the government is already involved in encouraging you to use renewable energy, by giving you tax credits for it, and giving corporations tax incentives to build it.
Can’t resist.. well, You know the saying.. ‘you can always kill two birds with one stone’.. Terra-Gen is also heavily invested in fossil fuels.
“ . . the complexity of transforming a global power grid from fossil fuels . . . “
THERE’S NO SUCH THING AS FOSSIL FUEL.
“Humboldt County has one small natural gas line . . . coming in from the Central Valley.”
“The natural gas generation station at King’s Salmon produces 60% of the local demand . .”
Which one is it? One small gas line, or 60% produced in King Salmon?
“Humboldt County’s own supply of natural gas has diminished by half since its 1992 peak.”
Like “Peak” oil?
“The Humboldt Wind project may produce an amount of energy roughly equal to a third of Humboldt county’s current demand,”
May, might, should.
“Without increased production through fracturing . . “
Epic U.S. Failure, September 2017. Fracking is financially ruinous. Nobody has made any money from selling fracking oil; it’s too expensive.
“Humboldt County would be where the energy would be used. That’s the physics of energy movement. Then there is the politics of who purchases the energy. Those are two different stories.”
Natalynne, are you familiar with contract law? The first rule is closure. Poly-many. Ticks- blood suckers.
The physics of energy . . . However, towns or companies buy green power through a power purchase agreements in a competitive process, and they can buy rights to renewable energy credits of power that may be produced hundreds of miles away.
“ . . . will lead to lower costs for the ratepayer.” SMH.
Jeff Hedin who said, “I am deeply concerned about Climate Change which is really caused by . . .”
~seriously, you persons need to take your Fossil Fuel, Peak/scare city, may/might/should, Fracking, Green, Buy Rights, Renewable Energy, Lower Costs, Climate Change, Echo Chamber Roadshow, on down the line. You speak with forked tongue, out of both sides of mouth, and foot inserted.
“Half of the harm that is done in this world is due to people who want to feel important. They don’t mean to do harm. But the harm does not interest them.” T.S. Eliot
We should absolutely use less energy. But despite unprecedented levels of public awareness over the issue of climate change and global warming, our energy use has continued to grow. Here in Humboldt County, during the two decades from 1998 to 2017, energy consumption increased by 38 percent. Even electric cars, meant to help reduce carbon emissions, use energy that originates with fossil fuels. That has to change, but with no alternative plan to slash Humboldt County’s energy use by 36 percent—the amount that the Humboldt Wind Project is expected to offset—it’s clear that conservation is no magic bullet. That’s why conservation needs to be practiced alongside proactive, practical initiatives like wind power.
Let us not forget the Klamath Dams Removal. Their decommissioning next year is a victory for the Klamath tribes (Yurok, Karuk and Hoopa), environmentalists and salmoninds, but will also take 169 megawatts of electricity production offline. Where are we going to replace that from?
Solar energy is a great source of clean power, and California needs to continue supporting its development. However, solar alone simply cannot supply our state’s energy needs. The switch to 100 percent renewable power is going to require a combination of energy sources, and one of those is wind.
Don’t forget: solar power has been around for a long time now, and public consciousness of climate change and global warming is at an all-time high—yet how many of your neighbors have installed solar panels on their roofs? Have you gone solar? If not, there may be good reasons. The upfront cost of going solar is around $15,000 per household, and most folks around here don’t have that money sitting around.
The Humboldt Wind Project can provide 155 megawatts of energy. To produce the same amount of energy, about 50,000 homes (roughly every household in Humboldt County!) would have to suddenly go solar. The cost for that would be about $762 million, almost four times as expensive as the Humboldt Wind Project—and that would be money out of our pockets, whereas the $200 million investment in wind power is coming from Terra-Gen.
It’s not enough to just say, “Let’s go solar.” There is no alternative plan to install affordable solar panels on every rooftop. Solar power is not a magic solution. It is one component of a multi-faceted approach to clean, renewable energy. It’s not sun or wind; it has to be both.
There is often concern that the energy used to produce the technology may not be fully returned within the product’s lifetime. This doesn’t pass the smell test. If wind turbines were a net loss on their energy footprint, no one would build them because it simply wouldn’t make sense. Wind turbines generate substantially more electricity during their life cycle than what it costs to construct and maintain them. The ratio of energy generated compared to the energy sunk into the process is called the energy return on investment, or EROI. A 2010 study published in Renewable Energy: An International Journal, of wind turbines around the world shows that wind turbines generate 20-25 times the amount of energy that goes into making them .
As stated in Appropedia, “It has generally been found that energy payback time is less than half a year. The energy balance is determined by dividing the energy consumption of a turbine over its expected lifetime by the yearly energy production of that turbine. Energy consumption includes all the energy required for manufacturing, transporting, erecting, dismantling and disposing of the turbine. ”
The proposed project would generate electricity from a zero emissions source, the wind, and would result in a large reduction in GHG emissions compared to the “do nothing” alternative. Doing nothing results in continued burning of fossil fuels, or passes the responsibility of renewable energy production and meeting the state’s (and local) renewable energy goals to some other location.
Any alteration in habitat has the potential to harm wildlife. Construction will undoubtedly affect some creatures, and wind turbines can definitely present risks for birds and bats. There are two main factors to consider: 1) How can those risks be minimized/mitigated? 2) How do those risks compare to the status-quo alternative of unchecked global warming?
We can’t wish climate change away. It’s time to act to protect a livable future. We have already waited too long, and now even optimistic scenarios involve limiting climate change rather than stopping it—and even achieving that much will require concerted effort on multiple fronts. One of those fronts is renewable energy, and the Humboldt Wind Project is an opportunity for us, here, today, to do our part. This is our chance to stop waiting for other people to solve the problem, get serious about it, and take action together.
I know people whom work for Pacificcorp, the tribes are relocating a condor here, and the 38 percent power increase; indoor grows
It’s impossible to design any kind of power-generating system (or anything else, really, in the big picture) without impacts. An experienced solar systems engineer I once worked with, himself a committed environmentalist, pointed out, “ALL human activity is entropic.” There is NO way to produce energy (or produce food, or build a house or a school or a hospital or a power plant — or you name it) that does not break down something. So we are faced with hard choices — what will we sacrifice for what end? I love the beautiful views of the Humboldt hills, but preserving my view seems trivial and selfish compared to clean energy generation. Where does the energy go? Best it should come to the neighborhood where it’s generated, but when we think of the future of life on this planet, ANY non-fossil fuel generation going ANYWHERE will help all of us. Impacts to wildlife? Impacts of building the system? Now we have to make some hard choices.
And, Kelley, great reporting! Your articles are so thorough, well-researched, and balanced.
I hope it gets built it sounds like a great idea. You are never going to win over everybody, esp all the handwringing types around here, and the uneducated. When there is a big earthquake we will wish we had a local peer source
Do you really think 600 ft high wind turbines are really going to produce power when the transmission lines are disrupted by an earthquake? Even if they survive intact themselves? Our area produces power line disruptions in ordinary times.
Opposite land.. WC A big earthquake will topple these giants and create a supper-fund mess, on top of all the damage that an earthquake could cause.. Wind mills on much more stable soils have toppled to less…. Think ABOUT it….
Designing to withstand credible earthquakes is standard practice for critical facilities. The main risk involved with a wind tower toppling is to the tower and blades. Much less risk of environmental damage than with something like port facilities.
Maybe less than port facilities, but on Humboldts shakey ground and poor soil quality.. I am seeing the potential for disaster.. and the point is, with a big shaker, they most likely wouldn’t be of much value as a source of emergency power..
But that wasn’t your point. Your point was supposed environmental risk, but now you’re pulling something else out of your patootie because your original point was refuted.
Oh really, they will they be engineered against a environmental disaster? .Did ya see how that worked out in New Orleans? Orville dam? Did it work out so well for the railroad? They where “engineered” as well, that worked out spectacular! Shakey unstable ground.. clean up site that will never be cleaned, not a good combo.. All out of crayons.. Here..1+1=..2
“Humboldt County is reliant on a single underground natural gas line from the Central Valley for the natural gas it needs to produce its current electricity demand.”
This is not good. We need to generate our own power. If this project is to have any chance at being built, it must be to provide for Humboldt County’s power needs, not sent elsewhere.
Bushytails-
More bang for the buck with L16h. 415ah (+/-)at about $250.
Definitely the shortcoming on any of these systems… 120 year old battery tech is still the most “green” and reliable tech we have for storage. Lead-acid batteries are near 100% recyclable.
Search “holy grail of batteries” for explorations into future battery tech.
Wow. This article is full of inaccuracies, starting with the company name. Is it TerraGen or Genterra.
50 people in Ferndale? More like 150.
And the comments… You picked out 3 that weren’t representative of the room at all.
Glossed over many of the legitimate concerns and focused on the things TerraGen claims.
The biologist is from Stantech.
Where’s the water going to come from? Where are the concrete batch plants gonna go?
155 mw turns to 125 by the time the power reaches Bridgeville.
The company has no intention of building on Bear River Ridge, they only put it in the proposal so they can pull back from it and appear to have “negotiated”.
No mention of Fish and Wildlifes DEIR comments.
No mention of the many unwritten mitigation plans.
No mention of the fire danger.
Did Natalynne help you write this?
Shame on Estelle for pushing this in spite of Fortuna and Rio Dell, the biggest population centers in her district, being the ones most affected.
A county planner called them “rogue cities” at a Board meeting last week. I’d like to see how Arcata and Eureka would respond if this project was going to be in THEIR back yard.
Those of us with reasonable objections want to see the DEIR rewritten and reintroduced for public comment, once it’s actually complete.
Woah! Feel free to disagree with me, but dont question my integrity.
This was 3,000 words. I stuffed a lot of info into it. I didnt include the deir comments in this story. Next one’s coming though.
Im not affiliated with terra-gen, as you can see by my getting their name backward.
As far as bias, here it is….Im, as a member of the community, extremely worried about climate change. I host a week a month of the Environment Show on KMUD. I have dedicated the show at least 50% of the time for the last 2 years to the climate crisis.
Its on my mind.
So my effort was to put this project proposal and the community’s response to it, into a framework that includes the bigger picture. Becauae this is a global issue.
I thought i was extremely representative of the comments in the room. I wasnt trying to cover every comment, but to cover the breadth of the issues at play as this huge change in our cultural landscape evolves.
I didnt count how many people. I may be low, but i think you’re estimate is high. Maybe we can agree, ‘the room was half full,’ and someone could count from there?
Ok. Half full. Agreed. The capacity of the Ferndale theatre is 362.
You took 3 “glass half full” comments in a room that was quite contentious on the issue and obviously heavily skeptical.
I applaud your work with KMUD and don’t question your standing in the community one bit.
It’s not a balanced article. You go into great detail on company points and claims, word for word, and gloss over the legitimate concerns of Scotia, Rio Dell, Fortuna, the Wiyot tribe, which isn’t even MENTIONED in the article but is central to this issue.
How do you write a balanced article on this issue without mentioning the Wiyot?
Respectfully,
Nathan
Your points are noted, but i do respectfully counter that
I didnt articulate alot of points on both sides.
People who only read headlines at kymkemp.com can clearly see that there is an organized, vocal opposition to this project and i did start the piece with that concept.
That is all part of the record and this story adds to that.
And fwiw, i wasnt trying to tell Terra-gen s story. I was trying to tell this verse of the climate crisis story.
Which can be summed up as, “it’s complicated. “
TY Mr. Wise, your absolute correct, I was supprised the Wiyot were not mentioned, nor the fact that they want to re introduce condors. Maybe Kelly could do and interview with them to balance the perspectives. TY..
My daughter was one of those speakers in Ferndale as well as Rio Dell–.She asked the helicopter pilot to take her up to 600 ft to see what was visible from that height–.She could clearly see to Fortuna–the Eel River Valley–north toward Eureka,east to our mountains on 36–600 ft of space allows so much to think about.Never mind the 60 proposed Turbines,imagine ,if you can,the amount of vibration generated from those machines.Scotia–Rio Dell–you will be completely overshadowed by those monolithic turbines.Yes we need to seek other alternatives but–at what expense?Ya put em up,ya can’t just takem down.I was at the meeting in Scotia–,sat directly across from Sup Rex,listened intently at the objections and concerns of the people from all area’s–.The cons seemed to rule for the night.I was interested in how many jobs might be garnered ,at end of project for Humboldt–and was kinda surprised to learn that the number quoted was 15 –.Seems like a lot to give up for the amount of inconvenience,and,damage done to the area.This would totally change this pristine area forever,and in the end–for what.??If this company wouldn’t do at least as good a job of maintaining their Turbines as they do in the desert regions of California–,probably in the future you would look on that ridge and see maybe 50% of them remaing in-active,or not working–period.Think about the fields of useless inactive wind turbines in the passes and desert that you have seen–Palm Desert–Palm Springs–Mojave–??just to name a few.One of the largest wind Turbine company’s wants to come to Humbolt–to help us–NO for the TAX Break they receive–and we are so far north–ya think they would keep those giant contraptions going–,me thinks not–Put them in the desert where the sun shines 300 plus days a year,and the wind blows almost every hour–yep,not on the Ridge.We have to much to lose on this project that can never be gotten back.Their are other alternatives–not just this one–yep
This dude is nasty. He accuses the writer of touting the “Terra-Gen “ line, but he’s doing exactly the same thing on the opposite end , except he’s worse! Cause all he’s doing is Cut and Pasting Ken Millers questions and talking points….REAL ORIGINAL lol
Lay off the meds, wind bag.
Clean Energy! Wait, No Clean Energy! WTF is wrong with people. Nothing is without costs or sacrifice. If we don’t move to clean energy soon, you won’t have anything left to worry about protecting. This isn’t going to make any bird species go instinct, some may die yes it is true. Have you heard about what global warming is doing to the reptiles on our planet? Rising sea levels will kill many other species. The list goes on… We are at a point where we have to move forward with protecting the earth for the long term. They don’t look terrible.
Put one in my friggen back yard. I want to be part of helping the world with Clean Energy!
Do the best we can to limit environmental impact with this and move forward. Better than many other energy options out there. Put some here in Arcata, I don’t give a damn, I welcome it. I’ll be a proud supporter of clean energy and decreasing our dependency on natural gas.
Here on planet Humboldt, we have installed about 10 MW ( that’s 10 million watts of PV) since the beginning of the grid connect era, or about year 2000. In the last 5 years about 7MW has been installed.
To offset the annual production from the wind farm would take 355 MW of PV/solar. At the current rate, of 7 MW per 5 years it’ll only take 50 years ha ha ha. How much land will it take? If you did 7kw per house, thats 51,000 houses, more than are in all of Humboldt county. Oh big industrial ground mount you say? Well its about 5 acres per MW of PV, or 1775 acres or 2.7 square miles. I”m sure we can just shoe horn that in somewhere no one will see it or argue about it, no sweat.
Its not the argument to have, its not solar or wind its both. Its more of both, lots more please.
Every person arguing against this wind plant is directly supporting big gas and oil, fracking, pipelines, train tanker cars, CNG plants, gas power plants, methane pollution and CO2 pollution.
This argument also seems to be forgetting the 800lb gorilla in the room called climate change. She is pissed and starting to break stuff. You guys read the news? The IPCC gave 12 years MAX, and thats the conservative view to get to 100% 0 carbon. Did you know that every government who signs on to the IPCC report gets to review each and every sentence, how many did the USA “modify”? And that included the little talked about negative carbon aspect or CCS ( carbon capture and sequestration).
The time for the renewable energy debate is over. Delay is no longer an option if you want to save this planet
If it is urgent, than sweeten the pot for local consumers.
Then you need to talk to the no to subsidies crowd who are against this because there are tax breaks for this project. Would love to see all the permanent tax breaks for oil and gas be eliminated but that isn’t going to happen. And as it is, all renewable subsidies are gone for homeowners by 2021, and commercial drops to 10%. Currently they are both 30%, but you know, gotta pay taxes to get them, so low income people, etc can’t take advantage of those breaks.
This wind farm is the sweetened pot.
To install the amount of solar here, on buildings would cost $800 million to over $1 billion dollars, the majority coming out of peoples pockets.
Sure we can try to get our elected officials to do the German solar model, no interest loans for homeowners for renewables, but good luck with that.
If we did utility scale PV, 355MW, then thats about $355 million. But 1770 acres. And someone’s got to come up with that cash and the land. And then there would be trucks and steel and concrete and water, can’t do that either.
So we’ll just do nothing and keep getting our energy from someone else’s land where we frack their gas and ship it to us, so we don’t see the damage.
With all the bird kills everyone is talking about, I see in my mind a pile of feathers and meat about 2ft deep under each of the windmills. I can run a CAT 988,maybe I could get a job scooping birds and recycle them as Mcnuggets! Win-Win.
They keep pushing this thru on the basis of climate change, but during the meeting, they admitted they had to clear cut a 900 acres of trees to Put these turbines in, and that the project would never be “carbon neutral”. The trees will never grow back. How are they going to maintain the vegetation? Probably with round up and chemicals. So, it won’t effect climate change, it won’t make electricity more affordable… it won’t provide very many local jobs. It will provide a lot of wear and tear on the roads.
On the bright side it will make a lot of endangered bird pancakes..
And they will be Ugly and loud.. delightful..
I can’t really understand why the wind farms are now downing solar. Sure $15000 is a lot. But a lot of solar companies finance, then that investment is into YOUR property, will lower your bill, and eventually provide you with returns, it will improve YOUR property values…And it’s not going to make endangered Latkas out of Bald Eagles..
300 acres.
TERRAGEN GIVING PRESENTATION ON PROPOSED RIDGETOP TURBINE PROJECT IN FERNDALE ON TUESDAY…
…Permanent and temporary changes will cover over 900 acres on the project footprint and the length of Highway 101 from Field’s Landing to Pepperwood….
That’s the info the said at the Rio Dell meeting as well..
Press release from Terra-Gen
https://kymkemp.com/2019/05/26/terragen-giving-presentation-on-proposed-ridgetop-turbine-project-in-ferndale-on-tuesday/
Smallfry: “The Humboldt Wind Project would temporarily affect up to 836 acres of forestland. Merchantable timber would be sold by Humboldt Redwood Company as part of a timber harvest plan. Following removal of merchantable timber, temporary impact areas would be revegetated with trees at a 1:1 ratio; however up to 91 ares of project features would remain permanently. Removal of up to 91 acres of timber production would result in in a reduction of less than 0.00007 percent of total private timberlands in Humboldt County. The project applicant would apply for a THP via CalFire to ensure timber harvest in done in accordance with the Forest Practice Rules and all industry standards.
Yes, a portion of a privately held timber forest, which is actively managed for timber and regularly cut on a 60 year basis would be cut for this project. Regardless of whether or not Terra-Gen were to attempt to build the Humboldt Wind Project, the lands the project is proposed on are scheduled for eventual timber harvest.
No herbicides would be used in the maintenance of the transmission corridors.
Unlike burning fossil fuels for energy, renewable energy is not finite and after building produces energy/electricity with minimal GHG emissions. The fuel source is ongoing, hence “renewable” and produces energy with minimum inputs–this is why globally renewable energy is on the rise. As stated in Appropedia, “It has generally been found that energy payback time is less than half a year. The energy balance is determined by dividing the energy consumption of a turbine over its expected lifetime by the yearly energy production of that turbine. Energy consumption includes all the energy required for manufacturing, transporting, erecting, dismantling and disposing of the turbine. ”
Mmhmmm.. Seriously doubt that herbicides will not be used. So, at the meeting, this is not what was stated.. 900 acres..is what was stated.. now others 300 acres… Are you already back tracking on your #’s and promises??
This idea your selling of staving off the effects of climate change with this single project is repulsive..
Do tell… However.. Why did you appose the Shell windmills so adminatly now this project is now so near and dear to your little heart? How much do you stand to profit if this project goes thru?
And you did not address any concerns for the Raptors.. I am assuming it’s not even on your radar..
Natalynne – From the timestamp of your post it is evident that you have had the opportunity to see my question about your opposition to the the Richardson Grove curve realignment, but chose not to answer. Also, is it true or not true that you opposed the Shell wind project?
I think the Terra-Gen project is a good one, but I would like to see it represented by someone with integrity.
She didn’t oppose the Shell project. EPIC supported it.
They sent a representative to a meeting who told us “EPIC and Ferndale have no common cause.”
You could hear the sound of checkbooks snapping shut.
Okay well then why in the North Coast Journel she did say she did appose it, but years have passed so she feels differently now.. all of the sudden it’s the “bigger picture” don’t lie. She is on public record saying she apposed the Shell project for all the same reasons most people do here today..
Nearly a decade ago, she said she opposed a similar proposal from Shell Wind Energy and heard a bunch of concerns similar to those being voiced now. But times have changed, DeLapp said’
https://m.northcoastjournal.com/NewsBlog/archives/2019/05/28/deadlines-looms-for-comments-on-controversial-wind-power-project
It’s in the wrong location. Too much biological diversity is at stake. There is a better location. The people of Humboldt will not benefit in the short run or the long run – unless you own stock in Terra-Gen and parent company.
All the mentions of how PV is a better solution. In addition to consitancy of production, timing of production means that we have too much in the day and none at night. PV has been so successful, that we pay to have solar power taken off the grid.
https://www.latimes.com/projects/la-fi-electricity-solar/
Wind really picks up in the evening and operates at night.
The Idea That these windmills will be the savior of climate change.. is a delusion. Here a graf of California carbon emissions. Because California does not use Coal as its primary source, it’s carbon emissions from electical generation is only like 10%. Of the total green house emissions, the biggest is actually transportation… I am willing to bet, a lot of the carbon foot print here in California from industry is from Gasoline refineries, to put in vehicles to drive…Personally I am not against all wind power generation, but I think there is also an appropriate place for these turbines and I am not convinced personally the ridge they are proposing is it..
California state rescorce board…
Transportation emissions are why electric cars are being pushed, and they’ll need clean energy to charge them. Some industrial emissions can be replaced by electricity usage as well.
Electric isn’t going to give me my 4×4 I need to get home.. not without a GAINT price tag. That’s neither here nor there.. So what would be the impact with electric cars, sure as F. Not going to run those off of “wind turbines” in the hills. Not atm. A much larger power source would be needed for and all electric car society.
~as i understand it, PG&E is heavily invested in Earth orbiting power plants -hence the claim of bankruptcy.
Wind farms are bull feed and heifer dust.
Natalynne,
“There is no need for horizontal hostility in our community.”
~the climate industrial complex . . .
“We’ll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false.” — CIA Director William Casey, February 1981.
If we speak in language based on facts, words with agreed-upon-value, rather than an airy fairy
belief in repeating programmed words, place logic before authority, inclusive of Full Disclosure and informed consent of the governed, we’d be talking a different story.
We’ve witnessed the Planning Department and The County’s unlawful take-over, without the consent of the governed, of what, where and when to plant as the destructive force that it is. Why would any one of us trust those who have proved time and again their untrustworthiness? Unconscious Order Followers with no education in health, no education in energy, do not know how to define economics (2017-2018 Annual Financial Report not done a year after the close of the fiscal year), and place paycheck and pension before the needs of the people, is Not the path to go down. Those who are unfit to rule, want to control.
‘If you tell a big enough lie and tell it frequently enough, it will be believed.’ Hitler. So, when I say there’s no such thing as fossil fuels and you ignore my statement and continue to parrot ‘fossil fuels’, then communication is lost. Fossil fuel conjures up the wrong-headed idea of finite. Scarcity=fear=complacency. Therefore, more programmed words, “re-newable” and “green” energy must come to the rescue, touted as; Humboldt “Island of Energy”.
“The “Global Warming”, “Climate Change” hysteria are just a dream come true for politicians. The opportunities for taxation, for policies, for control, for crony capitalism are just immense. You can see their eyes bulge.”
— MIT Professor Richard Lindzen.
Bottom line – the same persons who wouldn’t recognize law no matter where it may be, imposed ruinous taxation by fraud, deceit and illusion, coupled with force and threats, simply did not, and do not, have subject matter jurisdiction.
No solution to climate change will be complete without energy code enforcement. Right now Humboldt County and all of the AHJ’s (city building enforcement) operate wildly out of step with state law, unlike the rest of the state. Humboldt County is beginning to enforce energy code in relation to new construction, but not for altered structures or new construction. Arcata has plans to enforce a more stringent code, but has its hands tied, for the time be, by staffing issues. Many new furnace installs in Humboldt involve ductwork that leaks upwards of a quarter of its heat, not providing its residents with comfort, just higher energy bills. In addition to the climate impact, Humboldt County residents are being ripped off every time they pay their gas bill. Is your furnace 4x the size it needs to be? Your getting ripped off every time you pay your power bill. The easiest and most cost effective way to change our climate impact as a community is to stop wasting fossil fuels first, then decide how best to mitigate the remaining impact of energy consumption. Renewables are great, and I support them, but why give a bandaid to a patient that is bleeding out?
I don”t understand why the turbines must be seen at all. It seems to me by relocating or reducing the number some of the windmills from public view would calm a lot of negative issues. My family owns property in Bear River valley and I can”t imagine HUGE turbines standing sentinel over us. The company needs to understand the historic significance of the land they plan to lord over. Doing a 360 degree survey of their visibility imprint and then moving or deleting towers could calm a lot of negative reaction. How about some latitude in the placement.
China Looks to Secure Space Superpower Status With Earth Orbiting Power Plants
https://www.veteranstoday.com/2019/02/18/china-looks-to-secure-space-superpower-status-with-earth-orbiting-power-plants/
It doesn’t save the environment by bulldozing mountain tops and putting up windmills. The visual impact is atrocious. It causes motion sickness and vertigo in many people who live near it for any length of time. There are also other serious health concerns. The windmills don’t save on carbon energy. They need rare earth minerals to produce magnets. Miles of land is excavated to mine for that and additional mining for tons of concrete and metal all of which needs to be refined, produced into product, shipped mostly from overseas and then constructed after dirt roads are torn into and on top of the mountains, and eventually dismantled, all of which is done with carbon fuel. You may be fooled by omission of information by the windmill business but that carbon use is happening and offsets and alleged gains.
Everyone in Humboldt County should read the comments I submitted against this project. You will probably never think of wind energy as green again. The reason is because most impacts are hidden and I give plenty of examples showing how they do it. The eagle and Murrelet research conducted for this project is dreadful and I explain why.
Terra-Gen’s Sr Biologist with Stantec, Yasmine Akky, said she estimates only 10 Marbled Murrelet will be killed by the project over the 30 year life of the project” ……………… With proper mortality studies you can count on at least 10 -20 times this amount. I have yet to see one credible mortality study ever conducted by Stantec. But as they are quick to point out ”We follow guidelines”. But keep in mind, these are guidelines that do not require credibility and allow the wind industry to hide millions of fatalities each year.
“Kevin Martin, Gen-Terra’s Director of Permit Planning, explained they are able to keep bird mortality rates much lower now than in the early years of wind power due to increased understanding of appropriate placement of the equipment on the landscape and through improving technology”……………. NOT TRUE. This industry understands how to rig their research more and they get away with it because the USFWS and CA Fish and Wildlife do not require science. The USFWS also has secretly collected (but doesn’t ever report) the carcasses of thousands of eagles etc. picked up from wind farm freezers. They have been doing this for decades. Currently the Denver Eagle repository is receiving about 3000 eagles a year. My estimate is that 25000 – 30,000 have been collected from wind farms since 1995.
“Martin explained that their Alta Wind Generation Center in the Tehachapee pass, an 800 turbine wind farm shares airspace with the extremely endangered California Condors.”………… Martin did not explain that these condors are manipulated and held captive to areas around permanent feeding stations. Wandering condors either die in the turbines or are trapped. “Gen-Terra,
“according to Martin, invested in GPS tracking technology for the Condors”,………………. Yes, so they can help catch condors that wander before the turbines annihilate them .
“Martin also said ornithologists continue to research and develop technology using sound and light to deter birds and bats from coming into contact with the turbines.”…….. These developments do very little good and Kevin Martin knows it. National Audubon sold out to Enron and wind developers years ago. They now collect wind energy mitigation funds and more. Protecting birds is secondary. Whatever they is not worth reading and will not be in the best interests of Humboldt County
Yeah, you guys are right. You have totally convinced me. We should instead rely on distant fracking and nuclear power plants because the view from beautiful downtown Rio Dell would be compromised. Then we can pretend that we are doing the world a favor by needing a 4×4 to get home on eroded roads and we can manufacture more batteries for our private little solar systems in foggy Humboldt county.
Obviously it doesn’t matter what anyone proposes. There will always be rabid sensationalized NIMBYism and general freak out. It’s not even close to political activism at this point. It’s like hell and brimstone religious control fanatics who have reincarnated into “concerned citizens” at this point in time. The freaking Spanish Inquisition.
I suggest anyone who thinks it’s a halfway decent idea to build them write to the Humboldt Wind Project Planner and say so. Because the most rabid will always be the loudest. If you don’t want them speaking for you, then please speak for yourself.
Rio Dell and Scotia residents have very valid reasons for not wanting to become the industrial sacrifice zone for Humboldt County. Go ahead and call us NIMBY’s if you want. We’ve been called a lot worse and we’re still standing tall. Our two towns are beautiful and full of amazing people who want to continue to improve our two communities. So yes, we’re going to fight like hell to keep a predatory energy conglomerate out of the Eel River Valley and work to implement common sense climate solutions that don’t just make the rich get richer.