HUME – Efforts to create a wind farm across northern Edgar and southern Vermilion Counties have land owners weighing the pros and cons of the idea.
      The Edgar County Office of the University of Illinois Extension, the Edgar County Farm Bureau and EnerStar Electric recently sponsored an education session to help people in the area navigate the intricacies of participating in a project to generate electricity by capturing the power of the wind.
      The basic advice for individuals approached about leasing ground for a wind turbine is to keep their eyes wide-open whenever entering a contract with a major corporation. The speakers also stressed it is important for land owners to know what limitations they can accept and be willing to walk away from the financial incentives if they believe the project will be too detrimental to their farming operations.

      Jay Solomon, an agriculture engineer with the extension, presented a brief history about the development of wind energy in the U.S. He said the initial focus was on the High Plains states in the west which have a tremendous potential to generate wind-powered electricity, but the small populations and lack of electric grids for widespread distribution in those areas are serious drawbacks.
      Illinois’ “moderate wind resources” cannot match the High Plains, Solomon said, but that disadvantage is offset by the existence of major urban areas to provide a market and an established grid network to carry electricity generated by wind farms.
     The most recent data from 2006 indicates that Illinois has 14 completed wind projects on line, six under construction, 12 permitted and 75 either proposed or contemplated. Solomon said the project stretching from eastern Douglas County to Indiana most likely falls into the proposed/contemplated category.
    “The site selection is when all of the rumors start,” said Solomon.
      He does not anticipate seeing turbines any time soon on the ridge following the Edgar/Vermilion County line. The timetable Solomon presented indicated a five-year development phase is normal, followed by one year of construction, a life-expectancy of 20 to 30 years for a wind farm, followed by a one-to-two-year decommissioning phase.
      A member of the audience challenged Solomon’s assertion that wind turbines can generate electricity for approximately 3.5 cents per kilowatt hour. The individual claimed the figure was excessively low and that coal is the cheapest way to create electricity.
      Solomon defended his numbers as accurate while adding this is not an issue of wind versus coal since no power companies have plans for building new coal fired plants.
     “It’s a matter of keeping up with the increasing demand for energy,” said Solomon.
      Farm Bureau attorney Ryan Gammalgard echoed some of Solomon’s comments and dispelled any notion that wind energy is just a chimera.
      According to Gammalgard, the pressure to create wind farms will continue to accelerate as power companies face a state mandate requiring an increasing percentage of renewable resources be used for energy production. The mandate also indicates how much of that energy must be provided by the wind.
     “These are becoming valuable properties,” said Gammalgard.
      He noted the economic incentives are bringing some into the field that may lack the needed expertise.
      “Initially, it was a handful of established European companies that came to the U.S.,” said Gammalgard. “Now we are seeing startups that only get a contract that they sell to the established companies.”
      The attorney spent some time discussing the ins-and-outs of contract negotiation and his advice essentially was to be careful, to be aware of what is included and excluded from the contract, to make sure that all concerns are addressed and not to assume verbal promises will be honored by the future owners of the wind farm.
      “These contracts are complex,” said Gammalgard. “We always recommend that you get your personal attorney involved or form a land owners group with an attorney.”
      He also recommended that land owners have their tax advisors review the proposal as tax issues from crop reimbursements, income from leases and increased property values all accompany the development of wind farms.     
      Gammalgard emphasized those behind wind farm developments lack an understanding of farming operations so it is important that contracts specify such issues as the need to minimize soil compaction, the location of roads and repair of drainage tiles.
     “It’s important that you get those terms in there and they are clear,” said Gammalgard.
     Land use involves more than building the huge turbines as siting is also necessary for transmission lines to get the electricity on the grid. It is becoming more common to bury the transmission lines, and Gammalgard said landowners should have a say in how deep the lines are buried and what route they take.
     Another major issue to negotiate is liability protection for landowners during the construction phase and afterward as the massive towers attract trespassers eager for a close look.
     He mentioned other features that have been found in some contracts that are detrimental to land owners such as surrendering mineral rights to the development company, a confidentiality clause prohibiting the land owner from discussing any aspect of the project, and taking away a land owner’s right to sue the company.
     “You want to retain the right to sue the company if a problem arises,” insisted Gammalgard. “You should be able to keep as many legal rights as possible.”
      He stressed these are long-term, contractual agreement that will impact land use for two or three generations and the documents should also spell out who is responsible for decommissioning the massive towers.
     “The same thing that happens to the land during construction will happen during reconstruction,” noted Gammalgard.
     Rob Sharkey, a Bureau County farmer, brought personal experience to the discussion. He has turbines on his farm and supports the efforts to develop wind energy.
Still, he advised those present to expect to lose every tile in the field where the turbines are erected. Sharkey said the trenching machines cut the tiles and the weight of the huge cranes used in the operation crush them, but surprisingly create little soil compaction.
    “The biggest compaction is from the other construction vehicles,” said Sharkey. “They’re going to use your whole field. They are going to run all over it.” His main advice was for neighbors to work together on the project as a way to provide a more unified negotiating force and to minimize the risk for hard feelings.
     “Keep in mind the company comes in, puts up the turbine and is gone, but the neighbors remain and you still have to live together,” said Sharkey.
    According to Sharkey, some residents in his rural neighborhood opposed the turbines and claimed the gigantic devices would be too loud and visually jarring.
    He told the audience those are relative issues based on what an individual values. He neither objects to the sight nor the sound, adding his grain bin driers are louder than the turbines.
    “I’m not saying to do it or not do it,” said Sharkey. “It’s a personal choice, but it is a pretty good paycheck.” Sharkey receives a base payment of $10,000 per turbine and an annual increase of either two percent or the cost of living, whichever represents the greater figure.
    Gammalgard has noted the contracts utilize a variety of compensation methods and there does not seem to be a set formula for determining payments. “There are a lot of different revenue streams associated with wind turbines,” said Gammalgard. “You need to be prepared to say, ‘you are going to make a lot money from this and how am I going to benefit?’”