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Otsego 2000 E-Bulletins
February April June July
Our Comments on the
Jordanville Wind Power Project
Regarding the Supplement to the Draft Environmental Impact Statement:
In light of what Otsego 2000 officials, their consultants, and a number of other interested parties agree are “serious
flaws that make the document inaccurate and misleading,” the Warren Town Board is being asked to require that Community Energy Inc. amend its recent Supplement to the Draft Environmental Impact Statement of the Jordanville Wind Power Project.
Only then, say Otsego 2000 representatives, will the “hard look” required by law under New York’s Environmental Quality Review Act have been taken. Click here to view comments submitted by Otsego 2000.
Harry Levine of Advocates for Springfield has also commented in writing on the SDEIS, on behalf of that organization, concurring
that the SDEIS has failed to document a range of environmental impacts and appropriate mitigation. Click on the links below to read those comments:
• Letter to Bernard Melewski, legal counsel, Town of Warren
• List of concerns about the Jordanville SDEIS
• Exhibit A - SDEIS Section 3.9, Socioeconomics
• Exhibit B - SDEIS Section 3.5, Aesthetic/Visual Resources
and Night Lighting
Additional comments submitted included:
• Report: "Evaluation of Environmental Noise Analysis for 'Jordanville Wind Power Project,'" by Richard H. Bolton, President, Environmental Compliance Alliance, at the request of Advocates for Stark
• Letter to Warren Town Board regarding lack of detail in the SDEIS regarding the project decommissioning fund and construction bonding, written by Sue Brander of Advocates for Stark
• Review of SDEIS sections 3.1 and 3.2 by Nicholas Pressly, Environmental Projects Manager, Pressly & Associates, Inc.
About Nicholas Pressly
Regarding the Draft Environmental
Impact Statement:
Otsego 2000 has contracted with various experts to comment on the
Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Jordanville Wind Power Project, culminating in the document "Legal, Visual, Cultural Landscape & Noise Reports for Otsego 2000 and Advocates for Stark to the Town of Warren Town Board." The following are reports and studies that were completed as part of this review:
Viewshed Analysis, Visibility Study, Jordanville Wind Energy Project - August 2, 2006
Completed by Stone Environmental, Inc. for Otsego 2000
Three maps - click on links to view:
• 399’ map, shows the visibility of the project based on the height of the turbine (to the tip of the blade)
• 262’ map, shows the visibility of the project at nacelle height (approximates nighttime visibility of the project)
• 199’ map, shows visibility of the project if the height of the turbine was lower so no nighttime lighting would be required
About Stone Environmental, Inc.
Methodology Used in Preparing Photomontages and a Nighttime Photosimulation for the Proposed Windfarm in Jordanville, NY - August 2, 2006
Prepared by James A. Zack, President Xtra-Spatial Productions, LLC for Otsego 2000
About James A Zack
Photosimulations of Pt. Florence
• original digital photograph
• original photo, blue sky added, no turbines
• simulated blue sky, with turbines
• original photo, with turbines
• nighttime with turbines
Photosimulations prepared by James A. Zack,
Xtra-Spatial Productions, LLC
Photosimulation of Thayer Farm, blue sky with turbines
Review of Jordanville Wind Power Project DEIS Visual Impact Assessment & Cultural Resources Survey
and
List of Images Referenced
August 2, 2006
Completed by Heritage Landscapes for Otsego 2000
About Heritage Landscapes
DEIS Noise Impact Preliminary Review - August 2, 2006
Completed by Ronald Bielinski, PE, AIA, CIH, INCE for Otsego 2000
Assessment of Potential Impacts to Local Water Resources, As Well As the Upper Susquehanna River and Mohawk River Watersheds
Completed by Pressly & Associates, Inc. for Otsego 2000 and Advocates for Stark
For more information about the Jordanville Wind Power Project, click here.
To read the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Jordanville Wind Power Project, click here.
For DEIS supporting figures and appendices, click here.
Recent Press Releases
DEC Faults Jordanville Wind Project DEIS:
Water Supply at Risk
VAN HORNESVILLE – In a letter dated September 8, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) wrote to Bernard C. Melewski, special counsel for the Town of Warren and the Town of Stark, of DEC concerns about the proposed Jordanville Wind Power Project. In the letter, DEC Project Manager Stephen Tomasik, warned that the karst topography of the region could suffer serious environmental impacts if the project’s 75 wind turbines are constructed prior to further studies.
“Karst topography” is defined as an area of bedrock -- usually limestone or dolomite -- which is capable of being dissolved by surface water or ground water. Typical karst features include sinkholes, ravines and underground streams.
To read complete press release, click here.
Agencies Concerned About Potential Environmental
Impacts of Wind Power Project
COOPERSTOWN -- The period for public comment on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement of the Jordanville Wind Power Project, proposed by Community Energy, Inc., ended on August 4. Having voiced its concerns about the project in the document "Legal, Visual, Cultural Landscape & Noise Reports for Otsego 2000 and Advocates for Stark to the Town of Warren Town Board," Otsego 2000 has been making it a point to find out what other involved and interested agencies thought of the DEIS.
According to the legal notice submitted by Bernard C. Melewski, special counsel to the Town of Warren and Town of Stark, "Potential environmental impacts from the proposed action include but are not limited to visual impacts, impacts on agriculture, roads, wildlife, water resources, soils, communication facilities and the socio-economic impacts of the project on the community."
To read complete press release, click here.
Otsego 2000 Findings on Wind Power
Project DEIS Now Online
COOPERSTOWN -- Upon release of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Jordanville Wind Power Project in early June 2006 Otsego 2000 contracted with a number of experts to comment on the project DEIS.
The studies completed as part of this review -- culminating in the document "Legal, Visual, Cultural Landscape & Noise Reports for Otsego 2000 and Advocates for Stark to the Town of Warren Town Board" -- are now available online.
To read complete press release, click here.
Special Hearing Called To Hear Public Comment
on Wind Power Project
COOPERSTOWN – Otsego and Herkimer county residents wishing to express concerns about the Jordanville Wind Power Project will get their chance on Thursday, July 27.
The Town of Warren has scheduled a second public hearing on the subject, set to begin at 6:30 p.m. at Owen D. Young School in Van Hornesville, and has also extended the public comment period for the proposed project through August 4.
To read complete press release, click here.
Wind Turbines and Historic Landscapes:
A Statement by Otsego 2000
In the past few years, there have been various proposals to erect large "wind farms" of very tall turbines, producing electric power at several locations in the Town of Cherry Valley. Current wind studies suggest that the areas proposed for these wind farms are of excellent wind potential. At the same time, these projects would impinge visually on areas that have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places, notably the Glimmerglass and Lindesay Patent Historic Districts, with potential serious injury to our scenic rural landscapes and to the tourist and other businesses based on those landscapes.
To read complete statement, click here.
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