Best campaign sign of the season...
Wall Street Journal (9/25/22) reports: "A fight over a big wind project in central Ohio has become so contentious that some neighbors, longtime friends and even family members have stopped talking to each other. The dispute roiling Crawford County, a mostly flat expanse of farm country north of Columbus, is pitting farmers and other landowners who support the wind project and the new revenue streams it promises against others who fear it could permanently damage the landscape and their quality of life. The 300-megawatt Apex Clean Energy project, which could cover a swath of the county with 50 to 60 wind turbines that reach up to 650 feet high, is being put to a vote in a referendum in November. The referendum is the first countywide vote related to wind or solar development in Ohio, where a total of 10 counties passed resolutions this year banning such projects...Similar battles are playing out in Texas, Virginia and New York, with more poised to come, as the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act is boosting incentives for renewable projects. First Solar Inc., the biggest solar-panel maker in the U.S., said in August that it would spend $1.2 billion to increase manufacturing domestically by 75%. Utility-scale energy projects—from power transmission lines to wind farms and large-scale solar projects—frequently have faced a variety of hurdles, like permitting delays and challenges brought by local communities and environmental groups...Meanwhile, opponents say the development will disrupt rural life, damage property values and put birds and other wildlife at risk. Some said they don’t want farmland to be taken out of use and don’t believe renewable projects will deliver reliable energy to the grid."
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