Agency wants to simplify residential wind permits

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March 12, 2009

By KIM SMITH DEDAM and MICHAEL VIRTANEN The Press Republican Fri May 14, 2010, 07:13 PM EDT

RAY BROOK — The Adirondack Park Agency is looking to make it easier for residents to build small-scale wind turbines in the 6-million-acre park.

A first draft of the proposal was presented to commissioners Thursday, suggesting ways to streamline certain permits for turbines with wind-swept heights, including blades no more than 125 feet above ground.

The new policy would allow homeowners to work with the APA to complete a desktop visibility study of a proposed turbine site. Wind turbines, which have towers more than 40 feet tall, are subject to substantial invisibility guidelines in the APA Towers Policy.

APA staff planner Lee Walrath devised a new computer-modeling system using USGS topographic and ground cover maps to assess visibility impact at any site.

Visibility studies are often one of the key impediments to wind-turbine permits. And wind-energy alternatives have proved daunting to Adirondack residents, since small-scale wind power grows exponentially with turbine height.

But the taller the tower, the more visible it gets.

In talking with the few homeowners who installed wind turbines in the Adirondacks, Walrath said, visual analysis and balloon tests proved costly.

Still, six such towers have been built in the park in the past 10 years, including two nearly 100 feet tall on a dead-end road in Vermontville, where there are no power lines.

Desktop review could be a ready tool for site evaluation, he said.

The height cap of 125 feet is based on wind technology.

The rule of thumb for optimal wind energy is to reach 30 feet above the average tree height, Walrath said. The average height in a 50-year-old stand of trees is 60 to 70 feet.

Mark Sengenberger, executive director of regulatory programs, said APA receives less than one small-scale wind-turbine-project application per year.

Interest could improve with a general permit for small-scale wind.

"We hope to get to a general permit for a certain subset of wind turbines," Sengenberger said, especially since wind power is a viable resource here.

Walrath provided a map that shows the northern Adirondacks have some of the strongest wind potential in the nation, with winds that travel at speeds similar to the Great Lakes and Long Island shorelines.

In a general permit, review for small-scale wind generation would be measured against the Breeding Bird Atlas to evaluate any threats to endangered bird species or habitats for endangered Indiana Bats.

And the Federal Aviation Administration requires a permit if the top of the turbine is more than 200 feet tell or within 20,000 feet of an airport, Walrath said.

Still APA would have to consult with the military for small-scale turbines more than 85 feet if the proposed project was located in a Military Training Route or a Military Operations Area, since jets sometimes fly low in pilot training over the Adirondacks. The location could require a low-intensity light bulb on top of the wind tower.

In addition, a general permit would require wind turbines set back 150 feet from any property boundary.

And the project would have to demonstrate no need for a variance from the local zoning board.

APA commissioners Leilani Ulrich commended Walrath for creating a desktop visibility analysis program, saying it could prove an effective cost-saving tool for staff and homeowners.

Environmental groups are watching the policy evolve carefully.

Sean Mahar of Audubon New York said his organization will study the draft policy.

Adirondack Council spokesman John Sheehan said the Adirondack wilderness offers many opportunities for renewable energy, including solar and hydropower.

"This is one we think can be tapped relatively easily by a lot of homeowners," Sheehan said of wind generation.

"It certainly beats burning coal to make power. I think the more energy independent the people in the Adirondacks are the better off they'll be. The grid is still pretty feeble in the park."

APA commissioners are expected Friday to submit the proposal for public comment, then reconsider it with possible revisions in April.

E-mail Kim Smith Dedam at: kdedam@pressrepublican.com