End of the Trail for New Era Wind Farm

Citizens hope that the New Era industrial wind project ‘s upcoming Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (MPUC)hearing will be its last. MPUC staff briefing papers for the June 20, 2013 hearing provide two pages of options for Commissioner’s to bring to a close the most contested project in Minnesota history. Staff detailed the previous months’ power purchase contract default letters between Xcel, current project owner Peter J. Mastic, and the project’s legal counsel at Fredrickson and Byron. MPUC staff also point to their thorough February 2013 briefing papers.  Commission staff and citizens teed up this former T. Boone Pickens' project to be put out of its misery by Commissioners. The February hearing ended in citizen disgust as MPUC Commissions acted on advice of their legal counsel by sitting on their hands waiting, again, for someone else to end this mess.

All vital signs have pointed to the death of New Era/ AWA Goodhue since T. Boone Pickens’ Mesa Power sold the troubled project to Peter Mastic. Mastic, former CEO of the projects former development company, National Wind, bought the project  in October 2012. Xcel’s June 2013 update brings no hope of this project continuing. The contracts are in default. All timelines for remedy have long expired. In addition to not responding to citizens phone calls and letters, Xcel and the MPUC say Mr. Mastic has been Unresponsive to them as well. Xcel’s attorneys told Fredrickson and Byron’s Dan Yarano that New Era can voluntarily withdraw from the contracts “immediately”, or Xcel will begin proceedings in District Court. Evidently, "immediately" illicited no response.

"As we stated in our response...May 24, 2013, [Xcel] would commence a declaratory judgment action in Minnesota District Court in the event we were unable to work out a voluntary termination of the PPAs. We filed this Declaratory Judgment with the Fourth District Judicial Court on June 14, 2013.... The purpose for this action will be to resolve any questions over whether the magnitude and quality of New Era’s defaults are sufficient to justify termination for default." Xcel; June 17, 2013

 

After three pages of whining, Mr. Mastics April letter finally states, indirectly, that he is no longer pursuing a project in Goodhue County, Minnesota. Mr. Mastic implies that he has been attempting to sell his Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) to projects in Minnesota “communities more welcoming”.

"New Era has no confidence that due process for this project will ever end, nor that an ABPP will ever be approved, however comprehensively and carefully drafted."

"New Era made a series of proposals to [Xcel], backed by three different project owners.... Each of these projects is sited in a community that is far more receptive to wind energy than is Goodhue." Peter Mastic 4/17/2013

The Coalition for Sensible Siting congratulates citizens on the death of industrial wind fanatasies in Goodhue County. Citizens shined the light of truth on this project through relentless, five year engagement in an often hideous always iased process. Communities "more receptive to wind energy" generally means communities uneducated or un-engaged. We have yet to find a fully informed community that welcomes Big Wind.

"[New Era] has (i) failed to advance construction of the Goodhue Project in the timeframes required by the Agreements (even as extended by claimed periods of force majeure) and [New Era] has provided NSP with no plan to advance construction of the Goodhue Project as required by the PPAs; (ii) failed to establish a Security Fund to protect NSP in the event of Project delays or breaches of contract, in breach of...the Agreements; (iii) failed to pay liquidated Delay Damages in the contractual amounts and timeframes, in breach...of the Agreements as amended; and (iv) allowed for a change of control of the Goodhue Project without prior written approval by NSP, in breach of...the Agreements. Defendant has failed to cure these material breaches of the Agreements." Xcel; June 14, 2013

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A New Era Dawns in Goodhue Minnesota

A collective cheer shook the cold, wet countryside of Goodhue County. In a last minute tantrum filed late this afternoon, Peter Mastic revealed the New Era Wind Farm is no longer seeking to force industrial wind turbines into the rolling farm country of South East Minnesota. The former T. Boone Pickens project is the most contentious in State history, and has become nationally known as a problematic renewable energy project. The project became more divisive after filing the country's first wind project application to obtain an Incidental Take Permit (ITP), in order to slaughter bald eagles without the threat of federal prosecution.  

 

Never popular with the local citizens, the limited early support dwindled to a handful of families. Many local citizens have battled the proposed project for five years. Peter Mastic bought the troubled project from Picken's Mesa Power last October after heading National Wind, the proposed project's first owner and former developer.

After a three-and-a-half-page rant, Mastic finally admits, "New Era has no confidence that due process for this project will ever end, nor that an [Avian and Bat Protection Plan] will ever be approved...".

"...In an effort to reach a more practical solution that would...allow New Era to recover at least a portion of its investment, New Era initiated discussions [in December 2012] with [Xcel Energy] to assign its power contracts to a third-party wind project developer and site. ...New Era made a series of proposals... backed by three different project owners.... Each of these projects is sited in a community that is far more receptive to wind energy than is Goodhue."

 

"[Xcel] chose to reject all of these proposals. ...In its April 12, 2013 letter to New Era, [Xcel] stated that New Era would have 30 days from that date to effect a cure of the power contract defaults....for the remainder of the 30-day period specified by [Xcel], New Era will continue to attempt to complete the assignment and the cure of any and all defaults under the power contracts."

 

This is the first time citizens have successfully turned back an industrial wind project in Minnesota - a state with one of the strongest mandates in the nation for Big Wind. Given the extraordinary regulatory favoritism and financial largess, the demise of Goodhue Wind/ AWA Goodhue/ New Era is miraculous. Relentless participation by the remarkable people of Goodhue County paid off. Congratulations.

 

The Coalition for Sensible Siting has been a voice for citizens in this battle to prevent industrial wind devastation in a vibrant rural community with a remarkably diverse and healthy ecosystem.

 

 

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Bald Eagle Annual Deaths As High As 14

United States Fish and Wildlife Service predicts that between 8 and 14 American bald eagles could be killed annually if New Era Wind Farm is built as currently designed. The outcome of USFWS's eagle mortality models are dramatically higher than one eagle every-other-year as predicted by New Era's consultant Westwood Professional Services. 
 
In November 2012, New Era was the first wind facility in the nation to apply to the USFWS for an "Incidental Take Permit" to be allowed to kill bald eagles with their wind turbines without the danger of federal prosecution. Bald eagles are protected under the federal Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. Without an ITP, killing an eagle is against federal law. The ITP process for New Era is not yet completed.

The eagle mortality rates were one part of extensive analysis and comments that USFWS provided in response to New Era's updated Avian and Bat Protection Plan (ABPP) required by the State of Minnesota. Overall, the USFWS found a number of problems with the ABPP methodology and conclusions. The 2010 avian study reported zero nests and no eagles flying in the wind project area; USFWS estimates the area bald eagle population at well over 400. Problems identified by USFWS included a warning about killing golden eagles, which also fly through the area. The Service made it clear that there is no possibility of obtaining an ITP for golden eagles in this area of the country, so that killing one would be a federally prosecutable offense.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources provided comments on the same ABPP. The DNR raised concerns about Northern Harriers, Henslow Sparrow, bats and other wildlife potentially impacted by the project and the lack of data provided by New Era. Northern Harriers are listed as a bird of national concern by the USFWS and a Species of Greatest Conservation Need by DNR.

Goodhue County is located within the broad corridor of the Mississippi River Flyway. This is the largest migration route in North America. Millions of birds pass through and stop over this area on their annual spring and fall travels. The New Era ABPP shows a failure to perform avian migration field studies despite the project's advanced stage in the State permitting process.  Bats are also high on the list of concerns expressed by USFWS and the MN DNR. Bats are a keystone species known to die in large numbers at wind facilities

Few wildlife impact studies have been done before, or after, the construction of industrial wind facilities in the United States. However, the studies that have been done suggest high mortality of birds and bats. Raptors, such a eagles, are known to be at high risk of being struck and killed by wind turbine blades. A study in SW Minnesota showed a 47% reduction in raptor numbers after construction of wind turbines. It is not clear how many died, and how many abandoned the area as no-longer-suitable habitat. Bats die both from blade strikes and barotrauma.

New Era Wind Farm is a 78 MW industrial facility proposed for central Goodhue County in southeastern Minnesota. The project became nationally infamous under its previous owner, Texas billionaire T. Boone Pickens. During Pickens' ownership the project was called AWA Goodhue and was wholely owned by his Dallas based Mesa Power. The lack of local public support and the high number of educated and concerned citizens has made this the most controversial wind project in Minnesota history. Peter Mastic, formerly the developer, purchased the wind project from Pickens last fall and changed the name to "New Era Wind Farm."

The previous ABPP for this project was rejected by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission at a hearing on February 23, 2012. It is unclear when the MPUC may hold a hearing on the updated ABPP. Due to Minnesota State laws promoting industrial wind, this project is not required to produce an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) as required of other industries.

The Coalition for Sensible Siting is proud of the extensive and important feedback citizens provided on the ABPP. The USFWS and the MN DNR provided excellent and thorough review and comment on the ABPP. Many concerns raised by citizens (below) where confirmed by USFWS and MN DNR.

The updated New Era Wind Farm Avian and Bat Protection Plan (4 parts):

ABPP
Appendices A-P
Exhibits 1-9
Exhibits 10-19

Citizen Comments on the ABPP:

No migration studies in the Mississippi Flyway - Mary Jo O'Rielly
Bald Eagle nest missing from ABPP - Doug Sommers
Failure to study owls - Kelly Norman
Failure to study raptors - Kristi Rosenquist
Eagles, Owls and site control - Rick Conrad
Turbines closer than 2 miles from Bald Eagle nests - Ann Buck
Northern Harriers at risk - Bill O'Reilly
Telling residents how to farm and hunt is nonsense - Joe Hernke
Turbines near conservation lands - Jon Stussy
New Era lacks site control - Rochelle Nygaard
New nest and important eagle use area - Connie Ludwig
Misleading data and failure to perform required surveys - Barb Stussy
Misrepresenting Important Eagle Use Areas - Bob Rosenquist
Waterfowl migration missing - Scott Logan
Turbines located on forest edges - Marilyn Jonas
Raptor nests and territories missing from maps - Scott Logan
Misrepresents eagles and fails to study other species - Mary Hartman
Assessment of turbine distance misleading - Kristi Rosenquist
Obligating local government and citizens without due process - Paul Reese
Request the MPUC perform a site visit - Marie McNamara
60 minute point counts lasted only 45 minutes - Scott Logan
Northern Harrier and other hawk data missing - Erin Logan
Failure to perform required field surveys - Sue Hinrichs
Failure to avoid CRP and other conservation lands - Tom Gale
Performing bat surveys with broken towers - Mary Hartman
Eagle point counts from poor vantage point - Scott Husbyn
Bat mortality at 7800 annually? - Mary Hartman

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"New Era" for T. Boone Pickens' Wind Project

New Era Wind Farm

After three years, T. Boone Pickens has officially taken his lost a** home to Texas.  The Coalition for Sensible Siting congratulates rural Minnesota residents on this major victory. When Pickens' Mesa Power/ American Wind Alliance purchased the proposed AWA Goodhue Project from National Wind in December 2009, it looked like a sure bet:
1. Minnesota has one of the strongest wind mandates in the nation.

2. Wind is exempt from MN laws regulating electrical producers and agricultural land use.

3. MN State turbine siting "standards" written by Enron Wind in the early 1990s.

4. Xcel agreed to purchase the electricity at the highest rate ever paid for MN wind power.

5. Transmission space available.

6. Developer's attorney helped draft MN's Renewable Energy Standard when employed by the MN Department of Commerce.

7. Direct access lobbying then Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty for support.

8. Goodhue County had no land use ordinance for large wind energy projects.

9. Dept. of Commerce staff cheerleading the project at the Public Utilities Commission.

10. Outdated studies of Bald Eagles nesting in Goodhue County.

11. Federal Section 1603 up front cash-for-turbines incentive of about $50 million.

Despite Minnesota supplying a vehicle (law), a driver (Commerce) and a six land highway (mandate) to speed wind developers to the federal money, Pickens pulled out. Rural neighbors joined together and stopped one of the wealthiest and most politically connected men in the world.

The most timely and accurate reporting has come from dynamite young reporter Brett Boese of the Rochester Post Bulletin. Most recently, Boese broke the sale of National Wind to Trishe nearly a week ahead of larger Statewide papers. He broke the change of AWA Goodhue to New Era ahead of the pack as well.

In an October 12, 2012 press release, Peter Mastic announced that his newest corporate creation, New Era Wind Farm, bought "100% of...AWA Goodhue, LLC from American Wind Alliance, LLC of Dallas Texas." The Minneapolis StarTribune reported that Mastic is the sole owner and only employee of New Era.

Mr. Mastic claims an advisory board of active participants. The vast majority of local residents have consistently been against the project. Initially, about 7 of 8 landowners who were offered money to lease their land for turbines refused to participate. Since then many of the participants have withdrawn, citing breach of contract by the project. With Peter Mastic at the helm, the no-longer-participating landowners were sued. Mr. Mastic also presided over dragging a local farmer into Court using fabricated accusations of harassment. Local sentiment makes it clear that Peter Mastic and all his local supporters should be able to meet comfortably at New Era's new address - P.O. Box 307, Goodhue MN.

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