Energy and Wildlife Committees: Wind energy - meeting and wind-farm tour

Meeting: Wednesday, September 22, 7 - 8:30 pm (we will start at 7:00 sharp), Rockridge Branch of the Oakland Public Library, 5366 College Avenue, Oakland (five blocks from the Rockridge BART station; three bus lines stop in front of the library, and there is metered parking in the library lot and on nearby streets).

The Bay Chapter Energy and Wildlife Committees co-host a discussion on the impacts of wind-turbine design and siting on wildlife in the Altamont Pass (see article). Jeff Miller of the Center for Biodiversity (CBD) will discuss his group's appeal against the new permits for Altamont Pass wind turbines located in Alameda County. He will also discuss CBD's lawsuit against the nation's largest wind-farm operators. Representatives for the wind-power industry and the Alameda and Contra Costa Planning departments have been invited, but their participation may depend on the CBD lawsuit. Non-members and members alike are encouraged to attend.

Wind-farm tour - High Winds and Montezuma Hills

Saturday, September 25, 8 am to approximately noon.

Last year 91 state-of-the-art 1.8 MW wind turbines were installed at the High Winds Facility in the Bird Landing region of Solano County (the turbines are clearly visible across the Suisun Bay from Antioch and Pittsburgh). The Vestas V80 turbines are 328 feet tall (262-foot-diameter rotors mounted on 197-foot-tall towers) and have been described as both elegant and monstrous. While it is too soon to quantify the wildlife impact of these turbines, this is an excellent opportunity to experience firsthand the visual and noise impacts of large turbines. You will also be able to compare these turbines with the most common type of turbine in the Altamont pass, the Kenetech KCS-56 100 kW turbines, when we will tour the adjacent Montezuma Hills Wind Resource Area. If time and interest permit, some of the group can tour portions of the Altamont Pass Wind Resource Area afterwards.

We'll meet at an East Bay BART station, to be determined, and carpool to the turbine sites. For more information and to reserve a place, contact Tom Roberts at tc.roberts -at- mindspring.com or (415) 203-2781.