And still they lead me back
To the long winding road
You left me standing here
A long, long time ago
Don’t leave me waiting here
Lead me to your door
— “The Long and Winding Road,” Lennon and
McCarthy, 1970
Recently “60 minutes” did a story on a wind project in Wyoming. If completed as scheduled in 2026, Chokecherry and Sierra Madre — hence CCSM — will produce the highest output of any single wind farm project in the world.
What makes this an interesting story is that Wyoming is the largest coal-producing state in the country, producing 42% of the nation’s coal, according to the Energy Information Administration. Given that Wyoming is predominately a red state makes this project a test to see if progress in clean energy can be made across party lines. It will prove that wind-produced electricity is cheap to install and has a very good Return on Investment.
It’s ideal wind location and can provide energy steadily with fewer intervals of interruption. As with most wind and solar sites, it is off the beaten path. This means that a grid system has to be installed, which recently was approved. This electricity is expected to be sold to California about 800 miles away, assuring a firm consumer base for the future and extending our ever expanding grid system.
The project’s success would be monumental. In a previous article I pointed out that wind power was opposed in Congress even before our entry into WWII.
Here’s a look at the timeline of the CCSM project (the long timeline, that is):
• Nov. 16, 2006 — Rights-of-way applications.
• June 14-15, 2007 — Bureau of Land Management issued rights-of-way grants.
• Jan. 30, 2008 — The Power Company of Wyoming filed rights-of-way application with BLM for wind energy development.
• July 25, 2008 — BLM published a Federal Register to prepare the Environmental Impact Statement.
• August 2008 — BLM conducted public scoping.
• 2008-2011 — BLM conducting studies and surveys.
• July 22, 2011 — BLM published a Federal Register to announce the Draft EIS.
• July 3, 2012 — BLM published a Federal Register to announce the Final EIS.
• Oct. 2, 2012 — Carbon County Commission unanimously approved a conditional use permit.
• Oct. 9, 2012 — The BLM authorized to proceed with site-specific environmental analysis.
• Dec. 6, 2012 — Approved a wind energy lease with PCW for up to 25 turbines.
• September 2013 — BLM conducted public scoping for Site-Specific Environmental Assessment 1.
• December 2013 — BLM conducted public scoping for Site-Specific Environmental Assessment 2
• Dec. 4, 2013 — Phase I eagle permit application and conducted public scoping.
• July 15, 2014 — Carbon County Commission unanimously approved a conditional use permit extension.
• Aug. 6, 2014 — State of Wyoming Industrial Siting Council unanimously approved a permit to construct and operate the wind project. The permit was signed and granted Sept. 12.
• Dec. 23, 2014 — Finding of No New Significant Impact.
• Sept. 15, 2015 — Carbon County Commission unanimously approved a conditional use permit extension.
• April 29, 2016 — Draft EIS for Phase I Eagle Take Permits.
• Aug. 25, 2016 — BLM issued a right-of-way grant and notice to proceed for infrastructure components.
• Sept. 9, 2016 — PCW commenced construction on road infrastructure.
• Dec. 9, 2016 — Announce the Final EIS for Phase I Eagle Take Permits.
• Jan. 18, 2017 — BLM completed Site-Specific EA2 and issued a Finding of No New Significant Impacts.
• March 9, 2018 — BLM completed a Determination of NEPA Adequacy.
• Dec. 2, 2019 — BLM issued a Finding of No New Significant Impacts.
• Nov. 5, 2021 — PCW secured transmission capacity on the TWE Project. Project continues construction and environmental compliance activities in alignment with permit requirements and conditions.
That listing is intended to give the patient reader a feeling for what should be a simple process but in fact has not been. The location is key for several reasons. For instance, it is situated in a highly productive wind zone. It is isolated, in a virtually unpopulated area, and it does not interfere with other uses of the land such as cattle grazing. However it is partially government-owned land. With such an arrangement one could expect some delays but not this many.
CCSM will serve 1% of our nation’s homes. At 10 cents a kilowatt, CCSM will bring in revenue of $1.2 billion annually based on projected production of 12 terrawatts. The cost of CCSM is $5 billion. The area covered by the turbines is 1,500 acres.
Taking these factors into consideration this means that within the wind zone parameters and multiplying the aforementioned figures by 100 with the anticipated result of providing electricity for 100% of American homes we can determine the yearly revenue would be $120 billion and the area covered would be 150,000 acres.
For comparison sake, the current area in restoration from the damage created by mountain-topping for coal alone is 1.4 million acres, much of which cannot be restored while other areas, with soil so contaminated, will require filtration. Right now the EPA has already allocated $11 billion in taxpayer money to repair this area. That also includes 9,000 miles of rivers and streams polluted with cadmium, arsenic, mercury, etc.
This does not cover the billions of taxpayer dollars to assist the sick in the Appalachia. A review from the wind maps provided by www.NREL.gov shows a similar region of wind in the Appalachias primarily in the mountains of West Virginia that compares with the wind resources of those in Wyoming. While much less of an area than CCSM, it none the less could accommodate a significant amount of wind turbines. Yet a considerable amount of this land is now permanently scared.
In conclusion this project’s successful completion would be a beacon for the justification of wind power where the wind is prevalent. Such strong evidence that its detractors could not deny its viability, safety, security and costs. While I am not a conspiracy theorist it does seem an abnormal time has elapsed since its inception. A wind turbine does not have the issues of a nuclear plant such as handling dangerous fuel, continuous substantial water supply, national security issues, and fuel purchased from unfriendly nations.
* (Author’s opinion is always very humble.)
Correction: Last month’s “Alternate Energy” erred in stating that renewables surpassed nuclear and fossil fuels in electricity production; it should be that renewables surpassed coal/nuclear in electricity production.
Jim Bobreski of Penn Yan is a process control engineer in power production for 43 years. He also is the author of “Alternate Energy and Climate Change in the Age of Trump,” available at Longs’ Bookstore in Penn Yan and on Amazon.com.
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