This state's commitment to alternate forms of energy got a needed boost when the state Supreme Court gave the green light to a Kittitas County wind farm, ending nearly six years of delays.
The high court looked to the broader issue of a greater public good in upholding earlier approval of the project by Gov. Chris Gregoire. The governor, in turn, had based her decision on recommendations of the state Energy Facilities Site Evaluation Council. The council coordinates the evaluation and licensing steps for major energy projects, such as pipelines and power plants, and makes recommendations to the governor's office.
The unanimous court decision ends a six-year battle over plans for a $200 million wind farm with 65 turbines on the ridges flanking U.S. Highway 97, about 12 miles northwest of Ellensburg. The disputed project is proposed by Houston-based Horizon Wind Energy.
The ruling is precedent-setting in that it upholds an orderly energy policy for the state. While local input is certainly necessary, the bigger picture must include consideration of a public mandate that renewable energy, such as wind power, is to be part of the future power mix in this state. That mandate came with voter approval of Initiative 937 in 2006, a "clean energy" measure that requires the state's large utility companies to increase renewable energy sources to 15 percent of their supply by 2020.
And when it comes to wind power, you put the turbines where the wind blows consistently, which makes Kittitas County sites prime contenders.
Kittitas County already has Puget Sound Energy's Wild Horse wind farm, and local officials recently approved an expansion of that project. The county also has approved another wind project from Chicago-based Invenergy Wind North America.
It's unfortunate that this issue wound up being framed as a struggle between local and state control, when in fact something of this magnitude must include input from both levels of government. The governor and EFSEC ultimately did overrule the Kittitas County commissioners, but the siting process must look to larger public interests that do not stop at county lines.
It's understandable that some property owners in the area don't want any intrusion by the 410-foot-tall turbines and we can appreciate local elected officials who acknowledged constituent concerns. But those concerns were mitigated substantially when Horizon slashed the originally proposed number of wind machines from 121 to 65.
And, as we noted in earlier editorials, only six structures — five permanent residents and one seasonal vacation home — were within 1,650 feet of a turbine. Another nine are within 2,000 feet and they spread out from there.
We also point out that EFSEC is broadly representative of public interests. The council draws members from the state departments of Ecology, Fish and Wildlife, Natural Resources, Community, Trade and Economic Development and the Utilities and Transportation Commission.
This case was hardly decided in a vacuum. Wind farms are not unprecedented in Kittitas County and this one was singled out for not-in-my-backyard special attention. It has dragged on six years while concerns were addressed and many mitigated.
After EFSEC approved the Horizon project in March, Gregoire asked the council members to take a second look for possible tweaking. The panel did that, again recommended approval and only then did the governor sign off on it.
We would say the process worked as it should, with extensive review, public input and mitigation. Now it's time to move on in a continued search for renewable energy.
