Friday, November 11, 2011

Orleans passes stricter zoning amendment on wind power

I am a resident of the Town of Orleans and I live in the wind district. Last night the Town Board accepted modifications to the 2007 Town’s Wind Law (Ordinance).

A town wind law’s purpose is to protect the health, safety and welfare of residents who will live among these wind turbine machines. It has been a long process of 5 years working with the Town Board, the Town Zoning Board, the Town Planning Board, the Town Citizens Wind Committee, the Town Attorney and the Town’s Economic Committee. We all have spent Hours and Hours of education and research, along with presentations by professionals in acoustic sound, wildlife preservation, communication technologists and other environmental and financial researchers to conclude that the 2007 Town Wind Law was NOT protective for the health safety and welfare of the residents. I thank all of these residents and members of these boards for taking the time to fully research and understand the technology of wind energy and the positives and the negatives how these machines will impact our town’s environment and lives of the residents. We all worked very hard. Amending the town’s wind law had to be done. It existed for one purpose only the developer. The new law will protect residents. Thank you to all my fellow residents who have worked so hard and given of their time and finances.

Patty Booras-Miller

LAFARGEVILLE — The Orleans Town Council passed a zoning law amendment on Thursday night to beef up its restrictions on wind turbines.

Compared to the town’s original zoning law on wind turbines, the new amendment decreases the allowed height of turbines from 500 feet to 400 feet. It establishes relative noise standards, as opposed to the absolute 50 decibels in the old law.

The recommendation from the town’s wind committee and Planning Board had been property-line setbacks of 3,000 feet when the total height allowed was 500 feet.

The council talked about a relative standard.

Read the entire article

No comments: