March 28, 2024

LETTER: Support your neighbors

Your article in the Aug. 10 edition of the Creston News Advertiser really didn’t provide the full and accurate account of what happened to stop the Arbor Hill wind turbine project in Madison County.

In December 2020, after years of public pressure, our Supervisors passed a protective zoning wind ordinance based upon a due diligence review of the scientific research.

MidAmerican Energy then filed a lawsuit in January 2021 against the supervisors and county claiming they had a vested interest in their Arbor Hill project based upon the prior zoning ordinance.

The truth is Madison County had no zoning ordinance for industrial wind prior to that. County officials had simply allowed MidAmerican Energy to proceed with development according to their own company standards.

It was MidAmerican Energy who offered to reduce the number of turbines in their proposed Arbor Hill project from 52 to 30 if the supervisors would settle by rescinding the 2020 ordinance. Supervisor Fitch, who was elected on a promise to protect citizens from industrial wind, caved to pressure.

The result was our Supervisors voted to settle the lawsuit in February 2022 on a 2-1 margin and rescinded the ordinance. Only Supervisor Stancil stood by her promises and oath of office.

These negotiations between MidAmerican Energy and county government officials failed to consider the very people most impacted.The majority of residents and landowners in the project footprint did not want to be exposed to the risks of living near industrial wind turbines and had never signed any consent to this infringement of their property rights.

We kept up the fight! Many landowners, who had previously signed easements, including my husband and I, no longer wanted to participate and voiced our concerns to MidAmerican Energy and requested termination of easements and for the project to be terminated.

In the end, MidAmerican failed to obtain and retain adequate landowner and resident support to make the project viable.

The lesson for other citizens battling proposed industrial wind projects from Madison County is this: talk to, organize with and support your neighbors and be involved in county government. We still live in a Constitutional representative republic founded upon the inalienable natural rights of we, the people, and where the purpose of government is to secure our rights.