11/3/2020. 10 Questions from Karen with answers from Javon Smith from Scout Clean Energy

1. Who is paying for this project?  Is the Federal Government subsidizing this project?
2. Over the life of the project how many dollars do you expect to receive from the Federal Government (i.e., the taxpayers since the government has no money of its own)?
3. Are you aware that the proposed location for this wind farm is in the middle of the Pacific Flyway?  Are you aware that a population of Bald Eagles, an endangered species, call the Horse Heaven Hills home?
4. If your company goes bankrupt, who will be responsible for taking down the turbines when they are old and outdated?
5. Are you bypassing our local permitting process and submitting your application through EFSEC to approve this wind farm.  Why are you skipping the county? Will you be holding local meetings for community members to comment on this project?
6. Will the local elected officials have a say in this project?
7. Who is taking the output of this project? Are our local utilities participating?
8. Will you still build the project if the community does not want it built here?
9. Who is conducting your Environmental Impact Studies?
10. Will you be releasing your Environmental impact Studies to the public? If so, when?

Good afternoon Karen,

Thanks for sharing your questions and concerns with us. We recognize the deep emotions that come with home ownership and respect your desire to protect that investment. 

We also appreciate your patience as we worked to prepare a thorough response to your list of questions. Your inquiry covers a wide range of topics, many of which are addressed on our project website at www.horseheavenwindfarm.com. We invite you to check this out, and also join our email list for project updates. You can also find many aspects of renewable energy development discussed on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/HorseHeavenWindFarm. 

Please see our responses below with numbers corresponding to your list of questions. 

1. Who is paying for this project?  Is the Federal Government subsidizing this project?

The Horse Heaven Wind Farm is being developed by Scout Clean Energy, a leading US renewable energy developer, owner, and operator headquartered in Boulder, Colorado.  Founded in 2016, Scout is a young company but made up of a long-standing management team with an extensive track record developing large-scale wind projects.  In 2017, Scout became a portfolio company of Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners, a clean energy investment fund. With Quinbrook’s financial resources Scout has the scale and impact to realize its vision. We take pride in our small company culture and amplify it with the resources necessary to get the job done for our community.

Every energy technology in the United States is subsidized, and wind energy is no exception. The Production Tax Credit (PTC) for wind provides a tax credit for each kilowatt-hour generated, over the first ten years of project operations. These credits help to level the playing field as oil, gas, and nuclear also receive federal subsidies that are in some cases permanent in the tax code. Wind energy still accounts for an extremely small share of all federal energy incentives, according to the most comprehensive review of energy incentives to date. Despite the recent focus on incentives for renewables, cumulatively wind energy has received only 3 percent of federal energy incentives, versus 86 percent for fossil and nuclear sources, according to the Nuclear Energy Institute. Other energy sources receive subsidies in many forms, including tax deductions, loan guarantees, liability insurance and leasing of public lands at below market prices.  

Tax credits ultimately provide lower cost power for the ratepayers consuming the electrical output, which has been the primary goal of this incentive.  

When discussing incentives and subsidies, we feel it’s important to also note that increases in county tax revenue generated by our private investment will funnel substantial benefits to the local community. At current levy rates, a 250 MW build-out of the project could generate $30 million in tax revenue for Benton County over the 25-year lifespan. Under current allocations, the largest proportion of those funds would support local schools.

1. Over the life of the project how many dollars do you expect to receive from the Federal Government (i.e., the taxpayers since the government has no money of its own)?

See #1.

1. Are you aware that the proposed location for this wind farm is in the middle of the Pacific Flyway?  Are you aware that a population of Bald Eagles, an endangered species, call the Horse Heaven Hills home?

We share the public’s concerns about bird and bat mortality, which is why we site our projects carefully to minimize impacts.  The site has been extensively studied in accordance with accepted wind industry guidelines for the recommended duration.  The permitting process will involve all appropriate stakeholders and the state and federal services involved in environmental permitting.  Mitigation will be prescribed where appropriate, and operational term incidental monitoring protocols will be established.

The Horse Heaven Wind Farm would be located near the Nine Canyon Wind Project, which has been operational since 2002.  A post-construction 2-year study as well as operational monitoring of that facility have also demonstrated low project impact to common avian and bat species. According to the US Fish & Wildlife Service, wind energy infrastructure causes a small fraction of all human-related bird deaths as compared to domestic cats, windows, and vehicles. In fact, the Audubon Society strongly supports properly sited wind energy facilities that reduce the threat to birds posed by a warming climate.

1. If your company goes bankrupt, who will be responsible for taking down the turbines when they are old and outdated?

Wind turbines have long life cycles, the Horse Heaven Wind Farm wind turbines will be required to be designed to operate for 25 years per international certification standards. To ensure the wind farm is removed and the landowner’s property is reclaimed when the project is no longer operational, the Horse Heaven Wind Farm will post security to cover these costs. This means neither the landowners, nor the local government will have to pay for removing the wind farm.

Decommissioning would be in accordance with Washington law, to include a preliminary Decommissioning Plan that will be submitted with Scout’ application as well as evidence of pollution liability insurance coverage and financial assurance sufficient to ensure the restoration and decommissioning of the Project site.  Those funds remain in place until decommissioning is completed to the satisfaction of EFSEC.

1. Are you bypassing our local permitting process and submitting your application through EFSEC to approve this wind farm.  Why are you skipping the county? Will you be holding local meetings for community members to comment on this project?

Scout plans to submit an application for site certification through Washington State Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC), the state board charged with the siting of major energy facilities. EFSEC provides a “one-stop” siting process for major energy facilities in the State of Washington as EFSEC coordinates all evaluation and licensing steps for siting. The EFSEC process does provide for participation by Benton County, who will review the application for consistency with local land use and zoning laws.

Scout originally intended to pursue local permitting and comply with Benton County land use laws throughout our development planning efforts. However, in recent months the project size and scope have expanded, as well as the evolving challenges associated with public meetings due to the pandemic; adding to the environmental review complexity. It is important to note here that Benton County Commissioners are not involved in and cannot influence the permitting or decision-making process related to Conditional Use Permits in Benton County. For applications filed with the county the Benton County Hearings Examiner would conduct a public hearing as required by Benton County code. 

Many people are surprised to learn that EFSEC will ensure robust public involvement opportunities that match or exceed the local permitting process. The state permitting process also ensures that expert resources are available to accomplish their review of a proposal without undue burden on local agencies with limited resources. Counties and cities may appoint a voting member to the siting council when a proposed project would be located within their boundaries. 

The state board provides opportunity for local participation from interested members of the public, offering multiple public hearings, and an opportunity to submit online comments. Due to current gathering restrictions in the state of Washington, EFSEC has held recent public hearings virtually, further expanding the accessibility for all interested persons to participate in the review process. 

At the end of its review–which includes public meetings, independent experts, environmental impact statements and formal hearings–EFSEC will forward a recommendation to the governor, who makes the final decision.

1. Will the local elected officials have a say in this project?

See #5.

1. Who is taking the output of this project? Are our local utilities participating?

The interplay between western energy markets, the Pacific Northwest, and the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) is the result of a long and complex history unique to the electricity industry in the Northwest. By sharing a larger and more diverse pool of loads and resources, system costs can be reduced, along with the probability of outages. Wind energy is among the cheapest available forms of electricity generation available in the U.S. today.

In 2019, the state enacted a law that commits Washington to a carbon-neutral energy supply by 2030.  Utilities across Washington State seek to use renewable energy for their electricity needs, and non-traditional Corporate and Industrial buyers are also increasing their commitment to renewable power.  These businesses have a rapidly growing appetite for affordable clean energy, and wind energy is poised to help meet that demand. 

Our project intends to interconnect into the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) transmission grid. BPA is responsible for the management of the Northwest Power Pool (NWPP) grid and does so in accordance with their Open Access Transmission Tariff (OATT). Please refer to the FERC Energy Primer for more information on this topic. https://www.ferc.gov/market-assessments/guide/energy-primer.pdf. 

Electric grids operate in a condition of simultaneous generation and consumption. Consequently, as energy follows the path of least resistance, generators in your area will supply the load for local demand. 

Scout does not currently have a purchase agreement or offtake agreement for the project, but is actively marketing the energy output to public utilities as well as commercial and industrial companies. Typically, purchase agreements are only secured after projects are permitted and under construction.

1. Will you still build the project if the community does not want it built here?

Development of wind energy is safe and beneficial for local communities, and Scout is invested in helping to educate the community about the science and history that support those facts. Benton County boasts strong wind resource, enthusiastic landowners, available transmission opportunities and a largely welcoming community.  

While there is a small yet vocal number of people who oppose this project, it’s important to also note that there are many others who support the Horse Heaven Wind Farm because of the significant economic benefits that will be generated within the local community, as well as the environmental benefits of developing clean, renewable energy in this region. 

1. Who is conducting your Environmental Impact Studies?

Scout has hired Tetra Tech, an environmental consulting firm, to oversee and conduct the environmental analysis and assist in preparing the EFSEC application. WEST Inc. Environmental & Statistical Consultants performed the avian and bat studies at the site. 

1. Will you be releasing your Environmental impact Studies to the public? If so, when?

The site certification process includes completing a Washington State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) environmental checklist. The EFSEC application timing is a commercial decision and Scout has not filed an application yet. The permitting process including public comment period and hearings will be determined once an application is formally submitted. You can learn more about the EFSEC Certification process here: https://www.efsec.wa.gov/about-efsec/certification-process.  

You also mentioned recycling and landfill concerns. Wind turbines contain reusable components and have a recyclability rate of 85% to 90%. Some of the components that are reusable and can be salvaged include the foundation, tower, gear box and generator due to the metal these components contain. Recycling turbine blades is challenging. Wind turbine blades are made up of composite materials that boost the performance of wind energy by allowing lighter and longer blades. The complexity of this composite material requires specific processes for recycling. Making environmentally sustainable wind turbines is a top priority for the wind energy industry. Recently, several solutions have been developed to recycle wind turbine blades, and a few established methods for recycling the blades are currently available. The wind energy industry is committed to research and develop new ways to recycle these composite materials. Today, the main technology for recycling composite waste is through cement co-processing. Further development of alternative technologies will provide the wind industry with additional end-of-life solutions. A Washington company, Global Fiberglass Solutions, has developed a method to crush the blades into pellets to be used in flooring and walls. Although turbines blades are large, all turbine blade waste through 2050 represents approximately 0.05% of all the municipal solid waste going to landfills every year, according to data from Electric Power Research Institute. 

We do appreciate your willingness to engage in a dialogue regarding the proposed Horse Heaven Wind Farm. Unfortunately, there is a great deal of misinformation regarding our project and wind energy in general which can lead to concern and confusion about what is being proposed. 

We are proud of our plans to develop wind energy resources in Benton County that are low impact and cost-competitive and welcome the opportunity to answer questions about the project.  When armed with the facts, we are confident you will find the Horse Heaven Wind Farm represents a win-win scenario for the local community and Washington industry.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out with further questions.

Javon Smith, Community Relations, Cell: 509-490-4892,javon@scoutcleanenergy.com