CAPE VINCENT — BP Wind Energy hopes to bypass strict local restrictions proposed for wind turbines and expedite the approval of its Cape Vincent Wind Farm by submitting an application to a state siting board under Article X of the 2011 Power NY Act.
Cape Vincent’s town government is preparing to adopt tougher rules on wind farms and plans to update its zoning law as soon as Aug. 1.
BP spokeswoman Amanda Abbott said in an email that the company already has a substantial investment in the project and that it is seeking an Article X process “that will facilitate its development and construction of the Cape Vincent Wind Farm.”
Article X generally imposes a 12-month deadline for the approval of the construction and operation of major electric generating facilities of 25 megawatts or higher. BP had told the state Public Service Commission that the Cape Vincent project “can reach upwards of approximately 285 megawatts in size.”
In its own comments to the PSC on Article X, BP said that any override of local laws should be provided by the state siting board early in the process and that the “local community should bear the burden of proof to demonstrate why the more restrictive requirements are appropriate.”
The town of Cape Vincent today is gathering public feedback on both the newly updated zoning law and the Comprehensive Plan at public hearings at the Community House on Market Street.
The town board will hear comments on the Comprehensive Plan from 9 a.m. to noon and on the zoning law from 2 to 5 p.m.
Read the entire article
No comments:
Post a Comment