RRStar: Letter to Editor/Guest Opinion: Sierra Club

 

My View: Wind energy a boon for Boone County

-Posted Dec. 21, 2013 @ 1:00 pm

Boone County is blessed with some of our state's best resources. The rich soil yields the crops that feed our families and neighbors while bolstering Illinois' powerful agricultural economy. Now Boone County has a chance to harvest another critical resource in increasing demand - its enormous wind energy potential.

Wind is a clean, safe energy option that is already playing an important role in strengthening Illinois' public health and economic vitality. Since 2007, clean energy has saved Illinois consumers $177 million in wholesale power prices and created almost 20,000 Illinois jobs, according to studies by the Illinois Power Agency and Illinois State University. At the same time, renewable energy has helped Illinois citizens enjoy cleaner air and water.

In 2011 alone, renewable energy eliminated an estimated 5 million tons of air pollution. Wind offers us a clean and safe alternative to coal, gas and nuclear power. Reliance on dirty and dangerous fossil fuels degrades Illinois' future, but investing in clean energy creates opportunity and advantage.

The pollution eliminated by moving to renewable energy greatly benefits not only our economy, but also our public health and wildlife. Wildlife protections and siting requirements by state and federal government agencies help wind farms be developed so that Illinoisans do not have to choose between protecting wildlife and building a clean energy economy.

The boom in wind energy in Illinois is being led by our rural counties. Just ask residents in Henry County, where local wind energy development means that schools are expanding and modernizing, clean energy jobs are growing and local businesses are benefitting from the increased workforce and tourism. This September, Henry County received its first $1.1 million property tax check from the Bishop Hill wind farm.

Illinois counties have opened the door to clean energy and huge economic potential through safe, common-sense zoning requirements for wind farms. Boone County now has similar opportunities.

The Rockford Register Star recently reported that a new wind farm could bring in between $1 million and $2 million in tax revenues to Boone County each year. However, Boone won't see these benefits if it approves overly restrictive regulations that are intended to be roadblocks to clean energy investment. Current proposals before the Boone County Board are far more restrictive than regulations in Wisconsin and most other Illinois counties, and would lock out wind energy for years to come.

Fortunately, a strong group of leaders on the board sees through these attempts to block renewable energy and sees all the benefits that clean energy offers future generations.

In the past few months, Sierra Club has joined Boone County residents and more than a dozen local businesses that see wind power as an important local economic development opportunity and a potential leap forward for Illinois' clean energy economy. We've heard from local residents who want jobs and clean air and who want Boone County to be a leader in the transition to a healthier future. We have gathered hundreds of petition signatures from local residents, small businesses and faith leaders, and voiced support for clean energy to county board representatives.

Soon Boone County faces a major choice. Some would erect barricades to block new businesses, but we are heartened by all the residents we've met who are proud that Boone County can be a spark toward a clean energy economy. We applaud county leaders who know that welcoming renewable energy is the right choice for today and tomorrow.

If you agree, we invite you to join us and your neighbors in the fight for a stronger economy, a cleaner environment and a brighter future for Boone County and all of Illinois.

Jack Darin is Sierra Club Illinois Chapter director

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