Lake Township's moratorium on wind energy development
By Kate Hessling
Tribune Staff Writer

LAKE TOWNSHIP — For those not following the debate regarding wind development in Lake Township, it's important to understand the planning commission's adoption of a one-year moratorium on wind energy development.

That moratorium — which was adopted in March — was created so the planning commission would have time to study issues dealing with siting, noise affects, health concerns, possible property value decreases and other problems the board fears could arise if not properly addressed in the township's ordinance, said Lake Township Clerk Valerie J. McCallum.

"If a land use has the potential to disrupt one person's life in the community, the township should spend the time and money to do what is in the best interests of the community," reads the township's March 31 minutes which included the discussion and adoption of the moratorium.

If the township does not create an ordinance before the moratorium expires in March 2009, they would have to adopt an extension of the moratorium to continue prohibiting wind development, said Charles McKeown, a manager of land use informatics at Michigan State University's Land Policy Institute.

To extend the moratorium, the board would have to prove a clear and compelling government interest that's rooted in protecting the health, safety and welfare of the community, he said.

McKeown said if the township were to leave the moratorium in place and a wind developer is losing time and money on a project in the area, the developer could challenge the moratorium — which would result in a battle at the Michigan State Court of Appeals and place the township in the position of being liable for possible damages.

If an ordinance is passed before March 21, 2009, the moratorium more than likely would be lifted because the whole reason for it was to give the board time to create a wind ordinance, said Lake Township Supervisor Clay Kelterborn.

 
"The basis of the moratorium was to allow the planning commission time to adopt an ordinance. We would assume if they did adopt an ordinance, that would fulfill the reasons for having the moratorium," Kelterborn said, adding he would, however, have to check with the township's legal counsel to be 100 percent sure that's the case.

Before the planning commission writes a wind ordinance, there still are some questions that need to be answered, McCallum said. Those questions left to be answered include (1) what effects, if any, would wind turbines have on existing property values within the township, and (2) what possible effects, if any, would the turbines have on the health of the citizens living in proximity to any turbines.

She said to get answers to those questions, the board needs to continue doing research and consulting with experts.

It's not that the board is anti-wind, McCallum said. It's that planning commissioners want to make sure all their concerns are addressed and the wind ordinance Lake Township adopts is one that protects area residents and avoids situations where individuals are somehow harmed in ways that could have been prevented by the township's ordinance.

"I have concerns that there's a rush for this wind energy without issues being looked at closely enough," she said. "Already, we've been hearing in Elkton that there are people who are having problems with the noise, and I think siting is very important. That's why the planning commission is taking so much time. If they (turbines) are (put) here, we want to make sure they are done properly and people don't have problems with them."

As part of their researching efforts, the Lake Township Planning Commission held a meeting in January to review the Michigan Siting Guidelines for Wind Energy Systems that was prepared by the Energy Office of the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Growth.

Another meeting featured a representative from the Audubon Society which supports wind energy and works with developers to mitigate problems with wildlife, McCallum said. The township also held a meeting in April that featured Sound Expert Richard R. James, of E-Coustic Solutions.

The planning commission also has relied heavily on the recommendations of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), she said.

McCallum said it was the USFWS previously recommended the township not place any turbines closer than three miles from any Great Lake shoreline.

She said when the township received that recommendation, the planning commission in September 2007 approved a motion requesting the township's attorney draft language for an ordinance prohibiting commercial wind turbines in Lake Township.

"But when that was sent to our attorney, he advised the board it would be exclusionary zoning and we can't really do that," McCallum said.

She said it's not that the planning commission was anti-wind, but rather they were following the USFWS's recommendation.

Experts at a planning commission meeting held Wednesday at the Sleeper County Park Outdoor Center, said the USFWS has changed their recommendations, and they advised the planning commission to get a USFWS speaker to come to the area and give a presentation.

McCallum said she's tried in the past to get a representative from the USFWS to come to a Lake Township Planning Commission meeting, but it didn't work out.

"We probably will try again," she said.

Kate Hessling • (989) 269-6461 • khessling@hearstnp.com