I wrote a letter to the editor May 11 regarding a proposed wind turbine project by Liberty Power targeting landowners in Pike and Wapsi counties. On June 14th, we attended their second meeting at the West Liberty Fairgrounds, and I want to clarify a few items we learned from the meeting:
-The proposed turbine height is not 600', but instead, 650'.
-The project area map for wind turbines includes land from just south of 130th Street, from the Johnson-County road on the west, to east of Holly Ave on the east, and to Highway 22 just north of Nichols on the south.
-The width of the crawling cranes for turbine installation and repairs are 30-40' wide.
-There are 80+gallons of non-bio-degradable oil in each hub's 650' high gearbox, which needs maintaining with cranes, later.
We asked Liberty representatives how close the noise and pulsating light/shade flicker effect of 650' 6MW turbines will be (there could be turbines erected approximately 1 mile southwest of Ridgeview Ave for instance), and they didn't have answers.
Also, I was told by a landowner who asked to see a typical lease agreement for their property, that the representative couldn't provide one. This lack of transparency for only a few of the meaningful and troubling questions that Liberty Power will not answer, is just in their first contacts with the townships they are targeting for their giant wind turbines.
I urge all landowners in these townships, County Supervisors, council members, and residents in nearby areas of Muscatine County to raise their awareness of the serious magnitude of this Canadian wind turbine company's intentions here.
Please note an error in my May 11 editor's letter: the amount of rare earth minerals from China required per turbine is not 27 pounds, but approximately 2700 pounds.