PSC REF#:120688 Public Service Commission of Wisconsin September 2009 RECEIVED: 09/29/09, 3:28:29 PM PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION OF WISCONSIN Glacier Hills Wind Park Project Volume 1 Final Environmental Impact Statement PSC Docket 6630-CE-302 Date Issued: September 2009 PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION OF WISCONSIN Glacier Hills Wind Park Project Public Service Commission of Wisconsin 610 North Whitney Way P.O. Box 7854 Madison, Wisconsin 53707-7854 Phone 608.266.5481 • Fax 608.266.3957 • TTY 608.267.1479 E-mail: [email protected] Home Page: http://www.psc.wi.gov his final Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed Glacier Hills Wind Park project is progress towards compliance with the Public Service Commission’s requirement under T Wis. Stat. § 1.11 and Wis. Admin. Code § PSC 4.30. Questions about information provided in this final Environmental Impact Statement should be directed to: Michael John Jaeger Jim Lepinski (environmental) or (engineering) Public Service Commission Public Service Commission (608) 267-2546 (608) 266-0478 [email protected] [email protected] To the Reader his final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) fulfills part of the requirements of the Wisconsin Environmental Policy Act (WEPA), Wis. Stat. § 1.11. WEPA requires state agencies to consider T environmental factors when making major decisions. The purpose of this final EIS is to provide the decision makers, the public, and other stakeholders with an analysis of the economic, social, cultural, and environmental impacts that could result from the construction and operation of the new wind electric generation facility. This document has been prepared by the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (Commission or PSC) with input from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection (DATCP). You are encouraged to read this final EIS and attend the hearing for the project which will be held in the project area (see below). During the hearing the final EIS will be entered into the hearing record by Commission staff. Comments on the draft EIS were reviewed and considered during preparation of the final EIS and resulted in a number of changes and additions to this document. A summary of the comments and a description of their final disposition are included in Table 7.1-1. These comments can be viewed by accessing the Electronic Regulatory Filing (ERF) system on the Commission’s web page at http://psc.wi.gov/ and selecting the ERF button. On the ERF page select the Search ERF option and then enter the PSC reference numbers listed in Table 7-1 to view the comments. This final EIS will be a subject of the hearing to be held for this project. The Commission’s decision to approve, modify, or deny ATC’s application for this project will be based on the record of the technical and public portions of the hearing. The public hearing will be held at 3:00 and 7:00 p.m. on November 4, 2009, at the Randolph Town Hall, 109 South Madison Street, Friesland, Wisconsin. A copy of the Notice of Hearing will be mailed to a list of known landowners in and near the proposed project area, and to local government officials. The Notice will also be published in the local newspaper. At the hearing, members of the public may testify about the project or the final EIS. In addition, written comments may be submitted in any of the following ways: • Written comments submitted at the public hearing. • Written comments submitted via the Commission’s ERF system by October 28, 2009. The form used to file comments electronically can be found on the Commission’s web page, http://psc.wi.gov/, by selecting the Public Comments button, then selecting Wisconsin Electric Power Company (WEPCO) Glacier Hills Wind Park, docket 6630-CE-302 from the list provided. • Written comments may be submitted by mail by October 28, 2009, addressed to: Docket 6630-CE-302 Comments Public Service Commission of Wisconsin P.O. Box 7854 Madison, WI 53707-7854 Members of the public who submit comments should understand that those comments will be included in the record on which the Commission will base its decision to approve, modify, or deny Wisconsin Electric Power Company’s application. As such, the comments are subject to objection during the hearing. If objected to, the comments might not be admitted into the hearing record. Members of the public who have doubts about the admissibility of their comments should plan to provide oral testimony at the public hearing. All comments and a transcript of oral testimony will be posted to the Commission’s website as an open public record. The public and technical portions of the hearing will satisfy the WEPA requirements of both the Commission and DNR. A Commission decision on the proposed project is expected in January 2009. Specific questions on the final EIS should be addressed to: Michael John Jaeger Public Service Commission (608) 267-2546 [email protected] PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION OF WISCONSIN Table of Contents T ABLE OF C ONTENTS ............................................................... I L IST OF T ABLES ................................................................... VII L IST OF F IGURES ................................................................... IX C ONTRIBUTORS AND R EVIEWERS ................................................. XI Contributors ............................................................................................................................. xi Public Service Commission ........................................................................................................... xi Reviewers ................................................................................................................................. xi Public Service Commission ........................................................................................................... xi Department of Natural Resources ................................................................................................. xi E XECUTIVE S UMMARY ............................................................ XIII Project Area ............................................................................................................................ xiii Description of Facilities ........................................................................................................ xiii Project Need and Cost .......................................................................................................... xiv Alternatives Considered ....................................................................................................... xiv Technology alternatives .............................................................................................................. xiv Site alternatives ............................................................................................................................ xv Environmental Effects of the Glacier Hills Wind Park ........................................................ xv Natural resource impacts.............................................................................................................. xv Community and social impacts ................................................................................................... xvii Land Use Plans .................................................................................................................... xviii Shadow Flicker ..................................................................................................................... xviii Noise ........................................................................................................................................ xix Roads and Traffic Congestion ............................................................................................. xix Shared Revenue and Employment ....................................................................................... xx Television, Radio, and Telecommunications ...................................................................... xx 1. P ROJECT O VERVIEW AND R EGULATORY R EQUIREMENTS ................ 1 1.1. Description of the Proposed Project ..................................................................... 1 1.1.1. Proposed wind turbine facility ............................................................................................. 1 1.1.2. Proposed project area and turbine sites ............................................................................. 1 1.1.3. Transmission interconnection facilities ............................................................................... 3 1.1.4. Ownership and operation of generation and transmission facilities ................................... 3 I PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION OF WISCONSIN 1.1.5. Expected life of plant ........................................................................................................... 3 1.1.6. Decommissioning of plant ................................................................................................... 3 1.2. Regulatory Background .......................................................................................... 4 1.2.1. Wisconsin Energy Priorities Statute .................................................................................... 4 1.2.2. Wisconsin’s Renewable Portfolio Standard ......................................................................... 4 1.3. Regulatory Review Process