WyWGA discusses alternative energy

By Larry Dreiling

Alternative energy, primarily wind energy, was the focus of the annual meeting of the Wyoming Wheat Growers Association, held recently at Pine Bluffs.

Developers of a wind farm near Slater, Wyo., discussed their plans for the development of a possible 500-megawatt wind farm.

Grant Stumbough, southeast Wyoming Resource Conservation and Development district coordinator for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service, along with Slater Wind Energy Association, LLC project chairman Jack Pugsley and association chair Gregor Goertz, discussed their desires to form an association of landowners in order to get a handle on their rights as landowners.

"We have the association set up so the only purpose is collective bargaining," Stumbough says. "Once we get the best deal, each landowner will sign with the wind developer."

Stumbough, in his role as an RC&D director, said he was working with the landowners to enable them to use their strength in numbers, so even if a landowner does not have a wind generator on their property, they could still benefit.

Making the best deal

Already, the U.S. Department of Energy has rated the Slater area as one the nation's best regions for wind generation. The key is to get everyone together to make the best deal for landowners.

The association is seen as a positive concept because it addresses landowner concerns with wind leases, Stumbaugh said.

"We've seen things like landowner concerns with wind leases, a lack of trust with wind developers, developers were perceived as wind speculators and that developers were offering contract with non-disclosure clauses," Stumbough said. "This was pitting neighbor against neighbor, with the idea that the landowners could be picked off one at a time, with the thought that a checkerboard pattern of wind leases would begin to appear.

"The developers were offering a lack of information and knowledge, a lack of control and a loss of private property rights. This was creating an unfair playing field."

The thought was to place the land belonging to 45 landowners in a block of 28,000 acres to enhance the ability for the landowners to market their resources.

"This way, everybody gets a piece of the pie," Stumbough said.

Currently, 98 percent of the landowners in the area are members of the association. The members have signed an agreement with a single goal.

"It's short and simple: To utilize collective bargaining strategies to solicit and market wind energy resources," Stumbough said.

In negotiation

Association rules call for an annual 10-cent per acre membership fee to help facilitate the costs of development of a request for proposals (RFP) from wind farm developers. The RFP is part of a marketing plan containing wind data for the area, a map of the land area in the association including the road network.

"This positions the landowners to be price makers and not price takers and forces the wind developers to compete with each other," Stumbough said. "This weeded out the land grabbers."

The RFP also outlined things such as what's expected of each party in an agreement as well as minimum payments, not just for royalties on the wind but for easements for roads and connection lines.

"Those royalty payments include things like the percent of carbon credits, green tags and other environmental incentives," Stumbough said.

Also in the RFP are payments for structures and building on the land, surface damage and production loss payments, plans for site restoration, trash removal, invasive weed control, and insurance and bonding requirements.

The association currently is in negotiation with several credible wind developers. Stumbough offered an example of some of the offers, saying the association has received a lease rate for initial development of $7 dollars per acre. In the construction phase, the lease would increase to $2,500 per megawatt plus fees for roads, buildings and connection lines.

Bringing people together

In the operational phase of the wind farm, each 640 acres within the project area with two turbines would receive a minimum of $48,000 per year, while each 320 acres within the project area without turbines would receive a minimum of $20,000 per year.

Stumbough said RC&D Councils have a positive role to play in wind energy development.

"We work to facilitate the process and assist with project planning, organizing and coordinating," Stumbough said. "We are not a decision maker, but we work to bring the right people together to make it happen and empower local people. Our role is to be neutral, to provide local people with the proper information so they can make better decisions and, most of all, build trust and a team."

Also involved in wind energy is TMA Wind Energy Systems. A marketing agent of the company, Daren Rasmussen, showed a presentation of his firm's vertical axis wind energy systems.

Rasmussen said a 35-foot high model can produce as much energy as a much larger prop generator.

"We spent four years testing the design in a wind tunnel," Rasmussen said. "It can operate in winds up to 60 miles per hour with some designs operating up to 150 miles per hour, with no bird or bat kills."

Rasmussen said the company is targeting the wind generators toward single farm and ranch operations. The company is in the midst of building a wind farm that can generate about 2.5 megawatts.

Carbon credits near

Leanne Stevenson, manager of the natural resources and policy section of the Wyoming Department of Agriculture, discussed development of terrestrial and geological carbon sequestration regulations, especially since Wyoming is a large carbon emitter.

"Regardless of the science, carbon offsets and carbon emissions are being placed in a political and economic context," Stevenson said.

"Right now it has to do with marketing pressure. The day will come when there will be mandatory carbon regulation. There are companies who want to buy them now, so they can emit more carbon into the atmosphere."

Stevenson said carbon emissions occur every time someone breathes. There are other man-made causes of carbon emissions, such as driving.

"Plants naturally sequester carbon. There are ways to increase carbon sequestration. No-till grass planting, low stocking rates and improved range management with low to moderate stocking rates are some examples," Stevenson said.

"Anytime you implement new changes, there is a cost associated with them. They will reduce emissions, but at a cost to the consumer. They want to get the process cheaper."

A way to get the cost reduced is through trading carbon offsets on the open market, such as the Chicago Climate Exchange (CXX).

"Carbon sequestration requirements will happen with or without us," Stevenson said. "The political atmosphere will dictate how fast we'll have these standards. Soon there will be opportunities for producers to be recognized for their work."

Bylaws change

A major change in WyWGA's structure occurred at the business session of the meeting, as the bylaws of the association were altered to reduce the number of directors from nine to five.

"We aren't able to fill positions with the numbers we have," said outgoing president Casey Madsen, a Pine Bluffs producer. "It's hard to do business if you don't have a quorum."

With a director's seat for a Platte County producer remaining open, the group elected the following directors and officers: John Watson, Wheatland, president; Ron Rabou, Cheyenne, vice president and Brett Lanning, Pine Bluffs, director at large. Russell Beavers, Pine Bluffs, was elected recording secretary and Marti Hubbs, Hawk Springs, was reappointed executive director.

Larry Dreiling can be reached by phone at 785-628-1117 or by e-mail at ldreiling@aol.com.

12/10/07
3 Star CO\1-B

Date: 12/5/07

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