Based on the number of postings, it is clear that Highland County is one of the
favorite birding destinations for bird clubs and individual birders from around
the region. I am writing to alert everyone to a major threat to Highland County
bird and wildlife habitat and to ask assistance from all those who can help.
After several years of controversy, the Highland County Board of Supervisors is
holding a public hearing Thursday evening, May 19th, concerning a conditional
use permit that will allow construction of around twenty 400-ft tall wind
turbines on Allegheny Mountain in the Laurel Fork headwaters.
1500 Highland residents and landowners (in a county with a population of only
2400) have signed a petition opposing this project. Still, it seems that the
Supervisors will go ahead and issue the permit. This will open-up the county
for extensive ridge-top road building, clearing, and industrial-scale
construction. The County will not be able to legally deny permits to other
developers, and given that the whole enterprise is driven by subsidies, it's
going to be a gold rush. Highland will forever lose what makes it so unique and
valuable to all of us.
And what do we get for this tradeoff? If all the possible hundreds of turbines
are built on Highland's ridges, the amount of electricity produced would not
even be enough to satisfy a single year's growth in Virginia's demand for
electricity. We have a problem, but stringing turbines (8 per mile) on our
forested ridges is not the solution.
You can be sure that the majority of Highland residents and landowners are
opposed to this misguided development and that we will do everything in our
power to prevent it. But we need help. Please attend the hearing and speak if
you can. If you can't, please send your comments to me, and I'll see that they
are entered into the record.
For more info on the public hearing go to:
http://www.therecorderonline.com/index.php?id=65.
For more info on the issue in Highland go to:
http://therecorderonline.com/opinion/76/a-last-chance-to-get-it-right.
For more info on the environmental issues go to: http://www.vawind.org.
I know that carrying on a debate on this topic would be contrary to the
purposes of the list serve. I also know that this topic concerns a real threat
to birds and their habitat, and that Virginia birders will want to know what is
going on and to get involved.
If you have any questions, please respond offline.
Thank you,
Rick Webb
Monterey, Virginia
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